Why was Russia different from the rest
of Europe?
• Feudalism and serfdom cont’d in
Russia until the 1800s.
• Russia was Eastern Orthodox and
had been influenced by
Constantinople not Rome – so no
Reformation.
Why was Russia different from the
rest of Europe?
• Mongol rule had shielded them from
Renaissance and Exploration
• Only one seaport due to location and weather
– so no Exploration.
• A series of Russian
leaders called czars,
including Ivan the
Terrible, tried to
strengthen Russia and
weaken Russian boyars
or nobles.
• After an initial “good”
period, Ivan creates a
ruthless police state &
persecutes or severely
punishes anyone who
opposed him.
The Boyars
• Russian nobles, most called
themselves Princes.
• 10th – 17th Centuries were the
“real” rulers of Russia.
• Positions in society were based
on service your family did for
the Czar and owning land.
• Pretty much had no checks on
their local power.
– Could change your loyalty
to different princes,
depending on what they
would give you in return.
The Boyars
• Dressed more like
Arabs with beards that
you were never
supposed to trim.
• Separate society from
women.
– Women weren’t often
seen – let alone heard!
– Covered hair and no
shape to clothing.
The Boyars
• Lived on their feudal
estates with their own
armies and self-
sufficient economies.
• Little interest in the
outside world.
• Do you see
Muslim influence?
The Church = Russian Orthodox
• One of the oldest
Christian religions.
• Does not recognize
the Pope or Catholic
Church.
• They believe they
practice the Christian
religion of the Roman
Emperor Constantine.
Russian Orthodox Church
• Ruled by the Patriarch.
• Urged people to not be
corrupted by outside
influences.
• Urged the serfs to remain
loyal without questioning
the Boyars.
• Life is suffering, but
heaven will be your
reward.
Russian Orthodox Church
The Serfs
• At the time of Peter
the Great, they made
up 95% of the
population in Russia.
• They were essentially
slaves – bound to the
land and bound to the
noble.
The Serfs
• Had absolutely no say
about anything in
their lives.
Over these three levels of society
were the CZARS
• Czar = Caesar /
Emperor.
• Sometimes in books
as Tsar.
• Technically had
absolute power.
– But few czars had been
powerful enough to
make the boyars and
the church obey him.
Romanov Dynasty
(1613-1917)
Romanov Family
Crest
• After Ivan died, Russia
entered a Time of
Troubles with no strong
leaders. This ended
when Romanov rulers
restored order.
• 1696 Peter the Great
becomes the ruler of
Russia. Russia was still a
land of nobles and serfs,
and was isolated and
backwards
Before Peter: The Time of
Troubles
• The belief in “blue
blood” was also with
the Russian Czars.
• 1600 – the last of the
“Rurik” czars died with
no children.
– Family had ruled since
900 AD.
– WHO SHOULD BE
CZAR?
The Time of Troubles
• “Smutnoya Vremya”’
• No czar and wars
broke out between
the boyars.
• Sensing weakness and
the chance to take
land – Poland and
Lithuania invaded.
• Russia was in chaos!
The Romanovs become Czar
• A distant relative of
the last Rurik czar.
• Started a dynasty in
1613 that would last
until 1918.
– This is NOT the
Hapsburg double-
headed eagle!
– It is the Romanov
symbol.
The Pendulum
of Russian History
Pro-West Anti-West
For Progress & Change Isolationist
Encourage New Ideas, Xenophobic
Technologies, etc. Ultra-Conservative
Intellectual elites Most Tsars
Merchants/businessm Russian Orthodox
en Church
Young members of the Military
middle class.
Boyars
A few Tsars
peasants
REFORM-MINDED
DEMAGOGUE
LEADER
Would the daughter of Peter the
Great let a baby rule?
• Elizabeth took the throne.
• Infant Ivan was
imprisoned.
– Never left his prison.
– Not allowed contact except
with guards.
– No education.
– Effort to “rescue” him and
make him czar failed and he
was killed by his guards in
1764.
Empress Elizabeth aka Czarina
• Continued her father’s
westernization, but had
censorship of ideas she
did not agree with.
• Waged years of war
against Prussia.
– Frederick the Great
• Could be kind and generous.
– Abolished the death
penalty.
• “Had to be the bride at every
wedding, the corpse at every
funeral.”
– “It is all about ME.”
Empress Elizabeth
• Selected a nephew to
become the next czar.
– The future Peter III
• Put some special thought
into deciding who his wife
should be.
– Selected German Princess
Sophia Augusta Frederika
of Anhalt – Zerbst.
• Known in history as ___
Catherine the Great
Huh?
• How does a German
princess become the
Czarina of Russia?
• What happened to her
husband?
She was born a
Germany, yet married
Elizabeth’s nephew
Peter, who was heir
to the throne.
Her husband Peter -
• Not very smart
• Not good looking
• Loved everything
PRUSSIAN not
Russian.
– Cheered on Frederick
the Great against his
aunt.
Peter and Catherine
• Were NOT a good couple.
• Peter preferred male-
looking German women
for mistresses rather than
being with his wife.
• Empress Elizabeth wanted
a son from Peter and
Catherine.
– Blamed Catherine
– What is a woman to do?
As a young girl and the rest of her life, she devoured books.
Learning helped her to escape the palace intrigues of the
Peter’s aunt, Tsarina Elizabeth.
1762: Elizabeth dies
• Peter ends the war with
Frederick the Great at a
great loss to Russia.
• Peter puts his Prussian
Guards above the Russian
nobles.
• Plans to divorce
Catherine.
– Monastery for her!
– Marry a German mistress.
When
Elizabeth died,
Peter made
peace with
whom?
Yes, Frederick the Great.
Catherine’s current lover helps
hatch a plan!
• Gregori Orlov
• Stage a Coup d’Etat.
– A takeover of the
government.
– Imprison Peter.
– Make Catherine the
Czarina.
The “bloodless” coup
• When Peter traveled to Prussia, Catherine,
with the help of the palace guard, overthrew
him.
• Three days later, Peter dies, and many accuse
Catherine, who also murdered two other
claimants to the throne.
Peter was assassinated
within six months, and
in a military coup,
Catherine took the
throne.
It Worked!
• Peter was so hated that
people welcomed
Catherine to the throne.
– Peter ended up being
murdered.
• By Gregori Orlov
– Paul always harbored a
hatred of his mother for
not making him czar and
killing his “father.”
Catherine the Great – what
happened with Prince Orlov?
• She never married again.
• She kept many lovers.
– Would enjoy, give them
land, serfs, and money as a
“pension”.
– But expected the men to be
loyal to her for life.
– Some say 11 lovers, others
say 300 lovers in her life.
Catherine and Orlov
• Had a son together.
• He was raised by both his
parents and made noble.
• Alexsai did a great deal of
traveling in the west.
• Gregory Orlov, broken at
not getting Catherine to
marry him, went west for
five years, came home a
“broken” man.
– Died after marrying his
niece in retaliation against
Catherine.
Catherine the Great
• Did not get along with
her son at all.
• Took her grandsons,
Alexander and
Nicholas and raised
them, intending to
make one of them the
czar over their father.
Catherine the Great
• Set forth new efforts
with an effective ruler
to keep going with
Peter the Great’s
reforms.
Challenges to Catherine’s Rule
Conflicts
• Catherine tried to reform Russia, was distracted by conflict
• Faced war in Poland, where people wanted freedom from Russian influence
• 1768, Ottoman Empire joined Polish cause
War and Rebellion
• Eventually won war, took over half of Poland, territory on Black Sea
• While war raging, Catherine faced popular rebellion inside Russia
• Man claiming to be Peter III traveled countryside, leading ragtag army
Strengthening the Monarchy
• In the end, man captured, beheaded, rebellion put down
• Rebellion convinced Catherine she needed to strengthen monarchy in rural areas; put
local governments in hands of landowners, nobles
Catherine the Great
• Died before she could
make her choice law in
1796.
– Ruled Russia for 34 years
– Not bad for a non-Russian
woman!
• Paul took over and tried
to undo everything his
mother had done.
– Made it law no woman
could rule in Russia.
– He was murdered five years
later.
Catherine the Great: An
Enlightened Despot
Catherine the Great
An Enlightened Ruler: Overview
Reorganized
government, so she
knew what was
happening throughout
Russia.
Codified laws (wrote
them down!)
State-sponsored
education for boys
and girls.
Enlightened Despots:
Overview
• Catherine the Great of
Russia (r. 1762-1796)
– German born wife of Czar
Peter III
– Controlled government after
Peter III’s accidental(?) death
– Increased European culture in
Russia
– Peasant Reforms
– Territorial Expansion
– Corresponded with Diderot
Catherine the Great: Overview
Russia
• Catherine II became ruler, 1762
• Dreamed of establishing order, justice, supporting education, culture
• Read works of, corresponded with Voltaire, Diderot
Reforms
• Drafted Russian constitution, code of laws
• Considered too liberal, never put into practice
Limitations
• Intended to free serfs, but would lose support of wealthy landowners
• Catherine had no intention of giving up power
• Became tyrant, imposed serfdom on more Russians than ever before
Catherine the Great of Russia:
Overview
• Modernized the Russian
army and government
• Studied in France during the
Enlightenment
• Tried to link Russia to the
West through trade and
diplomatic relations
• Increased Russia’s territory,
especially against the
Ottomans (Turks) – sought
to link Russia to its Slavic
neighbors to the south
ﺣCatherine II
Catherine II: Overview
ﻣGerman by birth, husband of Peter III; easily assimilated
ﻣPractical sense and great energy (five in the morning); corresponded with Diderot
ﺣTrained Alexander on the Western Model; Swiss La Harpe
ﺣcontinued Westernization, modernization started by Peter I
ﺣEstrangement of upper class from their own people
ﺣSummoned a Legislative Commission from which obtained valuable information
ﺣLegal codification, restrictions on the use of torture, religious toleration except Old
Believers
ﺣUnscrupulous foreign policy but accepted practice of the day, main builder of modern
Russia
ﻣEastern Question
ﻣGreek Project
ﻣDefeated the Turks but checked by balance of power
ﻣThree Partitions of Poland
ﻣBlack Sea, Odessa
ﻣPotemkin villages
“ ﺣYou write only on paper but I have to write on human skin”
1762 – 8
ﺣ
Catherine II: Overview
Failure to reform serfdom; peasant rebellion discouraged further efforts
ﺣPugachev’s rebellion (1773)
ﺣWorked upon by Old Believers
ﺣRecalled Stephen Razin
ﺣClass antagonism profound
ﺣEmelian Pugachev, dubbed Peter III, headed an insurrection in the Urals
ﺣImperial manifesto proclaimed end of serfdom, taxes, and military consription
ﺣFamine dispersed rebels
ﺣBetrayed, body drawn and quartered
ﺣCatherine responded with repression
ﺣConceded more powers to the landlords; shook off Peter I’s compulsory state
service
ﺣCulmination of serfdom,; Moscow Gazette “For sale, two plump coachmen”
ﺣRussian Empire with the consent of the serf-owning gentry
1762 – 8
Personality Traits of Catherine II
• Spent hours alone reading French romances, Roman literature, and the works of
philosophers like Voltaire and Diderot
• She was generous, considerate, and humane.
• She was a German princess. When she married, she changed her name, religion,
and learned Russian to truly be a Russian czarina.
• She was known as the “Little Mother” to her people.
• She spoke freely with her advisers.
• She was open about her lovers. There were at least 12 of them over her lifetime.
When she tired of them, she would send the off with money, gems, and thousands
of serfs.
• Most likely had to suppress her longings
for her homeland, but was a great
queen for her adoptive country
Personality Traits (cont.)
• She rose at 6 AM. She would rub her face with ice to wake up and would drink 5
cups of black coffee. She also worked 15 hour days.
• She wanted to know everything. She was an avid learner.
• She was passionate, energetic, curious, and had a desire to create and control.
• She had a profound understanding of human nature and the impact of public
opinion.
• She found her husband to be inept ruler. When she learned that he was going to
divorce her she planned to overthrow him. On June 28, 1762 the army sided with
Catherine and Peter was arrested and murdered four days later and she took the
throne in 1762 and she ruled until 1796.
• Her lovers included: Serge Saltuikov, a court chamberlain; Stanislav Poniatowski, a
member of one of Poland’s grand families – would love Catherine his entire life;
Simon Zorich, a major in the Hussars; Ivan Rimsky-Korsakov, a talented musician
with an amazing voice; Alexander Lanskoy, the youngest of Catherine’s favorites,
almost loved him like a mother, but then died of diphtheria
Catherine the Great
Russia’s next important ruler was actually a German princess who came to
Russia to marry a grandson of Peter the Great. She became known as
Catherine the Great.
Takes Power Honoring Peter I Early Reforms
• Husband became Czar • Catherine saw self as • Influenced by European
Peter III true successor of Peter thinkers—believed
the Great strong, wise ruler could
• Catherine and many
improve life for
nobles grew angry at • Worked to build on his
subjects
his incompetent, weak westernization efforts
rule • Reformed legal,
• To emphasize
education systems
• Catherine seized power, legitimacy of her claim,
was declared czarina of built statue honoring • Removed restrictions
Russia Peter on trade; promoted
science, the arts
Catherine Looking At Peter The Great’s
Legacy
Political Aspects of Catherine II
• Many believed Catherine’s reign would not last long. She was not the least bit
Russian, and the rightful heir, the grandson of Peter the Great, had been
murdered.
• Catherine knew her position was fragile, but handled the situation well.
• She kept the statesmen who served under Empress Elizabeth and Peter.
• She kept Chancellor Nikita Panin in charge of foreign affairs.
Political Aspects of Catherine II
• When Catherine met with the Senate for the first time she was shocked by the
realities of Russia economic and social situation.
• The majority of the army was abroad and hadn’t been paid for eight months.
• The budget showed a deficit of 17 million rubles, in a country of only 100 million
people. No one knew what the revenues of the treasury were.
• People complained of corruption, extortion and injustice.
• No one knew how many towns there were in Russia, nor did they have a map to
check, so Catherine had the clerk go out and purchase one.
Political Changes of Catherine II
• Overthrew her incompetent and unstable husband, arrested him, and he
was assassinated in jail
• She reduced the Russian clergy to a group of state-paid government
workers.
• Believed that people were innocent until proven guilty
• She reorganized the 29 provinces under a central administration focused
on reform.
• She introduced the legal philosophy of innocent until proven guilty.
• She had laws written in simple vernacular language for all to understand,
were printed up in small books for all to have.
• Local governments and courts were remodeled in 1775 with elected
government officials by nobles, merchants, and peasants.
• She separated the courts from the nobility.
• Worked to reunite all the Russian classes – this included
decentralization, the distribution of functions and power, and the
gentry’s participation
As a builder of Russia’s borders,
Catherine was more successful.
She gained an important port on the
Black sea, which became Odessa.
Political Changes of Catherine (Cont)
• She set up jury courts, and separated the courts from the nobility
• She had to put down the Pugachev Uprising in a brutal manner to
maintain political stability.
• She eliminated the use of torture.
• In 1767, she convened a convention of delegates from all social
classes, except serfs, to write a constitution---600 representatives
• However, they could not agree on anything. She grew frustrated
with their lack of progress. She disbanded the convention and wrote
the constitution herself.
• She saw herself as the first servant to the state.
• She created a stable government where people were free to express
their opinions.
Political Changes Continued
• She doubled the number of civil servants in
the provinces.
• She set up a commission for the building of
towns to reduce the risks of fires.
• To reduce the risk of fire, all side streets had
to be 75 feet wide.
She also
participate
d in the
partition of
Poland.
Wars and Foreign Policies of Catherine II
• Political:
• She wanted the empire to grow.
• She split Poland with Austria and Prussia.
• She gained more land in the Ukraine and Lithuania.
• She seized a small portion of land along the Baltic
Sea from the Swedes in 1787 and 1788.
• She battled the Ottoman Turks for fertile land along
the north coast of the Black Sea from 1768 – 1774
and 1787 -1791. And eventually won the land from
them.
• In 1783, she annexed Crimea.
Political: Pugachev , a Cossack,
proclaimed himself the true tsar.
He said he was really Peter III,
Catherine’s deceased husband.
This imposter promised that he
would free the serfs, abolish
taxes, and forced military
conscription (draft)
Tens of thousands joined his
forces…
.
They were at
first successful,
but eventually
Pugachev was
captured.
He was brought to Moscow in an iron cage.
He was drawn and quartered, though Catherine
ordered that he not be tortured during the trial.
Pugachev’s
rebellion was
the most
violent
peasant
uprising in
Russian
history.
Catherine responded by
enforcing serfdom.
Political Changes Towards End Of
Reign: More Like Absolute Monarch
• Censored any literature that criticized her
• 1790: Alexander Radishchev wrote a A Journey
from St. Peterburg to Moscow that criticized
absolutism and serfdom
• He was initially sentenced to death, but then was
sent for 10 years in exile in Siberia
• 1792: Nikolai Novikov published works critical of
Catherine and unapproved books
• He was sentenced to 15 years in prison without a
trial
Economic Changes of Catherine II
• In an effort to better the state of agriculture she sought to improve farming
techniques. She sent experts to study the soil and propose suitable crops.
• Made grants to landowners to learn the methods being
devised in England and to buy English machines.
• Encouraged introduction of modern methods to sheep and cattle breeding.
• The populated areas needed more workers so Catherine appealed to Europe,
mostly Germany, inviting settlers and offering attractive terms.
• She then turned to mining and sent geologists to access the ores from Russia’s
seemingly barren lands.
• She paid special attention to the mining of silver.
Economic Changes of Catherine II (cont)
• The fur industry was still large and she encouraged the
existing trade in Siberia.
• In 1762 she decreed that anyone could start a new
factory so long as it wasn’t in the two capitals.
• Soon state peasants were running large textile plants.
• A whole range of industries began to immerge: linen,
pottery, leather goods, and furniture.
• Catherine turned to English experts to set up more
sophisticated ventures.
• Admiral Knowles came over to construct warships and
dockyards.
Economic Changes of Catherine II (cont)
• Hundreds of factories were built. Some were so large that they employed over
1000 workers.
• They produced clothes, shoes, rope, muskets, and ammunition.
• She had 100 towns built. She renovated and expanded the older towns.
• She expanded trade.
• She increased communication systems.
• She taxed the nobles. Then the nobles taxed the peasants and made the whole
village responsible.
• She confiscated the property of the clergy. The Russian Orthodox Church owned
1/3 of all the lands and serfs in Russia.
• She founded the first School of Mines in St. Petersburg with a complete
underground mine to train miners.
• She focused special attention on the mining of silver.
• She expanded the fur trade in Siberia.
• She had state textile factories run by peasants.
• She encouraged the development of new industries: linen, pottery, leather
goods, and furniture.
Economic Changes Continued
• She brought in experts from around the world to help her set up
and train Russians to work in the new industries.
• She increased the number of factories from 984 to 3161.
• She abolished export duties.
• She increased trade between Russia and China through Manchuria:
Russian furs, leather, and linens for Chinese cottons, silks, tobaccos,
silver, and tea..
• By 1765, she had repaid ¾ of Russia’s debt and had turned a budget
deficit into a budget surplus
• She had an accurate census taken and updated maps to
address needs in agriculture and trade.
• She built more roads and repaired
existing roads and bridges.
Economic Changes
• Created Free Economic Society for the
Encouragement of Agriculture and Husbandry
in 1765 to improve agriculture and industry
through modernization
• Introduced paper money
• Encouraged the Imperial Porcelain Factory to
expand their decorative porcelain and it led to
them producing over 40,000 pieces a year
Social Changes of Catherine II
• She practiced religious toleration for Jews, Muslims, Protestants, and Catholics.
She even allowed Jews to hold elected local government positions.
• She gave her support and power to the nobility, because she needed their
support to reform Russia.
• Though she opposed serfdom, she ended up extending serfdom to win the
favor of the Russian nobles.
• She imposed serfdom in the Ukraine.
• However, she criticized nobles who overworked their serfs.
• She was the first Russian monarch to ask advisers to research and find ways to
improve the lives of the Russian peasants.
• She wrote the 1767 Great Instruction that defined the function of each social
class, so they served the state.
• In 1785 the Charter of Nobility was passed, which recognized the gentry of each
province as a group with an elected leader that could directly petition
Catherine. It also restored previous rights and privileges of the gentry
• She had the Russian nobility adopt French practices and gave them a common
identity.
• First reduced and then abolished the mandatory service obligation of the
nobles created by Peter the Great
Social Changes
• Social: With her newly conquered lands, she
expanded Russia’s population by 20% or by 7
million people.
• Social: She welcomed European immigrants
to Russia to use their technical skills. About
40,000 Germans settled along the Volga River.
Cultural Changes of Catherine II
• Established schools, hospitals, and poorhouses.
• Promoted the education for women and founded the Smolny Institute
to educate the daughters of nobles.
• Was a patron of the arts and sciences.
• Introduced the use of smallpox vaccinations to Russia, and she was
the first to be vaccinated.
• Opened Russia to teachers, professors, scientists, actors, painters, and
writers from all over Europe.
• Collected European art that was housed in the Hermitage Palace.
• Built English-style parks.
• Catherine’s court was very luxurious and she was the first to move
into the newly built Winter Palace, where she was loved by the elite
of the country and started a royal art collection which would later
become the world-famous Hermitage
• The most prominent embankments on the left bank of the Neva River
were upgraded to their present red granite look and the marvelous
wrought iron fence of the summer gardens
Cultural Changes Cont.
• Made French a popular language among Russian nobles.
• Started orphanages.
• Published a literary journal.
• Promoted Russian culture.
• The first professor of Russian law was appointed by her.
• Created a national network of primary and secondary schools that were free
and open to men and women from all social classes.
• Loved the theater.
• Wrote plays and fairytales.
• She brought Dr. Thomas Dindale, a specialist on smallpox, to Russia to
vaccinate herself and the Russian people.
• To facilitate this, she bought houses in Moscow and St. Petersburg that were
converted into vaccination hospitals.
• Founded hospitals for civilians.
• She required that every county with a population between 20,000 and 30,000
have a hospital, doctor, surgeon, an assistant surgeon, and a student doctor.
Cultural Changes Continued
• She built up the Imperial Art Collection to 3926 pieces of work.
• She commissioned the building of palaces and the Hermitage
Palace/Museum.
• The Hermitage held her private apartments, a conference chamber,
and theater, besides being an art museum.
• The Hermitage was made of jasper, malachite, marble, and gold.
• The Hermitage held 4,000 paintings, 38,000 books, 10,000 drawing,
and a natural history collection.
• The Hermitage also held all her jewels, porcelain, and her favored
cameo collection of over 10,000 pieces.
• She had a theatre built for operas and plays performed by artists
invited to Russia.
• She wrote several operas herself.
• In 1783, she appointed Princess Dashkova as the first Director of the
Academy of Science and then president of the Russian Academy. It
was the first time a female held such positions
Cultural Changes
• 1782: Commission on National Education
created to establish more schools, train
teachers, and provide textbooks
• Set up schools in all provinces and towns
• 1783: Set up a teacher’s college called the
The Russian Academy of Letters
• Wrote a Russian primer book for the
Instruction of Youths about the importance of
educating both boys and girls
Cultural Changes
• Started the St. Petersburg Public Library
• Established the first private printing presses
that led to the publication of literary and
scientific journals
• Built the Hermitage Theatre for plays and
operas performed in French and Russian
• Russian artists were sent to Paris, Amsterdam,
and Florence to further their education
• Vladimir Borovikovsky and Ivan Argunov
became famous for their miniature portraits
Catherine the Great’s Palace
Living quarters of the Russian
Emperors
Irina McClellan
87
The Hermitage Museum
• Catherine the Great
• The largest Art Gallery
in Russia
– 3 million works of art
– 1.000 rooms
• Collection
– Western European,
– Ancient Egyptian
– Oriental Art
Irina McClellan 89
The Hermitage
The Hermitage
The Bronze Horseman
• Peter the Great
• 1784, Catherine the
Great
• Symbol
– Form of a wave-symbol
of sea
– Horse-Russia
– Snake-symbol of
enemy
Irina McClellan 95
Cultural Changes Continued
• She was penpals with Voltaire, Diderot, and Baron von
Grimm.
• She bought the first set of the French Encyclopedia by
Diderot.
• She commissioned a French artist, Etienne Falconet, to
sculpt a statute of Peter the Great.
• She was tolerant of religions.
• She turned a blind eye to the traditional practices of the
Eastern Orthodox Church.
• She allowed reputable religions to build churches, run their
own schools, and practice their religion freely.
• In 1786, she issued the Statutes for Schools which required
every district town to have a minor school with two
teachers. And every provincial town had to have a major
school with six teachers.
• She increased the number of grants to study abroad
And there were
all sorts of nasty
rumors about her
sexual appetites,
passed about by
her enemies, of
course.
Catherine’s Death?
• Catherine the Great actually died when she suffered a stroke at the age of 67,
while using the bathroom
• She was found with her eyes closed and face congested, with foam at her
mouth, and though the doctors tried to bleed her, they knew it was the end, for
she died several hours later without regaining consciousness
• There was a big inquiry about the “horse story” about Catherine’s death. The
popular rumor was that Catherine died having sex with a horse in her
bathroom. This was completely untrue, but was spread by both wrong
translations in Russian text, and also the false rumors spread by her French
enemies.
– The French were her enemies because of Catherine’s outrage that the
French King and Queen Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed
during the French Revolution. She was completely against the revolution
and was anxious not to transport the seeds of revolution to her own
country. She even welcomed French refugees to St. Petersburg
She began as an
enlightened
ruler…but had
to put away
those ideas
when faced
with revolts by
different groups
in her vast
empire.