catherine the great cause of death

Historical accounts portray Joanna as a cold, abusive woman who loved gossip and court intrigues. [d] As a patron of the arts, she presided over the age of the Russian Enlightenment, including the establishment of the Smolny Institute of Noble Maidens, the first state-financed higher education institution for women in Europe. ", [Kazimir Valishevsky. [124], After her affair with her lover and adviser Grigory Potemkin ended in 1776, he allegedly selected a candidate-lover for her who had the physical beauty and mental faculties to hold her interest (such as Alexander Dmitriev-Mamonov and Nicholas Alexander Suk). The church's lands were expropriated, and the budget of both monasteries and bishoprics were controlled by the Collegium of Accounting. Writing for History Extra, Hartley describes Catherines Russia as an undoubtedly aggressive nation that clashed with the Ottomans, Sweden, Poland, Lithuania and the Crimea in pursuit of additional territory for an already vast empire. She called together at Moscow a Grand Commission almost a consultative parliament composed of 652 members of all classes (officials, nobles, burghers, and peasants) and of various nationalities. Heres what you need to know to separate fact from fiction ahead of the series May 15 premiere. [95], From 1768 to 1774, no progress was made in setting up a national school system. In one portrait, hes managed to just somehow portray both sides of this compelling leader., Meilan Solly It was fighting and winning wars, modernising and revitalising. Rumour and degrading slander became the weapon by which they would take jabs at her legacy. Elizabeth therefore allowed Catherine to have sexual lovers only after a new legal heir, Catherine and Peter's son, survived and appeared to be strong.[16]. Russian local authorities helped his party, and the Russian government decided to use him as a trade envoy. She was especially impressed with his argument that people do not act for their professed idealistic reasons, and instead she learned to look for the "hidden and interested motives". In the first partition, 1772, the three powers split 52,000km2 (20,000sqmi) among them. In their eyes, Catherine was the very definition of unnatural and so stories of outlandish sexual behaviour became a way of insinuating how her position in the world was not natural to her gender. 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. Many cities and towns were founded on Catherine's orders in the newly conquered lands, most notably Odessa, Yekaterinoslav (to-day known as Dnipro), Kherson, Nikolayev, and Sevastopol. She succeeded her husband as empress regnant, following the precedent established when Catherine I succeeded her husband Peter the Great in 1725. She provided support to a Polish anti-reform group known as the Targowica Confederation. She thus spent much of this time alone in her private boudoir to hide away from Peter's abrasive personality. [36][37], It was widely expected that a 13,000-strong Russian corps would be led by the seasoned general, Ivan Gudovich, but the empress followed the advice of her lover, Prince Zubov, and entrusted the command to his youthful brother, Count Valerian Zubov. Catherine held western European philosophies and culture close to her heart, and she wanted to surround herself with like-minded people within Russia. The bridegroom, known as Peter von Holstein-Gottorp, had become Duke of Holstein-Gottorp (located in the north-west of present-day[update] Germany near the border with Denmark) in 1739. The truss holding her equine paramour broke, crushing Catherine to death beneath the poor beast. [102], However, in accord with her anti-Ottoman policy, Catherine promoted the protection and fostering of Christians under Turkish rule. when Catherine angrily dismissed his accusation. Russia inflicted some of the heaviest defeats ever suffered by the Ottoman Empire, including the Battle of Chesma (57 July 1770) and the Battle of Kagul (21 July 1770). She refused the Duchy of Holstein-Gottorp which had ports on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, and refrained from having a Russian army in Germany. Catherines contributions to Russias cultural landscape were far more successful than her failed socioeconomic reforms. She acquired his collection of books from his heirs, and placed them in the National Library of Russia. Paper notes were issued upon payment of similar sums in copper money, which were also refunded upon the presentation of those notes. On a personal level, Pugachevs success challenged many of Catherines Enlightenment beliefs, leaving her with memories that haunted her for the rest of her life, according to Massie. Like Empress Elizabeth before her, Catherine had given strict instructions that Ivan was to be killed in the event of any such attempt. As Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, Peter planned war against Denmark, Russia's traditional ally against Sweden. She believed in the . The Ottomans restarted hostilities in the Russo-Turkish War of 17871792. Mourning dress is to be worn for six months, and no longer: the shorter the better. A great dreamer, he was avid for territories to conquer and provinces to populate; an experienced diplomat with a knowledge of Russia that Catherine had not yet acquired and as audacious as Catherine was methodical, Potemkin was treated as an equal by the empress up to the time of his death in 1791. A description of the empress's funeral is written in Madame Vige Le Brun's memoirs. From 1788 to 1790, Russia fought a war against Sweden, a conflict instigated by Catherine's cousin, King Gustav III of Sweden, who expected to overrun the Russian armies still engaged in war against the Ottoman Turks, and hoped to strike Saint Petersburg directly. For example, she took action to limit the number of new serfs; she eliminated many ways for people to become serfs, culminating in the manifesto of 17 March 1775, which prohibited a serf who had once been freed from becoming a serf again.[61]. Rumours of Catherine's private life had a small basis in the fact that she took many young lovers, even in old age. In this month, the empress of Russia died and her successor Paul, who detested that the Zubovs had other plans for the army, ordered the troops to retreat to Russia. According to History, sexual deviancy has often been tagged to women either in power or who are seeking to change society, among them Cleopatra, Anne Boleyn,and Catherine the Great, among others.Catherine took the throne following the death of Peter and in lieu of their son, Paul, who was only 8 at the time. Is there any truth to this infamous story of bestiality? Ollie Upton/Hulu. Catherine's decree also denied Jews the rights of an Orthodox or naturalised citizen of Russia. Alexander Radishchev published his Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow in 1790, shortly after the start of the French Revolution. Inspired by Byzantine design, the crown was constructed of two half spheres, one gold and one silver, representing the eastern and western Roman empires, divided by a foliate garland and fastened with a low hoop. 2023 Smithsonian Magazine The diplomatic intrigue failed, largely due to the intervention of Sophie's mother, Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp. If a noble did not live up to his side of the deal, the serfs could file complaints against him by following the proper channels of law. She also promoted westernization and modernization for her country, though it was within the context of maintaining . Throughout the season, war has been brewing between the two empires, and so far things. While she had collapsed in the bathroom, she had spent many hours in her bed, with her servants taking care of her. While the nobility provided appreciable amounts of money for these institutions, they preferred to send their own children to private, prestigious institutions. Her male enemies created the legends that still reverberate around todays World Wide Web. Daniel Dumaresq and Dr John Brown. She had the government collect and publish vital statistics. Catherine the Great was worried that her son, Paul, was not emotionally fit to rule so she planned to replace him with his son, Alexander, as her heir. Catherine the Great, Russian Yekaterina Velikaya, also called Catherine II, Russian in full Yekaterina Alekseyevna, original name Sophie Friederike Auguste, Prinzessin von Anhalt-Zerbst, (born April 21 [May 2, New Style], 1729, Stettin, Prussia [now Szczecin, Poland]died November 6 [November 17], 1796, Tsarskoye Selo [now Pushkin], near St. Petersburg, Russia), German-born empress of Russia . Despite his objections, on 28 June 1744, the Russian Orthodox Church received Princess Sophie as a member with the new name Catherine (Yekaterina or Ekaterina) and the (artificial) patronymic (Alekseyevna, daughter of Aleksey), so that she was in all respects the namesake of Catherine I, the mother of Elizabeth and the grandmother of Peter III. Other than these, the rights of a serf were very limited. Terms of Use So far, she's the woman who's ruled Russia the longest 34 years on the throne. Her coffee was brought in, she drank it and sat down to write. [96] However, Catherine continued to investigate the pedagogical principles and practice of other countries and made many other educational reforms, including an overhaul of the Cadet Corps in 1766. [31], Catherine agreed to a commercial treaty with Great Britain in 1766, but stopped short of a full military alliance. Due to various rumours of Catherine's promiscuity, Peter was led to believe he was not the child's biological father and is known to have proclaimed, "Go to the devil!" Catherine kept her illegitimate son by Grigory Orlov (Alexis Bobrinsky, later elevated to Count Bobrinsky by Paul I) near Tula, away from her court. And there's also no question Catherine despised her husband in life and did not mourn his death. She is one of historys greatest female rulers who modernised her adopted homeland, expanded its borders and transformed it into a global superpower. The most famous of these rumors is that she died after having sex with her horse. [63] )This practice was not unusual by the court standards of the day . [106], Russia often treated Judaism as a separate entity, where Jews were maintained with a separate legal and bureaucratic system. News of Catherine's plan spread, and Frederick II (others say the Ottoman sultan) warned her that if she tried to conquer Poland by marrying Poniatowski, all of Europe would oppose her. Although German soldiers allegedly saw the cabinet during WWII, no visible proof of the furniture exists leading many historians to believe it's just another salacious fabrication. Catherine perceived that the Qianlong Emperor was an unpleasant and arrogant neighbour, once saying: "I shall not die until I have ejected the Turks from Europe, suppressed the pride of China and established trade with India". Peter also still played with toy soldiers. 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 bonnet which held her white hair was not decorated with ribbons, but with the most beautiful diamonds. Her face was left uncovered, and her fair hand rested on the bed. Biography 27 (2004), 51734. Two wings were devoted to her collections of "curiosities". The cause of death was confirmed by autopsy. By 1782, Catherine arranged another advisory commission to review the information she had gathered on the educational systems of many different countries. Madame Vige Le Brun vividly describes the empress in her memoirs:[85], the sight of this famous woman so impressed me that I found it impossible to think of anything: I could only stare at her. Only in this way apart from conscription to the army could a serf leave the farm for which he was responsible but this was used for selling serfs to people who could not own them legally because of absence of nobility abroad. [46], Nicholas I, her grandson, evaluated the foreign policy of Catherine the Great as a dishonest one. By the end of her reign, 50 provinces and nearly 500 districts were created, government officials numbering more than double this were appointed, and spending on local government increased sixfold. But in a purely humanitarian light, Catherines expansionist drive came at a great cost to the conquered nations and the czarinas own country alike. [73] Catherine had at first attempted to hire a Chinese architect to build the Chinese Village, and on finding that was impossible, settled on Cameron, who likewise specialised in the chinoiserie style. The truth of the matter was Catherine couldnt trust the systematic bureaucracy in Russia nor the many noblemen installed by her husband before her. [18], In 1759, Catherine became pregnant with her second child, Anna, who only lived to 14 months. [14][15] Catherine nonetheless left the final version of her memoirs to Paul I in which she explained why Paul had been Peter's son. The formidable Catherine had little time for her heir. [78] Catherine expressed some frustration with the economists she read for what she regarded as their impractical theories, writing in the margin of one of Necker's books that if it was possible to solve all of the state's economic problems in one day, she would have done so a long time ago. Peter supposedly was assassinated, but it is unknown how he died. Peter and Catherine had both been involved in a 1749 Russian military plot to crown Peter (together with Catherine) in Elizabeth's stead. A landowner could punish his serfs at his discretion, and under Catherine the Great gained the ability to sentence his serfs to hard labour in Siberia, a punishment normally reserved for convicted criminals. [47] Catherine failed to reach any of the initial goals she had put forward. Because Russia under her rule grew strong enough to threaten the other great powers, and because she was in fact a harsh and unscrupulous ruler, she figured in the Western imagination as the incarnation of the immense . Potemkin quickly gained positions and awards. To become serfs, people conceded their freedoms to a landowner in exchange for their protection and support in times of hardship. Though the young Prussian princess had been imported to . 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. Does Catherine Sedgwick's Use Of The Rhetorical Appeals In Dog. Sophie recalled in her memoirs that as soon as she arrived in Russia, she fell ill with a pleuritis that almost killed her. She applied herself to learning the Russian language with zeal, rising at night and walking about her bedroom barefoot, repeating her lessons. The peasants were discontented because of many other factors as well, including crop failure, and epidemics, especially a major epidemic in 1771. They introduced numerous innovations regarding wheat production and flour milling, tobacco culture, sheep raising, and small-scale manufacturing. Her death led people to create a lot of rumors. The palace of the Crimean Khanate passed into the hands of the Russians. [62] This happened more often during Catherine's reign because of the new schools she established. 7 Reasons Catherine the Great Was So Great. There was every chance he was going to be assassinated. [78] For information about particular nations that interested her, she read Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville's Memoirs de Chine to learn about the vast and wealthy Chinese empire that bordered her empire; Franois Baron de Tott's Memoires de les Turcs et les Tartares for information about the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean khanate; the books of Frederick the Great praising himself to learn about Frederick just as much as to learn about Prussia; and the pamphlets of Benjamin Franklin denouncing the British Crown to understand the reasons behind the American Revolution. His mother was the daughter of Russia's Peter the Great, and his father the nephew of Sweden's Charles XII. Historians consider her efforts to be a success. Catherine completed the conquest of the south, making Russia the dominant power in the Balkans after the Russo-Turkish War of 17681774. They submitted recommendations for the establishment of a general system of education for all Russian orthodox subjects from the age of 5 to 18, excluding serfs. Though Hartley acknowledges that serfdom is a scar on Russia, she emphasizes the practical obstacles the empress faced in enacting such a far-reaching reform, adding, Where [Catherine] could do things, she did do things., Serfdom endured long beyond Catherines reign, only ending in 1861 with Alexander IIs Emancipation Manifesto. Wikimedia Commons. The global trade of Russian natural resources and Russian grain provoked famines, starvation and fear of famines in Russia. The most widely known story of Catherine the Great involves her death at age 67 in 1796. After this, Catherine carried on sexual liaisons over the years with many men, including Stanislaus Augustus Poniatowski, Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov (17341783), Alexander Vasilchikov, Grigory Potemkin, Ivan Rimsky-Korsakov, and others. This war was another catastrophe for the Ottomans, ending with the Treaty of Jassy (1792), which legitimised the Russian claim to the Crimea and granted the Yedisan region to Russia. This is the real history behind the period comedy. Larry Frederick died: It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Larry Frederick on Thursday, March 2, 2023. While the measure appeared to be progressive on paper, the reality of the situation remained stark for most peasants, and in 1881, revolutionaries assassinated the increasingly reactionary czara clear example of what Hartley deems autocracy tempered by assassination, or the idea that a ruler had almost unlimited powers but was always vulnerable to being dethroned if he or she alienated the elites., After Pugachevs uprising, Catherine shifted focus to what Massie describes as more readily achievable aims: namely, the expansion of her empire and the enrichment of its culture.. This work, divided into four parts, dealt with teaching methods, subject matter, teacher conduct, and school administration. The objective was to strengthen the friendship between Prussia and Russia, to weaken the influence of Austria, and to overthrow the chancellor Alexey Bestuzhev-Ryumin, a known partisan of the Austrian alliance on whom Russian Empress Elizabeth relied. She is often included in the ranks of the enlightened despots. [100] Two years after the implementation of Catherine's program, a member of the National Commission inspected the institutions established. At first, the institute only admitted young girls of the noble elite, but eventually it began to admit girls of the petit-bourgeoisie as well. Sophie had turned 16. Yelizaveta Alekseyevna Tarakanova (17531775) was another potential rival. [68] Pugachev had made stories about himself acting as a real emperor should, helping the common people, listening to their problems, praying for them, and generally acting saintly, and this helped rally the peasants and serfs, with their very conservative values, to his cause. "Despot" is not derogatory in this context. I am no connoisseur, but I am a great art lover. In her accession to power and her rule of the empire, Catherine often relied on her noble favourites, most notably Count Grigory Orlov and Grigory Potemkin. [9], Sophie first met her future husband, who would become Peter III of Russia, at the age of 10. Legend has it Catherine was intimately involved with one of her prized stallions, with who she often spent a great deal of unsupervised time with. In the painting, she presents her public persona, standing in front of a mirror while draped in an ornate gown and serene smile. Her dynasty lost power because of this and of a war with Austria and Germany, impossible without her foreign policy.[48]. The imperial couple moved into the new Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg. [76], Catherine read three sorts of books, namely those for pleasure, those for information, and those to provide her with a philosophy. Taxes doubled again for those of Jewish descent in 1794, and Catherine officially declared that Jews bore no relation to Russians. 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. In doing so, she ruffled the feathers of men around the world. This was another attempt to organise and passively control the outer fringes of her country. A portrait of Catherine the Great by Fedor Rokotov, 1763. 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. All of this was true before Catherine's reign, and this is the system she inherited. "Catherine II and the Socio-Economic Origins of the Jewish Question in Russia", This page was last edited on 3 March 2023, at 14:56. [98] One system that particularly stood out was produced by a mathematician, Franz Aepinus. She did this because she did not want to be bothered by the peasantry, but did not want to give them reason to revolt. The official cause of death was advertised as hemorrhoidal colican absurd diagnosis that soon became a popular euphemism for assassination, according to Montefiore. But while the empress did have her fair share of lovers12 to be exactshe was not the sexual deviant of popular lore. Old Believers were allowed to hold elected municipal positions after the Urban Charter of 1785, and she promised religious freedom to those who wished to settle in Russia. [1] The Manifesto on Freedom of the Nobility, issued during the short reign of Peter III and confirmed by Catherine, freed Russian nobles from compulsory military or state service. Catherine gave away 66,000 serfs from 1762 to 1772, 202,000 from 1773 to 1793, and 100,000 in one day: 18 August 1795. Malecka, Anna. Born in 1729, and known as Catherine the Great because she served as Russia's longest-reigning female ruler, she was empress from 1762 until her death in 1796. However, because her second cousin Peter III converted to Orthodox Christianity, her mother's brother became the heir to the Swedish throne[4] and two of her first cousins, Gustav III and Charles XIII, later became Kings of Sweden. To the general public, Catherine is perhaps best known for conducting a string of salacious love affairs. The Commonwealth had become the Russian protectorate since the reign of Peter I, but he did not intervene into the problem of political freedoms of dissidents advocating for their religious freedoms only. Some claimed Catherine failed to supply enough money to support her educational program. Personal life narratives. [125] Some of these men loved her in return, and she always showed generosity towards them, even after the affair ended. The official cause, after an autopsy, was a severe attack of haemorrhoidal colic and an apoplexy stroke.[26]. The emperor's eccentricities and policies, including a great admiration for the Prussian king Frederick II, alienated the same groups that Catherine had cultivated. Only 400,000 roubles of church wealth were paid back. At the time, it was widely assumed that Catherine was behind this, but historians aren't so sure."The circumstances and cause of death, and the intentions and degree of responsibility of those . [108] Jewish members of society were required to pay double the tax of their Orthodox neighbours. Her rise to power was supported by her mother Joanna's wealthy relatives, who were both nobles and royal relations. With the support of Great Britain, Russia colonised the territories of New Russia along the coasts of the Black and Azov Seas. Poniatowski accepted the throne, and thereby put himself under Catherine's control. The nobles were imposing a stricter rule than ever, reducing the land of each serf and restricting their freedoms further beginning around 1767. The horse myth also allowed her enemies to tarnish her legacy and claims to greatness. In 1762 called on the army to upgrade its medical services. Her sexual independence led to many of the legends about her.[127]. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Sette, Alessandro. After defeating Polish loyalist forces in the PolishRussian War of 1792 and in the Kociuszko Uprising (1794), Russia completed the partitioning of Poland, dividing all of the remaining Commonwealth territory with Prussia and Austria (1795). Bored with her husband, Catherine became an avid reader of books, mostly in French. On the following day, the formal betrothal of Catherine and Peter took place and the long-planned dynastic marriage finally occurred on 21 August 1745 in Saint Petersburg. They disliked the power she wielded over them as few other women in the world at that time could claim to have such authority. At first, she attempted to revise clerical studies, proposing a reform of religious schools. A new Hulu series titled The Great takes its cue from the little-known beginnings of Catherines reign. In 1769, a last major CrimeanNogai slave raid, which ravaged the Russian held territories in Ukraine, saw the capture of up to 20,000 slaves. The British ambassador James Harris, 1st Earl of Malmesbury, reported back to London: Her Majesty has a masculine force of mind, obstinacy in adhering to a plan, and intrepidity in the execution of it; but she wants the more manly virtues of deliberation, forbearance in prosperity and accuracy of judgment, while she possesses in a high degree the weaknesses vulgarly attributed to her sexlove of flattery, and its inseparable companion, vanity; an inattention to unpleasant but salutary advice; and a propensity to voluptuousness which leads to excesses that would debase a female character in any sphere of life. Catherine I of Russia. Peter III's temperament became quite unbearable for those who resided in the palace. A key principle was responsibilities defined by function. But whereas she downplayed this background in favor of presenting herself as a Russian patriot, he catered to his home country by abandoning conquests against Prussia and pursuing a military campaign in Denmark that was of little value to Russia. [9] It was during this period that she first read Voltaire and the other philosophes of the French Enlightenment. She avoided force and tried persuasion (and money) to integrate Muslim areas into her empire.

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