book Anne Haftings, he Ihould reply, that Feodor the eldeft prince
» undoubtedly heir to the throne, but that her .children
Should be amply endowed: 1
Pirfemfkoi, in confequehce o f thefe orders, repaired to
London, had an audience of Elizabeth, faw lady Baitings,
who had juft recovered from the fmall-pox, procured her
'portrait, and returned to Mo’fcow in .158 3, accompanied with
an Engliftftembaffador, Sir Jerome Bowes. The latter, who
was1 a perfon of a capricious difpdiition, at his ‘fiift
interview greatly offended the tzar by his'freedom of fpeech,
and more particularly as he was not commiffioned to give
a final affent to the marriage, but only to receive a more explicit
offer, and tranfmit it to the queen: The tzar,‘little
accuftomed to brook delay, declared, “ that 116 obftacle
“ ihould prevent him from marrying fome kinfwoman of
“ her majefty’s; that he ihould fend again into England to
“ have fome one of them to wife; adding, that if herma-
“ jetty would not, upon his next embaffy, fend him fuch an
“ one as he defired, himfelf would'then go into England,
“ and carry'his treafure with him , and marry one o f them
“ there.” Sir Jerome Bowes, probablyfih conformity to his-
inftrudtions, threw every obftacle in the-way of the'marriage
: inftead offpeaking handfomely of lady Haftings, mentioned
her perfon with indifferencej and denied that Are was-
any relation to the queen ; adding,1 with fome marks of contempt,
that his miftrefs had many fuch nieces. By thefe
means the affair was fufpended, and the negotiation was
finally terminated by the death of the tzar in the beginning
of the following year.
The correfpondence between the Ruffian and Engliih fo-
vereigns, begun in the reign of Ivan, appears/from thefe
5 '• m archives,
archives, by no means to have ceafed upon his demife. The CHAP-
amity, indeed, between the two courts was fo firmly efta- * V- ■
blilhed, that Charles I. fent a corps o f troops, under colonel
Sanderfbn, to: the afliftance of Michael Feodorovitch, againft
Ladiflaus king of Poland.;. :and Alexdy Michaelovitch occa-
Jionally furniihed Charles, in the period of his greateft
diftrefs, with money and corn. The laft letter from our
unfortunate fovereign to Alexey is dated Ifle of Wight, June
% 1648, and was written during his confinement in.Caris-
brook-Caftle. I obferved one from Charles I [. to the fame
tzar, announcing the execution of his father; it is dated
September the 16th, 1649, and was brought to Mofcow.by
Lord.Culpepper.
During the ufurpation of Cromwell, Alexey maintained
a conftant correfpondence with the exiled Charles. He was
accuftomed to declare, that all monarchs ought to efteem the
caufe of CharlesT. as their own ; and ihould not, by countenancing,
an- ufurper, encourage fubjedts to rebel againft:
their king. In conformity to thefe fentiments he refufed,.
for a time d, to hold any intercourfe with the protedtor
and thefe archives-contain no letters between Cromwell and-
the ¡tzar.
The reiteration of Charles II. renewed the friendly harmony
between the two courts ; and as from this interval the
difpatches- received from England were fo numerous, that
it would have required feveral days to have examined them1
with any degree of attention ; I was compelled to retire
without having fufficiently fatisfied my curiofity.. Thefe
* I-fay fo r a time; for although, i f I the. protettor, and had once confented’
ughtly remember, thefe archives -contain to receive his embafladors at Mofcow. This
00 difpatches between the tzar and Crom- will fully appear in the chapter on the Rife ■
| | p | yet it is certain, that after fometime and Progrefs o f the Engliih Trade to Ruffia
Alexey maintained a correfpondence with in the next volume,
papers^