[141] Kolomna gate: a gate leading to Kolomna, a town on the Moskwa River.
[142] Miloradovitch: a Russian general.
[143] Mazeppa: a Pole, who having been detected in a crime was bound to the back of a wild horse and carried by the animal to the country of the Cossacks. There he became head of the Cossack forces, and when Peter the Great attempted to seize that country, Mazeppa formed an alliance with Charles XII. of Sweden for the independence of the Cossacks.
[144] Dorogomilow: the name of a quarter of the city.
[145] Daru: a distinguished French author and statesman who accompanied Napoleon in his Russian campaign.
[146] Boyars: nobles, or men of rank.
[147] Bivouac (biv-wak'): to encamp without tents or shelter.
[148] Scythians: a race of fierce barbarians, formerly inhabiting the country north and east of the Black Sea. Napoleon intimates that these men are their descendants.
[149] Strelitzes: a body of military guards that revolted under Peter the Great.
[150] Postern-gate: a small rear or side gate.