"I often tell myself that happiness or grief depends on my heart. If you encounter misfortune, then summon up the courage to transcend. Even if the eyes are bleak, people can be happy and brave. ”
—Catherine II
Catherine II, also known as Catherine II (english), catherine the Great, was the empress dowager who ruled Russia from 1762 to 1796 and the longest reigning ruler of the Russian Empire.
Although she greatly expanded her country's territory, her lace news was far better known than her national achievements, and her achievements were often overshadowed by legends and rumors about her shameful personal life. Catherine II was blackmailed by the Russian 18th-century satins, and one of the most outrageous rumors they made up was that she had a stroke while making love to a horse and eventually died...
<h1>Marriage and seizure of the throne</h1>
Catherine II was not Russian, her original name was Sophie von Anhalt-Zerbst, born in 1729, the daughter of a Prussian prince. When she was a teenager, forced to participate in the treacherous royal marriage game in Europe, she was unfortunate enough to marry the Russian prince who was about to become Tsar Peter III, and received a new name, Catherine.
Peter III was frivolous and moody, and was regarded as weak and incompetent by some of his courtiers. One of his most annoying things was his love of Prussia, and in order to curry favor with Prussia, he did not hesitate to sell out the national interest. The Tsar's approach aroused the great resentment of the meritorious generals, and in this regard, Catherine was far superior to her husband, and she actively studied Russian culture and converted to Orthodoxy when she first arrived in Russia, which won the general favor of the Russians.
Only six months after Peter III ascended the throne, Catherine staged a coup d'état with the help of her lover Grigory Orlov, overthrowing her husband's rule and crowning her as Empress of the Russian Empire. Peter III, after being forced to sign an abdication edict, was killed by Orlov's younger brother, who was deeply appreciated by the Empress for cutting grass and roots, and later entered the palace as a close courtier.
Historians generally agree that Catherine II was an enlightened ruler who admired knowledge and art and maintained correspondence with the French philosopher Voltaire. She was a generous patron of the arts, and during her reign, the Hermitage Museum was open to the public and anyone could go inside to enjoy the art. Under her influence, Russia embraced the philosophy and culture of Western Europe and caught up with mainstream civilization as soon as possible.
<h1>Women and rights</h1>
In the eyes of Europeans, Tsarist Russia always looked like a countryman, and the whole country was a cultural wasteland. The reign of Catherine II brought about a change in Russian culture, especially for female artists. Although the reforms of Peter the Great (during the reign of 1682-1725) gave women the freedom to receive an education, it was not until the mid-18th century that female artists really rose in Russia.
Anne Haley, a professor at Scripps College, a prominent American girls' school, wrote in a paper: "The performance of Russian women writers and poets is very prominent, followed by Russian female composers, who from the mid-18th century onwards became extremely important in the history books." ”
Most of these female artists came from aristocratic families, who followed catherine II, as well as other 18th-century Russian empresses. "These female aristocrats found a new cultural model in which their code of conduct mimicked catherine I, Anna, Elizabeth, and Catherine II— the four empresses who ruled the Tsarist Empire for more than two-thirds of the time in the 18th century."
It can be said that Catherine II was an early spokesperson for women's rights. Although she cared about women and loved art, it did not mean that the empress was a weak woman, on the contrary, she was a military commander full of aggressive spirit.
<h1>Strength and love</h1>
Catherine II was a successful military ruler who controlled the army by controlling her officers and conquered a large number of new territories with the power of the army.
Because peter III was unpopular, many officers hated him, and these people agreed with Catherine II that the weak tsar was not suitable for Russia. Taking advantage of the growing discontent in the army, Catherine II actively expanded her network of contacts, and she developed the guard officer Grigory Orlov into her lover, using the latter's connections to build more military relations, and it was with the help of these soldiers that Catherine II ascended the throne as empress.
Grigory Orlov
Orlov was just one of the Empress's many lovers. Catherine II also had a lover, Grigory Potemkin, and although they were not in love for a long time, their feelings were so intense that Catherine II wrote to Potemkin:
"The trouble is that my heart doesn't want to spend an hour without love. It is said that human vices are often hidden under the cloak of goodness, and this psychic tendency may be more of a vice than a virtue, but I should not confide in you, because you may stop loving me, or refuse to return to the army for fear that I will forget you..." (excerpt from russian chronicles)
Catherine II managed the generals through love, and these generals also dedicated everything to the empress because of love, and they fought every battle carefully so that they could see the smiling face of their girlfriend when they came home.
<h1>Slavery and rebellion</h1>
Catherine II was a great military success, but in her Russia it was unstable, and the crisis was ultimately due to great problems in the social structure. Most of the russian population was serfs, essentially slaves, living in terrible conditions, and serfs working in mines, foundries and factories seldom survived to middle age.
Catherine II is said to have personally opposed serfdom, but she had to tolerate the status quo because the nobility would not agree to reform serfdom. Catherine II chose to ignore the miserable plight of the serfs, and in order to curry favor with the nobility, her court even issued a decree condemning the serfs who demanded an improvement in their living environment.
What is said on the lips can never be taken seriously, and this is a trick that politicians are familiar with. Catherine II ostensibly condemned serfs, but also quietly granted them many rights, gifts that the latter had never dared to think of before, such as the official rule that serfs could not own property, but if the serfs could save enough money, they could still apply to the government for freedom.
Some officials who were good at speculating on the holy will even accepted complaints from the serfs, and they would punish the landlords who mistreated the serfs. Most serfs were not allowed to leave the land, but with the wave of education by the empress, some landlords would let the serfs receive some education, and then engage in trade and commerce to earn more money, which inadvertently gave the serfs a certain freedom.
Although Catherine II was an enlightened monarch, the serfs were dissatisfied with her rule, and revolts lasted for a decade until her death.
<h1>Death and inheritance</h1>
Catherine II died on November 17, 1796, when she was lying in bed and a stroke caused her to leave unusually quietly. But out of the bedroom, the world is not quiet, as stated at the beginning of the article, rumors claiming that she died while making out with the horse, and others saying she died in the toilet, these are unfounded speculations.
Catherine II hated her son Paul I because he looked like her husband Peter III, and she never loved her husband or son. However, she was particularly fond of her grandson Alexander I, who wanted him to take over the Tsar directly, but because of a sudden stroke, the plan did not come into effect.
Paul I took over his mother's throne, but did not sit on the throne for long, and was assassinated in 1801. Alexander I then ascended the throne, and the Tsar defeated Napoleon and actively revived the weakening European royal family, known as "the savior of Europe (the royal family)".
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