"If I could live to be 200 years old, all of Europe would be creeping under my feet." Catherine II
Catherine II, full name: Catherine Alexievna, formerly known as Sophia August, was born in Prussia into a family of declining aristocrats, and in 1744, was mistakenly chosen by Tsar Elizabeth of Russia as the fiancée of peter III, the heir to the throne, married Peter in 1745, and converted to Orthodoxy.
Catherine II
Catherine established the Russian Empire as an influential power in Europe, while expanding Russia's territory to 17.05 million square kilometers and a population of 30 million, stretching from the North American continent in the east to the Black Sea coast in the south. After her death, she was called "The Great" by the Russians, the second and only female Tsarina after Peter the Great to be called the Great. So what kind of charm does she have that makes russians feel respect for her while making Europe tremble and creep at her feet?
The unhappy marriage created the empress's charm and tenacity
In many historical sources, Tsar Peter III is described as an idiot and a man of great will, whose perverse personality is in stark contrast to the brilliance of his maternal grandfather Peter the Great. After being chosen as the heir by his aunt Empress Elisabeth, Peter had no interest in Russian culture during his twenty-year career as crown prince, and since he grew up in Germany, he even spoke Russian unfavorably, and was only interested in military puppet and array training all day long, while not shying away from his admiration for Frederick the Great, King of Prussia.
Peter III
In 1745, Peter and Catherine were married, but the marriage arranged by Empress Elizabeth did not bring happiness to the two, Peter did not have any feelings for his wife, not even the heir of the fertility empire, and the two did not have sex for 5 years after marriage. And it was from this time that the two of them each found a lover outside, and once, when he caught his wife's lover, he could gladly accept it, and the four of them could often sit at the same table and have dinner together, which showed Peter's innocence and weak mind, and all the subsequent acts in the Tsar's office confirmed the unreliability of the Tsar.
After the first few years of suffering, Catherine also saw the reality that could not be changed, and from then on, she focused her energy on the road to trying to make herself a real Russian. In addition to her efforts to study Russian and Russian culture, Catherine also studied a large number of works by Western European Enlightenment thinkers, and even invited Voltaire to the court to give lectures, and it was precisely because of the extensive study during this period that she laid a solid theoretical foundation for her future administration.
At the same time, the unhappiness of the emotional life stimulated Catherine's inner fanaticism, and her lovers spread out inside and outside the court, adding a touch of fun to the boring court life. It turned out that throughout Catherine's life, her lovers gave her great help, whether it was the coup d'état to seize power or the subsequent expansion of the territory, they played a decisive role.
Peter III with Catherine
Nine years after their marriage to Peter, under pressure from Empress Elizabeth, the two finally gave birth to a boy named Paul, the future thirteenth Tsar. However, the boy's biological father has always been a mystery, some people say that his father is Catherine's lover, because Peter has never had a fondness for this child, but the child's personality is completely consistent with Peter III, as to the truth, it may only be clear to the person concerned.
Create a "Lover Empire"
After the death of Empress Elizabeth, Peter I ascended to the throne of the Tsar, and the first thing he did after he came to power was to save his idol, the Prussian Emperor Frederick the Great, outside the city of Berlin, Russia withdrew from the Russian-French-Austrian alliance, and at the same time made an offensive and defensive alliance with Prussia, returning a large area of territory to Prussia, and it has to be said that Peter's love for Frederick is really unreserved, for his own preferences, even the interests of the country can be given to others.
You know, the Russian army sacrificed tens of thousands of people in this war, and it seemed that it was about to win the victory but was sold by its own idiot emperor, and the soldiers who sacrificed them became a joke. But at this time, Catherine's opportunity came, and at the instigation of his lover, the young officer Orlov, a coup d'état took place, Peter was ousted from power and died inexplicably half a year later, and Catherine ascended the throne with the support of the officers.
Catherine reigned for 34 years, practicing enlightened autocracy, reforming the domestic economy and culture at home, and expanding Russia's territory externally. She participated in the partition of Poland three times, fought two wars with Ottoman Turkey, extended the Russian territory eastward to Alaska, occupied the Black Sea coastal area of the Ottoman Empire to the south, and opened the mouth of the Black Sea, which in Russian history can be compared with Peter the Great's opening of the Northern Baltic Sea. During her reign, Russia's national power grew unprecedentedly, becoming an active participant in European affairs and mediating in the Austro-Prussian War.
The thing that is interesting is the fact that she has 23 lovers, in addition to the Scarface General Orlov, who helped her come to power, her most important lover in the later period is the one-eyed general Potemkin, and the one-eyed Potemkin is also given by Orlov. Botkin was able to fight good wars and was also a good hand at handling government affairs, until his later death, Potemkin was almost the second most important person in Russia, and many major policies and decisions were jointly formulated by the empress and him. It can be said that the Russian Empire under Catherine was the empire she ruled with her lover.
Potemkin and the Empress
appraise
Catherine's life was undoubtedly a bumpy and brilliant life, although she came from Germany, but from the beginning of stepping on Russian territory she was determined to be a real Russian.
Later facts also proved that she worked hard for the development and strength of Russia, and did not hesitate to launch large-scale wars for the interests of Russia, and at the same time, during her reign, she actively attached importance to the demands of the people and tried to balance the interests of the nobles and commoners, because of the empress's own love of Western culture, Russia has also been vigorously developed in art and culture, as Voltaire described: she is the brightest star in europe.
Although the chaos of private life and the excessive number of lovers have damaged Catherine's reputation to some extent, who cares in the face of her great historical achievements?