Best biography catherine the great
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The best books on Catherine the Great
Before we get to the books, could you briefly tell us who Catherine the Great was? She was born a German princess, I believe. How did she become Empress of Russia and what is her claim to ‘greatness’?
Yes. Catherine was a German princess. Germany, which had more than 20 different states, was a pool of eligible princes and princesses for royal marriages. Catherine’s was a very small and poor principality, Anhalt-Zerbst, devoid of any political importance. A royal marriage to the Russian heir to the throne was a very great opportunity for her. Maybe she was chosen for that very reason. Anhalt-Zerbst couldn’t play any political role, but the Prussian king, Frederick II, who was a patron of the principality, also approved of the match because he believed it was his chance to gain some influence in Russia. This was a miscalculation because Catherine was the last person to be influenced by anyone.
Catherine was incredibly well educated for a girl of that age. As a teenager she was reading philosophical literature. When she came to Russia, she was absolutely dazzled by the splendour of the court, under the Empress Elizabeth. It was a luxurious court and a contrast to the very Protestant, Lutheran, poor, German principality she had come fro
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The Memoirs of Catherine the Great
Diese Memoiren aus Jugendjahren der späteren Kaiserin strotzen nur so vor Ungerechtigkeiten, die eine junge Frau erdulden musste, deren Wohl und Wehe von einer launischen, da kränklichen Zarin (Adoptivschwiegermutter) abhing, die sich als Erben den nächstbesten Verwandten aus Holstein geholt hatte, der eigentlich lieber König von Schweden geworden wäre und nie viel mit Russland anfangen konnte.
Als Chronik von Alltagspannen, schier unglaublichen Bausünden (z.B. der einzige Durchgang für 17 Zofen und Dienstmägde führt durch Katharinas Schlafzimmer. Wichtige Stützen an einem Neubau werden entfernt, so dass das Gebäude über den Gästen einstürzt) und des mit dem Intrigenstadls verbundenen Spitzelwesens, sowie der Mätressenwirt
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Catherine say publicly Great: Likeness of a Woman by Parliamentarian K. Massie ★★★★★
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