St. Peter, called The Recognition, ascribed to St. Clement.

PETER OF BLOIs, a learned man of the twelfth century, born about 1120, at Blois, in France. He was the first person who employed the famous word transubstantiation. He was appointed preceptor to William II. king of Sicily, in 1167, and obtained the custody of the privy seal. In 1168 he left Sicily and returned into France. He was soon after invited into England by Henry II., who employed him as his private secretary, made him archdeacon of Bath, and gave him some other benefices. When he had spent a few years at court, he retired into the family of Richard archbishop of Canterbury, who had made him his secretary and chancellor about 1176. In this station he continued to the death of the archbishop in 1183, enjoying the highest degree of favor with that prelate. Our author remained in the same station with archbishop Baldwin, who succeeded Richard. He was also sent by that prelate to plead his cause before pope Urban III. After the departure of Baldwin for the Holy Land, in 1192, our author was involved in various troubles in his old age; and died about the end of the twelfth century. He appears from his works, which may be justly reckoned among the most valuable monuments of the age in which he flourished, to have been a man of great integrity and sincere piety, as well as of a lively inventive genius and uncommon erudition. His printed works consist of 134 letters, which he collected at the desire of Henry II.; of sixtyfive sermons; and of seventeen tracts on different subjects.

PETER THE HERMIT. See CRUSADES, vol. iv. p. 680.

PETER I., styled the Great, czar, and afterwards emperor of Russia, founder of the Russian empire; for though the country was well known, and of great antiquity, yet it had no extent of power, of political influence, or of general commerce, in Europe, till his time. He was born in 1672; and was proclaimed czar when but ten years of age, in exclusion of John his elder brother, who was of a sickly constitution and weak mind. The princess Sophia, his half sister, made an insurrection in favor of John; and, to put an end to the civil war, it was at last agreed that the two brothers should jointly share the imperial dignity. Peter had been very negligently educated, not only through the general defects of the Russian system, but likewise through the arts of the Princess Sophia, who surrounded him with every thing that might stifle his natural desire of knowledge, and deprave his mind. Notwithstanding this, his inclination for military exercises discovered itself in his tenderest years. He formed a company of fifty men, commanded by foreign officers, clothed and exercised after the German manner; he entered himself into the lowest post, that of a drummer; and never rose otherwise than as a soldier of fortune. He now reinforced his company with several others, till at last he had got together a considerable body of soldiers, and by this means gradually secured a body of well disciplined troops. The sight of a Dutch vessel which he had met with on a lake belonging to one of his pleasure

houses, made such an impression on his mind, that he conceived the almost impracticable desig of forming a navy. His first care was to get some Hollanders to build some small vessels z Moscow; and he passed two successive summers on board English or Dutch ships, which set ou from Archangel, that he might instruct himself in every branch of naval affairs. In 1696 czar John died, and Peter was now sole master of the empire. In 1698 he sent an embassy to Holland; and went incognito in the retinue, visiting England as well as Holland, to inform himself fully in the art of ship-building. At Amsterdam he worked in the yard as a pri vate ship-carpenter, under the name of Peter Michaelof; but he has been often heard to say, that if he had never gone to England, he ha remained ignorant of that art. In 1700 be bad got together a body of standing forces, consist ing of 30,000 foot; and now the vast project he had formed displayed itself in all its parts. He opened his dominions to all intelligent travellers, having first sent the chief nobility of his empire into foreign countries to improve themselves knowledge and learning, and invited into Russia all the foreigners he could meet with, who were capable of instructing his subjects. This raised many discontents; and the despotic authority he exerted on that occasion was scarcely powerful enough to suppress them. In 1700, being strengthened by the alliance of Augustus king of Poland, he made war on Charles XII. king of Sweden. His first ill success did not deter him; for he used to say, my armies must be overcome, but this will at last teach them to conquer.' He afterwards gained considerable a vantages; and founded Petersburg in 1703. In 1709 he gained a complete victory over the Swedes at Pultowa. Being in 1712 enclosed by the Turks on the banks of the Pruth, he seemed inevitably lost; and, had not the czarina Catha rine bribed the grand vizier, even the czar's prudence could not have effected his deliverance. In 1716 he made a tour through Germany and Holland, and visited the royal academy of sciences at Paris. It would be endless to enumerate all the various establishments for which the Russians are obliged to him. He formed an army on the model of the most military nations: he fitted out fleets in all the four seas which border upon Russia: he caused many strong fortresses to be raised after the best plans; and made conve nient harbours: he introduced arts and sciences into his dominions, and freed religion from many superstitious abuses; he built cities, cut canals, &c.; was generous in rewarding, impartial in punishing; faithful, laborious, and humble: yet was he not free from roughness of temper. had indeed cured himself of excess in drinking; but he has been branded with other vices, particu larly cruelty. He certainly caused his unfortunate son prince Alexis to be executed, and was equally severe to his son's friends. He beheaded his own brother-in-law count Lapuchin, brother to his wife Ottokessa Lapuchin whom he had divorced, and uncle to prince Alexis. The prince's confes or also forfeited his head. The remainder of the czar's life was a series of grand projects, la bors, and exploits, that seemed to efface the

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memory of his excessive severities. He made frequent speeches to his court and to his council. In one he told them that he had sacrificed his son to the welfare of his dominions. He died of the strangary in 1725, and left the world at least with the magnanimity of a hero, if not with the piety of a Christian. Peter was tall of stature, and of a bold and majestic aspect, though sometimes disfigured by convulsions, which altered his features. He conversed with persons in all stations; loved women; and valued himself on drinking large draughts, rather than sipping delicious wines. For a minuter account of his improvements, &c. see RUSSIA, PETERSBURG, &c. PETER II. emperor of Russia, the son of the unfortunate prince Alexis, was born in 1715; and in 1727 succeeded the empress Catharine I., who had declared him grand duke in 1726. The most remarkable event of his reign was the disgrace of prince Menzikoff. See MENZIKOFF. He died in 1730, aged fifteen.

PETER III., emperor of Russia, was the son of Charles Frederick, duke of Holstein Gottorp, by the princess Anne, daughter of Peter the Great, and was born in 1728. On the death of the empress Elizabeth, in 1762, he succeeded to the throne, but did not long enjoy it; being dethroned the same year by his wife, Catharine II. He died in confinement seven days afterwards, and, as is generally believed, was murdered in a barbarous manner.

PETER III., king of Arragon, succeeded his father James I. in 1276, and turned his arms against Navarre, to which kingdom he laid claim; but failed in the conquest of it. He married the daughter of Manfred king of Sicily; and, to effect the conquest of that island, contrived the horrible massacre of the French, called the Sicilian Vespers. See SICILY. For this crime he and the Sicilians were excommunicated by pope Martin IV. He died at Villefranche in 1282.

PETER THE CRUEL, king of Castile, succeeded his father Alphonsus XI. in 1350, in his sixteenth year, and proved a most barbarous and bloody tyrant; which provoked his subjects to rebel and expel him; but, little to the honor of the English, was restored by their assistance under the command of the brave Black Prince Edward. He was afterwards, however, abandoned by him, and met his just fate from his brother Henry, count of Trastamara, who killed him with his own hand. See SPAIN. PETER was also the name of four kings of Portugal. See PORTUGAL.

PETER, or DON PEDRO, of Portugal, duke of Coimbra, was the second son of John, king of Portugal, and born 4th March, 1394.

He was

one of the most accomplished princes of his age; was himself very learned, and was a patron of all learned men. To increase his knowledge, he travelled through the principal countries of Europe, Asia, and Africa, with a train suitable to his quality; of which travels an account was published, but, according to the spirit of the times, loaded with romantic fables. On his return he married Isabel, daughter of count Urgel, and grand-daughter of king Peter IV. He visited England, and was made a knight of the garter, April 22nd, 1417, by his cousin Henry

V., who was grandson of John of Gaunt by the father, as Don Pedro was by the mother. In 1440 he was appointed regent of Portugal, during the minority of his cousin Alphonsus V. His regency was so mild as well as just, that the people of Lisbon asked leave to erect a statue to him, which this great prince declined. He governed the kingdom with so much propriety that Portugal was never more respected by the other powers of Europe. He diminished the taxes, maintained the laws in their vigor, and gave the young king an excellent education; who, when he came of age, was so pleased with his conduct, that he married and raised to the throne, the duke's daughter, Donna Isabella, in 1446. Yet all his merits did not prevent the envy of some courtiers, who at last got so much the ear of the monarch as to persuade him that the duke was a traitor: but, upon an inspection of his papers, Alphonsus became convinced of his innocence; and, as the only amends he could now make, ordered his body to be interred with every mark of honor in his own sepulchre.

PETER, THE WILD BOY, a savage, found in the woods near Hamelen, a town in the electorate of Hanover, when king George I. with a party of friends was hunting in the forest of Hertswold. He was supposed to be then about twelve years of age, and had subsisted in those woods, upon leaves, berries, wild plants, bark of trees, &c., from his infancy. In 1726 he was brought over to England, and put under the care of Dr. Arbuthnot, with proper teachers. But though there appeared no natural defect in his organs of speech, he could never be brought to articulate a syllable distinctly. He was afterwards committed to the care of different persons, but never acquired any degree of improvement. He died the 22nd of February, 1785, when he was supposed to be seventy-two years old. He was well made; middle-sized; had no appearance of an idiot, nor any thing particular in his form, except two of his fingers united by a web up to the middle joint. He was delighted with music, and learned to hum a tune. He had a fore-knowledge of bad weather. Lord Monboddo gives a particular description of him, as an instance of his favorite hypothesis, that man in a state of nature is a mere animal.'

PETER LE PORT (St.), a market town of Guernsey, situated on the south-eastern part of the island, consists of one long narrow street. It is defended by the Old castle and Castle Cornet. The latter, which commands both the town and harbour, is situated on a rock, separated from the land by an arm of the sea, 600 yards wide, and fordable only at low water. The harbour has a good road for shipping. The pier, a fine work, formed of stones joined together with great regularity, affords not only security to vessels, but being paved on the top, and guarded by parapets, is a pleasant and extensive parade, with a fine prospect of the sea and the neighbouring islands.

PETERBOROUGH, a city of Nassaburgh hundred, Northamptonshire, six miles and a half north by east from Stilton, and eighty-one north from London, is situate on the border of Hunts, on the northern side of the river Nen, which runs

hence through Wisbeach, and is navigable up to the city. It is supposed to have taken its name from a monastery erected about the year 660, dedicated to St. Peter. After the monastery had flourished about 200 years it was totally destroyed by the Danes, and continued in ruins during a century, when Ethelwold, bishop of Winchester, with the assistance of Edgar and his chancellor Adulf, who was afterwards abbot, rebuilt this abbey in the most magnificent and stately manner: the abbots were mitred afterwards, and sat in parliament. At the dissolution of religious houses it was converted into a cathedral, for a bishop, dean, and six canons, eight choristers, a master, two schoolmasters, twenty scholars, six almsmen, and other officers. The cathedral suffered much during the civil war, but was thoroughly repaired some years ago. It is a noble structure, 409 feet long, and 203 broad. Amongst other monuments is one to the memory of the unfortunate Catharine of Arragon, wife of Henry VIII., and another to the memory of Mary Queen of Scots, both of whom were buried here. There is only one parish church, St. John's, besides the cathedral. The streets of Peterborough are regular, but the town has a dull appearance: near the cathedral is a good markethouse, over which are held the sessions for the hundred. It has also a well endowed charity school for twenty boys and forty girls, a free school, and a sunday School. The trade in coal, corn, and timber, is considerable, aud the stocking manufacture is carried on to some extent. On the whole this is the least city, and the poorest bishopric in England; but the jurisdiction called Peterborough Soke or Liberty extends over thirty-two towns and hamlets in the neighbourhood, in all which places the civil magistrates hold their quarter sessions of the peace, &c. The city is governed by a mayor, recorder, six aldermen, and eight common council, and sends two members to parliament. They are chosen by the inhabitants paying scot and lot, in number about 450; and the dean and chapter, who are lords of the manor, appoint the returning officers. Near the city is Caerdyke, an ancient foss made by the Romans for draining the fens. Market on Saturday. Fairs July 10th October 2d and 3d.

PETERBOROUGH, a post-town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, watered by the Contoocook, eighteen miles west of Amherst, thirtyeight south-west of Concord, and sixty-four north west of Boston. This is one of the most con

siderable manufacturing towns in the state, and contains an oil mill, a paper mill, a woollen manufactory, and five cotton manufactories.

PETERBOROUGH, a town of Ireland, in Monaghan county, and province of Ulster.

PETERHEAD, a town of Scotland, in the county of Aberdeen, about thirty-three miles north-east of that city. It stands on the most easterly point in Scotland, and from thence due west that kingdom is broadest. It is the nearest land to the northern continent of Europe, and lies within 300 miles of the cape, which is called the Naze of Norway. Through this channel the grand body of the herrings pass in their annual migrations from Shetland and the north seas to

The

the more southern latitudes, attended with the all-devouring cod and ling. The peninsula co which the town is built is connected with the [ main land on the north-west by an isthmus n more than 800 yards wide. Few harbours is Great Britain are of more importance to nan gation than Peterhead, as, in case of violent storms from the easterly points, large vessels enbayed betwixt this and the mouth of the Forti have not a port that they can safely take at every time of the tide, that of Aberdeen excepted. I therefore, they cannot make their way to sea in the teeth of a strong easterly wind, or doubl this headland that they may gain the Murra frith, they must inevitably come on shore. This harbour lies in a spacious bay, where vessels of any burden may ride in all other winds, and i therefore a frequent rendezvous of shippin which frequent the northern seas. It is defended by a good battery. A considerable trade is car ried on directly to the Baltic for deals, in hemp, tar, and other articles. There are as manufactures of sewing thread, woollen cloti, and cotton. A mineral well gives, in summa, considerable gaiety to the place; its salutary v tues have long, and very justly, been celebrated An analysis of this water has been given by Dr. Laing; who found that one pound avoirdupois contains grs. 30% muriate of iron; grs. 7 murak of lime; grs. 3 carbonate of iron; grs. 2 s ceous earth; grs. 2 sulphate of lime; grs. 13 sulphate of soda; grs. 7 muriate of soda; and I 83 cubic inches of carbonic acid gas. water has long been in great repute for disorde of the stomach and bowels, gravel, dropsy, vous affections, female complaints, scroful, leucophlegmasia, and diseases of general debility The town is in the form of a cross, and is divided into four districts. The town house is an elegant building at the head of the principal street; sixty feet long, forty broad, with a fine clock, and a spire 100 feet high. It cost about £2000. The late improvements of the piers have cost several thousand pounds. The Keith Inch divides the harbour into north and south, and the pier here has never been overflowed. The south is cons dered the more convenient harbour. The com missioners for highland roads and bridges ar expending large sums of money in forming a communication between the north and south har bours, and in effecting other great and valuable improvements. Ship-building is carried on to a great extent, and the fisheries are beginning to be much more attended to than formerly. has many elegant houses on its borders. Near it is a fort and a guard house, with a battery of four twelve-pounders, and four eighteen-pounders. Peterhead is a burgh of barony, governed by a bailie and eight councillors. There are many convenient houses for the accommodation of strangers. There is a ball-room, under which there are two salt-water baths. The church, episcopal chapel, and burgher and antiburgher meetings, are also respectable. Owing to the open and peninsulated situation, the air of this place is esteemed peculiarly pure and healthful; even the fogs rising from the sea are thought to be medicinal: the town is therefore much enlivened by the concourse of company.

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