Kings & rulers > History of Charles XII, King of Sweden

BOOK Ifc
78 THE HISTORY OF
breaking, remained quiet. That prudent monarch did
cot venture to discover the disgust he felt at seeing
the King of Sweden so near his dominions. At a
greater distance towards the south-west, between the
Ilivers Elbe and Weser, lay the Duchy of Bremen,
the most remote of all the ancieftt conquests of the
Swedes. This country was filled with strong garrisons,,
and opened to the Conqueror a free passage to Saxony
and the Empire. Thus, from the German Ocean al¬
most to the mouth of the Boristhenes, comprehending
the whole breadth of Europe, and even to the gates-
of Moscow, all was in consternation, and every one
was daily expecting a general revolution. Charles’s
ships, which were now masters of the Baltic, were
employed in transpor ting to Sweden the prisoners he
had taken in Poland. Sweden, undisturbed in the
midst of these mighty commotions, enjoyed the sweets,
of peace, and shared in the glory of its king, without,
bearing the burden of the war; inasmuch as its victor-
rious troops were paid and maintained at the expense
of the conquered.
While ail the northern powers were thus kept irr
awe by the arms of Charles XII. the town of Dant-
ssick ventured to incur his displeasure. Fourteen fri¬
gates and forty transports were bringing the king a
reinforcement of six thousand men, with cannon and
ammunition, to form the siege of Thorn. These suc¬
cours must necessarily pass up the Weissel. At the
mouth of this river stands Dantzick, a free and wealthy
town, which, together with Thorn and Elbing, enjoys
the same privileges in Poland as the imperial towns
possess in Germany. Its liberty hath been alternate¬
ly attacked by the Danes, the Swedes, and some Ger¬
man princes; and nothing hath preserved it from bon--
dage but tbe mutual jealousy of these rival powers..