Status
Available
Genres
Publication
Oxford University Press (1989), Edition: Reprint, 460 pages
Description
One of the most colorful characters in modern history, Catherine II of Russia began her life as a minor German princess, until the childless Empress Elizabeth and Catherine's own scheming mother married her off to the Grand Duke Peter of Russia at age sixteen. By thirty-three, she had overthrown her husband in a bloodless coup and established herself as Empress of the multinational Russian Empire, the largest territorial political unit in modern history. Portrayed both as a political genius who restored to Russia the glory it had known in the days of Peter the Great and as a despotic foreign a
User reviews
LibraryThing member Sandra_Wagner-Wright
Few women have been able to rule vast empires in their own right. Catherine the Great was one of these. Incidentally, I use the word “able” not in terms of ability, but the simple fact of access. Catherine achieved her status by removing her husband, Tsar Peter III, in a coup after which she
Catherine ruled from 1762-1796. She corresponded with philosophes, expanded Russian boundaries and influence, and introduced a number of reforms, which didn’t last much longer than her reign. In her free time, Catherine had a succession of lovers. She has fascinated historians and popular culture.
John Alexander published his study of Catherine’s impact on Russia in 1989. It’s an academic, scholarly work. Alexander’s research is prodigious. His need to share everything understandable. The book is well worth reading. But I suggest reading it in small doses. It’s the kind of book to pick up and digest before putting it down again. I started it in January and have now finished in August.
Alexander chronicled an important period in Russian and European history, but he didn’t write a social, intellectual or personal history. Readers won’t learn much about individuals or social movements. But they will learn what happened when, and that’s not a bad result.
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initially justified her position in the name of her underage son.Catherine ruled from 1762-1796. She corresponded with philosophes, expanded Russian boundaries and influence, and introduced a number of reforms, which didn’t last much longer than her reign. In her free time, Catherine had a succession of lovers. She has fascinated historians and popular culture.
John Alexander published his study of Catherine’s impact on Russia in 1989. It’s an academic, scholarly work. Alexander’s research is prodigious. His need to share everything understandable. The book is well worth reading. But I suggest reading it in small doses. It’s the kind of book to pick up and digest before putting it down again. I started it in January and have now finished in August.
Alexander chronicled an important period in Russian and European history, but he didn’t write a social, intellectual or personal history. Readers won’t learn much about individuals or social movements. But they will learn what happened when, and that’s not a bad result.
Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Physical description
460 p.; 6.13 inches
ISBN
0195061624 / 9780195061628
Local notes
biography