Catherine The Great
Catherine the Great Catherine the Great may have gotten that title for many reasons. She was a "Great" lover, she was a "Great" Leader, and she was a "Great" intellectual. She is well-known for her endless list of [Lovers]. In fact, many people in today's time might refer to her as a [whore] or a [slut]..or maybe just desperate. However lustfull she was, Catherine played a large role in expanding Russia both intellecutally and physically. She was a very smart and intelligent woman and she definitely used this to her advantage. Although Catherine is reveared by many as one of the Greatest individuals to rule Russia, it is funny that in fact, she was not Russian at all. She was German. And so begins the tale of how Catherine the Great rose to power... Catherine was born born a German Princess in 1729. Her father was Christian Augustus, prince of Anhalt- Zerbst. Catherine's birth name was actually Sophie So how did a German princess make her way to Russia? It's kind of long a complicated story so I will make it short for you. Catherine's mother, Johanna, had a brother named Karl, who went to Russia and was to marry Princess Elizabeth Petrovna who was the daughter of Peter the Great. Karl died shortly before the wedding leaving Elizabeth devasted. Elizabeth's sister, Anna, eventually gave birth to a son named Peter. Anna died, and so did Peter's father leaving the throne of Russia to Peter. This left little Peter as the only surviving decendant of Peter the Great at the ripe ole' age of 10. Yadda Yadda Yadda...Elizabeth overthrows the Empress Anna Leopoldvna, and declares little Peter ruler (he later become tsar [Peter The III]. This is where Catherine enters. Elizabeth needed to find a bride for Peter and she wanted to honor her dead husband's family. Somewhere Elizabeth heard of a Princess Sophie, and she choose her to wed Peter. Sophie was summoned to St Petersburg in 1744 and she wed Peter in 1745. The marriage to Sophie seemed doomed from the start. First of all, Sophie was a strong Lutheran. She had to convert to the Russian Orthodox faith. Sophie changed here name to Catherine Alexeyevna when she married Peter and soon took to studying Russian society and taking up the Orthodoxy. This immerison of Catherine in everything Russian really impressed Elizabeth and many in the Russian community. Catherine pretty much gave up her way of life in Germany and started a new one in Russia. She essentially became Russian. Second, Peter was not a handsome man by any means. After they were married, he kind of became the typical abusive, drunk husband. Catherine could not stand him. Instead of spending time with her husband, Catherine would spend the days reading and studying. She was especially fond of Voltaire. Peter wasn't the smartest apple in the bunch, and his wife's intellectualism annoyed him to no end. It is rumored that Peter actually quit speaking to Catherine altogether and at some point even bragged to her about how he was chasing other women. This brings up another problem. There was no heir to the throne. From the likes of things, one would imagine their was no [Matress Dancin] going on in their house. But, amazingly Catherine became pregnant! Hmmmmm...interesting. With the way things were going with their marriage, many believe that Catherine's child was not fathered by Peter at all, but rather one of Catherin'e many lovers. One possiblity is Serge Saltykov. Paul Iwas born in 1754 and was immediately taken by Elizabeth. Elizabeth wanted to raise Paul as her own and Catherine wasn't really even allowed to see him. This really pissed Catherine off. You could say this might be the turning point in Catherine. Things kind of unraveled from here. In 1761, Elizabeth died and Peter became the new tsar of Russian. But Peter did some things that made the Russian people not appreciate him like signing a treaty with the King of Prussia and actually trying to turn he army into the likes of the Prussian Army. Also, many lives were lost in the Seven Years War. These two things pretty much alienated the Army from Peter. So, some pretty important people began plotting to overthrow the tsar which is what ulitmately happened. Catherine was acutally fearing for her life considering how much Peter had pissed the Army off so she felt ok with seizing the throne and you know she didn't love him anyways. There is a little mystery surrounding Peter's death shortly after. Some say he died of disease, others say he was murdered. Whatever the case, Catherine took over the throne in 1762 and officially became Catherine the II. Ok..so many people thought that Catherine's reign would be short and uneventfull. Little did they know what kind of individual they were dealing with. Remember, Catherine was a very smart women. Little did they know that Catherine's reign would last almost 30 years and she would expand the borders of the country and make many improvements. Catherine As Ruler Catherines Influence On Russian Culture As one can see, Catherine was a great Leader of her time. She came from a pretty humble upbringing in Germany, to one of grandioso status in Russia. And the fact that Catherine was not even Russian at all is a feat in itself. Catherine loved the Russian country and it is evident in everything she did. She expaned Russia as a great Empire by enlargin it's borders. She took it upon herself to make the country a better place by starting schools, mecical institutions, encouraing business, art, etc. Catherine's title as "Great" comes from this, for she truly was a great leader of her time. The reigh of Catherine is still evident today in Russia by the many monuments and schools that are still there. Sadly, Catherine died in 1796. This was a great loss to Russia. One historian wrote: "Should we compare all the known epochs of Russian history, virtually all would agree that Catherine's epoch was the happiest for Russian citizens; virtually all would prefer to have lived then than at any other time." Sources: http://www.historychannel.com/perl/print_book.pl?ID=78926 http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/4257/Cathlov.html http://members.tripod.com/~Nevermore/CGREAT.HTM and of course, the DYT! | 