FREE ESSAY ON CATHERINE II

CATHERINE II

Catherine II
Catherine II, or Catherine the Great, empress of all Russia, did much to continue the
process of Westernization reforms began by Peter the Great. Catherine was devoted to art,
literature, science, and politics. Many people say she had a great gift and was a great
leader, thus she was awarded with the name "the Great" She helped develop schools,
hospitals, and many other organizations for the country. She was a shrewd leader and
autocrat and helped to continue and further reforms made by Peter the Great, finally
making Russia a permanent European power. 
Originally named Sophie Frederick Augusta, Princess of Anholt-Zerbst, she was born in
Stettin on May 2, 1729, the daughter of the German prince of Anholt-Zerbst . At the age
of fifteen she went to Russia and married Grand Duke Peter of Holstein, Peter the Greats
grandson, nephew to Elizabeth the Empress of Russia at that time, and heir to the Russian
throne. Catherine was disappointed with her marriage, but decided to stick it out and
concentrate on building herself a powerful group of allies. Catherine occupied herself
with reading everything she could lay her hands on. She discovered satisfaction in the
works of Plato and Voltaire. The years passed and there was still no heir in sight. This
of course irritated Empress Elizabeth who wanted to secure a powerful dynasty, and could
not do so without the presence of a male heir. She thought it must be Catherine's fault
because she was not attracted to her husband. However, it was Peter that was not able to
produce a male son, so Elizabeth permitted an affair between Catherine and a Russian
military officer named Serge Saltykov. Catherine finally gave birth to a son, whom the
Empress named Paul, on September 20, 1754. Peter accepted it the child his own, and three
years later on December 20, 1957, she gave birth to her daughter, Anna Petrovna Romanov.

Elizabeth died on December 25, 1761, and Catherine's husband succeeded as Peter III.
Erratic, unstable, and contemptuous of his Russian subjects, the new ruler soon made
himself unpopular, especially with certain German officers. Catherine fell in love with
an officer in the Imperial Guard, named Gregory Orlov, whose four other brothers were
also guards. They were not of high birth, but to Catherine they were the embodiment of
the Russian Army. Some of Catherine's friends had plotted to over throw the Czar. The
main influences behind this plot were Princess Dashkova, the sister of Peter's mistress,
and all five Orlov brothers. Catherine was waiting to be summoned by Peter to attend the
feast he had planned for his name day, Alexis Orlov slipped past the Holstein Guards and
told Catherine of their plan for a coup d'etat. Catherine went to the Ismailovsky
regiment looking for their support saying I have come to you for protection. The Emperor
has given orders to arrest me. I fear he intends to kill me. The soldiers believed her
and had her support. When the procession of carriages reached the Cathedral of Kazan,
they found the church filled with clergy, awaiting Catherine's inauguration. Catherine
then took the oath as Empress and Sole Autocrat. Peter signed an act of abdication and
left the thrown without a drop of blood even shed. By order of the Empress, Peter was
taken to a nearby estate in the village of Ropsha and was to be under surveillance. Six
days later she received the news that Peter had died after an apparent argument with his
guards. However, Peter was murdered by Catherine's lover, Gregory Orlov, and Catherine
was placed on the throne in his place. 
Catherine was fascinated with the philosophies and theories of the Enlightenment, and was
well acquainted with the literature of the French Enlightenment, which was an important
influence on her own political influence. She corresponded extensively with Voltaire and
Denis Diderot, gave financial support to them and a number of other French writers, and
played host to Diderot at her court in 1773. Although, this gesticulation of hospitality
was partially aimed at creating a favorable image in Western Europe, she was probably
sincere in her interest and her hope to apply some of the ideas of the Enlightenment to
rationalize and reform the administration of the Russian Empire. She had new monuments
erected throughout Russia and transformed St. Petersburg into a truly European city of
Imperial pretensions. Her great love for Russia and pride in her country comes through to
us when we look at this beautiful collection of paintings done by the world's greatest
masters, acquired not for personal indulgence, but as an effort to make Russia respected.

Imbued with the ideas of the Enlightenment, Catherine aimed at completing the job started
by Peter the Great--westernizing Russia--but she had contradictory methods. Rather then
forcing society to reform, she encouraged individual initiative in pursuit of
self-interest. In the early years of her reign, she sought to win the support of the
Russian gentry, and, in particular despite her interest in legal reform, the commission
she appointed for that purpose failed to accomplish its goals. But eventually, she
learned how to select capable assistants--for example, Nikita Panin in foreign affairs,
Alexandre Suvorov in the military, and Grigori Potemkin in administration. 
Conservatism Peasant unrest culminated in a great revolt (1773-75), led by Cossack
Yemelyan Pugachov, that raged over much of the Volga River Basin and the Ural Mountains
before it was finally ruthlessly crushed by military force. The Cossack army was
disbanded, and other Cossacks were granted special privileges in an effort to transform
them into loyal supporters of the autocracy. The revolt alerted Catherine to the
necessity for reform. In 1775, Catherine reorganized the local administration and
integrated the Cossack troops into the Russian army. She drafted the Fundamental Law of
1775, which was the basis of her domestic policy, which lasted until 1861. By now she was
a complete autocrat with viceroys and governors helping her rule the land. In 1787,
another Russo-Turkish war broke out. Once again, the Russians responded with great
strength, making great advances southward. By the end of this conflict, Russia had gained
the areas of Georgia and Crimea. 
In 1785, she issued two charters--to the towns and to the nobility--to involve the
educated classed in local administration in return for protection of their status and
property rights. In similar spirit, Catherine established the Free Economic Society to
encourage the modernization of agriculture and industry. On September 22, 1762 in the old
Assumption Cathedral in the heart of Moscow's Kremlin, Catherine received her crown.
After her return to St. Petersburg, she turned to the affairs of state, often working
relentlessly from early morning to late at night. She decided that the prevailing task
would be to improve techniques in the agricultural regions, and this was accomplished as
the Free Economic Society was established. She sent experts to study the soil and propose
suitable crops. She made grants to landowners to learn the techniques that were being
used in England, and to buy machines that were being invented there. She encouraged
introduction of modern methods to breed sheep and cattle, and she promoted horse
breeding. 
She saw that more workers were needed to work the under populated areas. Catherine turned
to advertisements in foreign newspapers, mostly German, inviting settlers and offering
attractive terms. The response was excellent. Next she turned to mining and sent
geologists to access the ores from Russia's seemingly barren lands. She founded the first
School of Mines in St. Petersburg, complete with an underground mine where trainees could
learn the trade under realistic conditions. The total number of factories during her
reign was increased from 984 to 3161. . By the simple act of abolishing export duties,
she achieved remarkable results. The budget showed a deficit of 17 million rubles, in a
country of only 100 million people. As early as 1765 three quarters of the Empress
Elizabeth's debt was repaid, and a budget deficit had been turned into a surplus. In
1786, Catherine issued the Statue for Schools for all of Russia. It said that every
district town was to establish a minor school with two teachers and every provincial town
a major school with six teachers. When she reorganized the provinces in 1775, she decreed
that each provincial capital must have a hospital. Each county with a population between
20,000 and 30,000 should have a doctor, a surgeon, an assistant surgeon, and a student
doctor. 
Finally, Catherine vastly expanded the Russian empire. Following the two successful wars
against Turkey (the Russo-Turkish Wars of 1768-74 and 1787-92), Russia secured the Crimea
and thus realized a centuries-old dream of establishing itself on the north shore of the
black Sea. The fertile lands of the Ukraine were also opened for settlement and soon
became the granary of Europe. Catherine also participated in the partitions of Poland
(1772,1792, and 1795) bringing a large part of that country under Russian rule. Upon the
death of Catherine on November 17, 1796, modern Russian society was organized and its
culture had struck firm roots. Russia was also playing a determining role in world
affairs. 
Bibliography
Bibliography 
Mazour, Anatole G. and John M. Peoples. World History People and 
Nations Revised Edition. Orlando, Florida: Holt, Rinhart and 
Winston Inc., 1993
Scott, Robert H., "Catherine the Great" Microsoft(R) Encarta, Microsoft Corp., 1995. 2.
Http://www.guide.spb.ru/culture-n-history/history/cathii/index.html