Catherine The Great Empress Of Russia

Examines all aspects of Catherine the Great's life and career, focusing on her role as mother, lover, and ruler during her reign as Empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796.

Princess Sophia of Anhalt-Zerbst became Empress Catherine II of Russia, an indomitable, feisty ruler who was very complex and became an infamous historical figure.

"With insight, humor, and candor, Catherine presents her eyewitness account of history, from her whirlwind entry into the Russian court in 1744 at age fourteen as the intended bride of Empress Elizabeth I's nephew, the eccentric drunkard and future Peter II, to her unhappy marriage; from her two children, several miscarriages, and her and Peter's numerous affairs to the political maneuvering that enabled Catherine to seize the throne from him in 1762." "Catherine's eye for telling details makes for compelling reading as she describes the dramatic fall and rise of her political fortunes."--BOOK JACKET.

Catherine the Great is one of the most influential rulers in Russian history. Though born in Prussia, she endeavored to gain the throne of Russia and went on to be the longest-ruling empress in Russian history. She ruled as an enlightened despot, promoting the principles of the European Enlightenment as she sought to modernize her beloved country. She reformed the educational system of Russia, creating a national system that utilized modern educational theory in a co-educational setting. She attracted some of the most brilliant thinkers to her court and engaged their assistance in modernizing the arts and sciences as well as the Russian economic system. Because of her efforts, she ruled over what is considered the Golden Age of Russian Enlightenment. Inside you will read about... ✓ The Early Life of an Empress ✓ The Dawn of a New Era ✓ A Patron of the Arts ✓ Catherine the Warrior ✓ Catherine’s Personal Life and Death And much more! Catherine the Great counted among her successes many glorious military victories which succeeded in expanding Russia’s realm to over 200,000 square miles. She was, by all accounts, an efficacious leader and reformer in Russian history. Despite her professional successes, her personal life was far from ideal. Catherine never loved her husband and was alleged to have been complicit in his assassination. She never remarried, instead taking a string of lovers only for as long as they held her interest. She had three children, none of whom she claimed were fathered by her husband, Peter III. Despite her promiscuity, she was a generous lover, and many of her former lovers remained devoted to her throughout her life. She lived her life passionately, and can even be described as an early feminist, doing what she wanted. This book tells the story of this unconventional woman in a concise, entertaining, and informative manner.

Catherine the Great was one of the most remarkable women in history. Born in 1729 into the family of one of the lesser princelings of Germany, she was married to the heir to the Russian throne at the age of 16. The marriage was an unhappy one and Catherine was banished from her husband's palace but, when Peter came to the throne and was then ousted from it in the space of a few months, it was Catherine who replaced him and became Empress. She ruled her vast domain for more than thirty years, until her death in 1796, and greatly expanded its territories. In her lifetime and since she has been infamous for her intrigues, her possible involvement in political murders, including that of her dethroned husband, and her numerous love affairs. Vincent Cronin's highly readable biography sifts the facts from the legends in Catherine's extraordinary life.

Catherine the Great (1729-1796) wrote over two dozen plays and operettas, but not until this edition has a complete translation of any of them been available to an English- speaking readership. Oh, These Times (1772) is a satirical attack on many vices Catherine wished to root out from her society: religious hypocrisy, superstition and slander. The main character, Mrs. Pious, is a superficially religious old woman who resembles Moliere's Tartuffe. Catherine again sets her sights on superstition in The Siberian Shaman (1786), this time by satirizing shamanism as a deceitful profession which preys on the gullible. This play was part of a group of three plays usually known as Catherine's "anti-masonic" trilogy, written as a warning against the growing influence of the freemasons. In a comprehensive introduction, Lurana Donnels O'Malley relates the plays to Catherine's status and philosophy.