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Empress Catherine II

Catherine II
Profile portrait of Catherine II by Fedor Rokotov (1763, Tretyakov gallery).jpg
Catherine II by Fyodor Rokotov
Empress and Autocrat of All the Russias
Reign 9 July 1762 – 17 November 1796
Coronation 12 September 1762
Predecessor Peter III
Successor Paul I
Empress consort of All the Russias
Tenure 5 January 1762 – 9 July 1762
Born 2 May [O.S. 21 April] 1729
Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia
(now Szczecin, Poland)
Died 17 November 1796(1796-11-17) (aged 67)
Saint Petersburg, Russia
Burial Peter and Paul Cathedral in Saint Petersburg
Spouse Peter III of Russia
Issue
among others…
Paul I of Russia
Full name
Sophie Friederike Auguste
House Romanov (by marriage)
Ascania (by birth)
Father Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
Mother Princess Johanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
Religion Russian Orthodox
prev. Lutheran
Signature
Full name
Sophie Friederike Auguste

Catherine II of Russia (Russian: Екатерина Алексеевна Yekaterina Alekseyevna), also known as Catherine the Great (Екатерина II Великая, Yekaterina Velikaya; 2 May [O.S. 21 April] 1729 – 17 November [O.S. 6 November] 1796), was the most renowned and the longest-ruling female leader of Russia, reigning from 1762 until her death in 1796 at the age of 67. Born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg, she came to power following a coup d'état when her husband, Peter III, was assassinated. Russia was revitalised under her reign, growing larger and stronger than ever and becoming recognised as one of the great powers of Europe.

In both her accession to power and in rule of her empire, Catherine often relied on her noble favourites, most notably Grigory Orlov and Grigory Potemkin. Assisted by highly successful generals such as Alexander Suvorov and Pyotr Rumyantsev, and admirals such as Fyodor Ushakov, she governed at a time when the Russian Empire was expanding rapidly by conquest and diplomacy. In the south, the Crimean Khanate was crushed following victories over the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish wars, and Russia colonised the vast territories of Novorossiya along the coasts of the Black and Azov Seas. In the west, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, ruled by Catherine's former lover, king Stanisław August Poniatowski, was eventually partitioned, with the Russian Empire gaining the largest share. In the east, Russia started to colonise Alaska, establishing Russian America.


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