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presentation_history_254_.pptxPresented by:
Saif Khan History 254
Catherine The Great – The Revolutionary
Catherine was born on May 2, 1729
She was the daughter of a minor German prince and princess, Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst and Johanna Elizabeth of Holstein-Gottorp.
Emperor Elizabeth initially brought Catherine into power after she decided she simply could not rely on the childish Peter Orrick, her nephew, to rule Russia.
She was married to Peter the 3rd and was expected to reproduce the next generation
She knew she was going to be deemed useless later on so she t0ok up all things Russian and proved to become a popular figure in Russian court.
After the murder of her husband, who she did not get along with, she took over as Emperor of Russia.
Introduction and Background
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Catherine
ADD CATHERINE PICTURE
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Russia had followed an expansionist policy at the expense of other super powers that included the Ottoman Empire
The Turks proved to be enemies of the Russians and war between both countries started from a rather unimportant matter, which turned out to be a decisive factor between both countries. It goes back to when a group of orthodox Cossacks crossed the Ottoman Empire and caused important damages. This lead to the Sultan demanding the withdrawal of Russian forces and this did not go down well with Catherine.
The Turks initially had the upper hand as they had control of the Black Sea and the Crimean peninsula but ultimately perished to the Russians as they were too strong.
In 1772, a short term truce was agreed between both sides and one of the clauses was that Russia had control over the Turk’s internal affairs. Catherine finally got what she wanted in 1783 when the annexation of the Crimea was complete. This was a crushing blow for the Turks and huge victory for Catherine’s Russia.
Battle for The Crimea – Russia V.S. Turkey
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Map of The Crimea
During her reign, Catherine The Great did go up against strong opposition and revolt from the serfs.
By far the most important border rebel was Emelian Pugachev, an illiterate Don Cossack and army deserter who claimed he was Peter III.
Emelian Pugachev had told people he would delivery many promises. To the Cossacks he promised to restore order in their favor. The rebellion spread largely especially in areas of Eastern Russia and the rebels were burning villages down and causing chaos. At one point it almost seemed that Catherine was going to lose out to the serfs.
Fortunately for Catherine, her troops remained loyal to her and chose against joining Pugachev’s rebellion. He was taken in for immediate execution along with most of his followers.
Catherine maintained her humane morals and prevented even more severe forms of retribution desired by many of her officials when it came to the executions of the rebels.
Pugachev’s Rebellion
In 1796, Catherine was found unconscious in her bathroom
She later died from a stroke
Her bitter son Paul had succeeded Catherine as emperor of Russia and put her to rest with her husband Peter who was never given a genuine burial given the strained relationship between the couple
The End of Catherine’s Reign
Griffiths, David M.. 2008. “Catherine II Discovers the Crimea”. Jahrbücher Für Geschichte Osteuropas 56 (3). Franz Steiner Verlag: 339–48. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41052102
Sumner, B. H.. 1928. “New Material on the Revolt of Pugachev”. The Slavonic and East European Review 7 (19). Modern Humanities Research Association: 113–27. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4202244
Harris, Carolyn. “When Catherine The Great Invaded The Crimea and Put the Rest of the World on Edge.” Smithsonian. March 4 2014. Accessed November 21, 2015. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-catherine -great-invaded-crimea-and-put-rest-world-edge-180949969/
Orphanos, Fotini. “ANISTORITON: An Essay.” ANISTORITION: An Essay. June 30, 2001. Accessed November 21, 2015. http://www.anistor.gr/english/enback/e012.htm.
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