Catherine the Great - Research Paper Example

Catherine II, the Great Introduction Following the profound change in Europe’s religious landscape in the of the sixteenth century, known as “the Reformation”, a much radical period ensued, which was named after the intellectual movement of the mid-seventeenth century – the Enlightenment – and appeared a watershed in Europe’s history, questioning in the light of philosophical reason “everything, no matter how fundamental or deeply rooted” (Israel 3). Russia, which had been ruled by the Romanov dynasty since 1613, was considerably modernized by the grandson of Tsar Mikhail, Peter I, known as Peter the Great, who nearly transformed the backward country into a major power by the early eighteenth century – he succeeded in reforming both the army and administration, created the Russian navy, encouraged trade and secular education, as well as introduced Western technology (Hatt 12). The Church had been deprived of its privileges and was largely subordinated to the state; while the power of the Russian nobles – boyars – was also curbed (Hatt 12; Williams 343-345). Following the victory over Sweden in the Great Northern War, Russia expanded into the northwest, conquering the Neva valley, along with the other Baltic provinces of Sweden, like Ingria, Estonia, Livonia, Vyborg, and part of Karelia; the fort, whose construction had begun in a desolate area of marshland nearby the mouth of the Neva River in 1703, some nine years later became the capital city of the Russian empire under the name St Petersburg (Williams 345; Hatt 12). Peter the Great died before he could name his successor – some six years after the death of his son Peter, by his second marriage – so the son of Tsarevich Alexis, and Peter the Great’s grandson, became the emperor of Russia as Peter II (Williams 346). During his short reign dominated by two powerful magnates’ factions – the Menshikov and Dolgoruky factions – Russia played a rather passive role abroad (Williams 346). Peter II died before he could marry Dolgoruky’s daughter, Catherine, and was succeeded by the niece of Peter the Great, Anna Ivanovna (Williams 346). Under Empress Anna, Russia was ruled by her favorite, Birone; at home, this period was characterized by a decreased Crown control over the nobility, while abroad Russia gained control over Poland in the war of the Polish succession, as well as over Azov in the Russian – Turkish war of 1735-9 (Williams 25). One year after her death, i.e. in 1741, a palace coup carried out by the guards of the Preobrazhenskii regiment overthrew the baby-Emperor Ivan VI and his mother’s German entourage; thus, the daughter of Peter the Great and his second wife, Catherine I, ascended the Russian throne as Empress Elizabeth (Williams 130). Origins and Early Life Catherine was born in Stettin, Pomerania, on 21 April, or alternatively, on 2 May 1729, into an aristocratic family, whose major branches originated among the numerous petty princely families in Northwestern Germany (Kliuchevsky 32). Her father, Christian August, belonged to the Zerbst-Dornburg line of the House of Anhalt and served consecutively as a regimental commander in the Prussian army, the commandant, and governor of the city of Stettin, also being an unsuccessful candidate for Duke of Courland (Kliuchevsky 32). Under the patronage of the Empress of Russia, Elizabeth Petrovna, Christian August was promoted to Prussian field marshal (Kliuchevsky 32). Catherine’s mother, Johanna Elizabeth, belonged to the Holstein-Gottorp family, which had acquired a bit higher importance mainly due to the marriage of the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, Charles Frederick, and the elder daughter of Peter the Great, Anna, insofar as their son ascended the Russian throne in 1761 under the name Peter III (Kliuchevsky 33; Williams 346). It is noteworthy that Catherine’s relatives on her mother’s side, including her grandfather, Frederick Charles, and her uncle – Adolph Frederick, “either served abroad or sought thrones elsewhere by marriage” (Kliuchevsky 33). Catherine was born as Sophie Augusta Fredericka, which name she used “for just 15 years” (Hatt 6) and, according to some accounts, “grew into a lively, mischievous, even daredevil girl, who loved to play pranks on her elders …and to show off her courage to other children” (Kliuchevsky 34). According to other accounts, she proved to be “a spirited intelligent child, who was unafraid to question adults’ opinions” (Hatt 6). Her mother was rarely at home, travelling across almost all of Europe and serving the King of Prussia, Frederick the Great, “on diplomatic business of the sort that real diplomats were shy about taking on themselves” while Catherine’s father was the commandant of Stettin by that time (Kliuchevsky 34). From the age of six, Catherine, of Sophie to be precise, had a governess – a Frenchwoman and Huguenot refugee – called Babette Cardel, who taught the young princess the French language and French manners besides the basic reading and spelling lessons (Hatt 6). The young Sophie also had home tutors who coached her in various skills required by then society, like dancing, as well as a priest who initiated her into the Lutheran confession (Hatt 6). According to some researchers, at the age of seven, Sophie became seriously ill, with a “severe coughing fit that caused her to fall over”, chest pain and fever, which confined her to bed for nearly month; following the illness, however, misshapen spine necessitated her wearing a special brace for about four years (Hatt 6). One of Sophie’s uncles – the 24 year-old George-Ludwig, who had been in the Saxon, and later on in the Prussian service, nearly married her before she turned 15 (Hatt 7-8; Kliuchevsky 34). However, Sophie’s life took a different turn from becoming a Prussian general’s wife, mainly because of two factors – Empress Elizabeth’s affection for her and the far-sighted move proposed by the Empress’s advisors, directing the search for a bride of the heir to the Russian throne toward a modest princely family, rather than a prominent dynastic origin (Kliuchevsky 34). Insofar as Empress Elizabeth was not married and had no children of her own, and also had preserved “a tender memory of her Holsteiner fiancé”, i.e. Catherine’s uncle, Charles, whose premature death prevented him from becoming her husband, it is not that difficult to guess why the Empress of Russia turned her attention to his niece (Kliuchevsky 34; Hatt 8). Given the fact that Catherine and her mother received generous gifts from the Empress, such as her portrait, diamond-framed, and worth some eighteen thousand rubles (Kliuchevsky 34), such a suggestion appears rather plausible; however, since Frederick the Great had been somewhat stingy about paying for the services of his subjects, those gifts were a good source of support for Catherine’s family (Kliuchevsky 34). Cultural and Intellectual Influences Before Peter the Great, Russia was largely a backward Asian country, with its closed society and Byzantine-style Orthodox Church, always antagonistic toward western influences and contacts with Latin Europe (Gorbatov 3). By the late 14th century, however, Russia had become drawn into the European affairs, whether in the field of commerce or diplomacy, and by the mid-sixteenth century many Germans settled in the country, establishing their own neighborhoods (Gorbatov 4). Most of the Germans were skilled artisans, including glass-makers, masons, watchmakers, smelters, as well as doctors and astrologers; they were allowed to follow their own customs and traditions, including religion (Gorbatov 4). On the other hand, many foreigners from Western Europe entered the Russian army, either as military advisors or as commanding officers; additionally, foreign medical practitioners were recruited to serve in the army, especially during military campaigns (Gorbatov 4). During the reign of Peter the Great, radical administrative, religious and military reforms took place, which resulted in nearly all sections of both Russian state and society being modernized, and westernized (Gorbatov 6; Hatt 12; Williams 343-345). The Russian academy of Sciences, founded in 1724, had published an “unprecedented number” of secular books, thus popularizing the works of Western writers and philosophers (Gorbatov 7). St. Petersburg appeared the most striking example of Russia’s westernization and the cultural revolution of that time, with its cosmopolitan image and even with its Germanic name – Peter the Great presumably had chosen it to underline the European identity of his future capital (Gorbatov 8). Although early-eighteenth-century Germany had been divided into various feudal possessions, each representing a smaller or bigger quasi-independent principality – according to some historians, “for the most part poor, highly inbred and quarrelsome” – this “curious little corner of Europe” (Kliuchevsky 32) exerted a sustained influence on Russia, in fact during the reign of all insignificant Russian rulers after Peter the Great, up to Empress Elizabeth’s accession to the throne (Gorbatov 9). This a prima facie paradox might be regarded as a natural consequence of the vast number of well-educated and highly-skilled Germans – or German speaking subjects of the Russian crown – concentrated in the major Russian cities, like Moscow and St Petersburg, along with the geographic proximity of northwestern Germany to Russia after the Great Northern War, and the close dynastic interrelations, most notably by marriage, between the German and Russian ruling elites (see Kliuchevsky 32-33, also Hatt 8, and Gorbatov 10). Elizabeth’s reign, however, marked the beginning of French influence in Russia, with French fashion being “scrupulously followed and copied”, French manners becoming more accepted, and French designers decorating the palaces of Russian aristocratic families (Gorbatov 10-11). Additionally, a French theater opened its doors in St, Petersburg, under the direction of Serigny, while French literature, language and philosophy became all-important elements in the education of Russian upper classes (Gorbatov 11). From Sophie Augusta to Catherine Alekseevna and the Coup D’état of 1762 In 1744, at the age of 15, Sophie Augusta had been invited by Empress Elizabeth to move to Russia in order to marry the empress’s nephew, Grand Duke Peter Fedorovich – born as Charles Peter Ulrich, son of the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, Charles Frederick, and Peter the Great’s elder daughter Anna – who was named by Elizabeth as an official heir to the Russian throne (Gorbatov 11; Kliuchevsky 33; Williams 54, 346). The princes arrived in Moscow in February 1744 with her mother, Johanna Elizabeth, and four month later, i.e. in July, was converted to the Orthodox Christianity, being given the name Catherine Alekseevna; the next year, Catherine married Peter in St. Petersburg’s Kazan Cathedral (Gorbatov 11). According to historians, being a woman of great personal charm, and gifted with strong character, powerful intelligence, and the ability to work hard, Catherine indicated her determination to succeed from the very beginning of her marriage (Williams 54; Gorbatov 11). She quickly mastered Russian, “immersed herself” into the Orthodox tradition and adopted the customs of the Russian court; moreover, she surrounded herself with favorites, like Saltikov, Stanislav Poniatovsky (Stanislas Poniatowski) – the future Polish king, Lev Naryshkin, as well as Potemkin (Gorbatov 11-12; Alexander 44). Catherine also enjoyed historical and philosophical works, being inspired by the new ideas emerging in the West; in 1754, she gave birth to a child – a son, called Paul, or Pavel Petrovich, who would inherit the Russian throne after the death of his mother (Gorbatov 11). After the death of Elizabeth on 25 December 1761, and Peter’s coronation as Emperor Peter III, she was pronounced empress; meanwhile, she had already gained popularity, especially in the Guards regiments (Kliuchevsky 21). According to some accounts, the empress enjoyed a ‘long succession of lovers” - at least 21 had been identified, including Gregory Orlov – one of the Orlov brothers, Platon Zubov, Potemkin, etc.; as Pushkin would later put in, “many were called, and many chosen” (Williams 54). On the other hand, Peter’s reputation as a “feeble-minded philanderer unfit for the throne” is thought to have originated in the memoirs of Catherine or/and her friends; while he enjoyed books, spoke three languages – Russian, French and German – and idolized Frederick the Great, along with “all things Prussian” (Williams 347). On the other hand, Peter’s obsession with the Prussian – he surrounded himself with new entourage, attempted to reorganize the guards on Prussian lines, and, most notably, concluded peace with Frederick the Great, saving him from destruction in the Seven Years War – along with the failure, or negligence, at cultivating the nobility, thus alienating powerful factions, most likely cost him the throne in 1762 (Williams 346-347; Kliuchevsky 21). By that time, the emperor had already been on bad terms with Catherine, threatening to divorce her and even send her to a convent, probably intending to replace her with the niece of the chancellor Count Michel Vorontsov (Kliuchevsky 21). Shortly after his accession to the throne, Peter III was overthrown by a coup d’état organized by a number of plotters, including the powerful Orlov brothers, Gregory and Alexis, who were famous in all the Guards regiments as well as idols of the young guardsmen, the hetman of Ukraine and president of the academy of Sciences, Count Kirill Razumovsky, Count Nikita Panin, etc. (Kliuchevsky 22). The coup was carried out on 28 June 1762 by young officers of the Preobrazhensky and Izmailovsky regiments, as well as of the Horse Guards – actually the plotters won over some 40 officers and 10 000 soldiers of the Guards (Kliuchevsky 23). Catherine II, the Great Having continued the reforms of Peter the Great, Catherine increased the state’s control over the provinces and undertook “a wide range of internal political reforms”, including the administrative reform of 1775, i.e. the Law on the Administration of the Provinces; between July 1767 and December 1768, a legislative Commission was called to “recodify the law”, which was dominated by the nobility (Williams 55; Alexander, 118). Catherine issued her “Instruction”, based on the ideas of Montesquieu and Beccaria, as a guide to the Commission’s work, which took her some 2 years of writing and gained her high praise from Voltaire, who called her “the Great” (Williams 55; Gorbatov 30; Hatt 22). Under her rule, the judicial system was largely reorganized “to separate criminal from civil justice”, while the Charter of the Nobility, issued in 1785, raised the status of the nobles (Williams 56). According to Gorbatov, having belonged to the cosmopolitan elite who expressed themselves in French, Catherine the Great was constantly inspired by French political and social ideas, and not only filled her palaces with French art but also with representatives of the French aristocratic and intellectual elites (117). During her reign the French language not only became an important subject in all educational institutions, but also was introduced in regular schools; thus, the need for French teachers, along with Catherine’s orders granting that granted foreigners considerable privileges, brought about the French colony in Russia to “grow enormously” (Gorbatov 15). Being considered an enlightened absolutist, Catherine remained the sole decision-maker in the empire, with absolute rule over the Senate, her ministers and numerous subjects (Gorbatov 12); There were numerous riots of prosecuted groups during her reign, but the biggest one was the Cossacks rebellion in 1773 – 1774, led by Emelian Pugachev; although the rebellion posed a serious threat to Moscow and St. Petersburg, it was eventually quelled and Pugachev was taken to Moscow in an iron cage, and consequently tortured, beheaded, dismembered and burnt (Williams 57). Conclusion Abroad, Catherine II waged two successful wars against the Ottoman Empire, due to which the Russian control over the entire northern coast of the Black Sea was recognized in 1774 (The Treaty of Kucuk Kaynarca), the system of Capitulations was extended to Russia, and was acknowledged the Russian protectorate over Christian subjects of Sultan (Gorbatov 12). In 1782, the Ukrainian Hetmanate was abolished and replaced with Russian administrative and political institutions; in 1783, the Crimea was annexed and became a province of the Russian empire as a result of the negotiations between Khan Shagin Girey and Potemkin (Gorbatov 12). Major cities in the Black Sea region were founded, like Ekaterinoslav and Odessa, and the Black sea navy was created (Gorbatov 12). Thus, the period of her reign is considered a golden age in Russia’s history. Works Cited Alexander, John T., Catherine the Great: Life and Legend. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1989. Print Gorbatov, Inna, Catherine the Great and French Philosophers of the Enlightenment: Montesquieu, Voltaire, Rousseau, Diderot and Grimm. Bethesda, MD: Academia Press, LLC, 2006. Print Hatt, Christine, Catherine the Great. London: Evans Brothers Limited, 2002. Print Israel, Jonathan I., Radical Enlightenment: Philosophy and the Making of Modernity 1650 – 1750. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. Print Kliuchevsky, V. O., A Course in Russian History: The Time of Catherine the Great. Trans. Marshall S. Shatz. New York: M.E. Sharpe, Inc., 1997. Print Williams, E. N., The Penguin Dictionary of English and European History, 1485 - 1789. London: Penguin Books, 1980. Print Read More