Upon closer examination, the biography of Catherine II the Great is replete with a large number of events that significantly influenced the Empress of the Russian Empire.
Origin
Family tree of the Romanovs
Family ties Peter III and Catherine II
Catherine the Great's hometown is Stettin (now Szczecin in Poland), which was then the capital city of Pomerania. On May 2, 1729, a girl was born in the castle of the above-mentioned city, named at birth Sophia Frederica Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst.
The mother was the cousin of Peter III (who was just a boy at that time) Johanna Elisabeth, Princess of Holstein-Gottorp. The father was the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst - Christian August, who was the governor of Stettin. Thus, the future empress was of very noble blood, although not from a royally rich family.
Childhood and youth
Francis Boucher - Young Catherine the Great
While being educated at home, Frederica, in addition to her native German, studied Italian, English and French. The basics of geography and theology, music and dancing - the corresponding noble education coexisted with very active children's games. The girl was interested in everything that was happening around her, and despite some dissatisfaction from her parents, she took part in games with boys on the streets of her hometown.
Having first seen her future husband in 1739, at Eytin Castle, Frederica did not yet know about the impending invitation to Russia. In 1744, she, fifteen years old, and her mother traveled through Riga to Russia at the invitation of Empress Elizabeth. Immediately after her arrival, she began an active study of the language, traditions, history and religion of her new homeland. The most prominent teachers of the princess were Vasily Adadurov, who taught language, Simon Todorsky, who taught Orthodoxy lessons with Frederica, and choreographer Lange.
On July 9, Sofia Federica Augusta officially accepted baptism and converted to Orthodoxy, named Ekaterina Alekseevna - it was this name that she would later glorify.
Marriage
Despite the intrigues of her mother, through which the Prussian king Frederick II tried to displace Chancellor Bestuzhev and increase influence on the foreign policy of the Russian Empire, Catherine did not fall into disgrace and on September 1, 1745 she was married to Peter Fedorovich, who was her second cousin.
Crowning of Catherine II. September 22, 1762. Confirmation. Engraving by A.Ya. Kolpashnikov. Last quarter of the 18th century.
Due to the categorical inattention on the part of her young husband, who was interested exclusively in the art of war and drill, the future empress devoted her time to the study of literature, art and sciences. At the same time, along with studying the works of Voltaire, Montesquieu and other educators, the biography of her young years is filled with hunting, various balls and masquerades.
The lack of intimacy with the legal spouse could not but affect the appearance of lovers, while Empress Elizabeth was not happy with the lack of heirs and grandchildren.
Having suffered two unsuccessful pregnancies, Catherine gave birth to Pavel, who, by Elizabeth’s personal decree, was separated from his mother and raised separately. According to an unconfirmed theory, Pavel’s father was S.V. Saltykov, who was sent away from the capital immediately after the birth of the child. This statement can be supported by the fact that after the birth of his son, Peter III finally ceased to be interested in his wife and did not hesitate to have favorites.
S. Saltykov
Stanislav August Poniatowski
However, Catherine herself was not inferior to her husband and, thanks to the efforts of the English ambassador Williams, entered into a relationship with Stanislav Poniatowski, the future king of Poland (thanks to the patronage of Catherine II herself). According to some historians, it was from Poniatowski that Anna was born, whose own paternity Peter questioned.
Williams, for some time, was a friend and confidant of Catherine, gave her loans, manipulated and received confidential information regarding Russia's foreign policy plans and the actions of its military units during the seven-year war with Prussia.
The future Catherine the Great began to hatch and voice her first plans to overthrow her husband back in 1756, in letters to Williams. Seeing the painful state of Empress Elizabeth, and Peter’s own incompetence beyond doubt, Chancellor Bestuzhev promised to support Catherine. In addition, Catherine attracted English loans to bribe her supporters.
In 1758, Elizabeth began to suspect the commander-in-chief of the Russian Empire, Apraksin, and Chancellor Bestuzhev, of a conspiracy. The latter managed to avoid disgrace by destroying all correspondence with Catherine in time. Former favorites, including Williams, who was recalled to England, were removed from Catherine and she was forced to look for new supporters - they became Dashkova and the Orlov brothers.
British Ambassador Ch, Williams
Brothers Alexey and Grigory Orlov
On January 5, 1761, Empress Elizabeth died and Peter III ascended the throne by right of inheritance. The next round in Catherine’s biography began. The new emperor sent his wife to the other end of the Winter Palace, replacing her with his mistress Elizaveta Vorontsova. In 1762, Catherine’s carefully hidden pregnancy from Count Grigory Orlov, with whom she began a relationship back in 1760, could in no way be explained by her relationship with her legal spouse.
For this reason, to distract attention, on April 22, 1762, one of Catherine’s devoted servants set fire to own house- Peter III, who loved such spectacles, left the palace and Catherine calmly gave birth to Alexey Grigorievich Bobrinsky.
Organization of the coup
From the very beginning of his reign, Peter III caused discontent among his subordinates - an alliance with Prussia, which was defeated in the Seven Years' War, and aggravation of relations with Denmark. secularization of church lands and plans to change religious practices.
Taking advantage of her husband's unpopularity among the military, Catherine's supporters began to actively agitate the guards units to go over to the side of the future empress in the event of a coup.
The early morning of July 9, 1762 marked the beginning of the overthrow of Peter III. Ekaterina Alekseevna arrived in St. Petersburg from Peterhof, accompanied by the Orlov brothers, and taking advantage of her husband’s absence, took the oath first to the guards units, and then to other regiments.
Oath of the Izmailovsky Regiment to Catherine II. Unknown artist. The end of the 18th - the first third of the 19th century.
Moving along with the joining troops, the Empress first received from Peter a proposal for negotiations, and why abdication of the throne.
After his conclusion, the biography of the ex-emperor was as sad as it was vague. The arrested husband died while under arrest in Ropsha, and the circumstances of his death remained unclear. According to a number of sources, he was either poisoned or died suddenly from an unknown illness.
Having ascended the throne, Catherine the Great issued a manifesto accusing Peter III of attempting to change religion and make peace with hostile Prussia.
Beginning of reign
In foreign policy, the beginning was made of the creation of the so-called Northern System, which consisted of the northern non-Catholic states: Russia, Prussia, England, Sweden, Denmark and Saxony, plus Catholic Poland, uniting against Austria and France. The first step towards the implementation of the project was considered to be the conclusion of an agreement with Prussia. Secret articles were attached to the agreement, according to which both allies pledged to act together in Sweden and Poland in order to prevent their strengthening.
Prussian King - Frederick II the Great
Catherine and Frederick were especially concerned about the course of affairs in Poland. They agreed to prevent changes in the Polish constitution, to prevent and destroy all intentions that could lead to this, even resorting to weapons. In a separate article, the allies agreed to patronize Polish dissidents (that is, the non-Catholic minority - Orthodox and Protestants) and persuade the Polish king to equalize their rights with Catholics.
The former king Augustus III died back in 1763. Friedrich and Catherine wondered challenging task place his protege on the Polish throne. The Empress wanted it to be her former lover, Count Poniatowski. In achieving this, she did not stop either at bribing the Sejm deputies or at the introduction of Russian troops into Poland.
The entire first half of the year was spent in active propaganda of the Russian protege. On August 26, Poniatowski was elected King of Poland. Catherine greatly rejoiced at this success and, without delaying the matter, ordered Poniatowski to raise the question of the rights of dissidents, despite the fact that everyone who knew the state of affairs in Poland pointed out the great difficulty and almost impossibility of achieving this goal. Poniatowski wrote to his ambassador in St. Petersburg, Rzhevusky:
“The orders given to Repnin (the Russian ambassador in Warsaw) to introduce dissidents into the legislative activities of the republic are thunderclaps both for the country and for me personally. If there is any human possibility, inspire the empress that the crown that she delivered to me will become for me the clothes of Nessus: I will burn in it and my end will be terrible. I clearly foresee the terrible choice ahead of me if the empress insists on her orders: either I will have to renounce her friendship, so dear to my heart and so necessary for my reign and for my state, or I will have to appear as a traitor to my fatherland.”
Russian diplomat N.V. Repnin
Even Repnin was horrified by Catherine’s intentions:
“The orders given” regarding the dissident case are terrible,” he wrote to Panin, “my hair truly stands on end when I think about it, having almost no hope, except for the only force, to fulfill the will of the most merciful empress regarding civil dissident benefits.” .
But Catherine was not horrified and ordered Poniatovsky to answer that she absolutely did not understand how dissidents admitted to legislative activity would, as a result, be more hostile towards the Polish state and government than they are now; cannot understand how the king considers himself a traitor to the fatherland for what justice requires, which will constitute his glory and the solid good of the state.
“If the king views this matter this way,” Catherine concluded, “then I am left with eternal and sensitive regret that I could have been deceived in the king’s friendship, in the way of his thoughts and feelings.”
As soon as the empress so unequivocally expressed her desire, Repnin in Warsaw was forced to act with all possible firmness. Through intrigue, bribery and threats, the introduction of Russian troops into the outskirts of Warsaw and the arrest of the most stubborn opponents, Repnin achieved his goal on February 9, 1768. The Sejm agreed to freedom of religion for dissidents and their political equation with the Catholic gentry.
It seemed that the goal had been achieved, but in reality it was only the beginning great war. The dissident “equation” set fire to all of Poland. The Sejm, which approved the treaty on February 13, had barely dispersed when the lawyer Puławski raised a confederation against it in Bar. With his light hand, anti-dissident confederations began to break out throughout Poland.
The Orthodox response to the Bar Confederation was the Haydamak revolt of 1768, in which, together with the Haydamaks (Russian fugitives who had gone to the steppes), the Cossacks led by Zheleznyak and the serfs with the centurion Gonta rose up. At the height of the uprising, one of the Haidamak detachments crossed the border river Kolyma and plundered the Tatar town of Galta. As soon as this became known in Istanbul, a 20,000-strong Turkish corps was moved to the borders. On September 25, the Russian ambassador Obrezkov was arrested, diplomatic relations were severed - Russian-Turkish war. The dissident case took such an unexpected turn.
First wars
Having suddenly received two wars on her hands, Catherine was not at all embarrassed. On the contrary, threats from the west and south only gave her more enthusiasm. She wrote to Count Chernyshev:
“The Turks and the French decided to wake up the cat, who was sleeping; I am this cat who promises to make myself known to them, so that the memory does not quickly disappear. I find that we have freed ourselves from a great burden that oppresses the imagination when we got rid of the peace treaty... Now I am free, I can do everything that my means allow, and Russia, you know, has quite a lot of means... and now we will set the ringing tone for what didn’t expect it, and now the Turks will be beaten.”
The Empress's enthusiasm was transmitted to those around her. Already at the first meeting of the Council on November 4, it was decided to wage an offensive war, not a defensive one, and first of all try to raise the Christians oppressed by Turkey. To this end, on November 12, Grigory Orlov proposed sending an expedition to the Mediterranean Sea in order to promote the uprising of the Greeks.
Catherine liked this plan, and she energetically began to implement it. On November 16, she wrote to Chernyshev:
“I tickled our seamen so much in their craft that they became fire.”
And a few days later:
“I now have a fleet in excellent care, and I will truly use it in such a way, if God so commands, as it has never been before...”
Prince A. M. Golitsyn
Hostilities began in 1769. The army of General Golitsyn crossed the Dnieper and took Khotyn. But Catherine was dissatisfied with his slowness and transferred the supreme command to Rumyantsev, who soon captured Moldavia and Wallachia, as well as the coast of the Azov Sea with Azov and Taganrog. Catherine ordered to strengthen these cities and begin organizing a flotilla.
This year she developed amazing energy, worked like a real chief of the general staff, went into the details of military preparations, drew up plans and instructions. In April, Catherine wrote to Chernyshev:
“I am setting fire to the Turkish empire from all four corners; I don’t know whether it will catch fire and burn, but I know that since the beginning they have not yet been used against their great troubles and worries... We have brewed a lot of porridge, it will be tasty for someone. I have an army in the Kuban, armies against the brainless Poles, ready to fight with the Swedes, and three more inpetto turmoil, which I don’t dare show..."
In fact, there were a lot of troubles and worries. In July 1769, a squadron under the command of Spiridov finally sailed from Kronstadt. Of the 15 large and small ships of the squadron, only eight reached the Mediterranean Sea.
With these forces, Alexey Orlov, who was being treated in Italy and asked to be the leader of the uprising of Turkish Christians, raised the Morea, but could not give the rebels a solid military structure, and, having suffered failure from the approaching Turkish army, abandoned the Greeks to their fate, irritated by the fact that he did not find Themistocles in them. Catherine approved of all his actions.
Having united with another squadron of Elfingston, which had meanwhile approached, Orlov chased the Turkish fleet and in the Strait of Chios near the fortress of Chesme overtook an armada with a number of ships more than twice as strong as the Russian fleet. After a four-hour battle, the Turks took refuge in Chesme Bay (June 24, 1770). A day later, on a moonlit night, the Russians launched fire ships and by morning the bay was crowded Turkish fleet was burned (June 26).
Amazing naval victories in the Archipelago were followed by similar land victories in Bessarabia. Ekaterina wrote to Rumyantsev:
“I hope for Divine help and your skill in military affairs, that you will not abandon this in the best possible way satisfy and carry out such deeds that will gain you glory and prove how great your zeal is for the fatherland and for me. The Romans did not ask when, where there were two or three legions of them, how many the enemy was against them, but where he was; They attacked him and struck him, and it was not by the numbers of their troops that they defeated the multitude against their crowd...”
Inspired by this letter, Rumyantsev twice defeated many times superior forces in July 1770. Turkish armies on Larga and Kagul. At the same time, an important fortress on the Dniester, Bendery, was taken. In 1771, General Dolgorukov broke through Perekop into the Crimea and captured the fortresses of Kafu, Kerch and Yenikale. Khan Selim-Girey fled to Turkey. The new khan Sahib-Girey hastened to make peace with the Russians. At this point the active actions ended and long negotiations about peace began, again returning Catherine to Polish affairs.
Storm Bender
Russia's military successes aroused envy and fear in neighboring countries, especially Austria and Prussia. Misunderstandings with Austria reached the point that they started talking loudly about the possibility of war with her. Frederick strenuously instilled in the Russian empress that Russia’s desire to annex Crimea and Moldova could lead to a new European war, since Austria would never agree to this. It would be much more reasonable to take part of the Polish possessions as compensation. He directly wrote to his ambassador Solms that it does not matter to Russia where it will receive the reward to which it is entitled for military losses, and since the war began solely because of Poland, Russia has the right to take its reward from the border regions of this republic. Austria should have received its part in this case - this would moderate its hostility. The king, too, cannot do without acquiring a part of Poland for himself. This will reward him for the subsidies and other expenses he incurred during the war.
In St. Petersburg, the idea of dividing Poland was liked. On July 25, 1772, an agreement followed between the three shareholder powers, according to which Austria received all of Galicia, Prussia received Western Prussia, and Russia received Belarus. Having settled the contradictions with its European neighbors at the expense of Poland, Catherine could begin Turkish negotiations.
Break with Orlov
At the beginning of 1772, through the Austrians, they agreed to begin a peace congress with the Turks in Focsani in June. Count Grigory Orlov and the former Russian ambassador to Istanbul Obrezkov were appointed plenipotentiaries on the Russian side.
It seemed that nothing foreshadowed the end of the empress’s 11-year relationship with her favorite, and yet Orlov’s star had already set. True, before breaking up with him, Catherine endured as much from her lover as a rare woman is able to endure from her legal husband
Already in 1765, seven years before the final break between them, Beranger reported from St. Petersburg:
“This Russian openly violates the laws of love in relation to the Empress. He has mistresses in the city who not only do not incur the wrath of the empress for their compliance with Orlov, but, on the contrary, enjoy her patronage. Senator Muravyov, who found his wife with him, almost caused a scandal by demanding a divorce; but the queen pacified him by giving him lands in Livonia.”
“I can no longer restrain myself from informing Your Majesty about an interesting event that has just happened at this court. The absence of Count Orlov revealed a very natural, but nevertheless unexpected circumstance: Her Majesty found it possible to do without him, change her feelings for him and transfer her affection to another subject.
A. S. Vasilchakov
The Horse Guards cornet Vasilchikov, accidentally sent with a small detachment to Tsarskoe Selo to stand guard, attracted the attention of his empress, completely unexpectedly for everyone, because there was nothing special in his appearance, and he himself never tried to advance and is very little known in society . When the royal court moved from Tsarskoye Selo to Peterhof, Her Majesty for the first time showed him a sign of her favor by presenting him with a golden snuffbox for the proper maintenance of the guards.
This incident was not given any importance, but Vasilchikov’s frequent visits to Peterhof, the care with which she hastened to distinguish him from others, the calmer and cheerful disposition of her spirit since Orlov’s removal, the displeasure of the latter’s relatives and friends, and finally many other small circumstances opened the eyes of the courtiers .
Although everything is still kept secret, none of those close to him doubt that Vasilchikov is already in complete favor with the empress; They were convinced of this especially from the day when he was granted a chamber cadet...”
Meanwhile, Orlov encountered insurmountable obstacles to concluding peace in Focsani. The Turks did not want to recognize the independence of the Tatars. On August 18, Orlov broke off the negotiations and left for Iasi, to the headquarters of the Russian army. It was here that he received the news about the drastic change that had followed in his life. Orlov abandoned everything and rushed to St. Petersburg on post horses, hoping to regain his former rights. A hundred miles from the capital, he was stopped by an order from the empress: Orlov was ordered to go to his estates and not leave there until the end of the quarantine (he was traveling from the territory where the plague was raging). Although the favorite did not immediately have to reconcile, at the beginning of 1773 he nevertheless arrived in St. Petersburg and was greeted favorably by the empress, but the previous relationship was no longer out of the question.
“I owe a lot to the Orlov family,” said Catherine, “I showered them with riches and honors; and I will always patronize them, and they can be useful to me; but my decision is unchanged: I endured for eleven years; Now I want to live as I please, and completely independently. As for the prince, he can do absolutely whatever he wants: he is free to travel or stay in the empire, drink, hunt, have mistresses... If he behaves well, honor and glory to him, if he behaves badly, it’s a shame for him...”
***
The years 1773 and 1774 turned out to be restless for Catherine: the Poles continued to resist, the Turks did not want to make peace. Exhausting the state budget the war continued, and meanwhile a new threat arose in the Urals. In September, Emelyan Pugachev rebelled. In October, the rebels accumulated forces for the siege of Orenburg and the nobles around the empress openly panicked.
Matters of the heart did not go well for Catherine either. She later confessed to Potemkin, referring to her relationship with Vasilchikov:
“I have been more sad than I can say, and never more than when other people are happy, and all kinds of caresses forced tears in me, so I think that since I was born I have not cried as much as I have these year and a half; At first I thought that I would get used to it, but what happened next became worse, because on the other side (that is, on Vasilchikov’s side) they began to sulk for three months, and I must admit that I have never been happier than when he gets angry and leaves him alone, but His caress forced me to cry.”
It is known that in her favorites Catherine sought not only lovers, but also assistants in the matter of government. She eventually managed to make good statesmen out of the Orlovs. Vasilchikov was less fortunate. However, another contender remained in reserve, whom Catherine had long liked - Grigory Potemkin. Catherine has known and celebrated him for 12 years. In 1762, Potemkin served as a sergeant in a horse guards regiment and took an active part in the coup. In the list of awards after the events of June 28, he was assigned the rank of cornet. Catherine crossed out this line and wrote “captain-lieutenant” in her own hand.
In 1773 he was promoted to lieutenant general. In June of this year, Potemkin was in the battle under the walls of Silistria. But a few months later, he suddenly asked for leave and quickly, hastily left the army. The reason for this was an event that decided his life: he received the following letter from Catherine:
“Mr. Lieutenant General! You, I imagine, are so busy with the sight of Silistria that you have no time to read letters. I do not know whether the bombing has been successful so far, but, despite this, I am sure that - whatever you personally undertake - cannot be prescribed for any other purpose than your ardent zeal for the benefit of me personally and my dear homeland, whom you lovingly serve. But, on the other hand, since I want to preserve zealous, brave, intelligent and efficient people, I ask you not to expose yourself to danger unnecessarily. After reading this letter, you may ask why it was written; To this I can answer you: so that you have confidence in how I think about you, just as I wish you well.”
In January 1774, Potemkin was in St. Petersburg, waited another six weeks, testing the waters, strengthening his chances, and on February 27 he wrote a letter to the Empress in which he asked to graciously appoint him adjutant general, “if she considered his services worthy.” Three days later he received a favorable response, and on March 20 Vasilchikov was sent the highest order to go to Moscow. He retired, giving way to Potemkin, who was destined to become Catherine's most famous and powerful favorite. In a matter of months, he made a dizzying career.
In May he was made a member of the Council, in June he was promoted to count, in October he was promoted to general-in-chief, and in November he was awarded the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. All of Catherine’s friends were perplexed and found the empress’s choice strange, extravagant, even tasteless, for Potemkin was ugly, crooked in one eye, bow-legged, harsh and even rude. Grimm could not hide his amazement.
"Why? - Catherine answered him. “I bet it’s because I moved away from a certain excellent, but overly boring gentleman, who was immediately replaced, I really don’t know how, by one of the greatest funnymen, the most interesting eccentric that can be found in our Iron Age.”
She was very pleased with her new acquisition.
“Oh, what a head this man has,” she said, “and this good head funny as hell."
Several months passed, and Potemkin became a real ruler, an omnipotent man, before whom all rivals cowered and all heads bowed, starting with Catherine’s. His entry into the Council was tantamount to becoming First Minister. He directs domestic and foreign policy and forces Chernyshev to give him the place of chairman of the military board.
On July 10, 1774, negotiations with Turkey ended with the signing of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Peace Treaty, according to which:
- the independence of the Tatars was recognized and Crimean Khanate from the Ottoman Empire;
- Kerch and Yenikale in Crimea go to Russia;
- Russia receives the Kinburn castle and the steppe between the Dnieper and the Bug, Azov, Greater and Lesser Kabarda;
- free navigation of merchant ships of the Russian Empire through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits;
- Moldova and Wallachia received the right to autonomy and came under Russian protection;
- The Russian Empire received the right to build a Christian church in Constantinople, and the Turkish authorities pledged to provide its protection
- A ban on the oppression of Orthodox Christians in Transcaucasia, on the collection of tribute by people from Georgia and Mingrelia.
- 4.5 million rubles in indemnity.
The empress's joy was great - no one had counted on such a profitable peace. But at the same time, more and more alarming news came from the east. Pugachev had already been defeated twice. He fled, but his flight seemed like an invasion. Never has the success of the uprising been greater than in the summer of 1774; never has the rebellion raged with such power and cruelty.
Indignation spread like fire from one village to another, from province to province. This sad news made a deep impression in St. Petersburg and darkened the victorious mood after the end of the Turkish War. Only in August was Pugachev finally defeated and captured. On January 10, 1775, he was executed in Moscow.
In Polish affairs, on February 16, 1775, the Sejm finally passed a law giving dissidents equal political rights with Catholics. Thus, despite all the obstacles, Catherine completed this difficult task and successfully ended three bloody wars - two external and one internal.
Execution of Emelyan Pugachev
***
The Pugachev uprising revealed serious shortcomings of the existing regional administration: firstly, the former provinces represented too large administrative districts, secondly, these districts were supplied with too insufficient number of institutions with meager personnel, thirdly, various departments were mixed in this administration: one and the same department was in charge of administrative matters, and finance, and criminal and civil courts. In order to eliminate these shortcomings, in 1775 Catherine began a provincial reform.
First of all, she introduced a new regional division: instead of 20 vast provinces into which Russia was then divided, the entire empire was now divided into 50 provinces. The basis of the provincial division was based solely on the number of population. The provinces of Catherine are districts of 300-400 thousand inhabitants. They were divided into counties with a population of 20-30 thousand inhabitants. Each province received a uniform structure, administrative and judicial.
In the summer of 1775, Catherine stayed in Moscow, where the house of the Golitsyn princes at the Prechistensky Gate was given to her. At the beginning of July, the victorious Turks, Field Marshal Count Rumyantsev, arrived in Moscow. The news has been preserved that Catherine, dressed in a Russian sundress, met Rumyantsev. on the porch of the Golitsyn house and, hugging and kissing. Then she drew attention to Zavadovsky, powerful, stately and exceptionally handsome man, accompanying the field marshal. Noticing the empress's affectionate and interested glance at Zavadovsky, the field marshal immediately introduced the handsome man to Catherine, speaking flatteringly of him as a well-educated, hardworking, honest and brave man.
Catherine granted Zavadovsky a diamond ring with her name and appointed him as her cabinet secretary. Soon he was promoted to major general and adjutant general, began to be in charge of the personal office of the empress and became one of the people closest to her. At the same time, Potemkin noticed that his charm for the empress had weakened. In April 1776, he went on vacation to inspect the Novgorod province. A few days after his departure, Zavadovsky settled in his place.
P. V. Zavadovsky
But, having ceased to be a lover, Potemkin, who was granted a prince in 1776, retained all his influence and the sincere friendship of the empress. Almost until his death, he remained the second person in the state, determined domestic and foreign policy, and none of the subsequent numerous favorites up to Platon Zubov even tried to play the role statesman. All of them were brought close to Catherine by Potemkin himself, who tried in this way to influence the empress’s disposition.
First of all, he tried to remove Zavadovsky. Potemkin had to spend almost a year on this, and luck did not come before he discovered Semyon Zorich. He was a cavalry hero and a handsome man, Serbian by birth. Potemkin took Zorich as his adjutant and almost immediately nominated him for appointment as commander of a life hussar squadron. Since the life hussars were the empress’s personal guard, Zorich’s appointment to the post was preceded by his introduction to Catherine.
S. G. Zorich
In May 1777, Potemkin arranged an audience for the empress with a potential favorite - and he was not mistaken in his calculations. Zavadovsky was suddenly granted a six-month leave, and Zorich was promoted to colonel, adjutant and chief of the life hussar squadron. Zorich was already approaching forty, and he was full of manly beauty, however, unlike Zavadovsky, he had little education (later he himself admitted that he had gone to war at the age of 15 and that before his intimacy with the empress he remained a complete ignoramus). Catherine tried to instill in him literary and scientific tastes, but, it seems, she had little success in this.
Zorich was stubborn and reluctant to be educated. In September 1777 he became a major general, and in the fall of 1778 - a count. But having received this title, he was suddenly offended, since he expected a princely title. Soon after this, he had a quarrel with Potemkin, which almost ended in a duel. Finding out about this, Catherine ordered Zorich to go to her estate Shklov.
Even before that, Potemkin began to look for a new favorite for his girlfriend. Several candidates were considered, among which, they say, there was even a Persian distinguished by extraordinary physical characteristics. Finally, Potemkin settled on three officers - Bergman, Rontsov and Ivan Korsakov. Gelbich says that Catherine went out to the reception room when all three candidates appointed for the audience were there. Each of them stood with a bouquet of flowers, and she graciously talked first with Bergman, then with Rontsov and, finally, with Korsakov. The extraordinary beauty and grace of the latter captivated her. Catherine smiled mercifully at everyone, but with a bouquet of flowers she sent Korsakov to Potemkin, who became the next favorite. It is known from other sources that Korsakov did not immediately achieve the desired position.
In general, in 1778, Catherine experienced a kind of moral breakdown and became interested in several young people at once. In June, the Englishman Harris notes the rise of Korsakov, and in August he already speaks of his rivals who are trying to take away the empress’s favors from him; they are supported on one side by Potemkin, and on the other by Panin and Orlov; in September Strakhov, a “jester of the lowest order,” gains the upper hand over everyone; four months later, his place is taken by Major Levashev of the Semenovsky regiment, a young man protected by Countess Bruce. Then Korsakov again returns to his previous position, but now fights with some Stoyanov, Potemkin’s favorite. In 1779, he finally achieved complete victory over his competitors and became chamberlain and adjutant general.
To Grimm, who considered his friend’s hobby a mere whim, Catherine wrote:
"Whim? Do you know what this is: the expression is completely inappropriate in this case, when talking about Pyrrhus, King of Epirus (as Catherine called Korsakov), and about this subject of temptation for all artists and despair for all sculptors. Admiration, enthusiasm, and not whim excite such exemplary creations of nature... Pyrrhus never made a single ignoble or ungraceful gesture or movement... But all this in general is not effeminacy, but, on the contrary, courage, and he is what you would like him to be he was…"
In addition to his amazing appearance, Korsakov charmed the empress with his wonderful voice. The reign of the new favorite constitutes an era in the history of Russian music. Catherine invited the first artists of Italy to St. Petersburg so that Korsakov could sing with them. She wrote to Grimm:
“Never have I met anyone so capable of enjoying harmonic sounds as Pyrrha, the king of Epirus.”
Rimsky-Korsakov I. N.
Unfortunately for himself, Korsakov was unable to maintain his height. One day at the beginning of 1780, Catherine found her favorite in the arms of her friend and confidante Countess Bruce. This greatly cooled her ardor, and soon Korsakov’s place was taken by 22-year-old horse guard Alexander Lanskoy.
Lanskoy was introduced to Catherine by chief of police Tolstoy, and the empress liked him at first sight: she appointed him to the adjutant wing and gave him 10,000 rubles for the establishment. But he did not become a favorite. However, Lanskoy showed a lot of common sense from the very beginning and turned to Potemkin for support, who appointed him one of his adjutants and supervised his court education for about six months.
He discovered a lot of wonderful qualities in his pupil and in the spring of 1780, with a light heart, he recommended him to the Empress as a warm friend. Catherine promoted Lansky to colonel, then to adjutant general and chamberlain, and soon he settled in the palace in the empty apartments of his former favorite.
Of all Catherine's lovers, this was, without a doubt, the most pleasant and sweet. According to contemporaries, Lanskoy did not enter into any intrigues, tried not to harm anyone and completely abandoned government affairs, rightly believing that politics would force him to make enemies for himself. Lansky’s only all-consuming passion was Catherine. He wanted to reign in her heart alone and did everything to achieve this. There was something maternal in the passion of the 54-year-old empress for him. She caressed and educated him like her beloved child. Catherine wrote to Grimm:
“So that you can form an idea about this young man, you need to convey what Prince Orlov said about him to one of his friends: “See what kind of person she will make of him!..” He absorbs everything with greed! He began by swallowing all the poets and their poems in one winter; and in the other - several historians... Without studying anything, we will have countless knowledge and find pleasure in communicating with everything that is the best and most dedicated. In addition, we build and plant; Moreover, we are charitable, cheerful, honest and full of simplicity.”
Under the guidance of his mentor, Lanskoy studied French, became acquainted with philosophy and, finally, became interested in works of art with which the empress loved to surround herself. The four years lived in Lansky’s company were perhaps the calmest and happiest in Catherine’s life, as evidenced by many contemporaries. However, she always led a very moderate and measured life.
***
Daily routine of the Empress
Catherine usually woke up at six o'clock in the morning. At the beginning of her reign, she dressed herself and lit the fireplace. Later she was dressed in the mornings by Kamer-jungfer Perekusikhin. Catherine rinsed her mouth with warm water, rubbed ice on her cheeks and went to her office. Here, very strong morning coffee awaited her, usually served with thick cream and cookies. The Empress herself ate little, but the half-dozen Italian greyhounds, who always shared breakfast with Catherine, emptied the sugar bowl and the basket of biscuits. Having finished eating, the Empress let the dogs out for a walk, and she sat down to work and wrote until nine o’clock.
At nine she returned to the bedroom and received the speakers. The chief of police was the first to enter. To read the papers submitted for signature, the Empress put on glasses. Then the secretary appeared and work with documents began.
As you know, the Empress read and wrote in three languages, but at the same time she made many syntactical and grammatical errors, not only in Russian and French, but also in her native German. Errors in Russian, of course, were the most annoying thing. Catherine was aware of this and once admitted to one of her secretaries:
“Don't laugh at my Russian spelling; I'll tell you why I didn't have time to study it well. Upon my arrival here, I began to study Russian with great diligence. Aunt Elizaveta Petrovna, having learned about this, told my chamberlain: it’s enough to teach her, she’s already smart. Thus, I could only learn Russian from books without a teacher, and this is the very reason that I don’t know spelling well.”
The secretaries had to copy out all the empress's drafts. But classes with the secretary were interrupted every now and then by visits from generals, ministers and dignitaries. This continued until lunch, which was usually at one or two.
Having dismissed the secretary, Catherine went to the small restroom, where the old hairdresser Kolov combed her hair. Catherine took off her hood and cap and put on an extremely simple, open and loose dress with double sleeves and wide, low-heeled shoes. On weekdays, the Empress did not wear any jewelry. On ceremonial occasions, Catherine wore an expensive velvet dress, the so-called “Russian style,” and decorated her hair with a crown. She did not follow Parisian fashions and did not encourage this expensive pleasure in her court ladies.
Having finished her toilet, Catherine went to the official dressing room, where they finished dressing her. It was a time of small output. Grandchildren, a favorite and several close friends like Lev Naryshkin gathered here. The empress was served pieces of ice, and she quite openly rubbed them on her cheeks. Then the hairstyle was covered with a small tulle cap, and that was the end of the toilet. The whole ceremony lasted about 10 minutes. After that, everyone went to the table.
On weekdays, twelve people were invited to lunch. The favorite sat on the right hand. Lunch lasted about an hour and was very simple. Catherine never cared about the sophistication of her table. Her favorite dish was boiled beef with pickles. She drank currant juice as a drink. In the last years of her life, on the advice of doctors, Catherine drank a glass of Madeira or Rhine wine. For dessert, fruit was served, mainly apples and cherries.
Among Catherine’s cooks, one cooked extremely poorly. But she did not notice this, and when, after many years, her attention was finally drawn to it, she did not allow him to be counted, saying that he had served too long in her house. She only inquired when he was on duty, and, sitting down at the table, told the guests:
“We are now on a Diet, we need to be patient, but then we will eat well.”
After dinner, Catherine talked with those invited for several minutes, then everyone dispersed. Catherine sat down at the hoop - she embroidered very skillfully - and Betsky read aloud to her. When Betsky, having grown old, began to lose his sight, she did not want anyone to replace him and began to read herself, putting on glasses.
Analyzing the numerous references to the books she read, scattered in her correspondence, we can safely say that Catherine was aware of all the book innovations of her time, and read everything indiscriminately: from philosophical treatises and historical works to novels. She, of course, could not deeply assimilate all this enormous material, and her erudition largely remained superficial and her knowledge shallow, but in general she could judge many different problems.
The rest lasted about an hour. Then the empress was informed about the secretary's arrival: twice a week she sorted foreign mail with him and made notes in the margins of dispatches. On other designated days people came to see her. officials with reports or orders.
During moments of a break in business, Catherine had fun with the children carefree.
In 1776 she wrote to her friend Mrs. Behlke:
“You have to be cheerful. Only this helps us overcome and endure everything. I tell you this from experience, because I have overcome and endured a lot in life. But I still laughed when I could, and I swear to you that even now, when I bear the full weight of my situation, I play with all my heart, when the opportunity presents itself, at blind man’s buff with my son, and very often without him. We come up with an excuse for this, we say: “It’s good for health,” but, between ourselves, we do it just to fool around.”
At four o'clock the empress's working day ended, and it was time for rest and entertainment. Along the long gallery, Catherine walked from the Winter Palace to the Hermitage. It was hers favorite place stay. She was accompanied by her favorite. She looked at new collections and displayed them, played a game of billiards, and sometimes carved Ivory. At six o'clock the Empress returned to the reception rooms of the Hermitage, which were already filled with persons admitted to the court.
Count Hord described the Hermitage in his memoirs as follows:
“It occupies an entire wing of the imperial palace and consists of an art gallery, two large rooms For card game and another where they dine on two tables “family style”, and next to these rooms there is a winter garden, covered and well lit. There they walk among the trees and numerous pots of flowers. Various birds fly and sing there, mainly canaries. The garden is heated by underground ovens; Despite the harsh climate, there is always a pleasant temperature.
This charming apartment is made even better by the freedom that reigns here. Everyone feels at ease: the empress has banished all etiquette from here. Here they walk, play, sing; everyone does what he likes. The art gallery is replete with first-class masterpieces.".
All sorts of games were a huge success at these meetings. Catherine was the first to participate in them, arousing gaiety in everyone and allowing all sorts of liberties.
At ten o'clock the game ended, and Catherine retired to the inner chambers. Dinner was served only on ceremonial occasions, but even then Catherine sat down at the table only for show... Returning to her room, she went into the bedroom, drank a large glass of boiled water and went to bed.
This was Catherine’s private life according to the memoirs of her contemporaries. Her intimate life is less known, although it is also no secret. The Empress was an amorous woman who, until her death, retained the ability to be carried away by young people.
Some of her official lovers numbered more than a dozen. With all this, as already mentioned, she was not a beauty at all.
“To tell the truth,” Catherine herself wrote, “I never considered myself extremely beautiful, but I was liked, and I think that was my strength.”
All the portraits that have reached us confirm this opinion. But there is also no doubt that there was something extremely attractive in this woman, something that had eluded the brushes of all painters and made many sincerely admire her appearance. With age, the empress did not lose her attractiveness, although she became more and more plump.
Catherine was not at all flighty or depraved. Many of her relationships lasted for years, and although the empress was far from indifferent to sensual pleasures, spiritual communication with a close man also remained very important to her. But it is also true that Catherine, after the Orlovs, never raped her heart. If the favorite ceased to interest her, she resigned without any ceremony.
At the next evening reception, the courtiers noticed that the empress was looking intently at some unknown lieutenant, introduced to her only the day before or previously lost in the brilliant crowd. Everyone understood what this meant. During the day, the young man was summoned to the palace with a short order and subjected to repeated testing to ensure compliance in performing the direct intimate duties of the empress's favorite.
A. M. Turgenev talks about this ritual, which all Catherine’s lovers went through:
“They usually sent someone chosen as Her Majesty’s favorite to Anna Stepanovna Protasova for testing. After examining the concubine destined for the highest rank to the Mother Empress by the life physician Rogerson and on the certificate of being fit for service regarding his health, the recruited one was taken to Anna Stepanovna Protasova for a three-night trial. When the betrothed fully satisfied Protasova’s requirements, she reported to the most gracious empress about the trustworthiness of the person tested, and then the first meeting was scheduled according to the established etiquette of the court or according to the highest regulations for the ordination of the confirmed concubine.
Perekusikhina Marya Savvishna and valet Zakhar Konstantinovich were obliged to dine with the chosen one that same day. At 10 o'clock in the evening, when the empress was already in bed, Perekusikhina led the new recruit into the bedchamber of the most pious, dressed in a Chinese dressing gown, with a book in his hands, and left him to read in the chairs near the bed of the anointed one. The next day, Perekusikhin took the initiate out of the bedchamber and handed him over to Zakhar Konstantinovich, who led the newly appointed concubine to the chambers prepared for him; here Zakhar already slavishly reported to his favorite that the most gracious empress had most deigned to appoint him as her aide-de-camp to the highest person, and presented him with an aide-de-camp uniform with a diamond agraph and 100,000 rubles of pocket money.
Before the empress went out to the Hermitage in the winter, and in the summer, in Tsarskoe Selo, in the garden, to walk with the new aide-de-camp, to whom she gave her hand to guide her, the front hall of the new favorite was filled with the highest state dignitaries, nobles, courtiers to bring him the most diligent Congratulations on receiving the highest favor. The most enlightened shepherd, the Metropolitan, usually came to the favorite the next day to dedicate him and blessed him with holy water.”.
Subsequently, the procedure became more complicated, and after Potemkin, the favorites were checked not only by the maid of honor Protasova, but also by Countess Bruce, Perekusikhina, and Utochkina.
In June 1784, Lanskoy became seriously and dangerously ill - they said that he had undermined his health by abusing stimulant drugs. Catherine did not leave the sufferer for an hour, almost stopped eating, abandoned all her affairs and looked after him like a mother for her only infinitely beloved son. Then she wrote:
“A malignant fever combined with a toad brought him to the grave in five days.”
On the evening of June 25, Lanskoy died. Catherine's grief was boundless.
“When I began this letter, I was in happiness and joy, and my thoughts rushed by so quickly that I did not have time to follow them,” she wrote to Grimm. “Now everything has changed: I suffer terribly, and my happiness is gone; I thought I couldn't bear the irreparable loss I suffered a week ago when my best friend passed away. I hoped that he would be the support of my old age: he also strived for this, tried to instill in himself all my tastes. This was the young man I raised who was grateful, gentle, honest, who shared my sorrows when I had them and rejoiced in my joys.
In a word, I, sobbing, have the misfortune to tell you that General Lansky is gone... and my room, which I loved so much before, has now turned into an empty cave; I can barely move along it like a shadow: on the eve of his death I had a sore throat and a severe fever; however, since yesterday I have been on my feet, but I am weak and so depressed that I cannot see a person’s face, so as not to burst into tears at the first word. I can neither sleep nor eat. Reading irritates me, writing exhausts my strength. I don’t know what will happen to me now; I only know one thing, that never in my entire life have I been so unhappy as since my best and kindest friend left me. I opened the box, found this piece of paper I had started, wrote these lines on it, but I can’t do it anymore...”
“I confess to you that all this time I was not able to write to you, because I knew that it would make us both suffer. A week after I wrote you my last letter in July, Fyodor Orlov and Prince Potemkin came to see me. Until that moment, I could not see a human face, but these knew what needed to be done: they roared with me, and then I felt at ease with them; but I still needed a lot of time to recover, and due to sensitivity to my grief, I became insensitive to everything else; My grief increased and was remembered at every step and at every word.
However, do not think that, as a result of this terrible state, I neglected even the slightest thing that requires my attention. In the most painful moments they came to me for orders, and I gave them sensibly and intelligently; this especially amazed General Saltykov. Two months passed without any relief; The first calm hours finally arrived, and then the days. It was already autumn, it was getting damp, and the palace in Tsarskoe Selo had to be heated. All my people went into a frenzy from this and so strong that on September 5, not knowing where to lay my head, I ordered the carriage to be laid and arrived unexpectedly and so that no one suspected it, to the city where I stayed in the Hermitage ... "
All the doors in the Winter Palace were locked. Catherine ordered the door to be knocked down in the Hermitage and went to bed. But waking up at one in the morning, she ordered the cannons to be fired, which usually heralded her arrival, and alarmed the whole city. The entire garrison rose to its feet, all the courtiers were frightened, and even she herself was surprised that she had caused such a commotion. But a few days later, having given an audience to the diplomatic corps, she appeared with her usual face, calm, healthy and fresh, friendly as before the disaster, and smiling as always.
Soon life returned to normal again, and the eternally in love returned to life. But ten months passed before she wrote to Grimm again:
“I’ll tell you in one word, instead of a hundred, that I have a friend who is very capable and worthy of this name.”
This friend was the brilliant young officer Alexander Ermolov, represented by the same irreplaceable Potemkin. He moved into the long-empty chambers of his favorites. The summer of 1785 was one of the most fun in Catherine’s life: one noisy pleasure was followed by another. The aging empress felt a new surge of legislative energy. This year, two famous letters of grant appeared - to the nobility and to the cities. These acts completed the reform of local government begun in 1775.
At the beginning of 1786, Catherine began to grow cold towards Ermolov. The latter’s resignation was accelerated by the fact that he decided to intrigue against Potemkin himself. In June, the Empress asked to tell her lover that she allowed him to go abroad for three years.
Ermolov's successor was 28-year-old guard captain Alexander Dmitriev-Mamonov, a distant relative of Potemkin and his adjutant. Having made a mistake with the previous favorite, Potemkin looked closely at Mamonov for a long time before recommending him to Catherine. In August 1786, Mamonov was introduced to the empress and was soon appointed aide-de-camp. Contemporaries noted that he could not be called handsome.
Mamonov was tall and physical strength, had a high-cheeked face, slightly slanted eyes that shone with intelligence, and conversations with him gave the Empress considerable pleasure. A month later he became an ensign of the cavalry guards and a major general in the army, and in 1788 he was granted a count. The first honors did not turn the head of the new favorite - he showed restraint, tact and gained a reputation as an intelligent, cautious person. Mamonov spoke German well and English languages, and knew French perfectly. In addition, he proved himself to be a good poet and playwright, which especially impressed Catherine.
Thanks to all these qualities, as well as the fact that Mamonov constantly studied, read a lot and tried to seriously delve into state affairs, he became an adviser to the empress.
Catherine wrote to Grimm:
“The red caftan (as she called Mamonov) dresses a creature who has a beautiful heart and a very sincere soul. Smart for four, inexhaustible gaiety, a lot of originality in understanding things and conveying them, excellent upbringing, a lot of knowledge that can add shine to the mind. We hide our penchant for poetry as if it were a crime; We love music passionately, we understand everything incredibly easily. What we don’t know by heart! We recite and chat in the tone of the best society; exquisitely polite; We write in Russian and French, like few others, as much in style as in the beauty of the writing. Our appearance is fully consistent with our inner qualities: we have wonderful black eyes with eyebrows that are extremely contoured; below average height, noble appearance, free gait; in a word, we are as reliable in our souls as we are dexterous, strong and brilliant on the outside.”
***
Travel to Crimea
In 1787, Catherine made one of her longest and most famous journeys - she went to Crimea, which was annexed to Russia in 17.83. Before Catherine had time to return to St. Petersburg, the news broke about the severance of relations with Turkey and the arrest of the Russian ambassador in Istanbul: the second Turkish War began. To top off the troubles, the situation of the 60s was repeated when one war led to another.
They had barely gathered forces to fight back in the south when it became known that the Swedish king Gustav III intended to attack defenseless St. Petersburg. The king came to Finland and sent Vice-Chancellor Osterman a demand to return to Sweden all the lands ceded under the Nystadt and Abov peaces, and to return Crimea to the Porte.
In July 1788, the Swedish War began. Potemkin was busy in the south, and all the hardships of the war fell entirely on Catherine’s shoulders. She was personally involved in everything. affairs for the management of the naval department, ordered, for example, to build several new barracks and hospitals, to repair and put in order the Revel port.
A few years later she recalled this era in a letter to Grimm: “There is a reason why it seemed that I was doing everything so well at that time: I was then alone, almost without assistants, and, fearing to miss something through ignorance or forgetfulness, I showed activity that no one considered me capable of; I interfered in incredible details to such an extent that I even turned into an army quartermaster, but, as everyone admits, soldiers have never been better fed in a country where it was impossible to get any provisions ... "
On August 3, 1790, the Treaty of Versailles was concluded; The borders of both states remained the same as they were before the war.
Following these efforts, in 1789 another change of favorites occurred. In June, Ekaterina learned that Mamonov was having an affair with his maid of honor Daria Shcherbatov. The Empress reacted to the betrayal quite calmly. She recently turned 60 years old, and her long experience of love relationships has taught her to be forgiving. She bought Mamontov several villages with more than 2,000 peasants, gave the bride jewelry and got them engaged herself. Over the years of his favor, Mamonov received gifts and money from Catherine worth approximately 900 thousand rubles. He received the last hundred thousand in addition to three thousand peasants when he and his wife left for Moscow. At this time he could already see his successor.
On June 20, Catherine chose 22-year-old Second Captain of the Horse Guards Platon Zubov as her favorite. In July, Toth was promoted to colonel and adjutant. At first, the empress's entourage did not take him seriously.
Bezborodko wrote to Vorontsov:
"This child with good manners, but not a distant mind; I don’t think he’ll last long in his position.”
However, Bezborodko was wrong. Zubov was destined to become the last favorite of the great empress - he retained his position until her death.
Catherine confessed to Potemkin in August of the same year:
“I came back to life like a fly after hibernation... I’m cheerful and healthy again.”
She was touched by Zubov’s youth and the fact that he cried when he was not allowed into the Empress’s rooms. Despite his soft appearance, Zubov turned out to be a calculating and dexterous lover. His influence on the Empress became so great over the years that he managed to achieve the almost impossible: he nullified Potemkin’s charm and completely drove him out of Catherine’s heart. Having taken control of all the threads of control, in the last years of Catherine’s life he acquired enormous influence on affairs.
***
The war with Turkey continued. In 1790, Suvorov took Izmail, and Potemkin took Vendors. After this, Porte had no choice but to concede. In December 1791, peace was concluded in Iasi. Russia received the area between the Dniester and Bug rivers, where Odessa was soon built; Crimea was recognized as her possession.
Potemkin did not live long enough to see this joyful day. He died on October 5, 1791 on the road from Iasi to Nikolaev. Catherine's grief was very great. According to the testimony of the French commissioner Genet, “at this news she lost consciousness, blood rushed to her head, and they were forced to open the vein.” “Who can replace such a person? - she repeated to her secretary Khrapovitsky. “I and all of us are now like snails who are afraid to stick their heads out of their shells.”
She wrote to Grimm:
“Yesterday it hit me like a blow to the head... My student, my friend, one might say, an idol, Prince Potemkin of Tauride died... Oh, my God! Now I am truly my own helper. Again I need to train my people!..”
Catherine's last remarkable act was the division of Poland and the annexation of Western Russian lands to Russia. The second and third sections, which followed in 1793 and 1795, were a logical continuation of the first. Many years of anarchy and the events of 1772 brought many nobles to their senses. At the four-year Sejm of 1788-1791, the reform party developed a new constitution, adopted on May 3, 1791. It established hereditary royal power with the Sejm without the right of veto, the admission of deputies from townspeople, complete equality of rights for dissidents, and the abolition of confederations. All this happened in the wake of frenzied anti-Russian protests and in defiance of all previous agreements, according to which Russia guaranteed the Polish constitution. Catherine was forced to endure the insolence for now, but she wrote to the members of the foreign board:
“...I will not agree to anything from this new order of things, during the establishment of which they not only did not pay any attention to Russia, but showered it with insults, bullied her every minute...”
And indeed, as soon as peace was concluded with Turkey, Poland was occupied by Russian troops, and a Russian garrison was brought into Warsaw. This served as a prologue to the section. In November, the Prussian ambassador in St. Petersburg, Count Goltz, presented a map of Poland, which outlined the area desired by Prussia. In December, Catherine, after a detailed study of the map, approved the Russian share of the division. Most of Belarus went to Russia. After the final collapse of the May Constitution, its adherents, both those who went abroad and those who remained in Warsaw, had one way to act in favor of a lost enterprise: to form conspiracies, arouse displeasure and wait for an opportunity to raise an uprising. All this was done.
Warsaw was to become the center of the performance. The well-prepared uprising began early in the morning of April 6 (17), 1794 and was a surprise for the Russian garrison. Most of the soldiers were killed, and only a few units with heavy damage were able to make their way out of the city. Not trusting the king, the patriots proclaimed General Kosciuszko as supreme ruler. In response, an agreement on a third partition was reached in September between Austria, Prussia and Russia. The Krakow and Sendomierz voivodeships were to go to Austria. The Bug and Neman became the borders of Russia. In addition, Courland and Lithuania went to it. The rest of Poland and Warsaw were given to Prussia. On November 4, Suvorov took Warsaw. The revolutionary government was destroyed and power returned to the king. Stanislav-August wrote to Catherine:
“The fate of Poland is in your hands; your power and wisdom will solve it; whatever the fate you assign to me personally, I cannot forget my duty to my people, imploring Your Majesty’s generosity for them.”
Ekaterina answered:
“It was not in my power to prevent the disastrous consequences and to fill up the abyss under the feet of the Polish people, dug by their corrupters and into which they were finally carried away...”
On October 13, 1795, the third section was made; Poland disappeared from the map of Europe. This division was soon followed by the death of the Russian empress. The decline of Catherine's moral and physical strength began in 1792. She was broken both by the death of Potemkin and by the extraordinary stress that she had to endure during the last war. The French envoy Genet wrote:
“Catherine is clearly getting old, she sees it herself, and melancholy takes possession of her soul.”
Catherine complained: “The years make us see everything in black.” Dropsy overcame the empress. It was becoming increasingly difficult for her to walk. She stubbornly fought against old age and illness, but in September 1796, after her granddaughter’s engagement to King Gustav IV of Sweden did not take place, Catherine went to bed. She suffered from colic and wounds opened on her legs. Only at the end of October did the empress feel better. On the evening of November 4, Catherine gathered an intimate circle in the Hermitage, was very cheerful the whole evening and laughed at Naryshkin’s jokes. However, she left earlier than usual, saying that she had colic from laughing. The next day, Catherine got up at her usual hour, talked with her favorite, worked with the secretary and, dismissing the latter, ordered him to wait in the hallway. He waited an unusually long time and began to worry. Half an hour later, faithful Zubov decided to look into the bedroom. The Empress was not there; there was no toilet room. Zubov called people in alarm; they ran to the restroom and there they saw the empress motionless with a reddened face, foaming at the mouth and wheezing with a death rattle. They carried Catherine into the bedroom and laid her on the floor. She resisted death for about another day and a half, but never came to her senses and died on the morning of November 6.
She was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg. Thus ended the reign of Catherine II the Great, one of the most famous Russian female politicians.
Catherine composed the following epitaph for her future tombstone:
Catherine the Second rests here. She arrived in Russia in 1744 to marry Peter III. At the age of fourteen, she made a threefold decision: to please her husband, Elizabeth and the people. She left no stone unturned to achieve success in this regard. Eighteen years of boredom and loneliness prompted her to read many books. Having ascended the Russian throne, she made every effort to give her subjects happiness, freedom and material well-being. She easily forgave and did not hate anyone. She was forgiving, loved life, had a cheerful disposition, was a true Republican in her convictions and had a kind heart. She had friends. The work was easy for her. She liked secular entertainment and the arts.
Russian Empress Catherine II the Great was born on May 2 (April 21, old style), 1729 in the city of Stettin in Prussia (now the city of Szczecin in Poland), died on November 17 (November 6, old style), 1796 in St. Petersburg (Russia). The reign of Catherine II lasted more than three and a half decades, from 1762 to 1796. It was filled with many events in internal and external affairs, the implementation of plans that continued what was done under. The period of her reign is often called the “golden age” of the Russian Empire.
By Catherine II's own admission, she did not have a creative mind, but she was good at catching every sensible thought and using it for her own purposes. She skillfully selected her assistants, not being afraid of bright and talented people. That is why Catherine’s time was marked by the appearance of a whole galaxy of outstanding statesmen, generals, writers, artists, and musicians. Among them are the great Russian commander, Field Marshal Pyotr Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky, satirist Denis Fonvizin, outstanding Russian poet, Pushkin's predecessor Gabriel Derzhavin, Russian historian-historiographer, writer, creator of "History of the Russian State" Nikolai Karamzin, writer, philosopher, poet Alexander Radishchev , outstanding Russian violinist and composer, founder of Russian violin culture Ivan Khandoshkin, conductor, teacher, violinist, singer, one of the creators of Russian national opera Vasily Pashkevich, composer of secular and church music, conductor, teacher Dmitry Bortyansky.
In her memoirs, Catherine II characterized the state of Russia at the beginning of her reign:
Finances were depleted. The army did not receive pay for 3 months. Trade was in decline, because many of its branches were given over to monopoly. There was no correct system in the state economy. The War Department was plunged into debt; the sea barely held on, being in extreme neglect. The clergy was dissatisfied with the taking of lands from him. Justice was sold at auction, and laws were followed only in cases where they favored the powerful.
The Empress formulated the tasks facing the Russian monarch as follows:
“We need to educate the nation that is to be governed.”
— It is necessary to introduce good order in the state, support society and force it to comply with the laws.
— It is necessary to establish a good and accurate police force in the state.
— It is necessary to promote the flourishing of the state and make it abundant.
“We need to make the state formidable in itself and inspiring respect among its neighbors.”
Based on the assigned tasks, Catherine II carried out active reform activities. Her reforms affected almost all areas of life.
Convinced of the unsuitable management system, Catherine II carried out a Senate reform in 1763. The Senate was divided into 6 departments, losing its significance as the body that manages the state apparatus, and became the highest administrative and judicial institution.
Faced with financial difficulties, Catherine II in 1763-1764 carried out secularization (turning into secular property) church lands. 500 monasteries were abolished, and 1 million peasant souls were transferred to the treasury. Due to this, the state treasury was significantly replenished. This made it possible to ease the financial crisis in the country and pay off the army, which had not received a salary for a long time. The influence of the Church on the life of society has decreased significantly.
From the very beginning of her reign, Catherine II began to strive to achieve the internal structure of the state. She believed that injustices in the state could be eradicated with the help of good laws. And she decided to pass new legislation instead Cathedral Code Alexei Mikhailovich 1649, which would take into account the interests of all classes. For this purpose, the Statutory Commission was convened in 1767. 572 deputies represented the nobility, merchants, and Cossacks. Catherine tried to incorporate the ideas of Western European thinkers about a fair society into the new legislation. Having revised their works, she compiled the famous “Order of Empress Catherine” for the Commission. The "Mandate" consisted of 20 chapters, divided into 526 articles. It is about the need for strong autocratic power in Russia and the class structure of Russian society, about the rule of law, about the relationship between law and morality, about the dangers of torture and corporal punishment. The commission worked for more than two years, but its work was not crowned with success, since the nobility and the deputies themselves from other classes stood guard only for their rights and privileges.
In 1775, Catherine II made a clearer territorial division of the empire. The territory began to be divided into administrative units with a certain number of taxable (who paid taxes) population. The country was divided into 50 provinces with a population of 300-400 thousand each, the provinces into districts of 20-30 thousand inhabitants. The city was an independent administrative unit. Elective courts and “trial chambers” were introduced to deal with criminal and civil cases. Finally, “conscientious” courts for minors and the sick.
In 1785, the “Charter of Grant to Cities” was published. It determined the rights and responsibilities of the urban population and the management system in cities. Residents of the city elected a self-government body every 3 years - the General City Duma, the mayor and judges.
Since the time of Peter the Great, when all the nobility owed lifelong service to the state, and the peasantry the same service to the nobility, gradual changes have occurred. Catherine the Great, among other reforms, also wanted to bring harmony to the life of the classes. In 1785, the “Charter of Grant to the Nobility” was published, which was a code, a collection of noble privileges formalized by law. From now on, the nobility was sharply separated from other classes. The freedom of the nobility from paying taxes and from compulsory service was confirmed. Nobles could only be tried by a noble court. Only nobles had the right to own land and serfs. Catherine forbade the subjecting of nobles to corporal punishment. She believed that this would help the Russian nobility get rid of the servile mentality and acquire personal dignity.
These letters were ordered social structure Russian society, divided into five classes: nobility, clergy, merchants, philistines ("middle class of people") and serfs.
As a result of the educational reform in Russia during the reign of Catherine II, a secondary education system was created. In Russia, closed schools, educational homes, institutes for girls, nobles, and townspeople were created, in which experienced teachers were involved in the education and upbringing of boys and girls. In the province, a network of people's non-class two-class schools was created in counties and four-class schools in provincial cities. A classroom lesson system was introduced in schools (uniform start and end dates for classes), teaching methods and educational literature were developed, and uniform educational plans. By the end of the 18th century in Russia there were 550 educational institutions With total number 60-70 thousand people.
Under Catherine, the systematic development of women's education began; in 1764, the Smolny Institute of Noble Maidens and the Educational Society of Noble Maidens were opened. The Academy of Sciences has become one of the leading scientific bases in Europe. An observatory, a physics laboratory, an anatomical theater, a botanical garden, instrumental workshops, a printing house, a library, and an archive were founded. The Russian Academy was founded in 1783.
Under Catherine II, Russia's population increased significantly, hundreds of new cities were built, the treasury quadrupled, industry and agriculture rapidly developed - Russia began to export grain for the first time.
Under her, paper money was introduced for the first time in Russia. On her initiative, the first smallpox vaccination was carried out in Russia (she herself set an example and became the first to be vaccinated).
Under Catherine II, as a result of the Russian-Turkish wars (1768-1774, 1787-1791), Russia finally gained a foothold in the Black Sea, and the lands called Novorossiya were annexed: the Northern Black Sea region, Crimea, and the Kuban region. Accepted Eastern Georgia under Russian citizenship (1783). During the reign of Catherine II, as a result of the so-called partitions of Poland (1772, 1793, 1795), Russia returned the Western Russian lands seized by the Poles.
The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources
A controversial personality was Catherine II the Great, the Russian empress of German origin. In most articles and films, she is shown as a lover of court balls and luxurious toilets, as well as numerous favorites with whom she once had very close relationships.
Unfortunately, few people know that she was a very smart, bright and talented organizer. And this is an indisputable fact, since the political changes that occurred during the years of her reign related to In addition, numerous reforms that affected social and state life countries are another proof of the originality of her personality.
Origin
Catherine 2, whose biography was so amazing and unusual, was born on May 2, 1729 in Stettin, Germany. Her full name is Sophia Augusta Frederica, Princess of Anhalt-Zerbst. Her parents were Prince Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst and his equal in title, Johanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp, who was related to such royal houses as English, Swedish and Prussian.
The future Russian empress was educated at home. She was taught theology, music, dance, basic geography and history, and, in addition to her native German, she knew French very well. Already in early childhood She showed her independent character, perseverance and curiosity, and preferred lively and active games.
Marriage
In 1744, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna invited the Princess of Anhalt-Zerbst to come to Russia with her mother. Here the girl was baptized according to Orthodox custom and began to be called Ekaterina Alekseevna. From that moment on, she received the status of the official bride of Prince Peter Fedorovich, the future Emperor Peter 3.
So, the exciting story of Catherine 2 in Russia began with their wedding, which took place on August 21, 1745. After this event, she received the title of Grand Duchess. As you know, her marriage was unhappy from the beginning. Her husband Peter was at that time still an immature youth who played with soldiers instead of spending his time in the company of his wife. Therefore, the future empress was forced to entertain herself: she read for a long time, and also invented various amusements.
Children of Catherine 2
While the wife of Peter 3 had the appearance of a decent lady, the heir to the throne himself never hid, so almost the entire court knew about his romantic preferences.
After five years, Catherine 2, whose biography, as you know, was also full of love stories, started her first romance on the side. Her chosen one was guards officer S.V. Saltykov. On September 20, 9 years after marriage, she gave birth to an heir. This event became the subject of court discussions, which, however, continue to this day, but in scientific circles. Some researchers are sure that the boy’s father was actually Catherine’s lover, and not her husband Peter. Others claim that he was born of a husband. But be that as it may, the mother did not have time to take care of the child, so Elizaveta Petrovna herself took on his upbringing. Soon the future empress became pregnant again and gave birth to a girl named Anna. Unfortunately, this child lived only 4 months.
After 1750, Catherine had a love relationship with S. Poniatowski, a Polish diplomat who later became King Stanislav Augustus. At the beginning of 1760 she was already with G. G. Orlov, from whom she gave birth to a third child - a son, Alexei. The boy was given the surname Bobrinsky.
It must be said that due to numerous rumors and gossip, as well as the dissolute behavior of his wife, the children of Catherine 2 did not evoke any warm feelings in Peter 3. The man clearly doubted his biological paternity.
Needless to say, the future empress categorically rejected all sorts of accusations brought by her husband against her. Hiding from the attacks of Peter 3, Catherine preferred to spend most of her time in her boudoir. Her relationship with her husband, which had become extremely damaged, led her to seriously fear for her life. She was afraid that, having come to power, Peter 3 would take revenge on her, so she began to look for reliable allies at court.
Accession to the throne
After the death of his mother, Peter 3 ruled the state for only 6 months. For a long time they spoke of him as an ignorant and weak-minded ruler with many vices. But who created such an image for him? Recently, historians are increasingly inclined to think that such an unsightly image was created by memoirs written by the organizers of the coup themselves - Catherine II and E. R. Dashkova.
The fact is that her husband’s attitude towards her was not just bad, it was clearly hostile. Therefore, the threat of exile or even arrest hanging over her served as the impetus for preparing a conspiracy against Peter 3. The Orlov brothers, K. G. Razumovsky, N. I. Panin, E. R. Dashkova and others helped her organize the rebellion. On July 9, 1762, Peter 3 was overthrown, and a new empress, Catherine 2, came to power. The deposed monarch was almost immediately taken to Ropsha (30 versts from St. Petersburg). He was accompanied by a guard of guards under the command
As you know, the history of Catherine 2 and, in particular, the plot she arranged is replete with mysteries that excite the minds of most researchers to this day. For example, to this day the cause of death of Peter 3, 8 days after his overthrow, has not been precisely established. According to the official version, he died from a whole bunch of diseases caused by prolonged alcohol consumption.
Until recently, it was believed that Peter 3 died a violent death at the hands of Alexei Orlov. Proof of this was a certain letter written by the murderer and sent to Catherine from Ropsha. The original of this document has not survived, but there was only a copy, allegedly taken by F.V. Rostopchin. Therefore, there is no direct evidence of the emperor’s murder yet.
Foreign policy
It must be said that Catherine 2 the Great largely shared the views of Peter 1 that Russia on the world stage should take leading positions in all areas, while pursuing an offensive and even to some extent aggressive policy. Proof of this can be the breaking of the alliance treaty with Prussia, previously concluded by her husband Peter 3. She took this decisive step almost immediately as soon as she ascended the throne.
The foreign policy of Catherine II was based on the fact that she tried everywhere to place her proteges on the throne. It was thanks to her that Duke E.I. Biron returned to the Courland throne, and in 1763 her protégé, Stanislav August Poniatowski, began to rule in Poland. Such actions led to the fact that Austria began to fear an excessive increase in the influence of the northern state. Its representatives immediately began to incite Russia’s long-time enemy, Turkey, to start a war against it. And Austria still achieved its goal.
We can say that the Russian-Turkish war, which lasted 6 years (from 1768 to 1774), was successful for the Russian Empire. Despite this, the prevailing internal political situation within the country forced Catherine 2 to seek peace. As a result, she had to restore former allied relations with Austria. And a compromise between the two countries was reached. Its victim was Poland, part of whose territory was divided in 1772 between three states: Russia, Austria and Prussia.
The annexation of lands and the new Russian doctrine
The signing of the Kyuchuk-Kainardzhi Peace Treaty with Turkey ensured the independence of Crimea, which was beneficial for the Russian state. In subsequent years, there was an increase in imperial influence not only on this peninsula, but also in the Caucasus. The result of this policy was the inclusion of Crimea into Russia in 1782. Soon the Treaty of Georgievsk was signed with the king of Kartli-Kakheti, Irakli 2, which provided for the presence of Russian troops on the territory of Georgia. Subsequently, these lands were also annexed to Russia.
Catherine 2, whose biography was integrally connected with the history of the country, from the second half of the 70s of the 18th century, together with the then government, began to form a completely new foreign policy position - the so-called Greek project. His ultimate goal was the restoration of the Greek or Byzantine Empire. Its capital was to be Constantinople, and its ruler was the grandson of Catherine 2, Pavlovich.
By the end of the 70s, the foreign policy of Catherine 2 returned the country to its former international authority, which was further strengthened after Russia acted as a mediator at the Teschen Congress between Prussia and Austria. In 1787, the Empress, with the Polish king and the Austrian monarch, accompanied by her courtiers and foreign diplomats, made a long journey to the Crimean peninsula. This grandiose event demonstrated the full military power of the Russian Empire.
Domestic policy
Most of the reforms and transformations that were carried out in Russia were as controversial as Catherine 2 herself. The years of her reign were marked by the maximum enslavement of the peasantry, as well as the deprivation of even the most minimal rights. It was under her that a decree was issued banning the filing of complaints against the arbitrariness of landowners. In addition, corruption flourished among the highest government apparatus and officials, and the empress herself served as an example for them, who generously gifted both relatives and a large army of her fans.
What was she like?
The personal qualities of Catherine 2 were described by her in her own memoirs. In addition, research by historians, based on numerous documents, suggests that she was a subtle psychologist who had a good understanding of people. Proof of this can be the fact that she selected only talented and bright people. Therefore, her era was marked by the appearance of a whole cohort of brilliant commanders and statesmen, poets and writers, artists and musicians.
In dealing with her subordinates, Catherine 2 was usually tactful, restrained and patient. According to her, she always listened carefully to her interlocutor, capturing every sensible thought, and then used it for good. Under her, in fact, not a single noisy resignation took place; she did not exile any of the nobles, much less execute them. It is not for nothing that her reign is called the “golden age” of the heyday of the Russian nobility.
Catherine 2, whose biography and personality are full of contradictions, was at the same time quite vain and greatly valued the power she had won. In order to keep it in her hands, she was ready to compromise even at the expense of her own convictions.
Personal life
Portraits of the empress, painted in her youth, indicate that she had a rather pleasant appearance. Therefore, it is not surprising that history included numerous love affairs of Catherine 2. To tell the truth, she could well have remarried, but in this case her title, position, and most importantly, complete power, would have been jeopardized.
According to the popular opinion of most historians, Catherine the Great changed about twenty lovers throughout her life. Very often she presented them with a variety of valuable gifts, generously distributed honors and titles, and all this so that they would be favorable to her.
Results of the board
It must be said that historians do not undertake to unambiguously evaluate all the events that occurred in Catherine’s era, since at that time despotism and enlightenment went hand in hand and were inextricably linked. During her reign, everything happened: the development of education, culture and science, the significant strengthening of Russian statehood in the international arena, the development of trade relations and diplomacy. But, as with any ruler, it was not without oppression of the people, who suffered numerous hardships. Such an internal policy could not help but cause another popular unrest, which grew into a powerful and full-scale uprising led by Emelyan Pugachev.
Conclusion
In the 1860s, an idea appeared: to erect a monument to Catherine 2 in St. Petersburg in honor of her 100th anniversary of accession to the throne. Its construction lasted 11 years, and its opening took place in 1873 on Alexandria Square. This is the most famous monument to the empress. During the years of Soviet power, 5 of its monuments were lost. After 2000, several monuments were opened both in Russia and abroad: 2 in Ukraine and 1 in Transnistria. In addition, in 2010, a statue appeared in Zerbst (Germany), but not of Empress Catherine 2, but of Sophia Frederica Augusta, Princess of Anhalt-Zerbst.
The history of the relationship between the Russian Empress Catherine II and men is no less than her state activities. Many of Catherine's favorites were not only lovers, but also major statesmen.
Favoritism and Catherine's childrenII
The development of relationships between the rulers of European countries and the opposite sex in the 17th century. XVIII centuries created the institution of favoritism. However, you need to distinguish between favorites and lovers. The title of favorite was practically a court one, but was not included in the “table of ranks.” In addition to pleasures and rewards, this brought the need to fulfill certain state duties.
It is believed that Catherine II had 23 lovers, and not every one of them can be called a favorite. Most European sovereigns changed sexual partners much more often. It was they, the Europeans, who created the legend about the depravity of the Russian Empress. On the other hand, you can’t call her chaste either.
It is generally accepted that the future Catherine II, who came to Russia at the invitation of Empress Elizabeth, was married in 1745 to Grand Duke Peter, an impotent man who was not interested in the charms of his young wife. But he was interested in other women and periodically changed them, however, nothing is known about his children from his mistresses.
More is known about the children of the Grand Duchess, and then Empress Catherine II, but there are even more unconfirmed rumors and assumptions:
There are not that many children, especially given that not all of them necessarily belonged to Catherine the Great.
How Catherine diedII
There are several versions of the death (November 17, 1796) of the Great Empress. Their authors never cease to mock the sexual irrepressibility of the empress, as always “not seeing the beam in their own eye.” Some of the versions are simply full of hatred and clearly fabricated, most likely, by revolutionary France, which hates absolutism, or by its other enemies:
- The Empress died during sexual intercourse with a stallion raised above her on ropes. Allegedly, it was he who was crushed.
- The Empress died while having an affair with a wild boar.
- Catherine the Great was killed in the back by a Pole while relieving herself in the toilet.
- Catherine, with her own weight, broke a toilet seat in the toilet, which she had made from the throne of the Polish king.
These myths are completely baseless and have nothing to do with the Russian Empress. There is an opinion that impartial versions of death could have been invented and disseminated at court by the son who hated the empress, the future Emperor Paul I.
The most reliable versions of death are:
- Catherine died on the second day after she suffered a severe heart attack.
- The cause of death was a stroke (apoplexy), which found the empress in the restroom. In painful agony, without regaining consciousness for about 3 hours, Empress Catherine died.
- Paul organized the murder (or untimely provision of first aid) of the empress. While the empress was in her death throes, her son Paul found and destroyed the will transferring power to his son Alexander.
- An additional version of death is the gallbladder ruptured during a fall.
The official and generally accepted version when determining the causes of the empress’s death is a stroke, but what actually happened is not known or has not been conclusively proven.
Empress Catherine II the Great was buried in Peter and Paul Fortress in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul.
The personal life and death of people of great importance for the history of the state always gives rise to a lot of speculation and rumors. The corrupted “free” Europe, as soon as it saw the results of European “enlightenment” in Russia, tried to prick, humiliate, and insult the “wild” one. How many favorites and lovers there were, how many children Catherine the Great had are not the most important questions for understanding the essence of her reign. What is more important for history is what the empress did during the day, not at night.
The list of Catherine II's men includes men who figured in the intimate life of Empress Catherine the Great (1729-1796), including her spouses, official favorites and lovers. Catherine II has up to 21 lovers, but how can we object to the empress, then of course they had their own methods.
1. Catherine’s husband was Peter Fedorovich (Emperor Peter III) (1728-1762). They had a wedding in 1745, August 21 (September 1). The end of the relationship was June 28 (July 9), 1762 - death of Peter III. His children, according to the Romanov tree, Pavel Petrovich (1754) (according to one version, his father is Sergei Saltykov) and officially - Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna (1757-1759, most likely the daughter of Stanislav Poniatowski). He suffered from a form of impotence, and in the first years he did not have marital relations with her. Then this problem was solved with the help of a surgical operation, and in order to perform it, Peter got Saltykov drunk.
2. While she was engaged, she also had an affair, Saltykov, Sergei Vasilyevich (1726-1765). In 1752 he was at the small court of the Grand Dukes Catherine and Peter. The beginning of the novel in 1752. The end of the relationship was the birth of a child, Pavel, in October 1754. After which Saltykov was expelled from St. Petersburg and sent as envoy to Sweden.
3. Catherine's lover was Stanisław August Poniatowski (1732-1798) who fell in love in 1756. And in 1758, after the fall of Chancellor Bestuzhev, Williams and Poniatowski were forced to leave St. Petersburg. After the affair, her daughter Anna Petrovna (1757-1759) was born, and he himself thought so Grand Duke Pyotr Fedorovich, who, judging by “Notes of Catherine,” said: “God knows where my wife gets pregnant; I don’t know for sure whether this child is mine and whether I should recognize him as mine.” In the future, Catherine will make him King of Poland, and then annex Poland and annex it to Russia.
4. Likewise, Catherine 2 was not upset and continued to fall in love. Her next secret lover was Orlov, Grigory Grigorievich (1734-1783). The beginning of the novel In the spring of 1759, Count Schwerin, the aide-de-camp of Frederick II, who was captured in the Battle of Zorndorf, arrived in St. Petersburg, to whom Orlov was assigned as a guard. Orlov gained fame by wresting his mistress from Pyotr Shuvalov. The end of the relationship in 1772, after the death of her husband, even she wanted to marry him and then she was dissuaded. Orlov had many mistresses. They also had a son, Bobrinsky, Alexey Grigorievich was born on April 22, 1762, a few months after the death of Elizaveta Petrovna. It is reported that on the day she went into labor, her faithful servant Shkurin set fire to his house, and Peter rushed off to watch the fire . Orlov and his passionate brothers contributed to the overthrow of Peter and the accession of Catherine to the throne. Having lost favor, he married his cousin Ekaterina Zinovieva, and after her death he went crazy.
5. Vasilchikov, Alexander Semyonovich (1746-1803/1813) Official favorite. Acquaintance in 1772, September. He often stood guard in Tsarskoye Selo and received a golden snuffbox. Took Orlov's room. 1774, March 20, in connection with the rise of Potemkin, he was sent to Moscow. Catherine considered him boring (14 years difference). After retirement, he settled in Moscow with his brother and did not marry.
6. Potemkin, Grigory Alexandrovich (1739-1791) Official favorite, husband since 1775. In April 1776 he went on vacation. Catherine gave birth to Potemkin's daughter, Elizaveta Grigorievna Tyomkina. Despite the gap in her personal life, thanks to her abilities, she maintained Catherine's friendship and respect and for many years remained the second person in the state. He was not married, his personal life consisted of “enlightening” his young nieces, including Ekaterina Engelgart.
7. Zavadovsky, Pyotr Vasilyevich (1739-1812) official favorite.
The beginning of the relationship in 1776. November, presented to the empress as an author, interested Catherine. In 1777, June did not suit Potemkin and was removed. Also in May 1777, Catherine met Zorich. He was jealous of Catherine 2, which did the damage. 1777 recalled by the empress back to the capital, 1780 engaged in administrative affairs, married Vera Nikolaevna Apraksina.
8. Zorich, Semyon Gavrilovich (1743/1745-1799). In 1777, June became Catherine's personal guard. 1778 June caused inconvenience, expelled from St. Petersburg (14 years younger than the Empress) Was dismissed and sent into retirement with little remuneration. Founded the Shklov School. Enmeshed in debt and suspected of counterfeiting.
9. Rimsky-Korsakov, Ivan Nikolaevich (1754-1831) Official favorite. 1778, June. Noticed by Potemkin, who was looking to replace Zorich, and distinguished by him due to his beauty, as well as ignorance and lack of serious abilities that could make him a political rival. Potemkin introduced him to the empress among three officers. On June 1, he was appointed aide-de-camp to the Empress. 1779, October 10. Removed from the court after the Empress found him in the arms of Countess Praskovya Bruce, sister of Field Marshal Rumyantsev. This intrigue of Potemkin had as its goal the removal not of Korsakov, but of Bruce herself. 25 years younger than the empress; Catherine was attracted by his announced “innocence.” He was very handsome and had an excellent voice (for his sake, Catherine invited world-famous musicians to Russia). After the loss of favor, he first stayed in St. Petersburg and talked in living rooms about his connection with the empress, which hurt her pride. In addition, he left Bruce and began an affair with Countess Ekaterina Stroganova (he was 10 years younger than her). This turned out to be too much, and Catherine sent him to Moscow. Stroganova’s husband eventually gave her a divorce. Korsakov lived with her until the end of her life, they had a son and two daughters.
10 Stakhiev (Strakhov) Beginning of relations 1778; 1779, June. End of relationship 1779, October. According to the description of contemporaries, “a jester of the lowest order.” Strakhov was a protégé of Count N.I. Panin Strakhov may be Ivan Varfolomeevich Strakhov (1750-1793), in which case he was not the empress’s lover, but a man whom Panin considered insane, and who, when Catherine once told him that he could ask her for some favor, threw himself on his knees and asked for her hand, after which she began to avoid him.
11 Stoyanov (Stanov) Beginning of relations 1778. The end of relations 1778. Potemkin’s protégé.
12 Rantsov (Rontsov), Ivan Romanovich (1755-1791) Beginning of the relationship 1779. Mentioned among those who participated in the “competition”; it is not entirely clear whether he managed to visit the empress’s alcove. End of relationship 1780. One of the illegitimate sons of Count R.I. Vorontsov, half-brother of Dashkova. A year later he led a London mob in riots organized by Lord George Gordon.
13 Levashov, Vasily Ivanovich (1740(?) - 1804). Beginning of relations 1779, October. End of relationship 1779, October. Major of the Semenovsky regiment, a young man protected by Countess Bruce. He was distinguished by his wit and cheerfulness. Uncle of one of the subsequent favorites - Ermolov. He was not married, but had 6 “pupils” from a student of the theater school Akulina Semyonova, who were granted the dignity of nobility and his surname.
14 Vysotsky, Nikolai Petrovich (1751-1827). Beginning of relationship 1780, March. Potemkin's nephew. End of relationship 1780, March.
15 Lanskoy, Alexander Dmitrievich (1758-1784) Official favorite. Beginning of relationship 1780 April He was introduced to Catherine by Chief of Police P.I. Tolstoy, she paid attention to him, but he did not become a favorite. Levashev turned to Potemkin for help, he made him his adjutant and supervised his court education for about six months, after which in the spring of 1780 he recommended him to the empress as a warm friend. The end of the relationship was 1784, July 25. He died after a five-day illness with toad and fever. 29 years younger than the 54-year-old at the time the empress began her relationship. The only one of the favorites who did not interfere in politics and refused influence, ranks, and orders. He shared Catherine’s interest in science and, under her guidance, studied French and became acquainted with philosophy. He enjoyed universal sympathy. He sincerely adored the Empress and tried his best to maintain peace with Potemkin. If Catherine began to flirt with someone else, Lanskoy “wasn’t jealous, didn’t cheat on her, wasn’t insolent, but so touchingly […] lamented her disfavor and suffered so sincerely that he won her love again.”
16. Mordvinov. Beginning of relationship 1781 May. Relative of Lermontov. Probably Mordvinov, Nikolai Semyonovich (1754-1845). The admiral's son, the same age as Grand Duke Paul, was brought up with him. The episode did not affect his biography and is usually not mentioned. He became a famous naval commander. Relative of Lermontov
17 Ermolov, Alexander Petrovich (1754-1834) February 1785, a holiday was specially organized to introduce the Empress to him. 1786, June 28. He decided to act against Potemkin (the Crimean Khan Sahib-Girey was supposed to receive from Potemkin large sums, but they were detained, and the khan turned to Ermolov for help), in addition, the empress also lost interest in him. He was expelled from St. Petersburg - he was “allowed to go abroad for three years.” In 1767, traveling along the Volga, Catherine stopped at his father’s estate and took the 13-year-old boy to St. Petersburg. Potemkin took him into his retinue, and almost 20 years later proposed him as a favorite. He was tall and slender, blond, gloomy, taciturn, honest and too simple. With letters of recommendation from the Chancellor, Count Bezborodko, he left for Germany and Italy. Everywhere he behaved very modestly. After retirement, he settled in Moscow and married Elizaveta Mikhailovna Golitsyna, with whom he had children. Nephew of the previous favorite - Vasily Levashov. Then he left for Austria, where he bought the rich and profitable Frosdorf estate near Vienna, where he died at the age of 82.
18. Dmitriev-Mamonov, Alexander Matveevich (1758-1803) In 1786, June was presented to the empress after the departure of Yermolov. 1789 fell in love with Princess Daria Fedorovna Shcherbatova, Catherine’s understanding was complete. asked for forgiveness, forgiven. After the wedding, he was forced to leave St. Petersburg. Future married people in Moscow. He repeatedly asked to return to St. Petersburg, but was refused. His wife gave birth to 4 children, and eventually they separated.
19.Miloradovich. The relationship began in 1789. He was among the candidates proposed after Dmitriev’s resignation. Their number also included retired second major of the Preobrazhensky regiment Kazarinov, Baron Mengden - all young handsome men, behind each of whom stood influential courtiers (Potemkin, Bezborodko, Naryshkin, Vorontsov and Zavadovsky). End of relationship 1789.
20. Miklashevsky. The beginning of the relationship was 1787. The end was 1787. Miklashevsky was a candidate, but did not become a favorite. According to evidence, during Catherine II’s trip to Crimea in 1787, a certain Miklashevsky was among the candidates for favorites. Perhaps it was Miklashevsky, Mikhail Pavlovich (1756-1847), who was part of Potemkin’s retinue as an adjutant (the first step to favor), but it is unclear from what year. In 1798, Mikhail Miklashevsky was appointed governor of Little Russia, but was soon dismissed. In biography, the episode with Catherine is usually not mentioned.
21. Zubov, Platon Alexandrovich (1767-1822) Official favorite. Beginning of relationship 1789, July. A protege of Field Marshal Prince N.I. Saltykov, the chief educator of Catherine’s grandchildren. End of relationship 1796, November 6. Catherine's last favorite. The relationship ended with her death. The 22-year-old at the time of the start of a relationship with the 60-year-old empress. The first official favorite since Potemkin, who was not his adjutant. N.I. Saltykov and A.N. Naryshkina stood behind him, and Perekusikhina also worked for him. He enjoyed great influence and practically managed to oust Potemkin, who threatened to “come and pull out a tooth.” Later he participated in the assassination of Emperor Paul. Shortly before his death, he married a young, humble and poor Polish beauty and was terribly jealous of her.
Memory of Catherine 2. Monuments dedicated to her.
