1.3.Early life and achievements in Russia

Talk about historical slanders. Mention Russian Empress Catherine the Great and people start sniggering about death by stallion. Fortunately, Robert K. Massie renders biographical justice in his enthralling new biography, Catherine the Great.

Her achievements during her long reign are rivaled by only one other female ruler: Queen Elizabeth I. Like Stacy Schiff in her Cleopatra bio, Massie retells the life of a famous female without the biases of past centuries. Yes, Catherine the Great was a sensual woman and a monarch who took lovers — sometimes much younger — whom she rewarded with gifts and money. No, that doesn't make her a contemptible slattern. Or monster. Just human. There is no whiff of politically correct gender studies in this better-than-any-novel tale of an aristocratic German teen who ended up equaling Peter the Great before her in guiding Russia. Born in 1729, Catherine was married at 16 to the teenage heir to the Russian throne. Like her, the future Tsar Peter III was German-born, but there the similarities ended. While the intelligent and charming Catherine learned Russian, embraced the rituals of the Orthodox religion, read voraciously and prepared for the responsibilities of ruling 20 million people, the suspicious, immature Peter alienated the court with his disdain for all things Russian. Worse, he was cruel to animals, his servants, and, most of all, his young bride. Worst of all, in a century when every ruler's Job One was begetting as many heirs as possible, Catherine remained a virgin for nine years because her husband would not touch her. Six months into Peter's disastrous reign, the nobles, the church and the army had had enough. They put Catherine on the throne at age 33 where she flourished till her death in 1796. It is unlikely that Catherine planned or approved this action by her supporters. Once in charge, Catherine proved to be a hardworking ruler who skillfully navigated between her fascination with the Enlightenment — she corresponded with Voltaire — and the harsh reality of controlling a vast empire where millions of Russian serfs lived as virtual slaves to be bought and sold. Catherine had to cope with uprisings, rampant disease (she set an example by being inoculated against smallpox). She encouraged the arts, education and medical care and maneuvered evered through 18th-century Europe with its endless wars. Catherine did more than cope. She ruthlessly carved up Poland and grabbed the Crimea. As he did in Nicholas and Alexandra and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Peter the Great,⁶ Massie immerses the reader in Russian history and culture. The author, 82, is clearly enraptured by his extraordinary heroine and by the end, so is the reader. Even bone-deep anti-monarchists will find themselves cheering on this absolute despot. What a woman, what a world, what a biography. In many ways, the Orthodox Church fared no better than its foreign counterparts during the reign of Catherine. Under her leadership, she completed what Peter III had started; the church’s lands were appropriated, and the budget of both monasteries and bishoprics were controlled by the College of Economy. Endowments from the government replaced income from privately held lands. The endowments were often much less than the original intended amount. She closed 569 out of 954 monasteries and only 161 got government money. Only 400,000 rubles of church wealth was paid back. While other religions (such as Islam) received invitations to the Legislative Commission, the Orthodox clergy did not receive a single seat. Their place in government was restricted severely during the years of Catherine's reign. In 1762, to help mend the rift between the Orthodox church and a sect that called themselves the Old Believers, Catherine passed an act that allowed Old Believers to practice their faith openly without interference. While claiming religious tolerance, she intended to recall the Believers into the official church. They refused to comply, and in 1764 Catherine deported over 20,000 Old Believers to Siberia on the grounds of their faith. In later years, Catherine amended her thoughts. Old Believers were allowed to hold elected municipal positions after the Urban Charter of 1785, and she promised religious freedom to those who wished to settle in Russia. Religious education was also strictly reviewed. At first, she simply attempted to revise clerical studies, proposing a reform of religious schools. This reform never progressed beyond the planning stages. By 1786 Catherine excluded all religion and clerical studies programs from lay education. By separating the public interests from those of the church, Catherine began a secularisation of the day-to-day workings of Russia. She transformed the clergy from a group that wielded great power over the Russian government and its people to a segregated community forced to depend on the state for compensation.