m about Charles XII. and exprefled great remorfe and com-
— ,— 1 pundtion on his account.
In mentioning thefe anecdote’s, I beg leave to requeft that
they may be coniidered merely as reports, upon which other
perfons, who ihall have an opportunity o f obtaining more
precife information, may build their inquiries ; as my intention
was to throw together all the intelligence I could colleft
concerning the death o f Charles XII.; in order to enable
the reader to draw the conclufion which ihall feem the moil
probable.
Upon reviewing the principal circumftances in this myf-
terious affair, i f we are convinced that the king’s wound was
that o f a muiket or piftol ball, and yet that he was not in a
fituation to be reached by fuch a iliot from the enemy’s batteries
; and that though the belief of his being unfairly put
to death was general in the army, yet no inquiry was made;
i f we imagine the evidence of Laewen and Carliberg are to
be abfolutely relied upon, and particularly the aflertion of
the former, that the report o f the piece which deflroyed the
king was that o f a piftol; i f we can fuppofe the'confeflion
o f Cronftedt and Shernrofe to be genuine ; the remorfe of
Frederick to be iincere and well a t t e f t e d i f we think the
opinion o f the queen dowager fufficient to convince our
judgement; we muft neceffarity conclude that Charles XII.-
was aflaflinated. On the contrary, i f we believe that the
wound was fo large that it muft have been occafioned by a
ball from a falconet, or half falconet; or i f not, that the king
was liable to be reached by a muiket b a ll; i f we fee no
glaring contradictions between the account publiihed by the
court, and the relations made by thofe who were in the
trenches at the time when he fe ll; or i f we think that the
1 latter
latter perfons may have been miftaken in fome material cir- CHAP-
cumftances; i f we can reconcile the conduit o f Frederick as ■ m‘ ,
being merely dictated by policy, and fuch as would have been
adopted by any perfon in the fame fituation, though he were
not acceflory to the murder: i f to theie confiderations we
add the natural propenfity o f mankind to attribute the death
of extraordinary perfonages to extraordinary caufes ; that
thofe who have once framed an hypothefis will imperceptibly
warp all events in its fupport; and that until pofitive
proofs, not merely drawn from flying reports and uncertain
anecdotes, are eftablifhed, we ought undoubtedly to lean to
the fide o f candour and humanity, we ought not to credit
furmifes fo injurious to characters otherwife without reproach
; and we are bound to conclude that Charles XII.
fell by the hand o f the enemy, and not by treachery. And
this opinion was likewife fupported by the high authority
of count Poniatouiki *, the confidential friend o f Charles XII.
* As I had the honour of being informed by the prefect ling of Poland.
A a a 3 C H A P .