, attractive by her
beauty, her wit, and her carriage, had the misfortune to possess a great
ascendency over her husband, and to have lost sight of the fact that
even sovereigns cannot always avenge themselves with impunity." Her
sister, Galswith, the wife of Chilperic, King of Neustria, between the
Loire and the Meuse, had been assassinated by Fredegonde, and
Brunehault, determined to avenge her, induced Sigebert to make war on
Chilperic, who had married Fredegonde. He gained a victory; but
Fredegonde contrived to have him also assassinated, and Brunehault
became Fredegonde's prisoner. But Murovee, son of Chilperic, fell in
love with her, and married her, and escaping from Rouen, fled into
Austrasia. At last, in 595, Fredegonde died, and Brunehault subdued the
greater part of Neustria, and ruled with great but unscrupulous energy.
She encouraged St. Augustine in his mission to England; she built
hospitals and churches, earning by her zeal in such works a letter of
panegyric from Pope Gregory the Great. But, old as she was, she at the
same time gave herself up to a life of outrageous license. It was not,
however, her dissolute life which proved fatal to her, but the design
which she showed to erect a firm monarchy in Austrasia and Neustria, by
putting down the overgrown power of the nobles. They raised an army to
attack her; she was defeated, and with four of her great-grandchildren,
the sons of her grandson, King Theodoric, who had been left to her
guardianship, fell into the hands of the nobles, who put her to death
with every circumstance of cruelty and indignity. (See Kitchin's
"History of France," i. 91.)]

I have seen Mr. Keith's first despatch; in general, my account was
tolerably correct; but he does not mention Ivan. The conspiracy advanced
by one of the gang being seized, though for another crime; they thought
themselves discovered. Orloff, one of them, hurried to the Czarina, and
told her she had no time to lose. She was ready for anything; nay,
marched herself at the head of fourteen thousand men and a train of
artillery against her husband, but not being the only Alecto in Muscovy,
she had been aided by a Princess Daschkaw, a nymph under twenty, and
sister to the Czar's mistress. It was not the latter, as I told you, but
the Chancellor's wife, who offered up the order of St. Catherine. I do
not know how my Lord Buckingham [the English Minister at St. Petersburg]
feels, but unless to conjure up a tempest aga