The King was accompanied by a great number of Polish Noblemen, who finding themselves unable to oppose the Rage of the Primate's Party in their several Countries, came to seek shelter in Saxony, where his Majesty receiv'd them, and still entertains them, in a manner which cannot but convince them of his Gratitude, and give them greater Hopes of what Favours they may expect, when the Tranquillity of Poland is restor'd.
The King, after his Return from Cracow, summon'd the States of his Electorate, and open'd the Assembly with the usual Ceremonies. He was seated on his Throne, accompanied by the chief Lords of his Court, as well the Polish as Saxons. M. de Miltitz, his Privy Counsellor, sat on the Right-hand of the Throne; and, in the King's Name, made a Speech to the States, wherein he declared to them that his Majesty intended to make no Innovation
in the Affairs of Religion, but to let his Protestant Subjects enjoy their Privileges, as they had been granted and confirm'd to them by the late King. Then they told him the Motives which had engag'd the King to call them together, and demanded the necessary Subsidies for defraying the extraordinary Expences which his Majesty had been necessarily involved in thro' the Calamities of the Time. M. de Hesler, Administrator of the Office of hereditary Marshal of Saxony, return'd an Answer in the Name of the States, and spoke with a Dignity, and all the Decorum due to so august an Assembly. He assur'd the King of the respectful and inviolable Fidelity and Attachment of his Subjects to his sacred Person. And in truth, 'tis impossible for a People to be better affected to their Sovereign, and more disposed to contribute to every thing that is capable of augmenting his Glory.
The King's voluntary Declaration to his States that he would make no Innovation in the Affairs of Religion, won the Hearts of his Subjects to such a degree, that there is not a Saxon who would make any scruple to sacrifice his Life and Fortune for his Service. And the said Declaration does equal Honour to the Justice of the Monarch, and the Wisdom of his Ministers.
While the King was employ'd with his States in securing the Happiness and Tranquility of Saxony, his Majesty received Advice, that his Army, after having join'd the Russians, had obliged the Dantzickers to surrender, and that the Polish Lords of the contrary Party petition'd for leave to remove to some Place where they might pay him their homage. The King, in imitation of the great Emperor whose Name he bears, after having made a Conquest, thought, like him, of nothing more than to make those happy whom the Fortune of War had submitted to his Arms. His Majesty did not take
any advantage of his Victory, but forgetting past Offences, repair'd to the Abbey of Oliva, near Dantzic, where he receiv'd the Submission of the Dantzickers, and the Allegiance of the Lords that were the Primate's Adherents. By his Modesty and Goodness, he charm'd the Vanquished, and convinc'd them of their Obligation to pay him that Esteem which before perhaps they did not think was their Duty to grant to him. The Greatness of his Soul, which inclines him to sympathize with the Misfortunes of the Unhappy, hinder'd him from entering Dantzic, the desolate State of that City being so afflicting a Scene to him, that he cou'd not bear to see it. The Dantzickers, by their submission, were become his Subjects; their present Misfortunes, and their past Mistakes, affected him to such a degree, that he was fearful of being put in mind of them, and refus'd to appear among them, crown'd with those Laurels which he had reap'd by their defeat. So much Modesty, worthy of the most glorious Triumph, gain'd him the Prayers of the People, in which his Majesty saw more Charms, than he wou'd have found in Trophies, and the most stately Triumphal Arches.
The King having provided for the pressing Necessities of his Kingdom, return'd to his Electorate, where the States continued their Deliberations ever since his Absence. Now that his Majesty is return'd, the Care of the State is almost his constant Employment. His Recreations are either taking the Air on horseback, Hunting, the Italian Opera, or else going to Concerts, which the Queen, who is a great Lover of Music, causes to be perform'd in her own Apartment. Their Majesties generally dine together, and admit the Nobility of both Sexes to their Table.
There, the King observes that Temperance which so much becomes sovereign Princes. All his Hours, as has been already observ'd, are regulated; and all his Actions accompanied with Devotion, good Order, and Equity. Never did King better discharge that sacred Character; being always firm and tranquil, Danger cou'd never affright him. He accepted the Crown, tho' he saw he cou'd never fix it on his Head without infinite Pains, Peril, and Cares. The Advantage he had gain'd over his Enemies did not seem to have flush'd him; he was sorry he had not been able to reclaim them by gentle Methods, and ascribes the happy Success of his Arms solely to Providence.
Thus have I given you a very imperfect Account of the Virtues and Actions of a King, which plainly denote that the perfect honest Man (a Title not unworthy even of the sacred Majesty of Kings) forms his Character. As for his Stature, 'tis such as, one wou'd think, those ought to have who are born to command. He has a robust and vigorous Constitution, a sound Judgment, a happy Memory, a generous and beneficent Soul, the necessary Constituents of the Hero and the Christian. His Conduct is regulated by a great Attachment to the Principles of Religion. His Aim and his Application are to render his Subjects happy; and he only longs for Peace that they may taste the Fruits of it.