book Although only'a few perfons were engaged in- this tiio-
. i men tons, enterprise, yet the defigns o f the1 party coiild not
be concealed from the friends o f the emperor, who earneftly
intreated him to inveiligate the foundation o f the report:
but Peter» who had committed the care of the emprefles
perfon to thole in whom he placed the higheft confidence,
aould never be prevailed upon to give the llighteft credit to
the -rumour-; and indeed he was fo convinced o f its falfe-
hood, that any foggeftions on that head always offended him.
One o f his confidents prefented him a memorial in writing,
in which the-names o f feveral confpirators were mentioned
‘ ‘ What, always the old ftory !” faid-the em p e r o r ;h e r e /
“ take- back your paper; and do not »trouble me any more
“ with fuch idle tales.” His-uncle, prince George o f Hol-
ftein, laid he was tired with tendering remonftr'ances ; and
that the emperor was infenlible to the danger o f his lituation.
On the very morning o f the revolution, about two o’clock, art
officer, who had a great fhare in Peter’s confidence, arrived at
Oranienbaum, and demanded to fpeak with him upon an
affair o f the greateft importance. Being, after fome difficulty,
admitted, he acquainted the emperor with feveral circurn-:
fiances, which feemed to indicate a confpiracy upon the point
o f breaking out. But that infatuated prince was fo far from
paying the leaft attention to the intelligence, that he ordered
the officer under immediate arreft, for prefuming to difturb
him at fo late an hour. And yet at this very hour his de-i
thronement was determined; which event was accelerated
by a circumftance perfectly unconnected with the intentions
o f the oppofite party.
The arreft of one o f the empreffes adherents, a lieutenant
in the guards whofe name .was Paffec, greatly
.alarmed her friends, as they concluded that-the emperor had
penetrated
penetrated their defign; and although they foon difcovered VHaf.
that his arreft had been occafioned by fome irregularity o fw .^ j
which he had been guilty as an officer, yet the confternation
it had fpread amongft them haftened the execution o f their
enterprize. Every moment was big with danger; and a
difcovery feemed inevitable i f the infurredtion was delayed
until the emperor’s departure for Holftein.
T h e emprefs, however, who continued at Peterhof, ffiud-
dered at the advice to precipitate the hour o f a ftion;
her refolution at this awful crifis, when immediate decifion
was neceffary, feemed for a moment to fail, and ihe he-
fitated to aflent; but her party at Peterfburgh, convinced
that the leaft delay would prove fatal, difpatched, on the
evening o f the 127 th of June, an empty carriage to Peterhof,
the appointed fignal for her approach to the capital. Catharine,
whofe greatnefs o f mind loon recurred to fupport
her in this dreadful ftate o f agitation and fufpence, inftantly
efcaped from her apartment ; and, at three o’clock in the
morning, having traverfed the garden alone to the place
where the carriage m was waiting for her, was conveyed with
all fpeed to Peterfburgh. It had been preconcerted, that
count Panin ihould attend to the fafety o f the great-duke's
perfon ; that Gregory Orlof fhould remain in the capital to
win over fome o f the guards ; and that count Rofomouiki
ihould prepare his regiment for the reception o f the emprefs.
In confequence o f this determination, Catharine, upon her
entrance into Peterfburgh, immediately repaired to the
quarters o f the Ifmalalofiki guards. T h e hour was fo early
that Rofomouiki, the lieutenant-colonel, was not yet arrived ;
* - T h i s ca r r iag e was c o n d u c e d b y on e o f th e perfon, I was u nw illin g to advance anv
th e emprefles moit confid ential ad herents, faS :, o f w h ich 1 was n o t as perfeiSlly c o n - ’
I believe b y count A le x e y O r lo f; b u t as I vjn ced as the in tr icate natu re o f thefe affairs
found it im p ra fticab le pofitive ly to a fce rta in w o u ld admit.
V ol . II. ' D an