Catherine the Great
1729 – 1796 Russian Empress of Russia
German-born empress who expanded Russia to the Black Sea and ruled for over three decades.
- Religion
- Russian Orthodox (born Lutheran)
- Affiliations
- House of Romanov
Born a minor German princess, Catherine took the Russian throne in 1762 after a palace coup against her husband Peter III. Her long reign expanded the empire south to the Black Sea, annexed Crimea, and took large territories in the partitions of Poland. She presented herself as an enlightened ruler and corresponded with Enlightenment thinkers, but she also strengthened the nobility and deepened serfdom, and she crushed Pugachev's mass revolt of Cossacks and serfs. Her rule marked the height of imperial expansion and of aristocratic power over the peasantry.
Connections
- family of Alexander I of Russia — Her grandson, whom she personally oversaw and favored as heir.
- family of Alexander I of Russia — His grandmother, who groomed him for the throne.
- influenced Peter the Great — His westernizing reforms were continued by Catherine.
- influenced Peter the Great — Modeled her rule on his Westernizing reforms.
In the timeline
- 1689 Peter and Catherine the Great as reformers central figure
- 1762 Accession of Catherine the Great the empress
- 1772 – 1795 Partitions of Poland a partitioning ruler
- 1773 – 1775 Pugachev's Rebellion the ruler who crushed the revolt
- 1783 Russian Annexation of Crimea the annexing empress
- 1791 Russia confines Jews to the Pale of Settlement mentioned