Johann Anton Güldenstädt was a Baltic German naturalist and explorer in Russian service, who, in 1768, joined the Russian Imperial Academy of Sciences' expedition to explore the Russian empire's southern frontier. Güldenstädt traveled through Ukraine and southern Russian steppes to reach the northern Caucasus, from where he visited Georgia. In March 1775 he returned to St Petersburg. The results of the expedition and Güldenstädt's edited expedition journal were published after his death by Peter Simon Pallas in Reisen durch Russland und im Caucasischen Gebürge (Travels in Russia and the Mountains of the Caucasus) (1787–1791). Below is an extract of a letter that Güldenstädt wrote to a friend from Tbilisi on 28 December 1771, which was published in the "London Magazine" (Vol. 41, p. 285) in 1772.
I am now travelling round about Georgia; the 15th of last month I arrived at the camp of King Heraclius [Erekle II]; as soon as he was acquainted with my arrival, the very same day I was called to an audience; he himself came to receive me out of the door of hit tent, embraced me, led me into the tent, and made me sit down upon the couch on his right hand; I was so moved with this uncivilized Asiatic Prince, when I saw his thirst after knowledge, his love towards his subjects, his care and solicitude for increasing the interest of his subjects, and to enrich the produce of their land, that I really thought it were to be wished that our civilized and christian princes would only be half as careful in minding their duties towards their subjects, and inform themselves of but half at much of the consequence of their office as I found by this infidel. Certainly, my dear friend, thought I, it is not religion which ought to make a prince respectable, but rather his affection towards his country and subjects.
This good infidel then told, with tears in his eyes, that he curses the occasion which, gave into his hand the care of more people than he can make happy; he rather would be born a beggar than enjoy all the pleasure possible in having every minute a trial for the severe judge his conscience. Poor people (said he) they provide for me the finest tent, the finest sheep, the best wines for my table, the best horses and mules, and so many young lads at my service, and all at their expense; it is their hard labour which gives me all these conveniences, and when my conscience asks me, wretch! what benefit have these poor creatures of it? Are thou born to rob all these people? Has nature produced thee to enjoy all these pleasures only to suck the blood of all the poor subjects? O! I must blush, I am ashamed, my conscience has not a single word to answer. I am surprised (adds he) how your crowned heads in Europe, who have the care of many millions of people, how they can clear their conscience; certainly if they have the least humanity of sensation, they are the most unhappy creatures in the world; I have only the care of about 160,000, and yet I feel the most heavy load. What must that monarch feel, who hath as many hundreds? And if he has no sense of his duty, I own I cannot conceive the way of providence; in short, I am constrained to conclude, there must be such a superintendent being that delights in evil, and in creating such miserable beings under a government of a senseless monarch!
He then told me that in the course of one hundred years, his subjects and the rest of the province had been obliged to swear obedience to the Persians, then to the Turks, and now at last to the Russians; but with the last-mentioned sovereign he is quite satisfied as he is acquainted with the noble mind of our gracious Empress, towards her country and subjects; and to demonstrate his zeal, he fought three successful battles against the Turks, to the last of which, my dear friend, I have been a witness. This his last battle was fought in the province of Carduce, on the river Cur (or in the ancient language, in Iberia, on the river of Tyrus.) After this battle, I went with the said King Heraclius to his capital city of Teflis, where I and my suite are to remain during the short winter season. In November the leaves of the trees begin to fall; and in January they begin to grow green again. About that time I propose to go towards Armenia, to the mountains of Ararat, and to Kislar; so that I shall not be able to return home till October next year. I am now to travel through all the provinces of Carduel [Kartli], Cachetire [Kakhetia], and Georgia, and then to Emeratia [Imereti], and Mingreloa, to the King Salom's [Solomon I], where at present is the remainder of Count [Gottlob Curt Heinrich Graf von] Tottlieben's, and major general Suchoten's two corps consisting of 5,000 men, which little army makes a great progress by the assistance of the Georgians at the Black Sea, and they expect every minute assistance of our fleet upon the Esov [Azov] Sea, or Marotic Gulph.
I am sorry that we in Europe have so imperfect an account of these Eastern Asiatic provinces; our geography of them is nothing but a chain of blunders and defects, and the natural history of these provinces is totally defective. I must conclude and tell you, that all circumstances of the present war are in such situation, just as they are to be wished in such a happy epoch, in which Catherine the Great is the Empress of such a numerous nation.
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