Catherine II of Russia

Catherine II ({{lang-ru|?????????? II ???????????}}, tr.: Yekaterina II Alexeyevna; April 21, 1729—November 6, 1796 (O.S.)), born Sophie Augusta Fredericka, known as Catherine the Great, reigned as empress of Russia from June 28, 1762, to her death on November 6, 1796. A cousin to Gustav III of Sweden and Charles XIII of Sweden, Catherine exemplified an "enlightened monarch."

Internal policies

Drawing on writings by Beccaria and Montesquieu, Catherine drew up a document to reform the code of laws. A legislative commission representing all classes except the serfs was created to make this document law, but she disbanded the commission before it took effect, possibly having turned more conservative after the Pugachev uprising of 1773 - 1774.

Related Topics:
Beccaria - Montesquieu - Serf - Pugachev uprising - 1773 - 1774

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Catherine reorganized Russian provincial administration, granting the government greater control over rural areas because of the peasant revolt. This process reached completion in 1775. The reform created provinces and districts which were more manageable for the government. In 1785 Catherine issued a charter that: allowed the gentry to petition the throne as a legal body; freed the nobles from state service and taxes; made noble status hereditary; and gave the nobles full control over their serfs and lands. In addition, Catherine gave land in Ukraine to favored nobles and granted them serfs. She also encouraged the colonization of Alaska and of conquered areas.

Related Topics:
1775 - 1785 - Ukraine - Colonization - Alaska

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Catherine proceeded to "Westernize" Russia. However, unlike Peter the Great, Catherine scorned force and instead focused on pursuing individualistic endeavors. For example, when the smallpox vaccination was invented, Catherine was determined that Russia be among the first nations to inoculate its people. The peasants, ever distrustful of anything new or foreign, were terrified of the vaccine. To assuage their fears, Catherine herself was the first person in all Russia to receive the inoculation, from the English doctor Thomas Dimsdale. After two weeks of fearful waiting on the part of the court, Catherine as yet displayed no signs of ill-health. The story spread throughout the country side and the peasants willingly submitted to the vaccinations. In Europe, too, the story spread and helped convince people there that it was safe to subject themselves to "the dreadful lancet."

Related Topics:
Peter the Great - Smallpox - Thomas Dimsdale

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Her reforms went even further after a failed peasant revolt in 1773 led by Yemelyan Pugachev threatened Eastern Russia. As a result, Catherine the Great instituted several drastic reforms within the Russian society. First, she established the Free Economic Society (1765) to encourage the modernization of agriculture and industry. Second, she encouraged foreign investment in economically underdeveloped areas. Third, Catherine relaxed the censorship law and encouraged education for the nobles and middle class. However, another result of this revolt was to instill in Catherine and her court an innate fear and distrust of the peasants and what they might do if given too free a reign. As a result, many of the laws that tied the peasants ever more firmly to their land were enacted under Catherine.

Related Topics:
Yemelyan Pugachev - Free Economic Society

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