2023 Smithsonian Magazine Assisted by highly successful generals such as Alexander Suvorov and Pyotr Rumyantsev, and admirals such as Samuel Greig and Fyodor Ushakov, she governed at a time when the Russian Empire was expanding rapidly by conquest and diplomacy. Its surprising that someone whos waging war with the Ottoman Empire and partitioning Poland and annexing the Crimea has time to make sketches for one of her palaces, but she was very hands on, says Jaques. [106], Russia often treated Judaism as a separate entity, where Jews were maintained with a separate legal and bureaucratic system. Catherine was born in Stettin, Province of Pomerania, Kingdom of Prussia, Holy Roman Empire, as Princess Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg. Catherine then left with the Ismailovsky Regiment to go to the Semenovsky Barracks, where the clergy was waiting to ordain her as the sole occupant of the Russian throne. [77] She especially liked the work of German comic writers such as Moritz August von Thmmel and Christoph Friedrich Nicolai. Her reign was called Russia . In one portrait, hes managed to just somehow portray both sides of this compelling leader., Meilan Solly [79], Within a few months of her accession in 1762, having heard the French government threatened to stop the publication of the famous French Encyclopdie on account of its irreligious spirit, Catherine proposed to Diderot that he should complete his great work in Russia under her protection. Sophie recalled in her memoirs that as soon as she arrived in Russia, she fell ill with a pleuritis that almost killed her. While the majority of serfs were farmers bound to the land, a noble could have his serfs sent away to learn a trade or be educated at a school as well as employ them at businesses that paid wages. [56] The understanding of law in Imperial Russia by all sections of society was often weak, confused, or nonexistent, particularly in the provinces where most serfs lived. She worked as a maid for most of her childhood and remained illiterate throughout her life. Her many military campaigns, on the other hand, represent a less palatable aspect of her legacy. Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's associate digital editor, history. [73] In 1779, she hired the Scottish architect Charles Cameron to build the Chinese Village at Tsarskoye Selo (modern Pushkin, Saint Petersburg). She applied herself to learning the Russian language with zeal, rising at night and walking about her bedroom barefoot, repeating her lessons. She is often included in the ranks of the enlightened despots. [13], According to Alexander Hertzen, who edited a version of Catherine's memoirs, Catherine had her first sexual relationship with Sergei Saltykov while living at Oranienbaum as her marriage to Peter had not been consummated, as Catherine later claimed. Her enemies, however, saw things differently. Th, The 8 weirdest British monarch deaths in history, Historys greatest love affair: Catherine the Great and Grigory Potemkin, Catherine the Great and the coup that made her Empress, Josephine Baker: The iconic performer turned WWII hero. When Sophie arrived in Russia in 1744, she spared no effort to ingratiate herself not only with Empress Elizabeth but with her husband and with the Russian people as well. Two wings were devoted to her collections of "curiosities". Ostensibly reigning on behalf of Peters heir apparentthe couples 8-year-old son, Paulshe had no intention of yielding the throne once her son came of age. When it became apparent that his plan could not succeed, Panin fell out of favour and Catherine had him replaced with Ivan Osterman (in office 17811797). The Manifesto of 1763 begins with Catherine's title: We, Catherine the second, by the Grace of God, Empress and Autocrat of all the Russians at Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod, Tsarina of Kasan, Tsarina of Astrachan, Tsarina of Siberia, Lady of Pleskow and Grand Duchess of Smolensko, Duchess of Estonia and Livland, Carelial, Tver, Yugoria, Permia, Viatka and Bulgaria and others; Lady and Grand Duchess of Novgorod in the Netherland of Chernigov, Resan, Rostov, Yaroslav, Beloosrial, Udoria, Obdoria, Condinia, and Ruler of the entire North region and Lady of the Yurish, of the Cartalinian and Grusinian tsars and the Cabardinian land, of the Cherkessian and Gorsian princes and the lady of the manor and sovereign of many others. Instead she pioneered for Russia the role that Britain later played through most of the 19th and early 20th centuries as an international mediator in disputes that could, or did, lead to war. If persistent tabloid covers and made-for-television miniseries . Cookie Policy [43] In 1762, he unilaterally abrogated the Treaty of Kyakhta, which governed the caravan trade between the two empires. [69] With all this discontent in mind, Catherine did rule for 10 years before the anger of the serfs boiled over into a rebellion as extensive as Pugachev's. Grigory Potemkin was involved in the palace coup of 1762. The fifth film. Her rise to power was supported by her mother Joanna's wealthy relatives, who were both nobles and royal relations. I am very fond of the arts, especially painting. The statute sought to efficiently govern Russia by increasing population and dividing the country into provinces and districts. In the Treaty of Georgievsk (1783), Russia agreed to protect Georgia against any new invasion and further political aspirations of their Persian suzerains. Catherine and her new husband had a rocky marriage from the start. [108] Jewish members of society were required to pay double the tax of their Orthodox neighbours. The palace of the Crimean Khanate passed into the hands of the Russians. Aided by her lover Grigory Orlov and his powerful family, she staged a coup just six months after her husband took the throne. Yet by the end of Catherine's reign, an estimated 62,000 pupils were being educated in some 549 state institutions. No. Catherine the Great is a monarch mired in misconception. AETNUK. The commission studied the reform projects previously installed by I.I. This reform never progressed beyond the planning stages. Closer to home, her success, coupled with how she came to power, led to jealously and fear among her male objectors in the Russian court. In addition, they received land to till, but were taxed a certain percentage of their crops to give to their landowners. [133] Sometime after 9:00 she was found on the floor with her face purplish, her pulse weak, her breathing shallow and laboured. [99], Despite these efforts, later historians of the 19th century were generally critical. Called the Nakaz, or Instruction, the 1767 document outlined the empress vision of a progressive Russian nation, even touching on the heady issue of abolishing serfdom. In many ways, the Orthodox Church fared no better than its foreign counterparts during the reign of Catherine. Writing in The Romanovs, Montefiore characterizes Catherine as an obsessional serial monogamist who adored sharing card games in her cozy apartments and discussing her literary and artistic interests with her beloved. Many sordid tales of her sexuality can, in fact, be attributed to detractors who hoped to weaken her hold on power. The ultimate goal for the Russian government, however, was to topple the anti-Russian shah (king), and to replace him with a half-brother, Morteza Qoli Khan, who had defected to Russia and was therefore pro-Russian. But in a purely humanitarian light, Catherines expansionist drive came at a great cost to the conquered nations and the czarinas own country alike. Catherine The Great's Infamous Death Vigilius Eriksen/Grand Peterhof Palace Equestrian portrait of Catherine the Great in uniform of the Preobrazhensky Regiment, one of the oldest Imperial Russian guard units, circa 1762. Catherine's main interests were in education and culture. 2019. But there is no truth in that story. Her genius seemed to rest on her forehead, which was both high and wide. Days earlier, she had found out about an uprising in the Volga region. She came from a very poor family and did not have a pleasant childhood. While the deeply entrenched system of Russian serfdomin which peasants were enslaved by and freely traded among feudal lordswas at odds with her philosophical values, Catherine recognized that her main base of support was the nobility, which derived its wealth from feudalism and was therefore unlikely to take kindly to these laborers emancipation.
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