The estates, empires, & principallities of the world Represented by ye description of countries, maners of inhabitants, riches of prouinces, forces, gouernment, religion; and the princes that haue gouerned in euery estate. With the begin[n]ing of all militarie and religious orders. Translated out of French by Edw: Grimstone, sargeant at armes.

¶ The Qualitie of the Countrie.

[ XVIII] TO discourse in generall of all this countrie, it is full of marishes, myerie, moist, and nothing fertile, by reason that the aire is rough and vntemperat, and the fields are full of sand, and the soyle not good: so as the corne doth seldome ripen, by reason that the Winter is long, and the cold verie sharpe: wherefore, they drie their sheaues in stoues: yet they haue store of wheat, and grasse. Their land beares no vines, nor oliue trees, cheries, nor walnuts: they haue small nuts, and some other kinds of fruits, but their tast is not verie pleasing. The high countrie is full of woods and great forests, where the trees [ E] are verie high and thicke, and these woods are part of the forest of Hercynia. They find in them great numbers of Elkes, B••gles, B••a••es, Stags, and Wolues, but especially of Hares. Their sheep are much lesse than ours. They haue great store of bees, which liue not only in hyues which they make expresly for them, but they also fill hollow trees in the forest with their hony; yea in such sort, as a Muscouite called Demetrius being sent to Rome in embassage, reported, That a countrieman of his knowledge, and his neighbour, had slipt down into a great hollow tree to seeke for honie, and that being at the bottome, he was vp to the breast in honie, and continued two dayes in that estate, liuing onely of honie, vntill that seeing a beare which came to eat of this honie, and had gotten downe, he layed hold of him, and so terrified him with his cries, as he made him to leape forth, [ F] and so drew him out with him, hauing fast hold of the beares legges. Horned beasts are for the most part without hornes. The countrie yeelds aboundance of flax and hempe, which they transport into many parts of Europe, to make cords. There are not ••ny veynes of gold, siluer, or other mettall in this countrie, except yron. There is store of pa∣sture,

[ A] and by consequence great aboundance of cattell and flesh.

The aire of Muscouie is so good, as it were a wonder to see it infected with the plague: yet they haue a burning feuer which doth so torment them, lying in their heads & bow∣ells, as they die within few daies. The land opens and gapes by reason of the great cold, as it doth in our countries after a great heat & drought. Yet somtimes it is hote in the coun∣trie, for in the yeare 1527, the heat of Sommer was so violent, as the wheat yea and for∣rests were burnt, as Sigismond doth write.

There are many goodly riuers, among which there are diuers very famous, as well by [ XIX] reason of the nauigation, as for their greatnesse, and for the aboundance of fish which is [ B] in them. The chiefe which rise and haue their springs in the countrie it selfe, or else doe water it, are Borysthenes, called vulgarly Dnieper, Deneper or Neper, and Nester or Denester whose spring was vnknown to Herodotus; but discouered in our time neere to Dniepetk a village in Muscouie in the forrest of Wolkonzki. This riuer running towards the South, and passing first by the towne of Smolenko, then by Kiouia, and some other townes, being growne great with many other waters, falls into the Euxine sea, among others it receiues the riuer of D••sna, called by the auncients Hipani, but in such sort, as it being most cleere of it selfe, and Desna muddie, it is not troubled with it. Turante now called Duina, as Heberstein Rubo affirmes, comes out of the lake of Duina, neere vnto the spring of Neper in the same forrest, and falls into the Balt••cke sea. Rha now called Vol∣ga [ C] and Edil, is another riuer in Muscouie, which draws her name from a lake so called, which is fiue and twentie leagues from Musco, bending towards Lituania. This riuer hath an infinit course, for that rising as I haue said, and turning vp and downe, in the end it passeth neere vnto the towne of Astracham, and falleth into the Caspian sea with se∣uentie mouthes: the nauigation whereof doth inrich Muscouie with gold, siluer, silkes, and tapistrie, and by it they carrie away in exchange rich furres. The riuer of Tanais or of Don comes not out of the Riphean mountains, as some haue thought, but out of a great lake which is within a forrest neere vnto the riuer of Tuelle. This riuer with her course diuides Europe from Asia, and comming out of Muscouie, hauing runne a great tract, it turnes backe towards the South, and makes the marishes which they call Meotides, and [ D] are at this day called of Temerinde. This riuer hath store of fish, and goodly banks coue∣red with grasse, and fruit trees, whereas they also find roots of a pleasing tast. Herberstein saith, that this riuer doth swell so in Autumne, as it is able to beare great ships ful fraught. The riuer of Ocque hath her spring in the prouince of Misceneke, and makes all the land which it waters fertile: it abounds in fish, which they esteeme more than all the rest of Muscouie. There are moreouer many lakes, whereof some are exceeding great: for be∣sides the lake of Volga, of Duina, and others, from whence the riuers of Muscouie take their springs, there is the lake of Imen which the Rutheniens call Ilmer, aboue Nouo∣grod the great, the which is twelue German leagues long, and eight broad.

But to describe more particularly the qualitie of these countries, it is most certaine [ XX] [ E] that in the prouince of Volodimer, the land is so good & so fertile, as a measure of come being sowne doth many times yeeld twentie, yea sometime fiue and twentie measures. It is true that the soile of Rhezan is much more fertile, and yeelds more than all the rest that are vnder the Muscouite, for they say that one graine of corne doth many times bring forth six eares, yea more; the stalkes grow so thicke, as a horse can hardly passe through them, nor the quailes flie, or get out of them but with much difficultie. In this prouince there is great store of honie, fish, foule, and in like manner plentie of ••rmines and beuers; and their fruits are better than in any countrie of Muscouie: it is in this countrie whereas they find the spring of the riuer of Don.

As for the countrie of Seuere, it abounds in all things, notwithstanding that there be [ F] great champian desarts, and neere vnto Branki a very great wood. The forrests are full of ermines and sables. Touching the duchie of Smolenko, there are many thicke forrests, from whence they carrie a great number of sundrie skins. But if we shall obserue the pro∣uince of Volsque, we shall find one thing strange, for they hold it for certaine that the beasts which are brought thither, of what haire or colour soeuer they be, grow all white

hauing made any stay there. As for the prouince of Bieleieziore, it is in a manner full of [ A] woods, and marishes. In regard of that of Vstyug, there is little corne, but much flesh and fish: there are great numbers of beasts of all sorts, and by consequence many rich skins, except sables, the which are neither faire, nor many in number. The countrie of Rostoau hath a fertile soile, and abounds in salt and fish.

The prouince of Duuina is reasonably fertile, and it is plentifully furnished with fish and great store of beasts. Vpon the sea coast of this countrie there are many white beares which liue most commonly in the sea, as they of the countrie report. That of Viuatke is barren and moorish; but there is great plentie of honie, fish, and wild beasts. In the pro∣uince of Permia there is no corne, but in recompence they haue great store of stags and [ B] other beasts.

In the prouince of Petzore there are great mountaines and wonderfull high rockes, the which the auncients called Riphean or Hiperboreans, the which continually are co∣uered with snow. They are so high as some haue beene seuenteene daies going vp, and yet could not come to the top. There is not any corne in this countrie, but many wild beasts.