Although most serious historians dispute the role of chance in historical process, one cannot but recognize the fact that the figure of Catherine I (04/05/1684-05/06/1727) on the Russian throne is, indeed, largely accidental. She owed her rapid rise “from rags to riches”, first of all, to her husband, the Great, and her ascension to the Russian throne - to his closest associate, His Serene Highness Prince A.D. Menshikov, who, in turn, relied on the effective help of the guard , on her bayonets. The fact that she was the legal wife of the deceased emperor, therefore, the direct heiress, also played for Catherine. The fact that, shortly before his death, Peter, having learned about the infidelity of his wife, deprived her of this right, only a narrow circle of courtiers knew. Menshikov did not fail to take advantage of this.
Biography of Catherine I
The origin of the first Russian empress is shrouded in obscurity. The date itself and the exact place of her birth are a question unresolved by Russian historians. Some consider her a German, motivating their assumption by the fact that since childhood Peter was attracted to women of this nationality, recalling his cordial friend Anna Mons. Others consider me Swedish. More or less in historiography, the version was established that this woman was the daughter of a poor Baltic peasant, whose name was Samuil Skavronsky. She was baptized in the Catholic faith at birth under the name of Martha. Thus, much points to her completely humble origins. She was brought up in the Marienburg boarding school, under the supervision of Pastor Gluck. She was not a diligent student, but she twisted novels with amazing frequency. There is even evidence that Marta became pregnant by a nobleman and gave birth to a daughter. The pastor gave her in marriage to a Swedish dragoon, but he disappeared without a trace during the Great Northern War. After the capture of the city by Russian troops, the captured Marta was noticed by Field Marshal B.P. Sheremetev. He took her in as a laundress. At Sheremetev, Menshikov spotted her, and already from Menshikov she got to Peter. Peter took her as his legal wife, they got married, she converted to Orthodoxy, becoming Ekaterina Alekseevna. Of the children born to her, only two daughters survived - Anna and. The latter became the Russian empress in 1741.
Domestic policy of Catherine I
Catherine's two-year reign was a logical continuation of Peter's reforms. She, in fact, completed some of his most important undertakings. It was during her reign that one of Peter's favorite creations, the Academy of Sciences, was opened. In fact, power passed into the hands of the "semi-power ruler" - Menshikov. It was he who handled all state affairs. He also became the head of the established Supreme Privy Council. An expedition was organized under the command of V. Bering to the Kamchatka region. A new Russian order appeared - St. Alexander Nevsky.
Foreign policy of Catherine I
There was a certain improvement in diplomatic relations with Austria. Persia and Türkiye agreed to concessions in the Caucasus. Managed to establish and maintain friendly relations with China.
- The reign of Catherine is one continuous orgy. They say that Menshikov specially soldered his protégé, treating him to "tyuri" - bread, which is crumbled into vodka and then stirred.
- 6 million rubles - this is an astronomical amount spent from the state treasury on all kinds of entertainment.
- 27 months - this is how long Catherine's reign lasted. However, National history knows periods of even shorter stay at the top of power, for example, the nephew of Peter I, who became Emperor Peter III in 1761 and was killed as a result of a palace coup.
- Testament to his grandson Peter III on the transfer of the throne, signed by the daughter of Catherine I, because. the empress was illiterate.
the site continues the cycle of materials about the great women of our country. We have already discussed the first ladies and outstanding actresses, this time we decided to analyze even more ambitious personalities - the Russian empresses. The ascent of each of them to the throne was accompanied by a palace coup. They loved and hated, tried to improve the life of the country and "drank the blood" of the common people, enjoyed omnipotence and carried out severe reforms - such different, but equally interesting destinies! Let's start with the beloved woman of Peter I - Catherine I.
"Baby Age" - this is how some sources call the eighteenth century. We think you have already guessed why. It was in the 18th century (and only in it!) that women ruled our country. The question of why this happened is answered by a variety of hypotheses. The most popular of them: the century was lean for boys. Sounds strange, doesn't it?
We will not even try to get to the bottom of the truth - we will leave it to historians.
Instead, we will tell you how they lived, who they loved and what goals the empresses of Russia pursued. In the centuries-old history of our country, there were only four of them: Catherine I, Anna Ioannovna, Elizaveta Petrovna and Catherine II.
Each of them came to power through a palace coup. Their reign was accompanied by intrigues, love passions and significant events in history. Russian state.. We will start with Empress Catherine I Alekseevna (1684-1727).
Her life was short but eventful. The wife of Peter I different time called Cinderella, "camping wife", "Chukhon simpleton", but she will forever remain in the history of the Russian state as the first woman ruler of our country.
From hand to hand
Ekaterina Alekseevna was born on April 15, 1684, but in what family is not known for certain. The future wife of Peter I is credited with a whole bunch of nationalities, but the version about her birth in the family of a Latvian peasant Samuil Skavronsky under the name Marta remains the most popular.
Marta's youth was spent in the house of pastor Gluck in Marienburg (today it is the city of Aluksne in Latvia), where she worked as a laundress and a cook. The girl did not receive an education, and during her turbulent and difficult life she only learned to sign documents. Soon the pastor gave Skavronskaya in marriage to the Swedish dragoon Johann Kruse. But two days later, Martha's husband went to war, where he went missing.
In 1702, the Russian army captured Marienburg and captured hundreds of citizens. Marta Skavronskaya also became a military trophy.
The Russian Field Marshal Boris Sheremetyev liked the girl, and he took her by force as his mistress. Sheremetyev was already old, so without much resistance, like a thing, he gave Martha to Prince Menshikov, who also drew attention to a young and full of life girl. By the way, there is a version that Menshikov took Skavronskaya for himself exclusively as a servant.
Marta liked Peter I at first sight
Marta was not a beauty, she did not know how to dress up, but her burning temperament, magnificent breasts and flirtatious manner of communication drove men crazy. The future emperor could not resist either: once Peter I was visiting the house of Prince Menshikov, where he saw Martha. The king unceremoniously demanded that the girl be handed over to him. So Skavronskaya became one of the mistresses of the young ruler of Russia.
Cinderella story
From "one of" Martha soon became the main concubine, and then - in fact, his wife. In 1704, Skavronskaya converted to Orthodoxy, receiving the name Ekaterina Alekseevna at baptism.
Her godfather was the tsar's son from his first marriage, Alexei (hence Catherine's patronymic). In the same year, Catherine gave birth to a son, Peter, who was named after his father, and a year later, a son, Pavel. Interestingly, the king recognized these children - for mistresses, this was a great rarity and good luck. Unfortunately, both boys died before they were three years old.
Peter became more and more attached to his mistress.
Catherine was the only one who knew how to cope with the royal whims, extinguished his outbursts of anger, helped during epileptic attacks, and relieved him of the headaches that tormented him.
“The sound of Katerina's voice calmed Peter; then she sat him down and took him, caressing him, by the head, which she scratched lightly. This had a magical effect on him, he fell asleep in a few minutes. In order not to disturb his sleep, she held his head on her breast, sitting motionless for two or three hours. After that, he woke up completely fresh and vigorous, ”contemporaries of the tsar wrote in his memoirs.
Catherine easily got along with Peter, whose difficult character was legendary
Shot from the series "The Romanovs"
Catherine, although she had influence on Peter, did not get involved in state affairs. Only occasionally stood up for Prince Menshikov. The main thing for her was to protect the king from drunkenness and wild life. In 1708, the daughter of Catherine and Peter, Anna, was born, a year later, the daughter of Elizabeth. Only these two children of the spouses survived.
In total, Catherine gave birth to eleven children. Most died in infancy, and none (except Anne and Elizabeth) survived to adolescence.
It’s not for nothing that Catherine is called a marching wife: she accompanied the tsar on all military campaigns and trips, slept on a hard bed, lived in a tent, ate what they gave and sat on horseback like a man. She did not complain, did not act up and did not ask for anything. Once she even shaved her head to wear a grenadier cap. Together with her husband, Catherine made a review of the troops, encouraged the soldiers: where with a kind word, and where with a glass of vodka. By the way, she herself could drink with the military. For simplicity, masculine strength and at the same time femininity, the soldiers idolized her.
Catherine always accompanied Peter I, and even pregnancy did not stop her.
In 1711, being in her seventh month, she and her husband participated in the Prut campaign. Then the Russian troops were surrounded, and only Catherine was able to save her husband and the entire army from inevitable death. She gave away her jewels, persuading the Turkish vizier to sign a peace treaty. Alas, due to the stress experienced, Catherine's child was born dead.
Upon returning to St. Petersburg, on February 20, 1712, Peter finally legalized relations with Catherine. The marriage was secret and took place in a chapel belonging to Prince Menshikov.
Catherine was with Peter for almost ten years before they got married
A frame from the series “Peter the Great. Will"
Also, in memory of the Prut campaign, the tsar established the Order of St. Catherine, which he awarded her on her name day.
The love of his life... betrayed
Peter I adored his wife, she was his closest friend, a real life partner. “Katerinushka, my friend, hello! I hear that you are bored, but I am not bored either, ”the emperor wrote tender letters to his wife. At the same time, the ruler of Russia did not change his habits, and even with his wife he had far more than one concubine. Catherine learned about her husband's adventures from him, but each confession ended with the words: "There is no one better than you, Katenka."
In 1721, Peter I called himself emperor, and three years later, in the spring of 1724, he crowned Catherine the Empress, ordering her a crown many times richer and more beautiful than his own.
A few months later, the formidable ruler found out about her infidelity. The wife he adored was carried away by the German Willim Mons, who, by the way, was immediately executed with the light hand of the emperor.
The betrayal of his wife finally knocked down the already poor health of Peter
Shot from the series "Secrets of palace coups"
Peter I was killed by the betrayal of his wife and forever forbade her to approach him and talk about anything. Only once did daughter Elizabeth convince her father to talk to her mother. Dying, in 1725, Peter still found the strength to forgive his wife, she was always there, and he died in her arms.
Palace coup
It was Peter I who abolished the tradition of succession to the throne. Before him, for many centuries in a row, the Russian throne went to direct male descendants, most often to sons. Now, by decree of Peter I, the reigning monarch could single-handedly choose his successor (in fact, anyone) by writing an appropriate will.
There is an opinion that new law was published specifically for Catherine: Peter loved his wife so much that he wanted to leave the whole empire to her.
The sovereign planned to publicly announce Catherine as his successor, but, having learned about his wife’s infidelity, he changed his mind, which doomed the country to palace coups.
After the death of Peter I, troubled times began at the court: there was no strict procedure for choosing a new ruler, as well as a will. The people, accustomed to seeing a man on the throne, supported Prince Peter Alekseevich, the grandson of Peter I. However, the guards were so faithful to the departed emperor that they transferred all their love to Catherine.
Officers without an invitation came to a meeting of the Senate, lined up in front of the palace thousands of soldiers with weapons. To the question "Who dared?" the answer was that the regiments arrived at the behest of the empress, whom everyone is now obliged to obey. So, the Senate, to the sounds of clattering weapons, “unanimously” elevated Catherine to the throne.
Enlisting the support of the guards, Catherine I became the new ruler of Russia
Shot from the series "The Romanovs"
Many are wondering how it happened that hundreds of far from stupid officers entrusted the management of a vast country to a woman, moreover, an illiterate one? There are two versions: either the guards loved Catherine so much that they forgave her all the shortcomings, or they were sure that a woman was easy to manipulate, and her hands to lead the state ...
And the king is naked!
The actual power belonged to Prince Menshikov and the Secret Supreme Council, while Catherine was quite pleased with her role as mistress of Tsarskoye Selo. There were no significant changes in the life of the country during the reign of Catherine I: new coins appeared (of course, with the image of the empress), the First Kamchatka Expedition took place, and the Academy of Sciences opened. The country did not get involved in wars.
Meanwhile, state affairs fell into a deplorable state, the treasury was empty. Theft and arbitrariness flourished in the country, the people rebelled. What kind of reforms are there?
Having become the ruler of all Rus', Catherine fell in love with entertainment. Balls and other celebrations became regular (if not daily) events at the palace. If earlier the empress was restrained by her husband, now no one could reproach her for the wrong way of life. The courtiers sought friendship with Catherine so as not to anger her, although, as contemporaries assure, the empress was neither cruel nor vindictive.
Even after becoming Empress, Catherine I was not interested in state affairs, continuing to lead an idle lifestyle.
Catherine I, alas, justified the jealous fears of her late husband. An unbridled passion and love of love woke up in the Empress. She succumbed to vices, addicted to wine. Every day in the palace ended with a noisy festivity, and the empress spent the night with one of her lovers.
Such a way of life could not pass without a trace, and after two years of rampant life, Catherine's health was undermined.
In March 1727, the ruler developed a tumor on her leg, which soon spread to her thigh. To this were added rheumatism, fever, severe cough and abscess (accumulation of pus) of the lung. In April of the same year, Catherine fell ill, and on May 6 she died. She was 43 years old.
Before her death, Catherine wanted to transfer the rights to the throne to her daughter Elizabeth, but under the onslaught of Prince Menshikov, she wrote a will, where she named Peter II Alekseevich as her successor. The boy at that time was 12 years old, and power automatically again fell into the hands of Menshikov. However, not all women were ready to put up with it ... (Continued in the next part.)
Despite the fact that many serious scholars dispute the role of chance in history, one cannot but admit that Catherine I ascended the Russian throne largely by accident. She ruled for a short time - a little more than two years. Nevertheless, despite such a short reign, she remained in history as the first empress.
From washerwoman to empress
Marta Skavronska, who will soon become known to the world as Empress Catherine 1, was born on the territory of today's Lithuania, on the lands of Livonia, in 1684. There is no exact information about her childhood. In general, the future Catherine 1, whose biography is very ambiguous, and sometimes contradictory, according to one version, was born into a peasant family. Her parents soon died of the plague, and the girl was sent to the pastor's house as a servant. According to another version, Martha lived with her aunt from the age of twelve, after which she ended up in the family of a local priest, where she was in the service and studied literacy and needlework. Scientists are still arguing about where the future Catherine 1 was born.
Biography
And the origin of the first Russian Empress, and the date and place of her birth have not yet been established by domestic historians. More or less unequivocally, a version was established in historiography, proving that she was the daughter of the Baltic peasant Samuil Skavronsky. In the Catholic faith, the girl was baptized by her parents, giving her the name Martha. According to some reports, she was brought up in the Marienburg boarding school, under the supervision of Pastor Gluck.
The future Catherine I was never a diligent student. But they say that she changed partners with amazing frequency. There is even information that Marta, having become pregnant from a certain nobleman, gave birth to a daughter from him. The pastor managed to marry her, but her husband, who was a Swedish dragoon, soon disappeared without a trace during the Great Northern War.
After the capture of Marienburg by the Russians, Marta, becoming a “war trophy”, was for some time the mistress of a non-commissioned officer, later, in August 1702, she ended up in the train of Field Marshal B. Sheremetev. He, noticing her, took her as a porter - a laundress, later handing her over to A. Menshikov. It was here that she caught the eye of Peter I.
Russian biographers royal family still wondering how she could capture the king. After all, Martha was not a beauty. Nevertheless, she soon became one of his mistresses.
and Catherine 1
In 1704, Martha, according to Orthodox custom, was baptized under the name By that time she was already pregnant. The future empress was baptized by Tsarevich Alexei. Knowing how to easily adapt to any circumstances, Catherine never lost her presence of mind. She perfectly studied the character and habits of Peter, becoming necessary for him both in joy and in sorrow. In March 1705 they already had two sons. However, the future Catherine I still continued to live in Menshikov's house in St. Petersburg. In 1705, the future empress was brought to the house of the tsar's sister Natalia Alekseevna. Here the illiterate washerwoman began to learn to write and read. According to some reports, it was during this period that the future Catherine I established quite close relations with the Menshikovs.
Gradually, relations with the king became very close. This is evidenced by their correspondence in 1708. Peter had many mistresses. He even discussed them with Catherine, but she did not reproach him for anything, trying to adapt to the royal whims and put up with his frequent outbursts of anger. She was always there during his epileptic attacks, sharing with him all the difficulties of camp life and imperceptibly turning into the actual wife of the sovereign. And although the future Catherine I did not take a direct part in solving many political issues, she had a great influence on the king.
From 1709, she accompanied Peter everywhere, including on all trips. During the Prut campaign of 1711, when the Russian troops were surrounded, she saved not only her future husband, but also the army, giving the Turkish vizier all her jewelry in order to persuade him to sign a truce.
Marriage
Upon returning to the capital, on February 20, 1712, Peter 1 and Catherine 1 got married. Their daughters, Anna, who had already been born by that time, who later became the wife of the Duke of Holstein, as well as Elizabeth, the future empress, being at the age of three and five years, performed the duties of maids of honor accompanying the altar at the wedding. The marriage took place almost secretly in a small chapel that belonged to Prince Menshikov.
From that time on, Catherine I acquired a courtyard. She began to receive foreign ambassadors and meet with many European monarchs. Being the wife of the reformer tsar, Catherine the Great - the 1st Russian Empress - was in no way inferior to her husband in strength of will and endurance. In the period from 1704 to 1723, she bore Peter eleven children, although most of them died in infancy. Such frequent pregnancies did not in the least prevent her from accompanying her husband on his many campaigns: she could live in a tent and rest on a hard bed without a single grumble.
Merits
In 1713, Peter I, having highly appreciated the worthy behavior of his wife during the unsuccessful Prut campaign for the Russians, established the Order of St. Catherine. He personally laid signs on his wife in November 1714. Initially, it was called the Order of Liberation and was intended only for Catherine. Peter I remembered the merits of his wife during the ill-fated Prut campaign in his manifesto about the coronation of his wife in November 1723. Foreigners, who followed with great attention everything that was happening in the Russian court, unanimously noted the affection of the tsar for the empress. And during 1722, Catherine even shaved her head and began to wear a grenadier cap. Together with her husband, she conducted a review of the troops leaving directly for the battlefield.
On December 23, 1721, the collegiums of the Senate and the Synod recognized Catherine as the Russian Empress. Especially for her coronation in May 1724, a crown was ordered, which, in its splendor, surpassed the crown of the king himself. Peter himself placed this imperial symbol on his wife's head.
Portrait
Opinions about what appearance Catherine had were contradictory. If you focus on her male environment, then opinions are generally positive, but women, being biased towards her, considered her short, fat and black. Indeed, the appearance of the Empress did not make much of an impression. One had only to look at her to notice her low birth. The dresses she wore were old-fashioned, sheathed entirely in sequined silver. She always had a belt, which was adorned in front with gemstone embroidery with an original design in the form of a double-headed eagle. Orders, a dozen icons and amulets were constantly hung on the queen. When she walked, all this wealth rang.
Argument
One of their sons, Pyotr Petrovich, who, after the abdication of the eldest heir to the emperor, was considered the official successor to the throne since 1718, died in 1719. Therefore, the reformer tsar began to see his future successor only in his wife. But in the fall of 1724, Peter suspected the empress of treason with the chamber junker Mons. He executed the latter, and stopped communicating with his wife: he didn’t talk at all, and forbade access to her. Passion for others dealt a terrible blow to the king: in anger, he tore up the will, according to which the throne passed to his wife.
And only once, at the insistent request of his daughter Elizabeth, Peter agreed to dine with Catherine, a woman who had been his inseparable friend and assistant for twenty whole years. This happened a month before the death of the emperor. In January 1725, he became ill. Catherine was always at the bedside of the dying monarch. On the night of the 28th to the 29th, Peter died in the arms of his wife.
Ascension to the throne
Upon the death of her husband, who did not have time to declare his last will, the “supreme gentlemen” - members of the Senate, the Synod and the generals, who had already been in the palace since the twenty-seventh of January, began to deal with the issue of succession to the throne. There were two parties among them. One, consisting of the remnants of the tribal aristocracy who remained at the very top of government power, was led by the European-educated Prince D. Golitsyn. In an effort to limit the autocracy, the latter demanded to enthrone Peter Alekseevich, the minor grandson of Peter the Great. I must say that the candidacy of this kid was very popular among the entire aristocratic class of Russia, which wanted to find in the offspring of the unfortunate prince someone who could restore their past privileges.
Victory
The second party was on the side of Catherine. The split was inevitable. With the help of her longtime friend Menshikov, as well as Buturlin and Yaguzhinsky, relying on the guards, she ascended the throne as Catherine 1, whose reign for Russia was not marked by anything special. They were short lived. By agreement with Menshikov, Catherine did not interfere in state affairs, moreover, on February 8, 1726, she transferred control of Russia into the hands of the Supreme Privy Council.
Domestic politics
The state activity of Catherine I was limited for the most part only to the signing of papers. Although it must be said that the Empress was interested in the affairs of the Russian fleet. On her behalf, the country was actually ruled by a secret council - a body created shortly before her ascension to the throne. It included A. Menshikov, G. Golovkin, F. Apraksin, D. Golitsyn, P. Tolstoy and A. Osterman.
The reign of Catherine 1 began with the fact that taxes were reduced and many prisoners and exiles were pardoned. The first was connected with the rise in prices and the fear of causing discontent among the people. Some of the reforms of Catherine 1 canceled the old ones adopted by Peter 1. For example, the role of the Senate was significantly reduced and local bodies were abolished, which replaced the governor with power, a Commission was formed, which included generals and flag officers. According to the content of this reform of Catherine 1, it was they who were supposed to take care of the improvement of the Russian troops.
(1684-1727) Russian empress
The story of the life of a young woman, whose maiden name was Marta Skavronskaya, is both unusual and at the same time natural for her era.
Historians argue about the origin of Martha to this day. According to one version, she was born from a Swedish soldier Johann Rabe, according to another, she was the daughter of a Latvian peasant. It is only known for certain that her childhood and youth were spent in the house of the Lutheran pastor Gluck in the small Latvian town of Aluksne, which was called Marienburg in the 18th century.
Martha had not received any education, and although the girl was officially considered the pupil of the owner, her position was rather miserable: she helped the cook and washed the clothes.
The fate of Martha changed dramatically on August 25, 1702. On this summer day, Russian troops entered Marienburg, and all the inhabitants were captured. At the time, Martha was no more than nineteen years old. Her beauty and freshness attracted the attention of the aged Field Marshal B. Sheremetev. He took the girl to Moscow, where she was his mistress for some time, and then again turned out to be a laundress, but now in Sheremetev's house.
Perhaps this is where the story of Martha's adventures would have ended if she had not caught the eye of the all-powerful Prince A. Menshikov. An influential favorite of Peter I, made Marta his mistress, and a little later, the mistress of his house, where Tsar Peter I saw her.
Their meeting had such stunning consequences that there was even a legend about some kind of supernatural abilities of Martha. In fact, Peter's interest was explained by purely worldly reasons. Before meeting with Martha, he never experienced true female love. Marriage with Evdokia Lopukhina could not be called successful. Brought up in the old Moscow spirit, it was difficult for Evdokia to understand the European-minded Peter. His relationship with Anna Mons, who saw only her own benefit in their romance, was no better. Just at that moment the king met Martha.
At first, he was distrustful of her, but soon he moved her into his house and began to recognize her as a hostess. This went on for a little over a year. Gradually, Marta entered the family of Peter and was even able to make friends with his beloved sister Natalia. In 1705, Marta was baptized according to the Orthodox rite and became known as Catherine.
From that time on, she actually became the wife of Peter I. In 1708, their daughter Anna was born, and in 1709, Elizabeth, who later became Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. But Peter did not dare to legalize their marriage for a long time.
Only in 1711, having decided to go on a campaign against the Turks, did the tsar finally decide to announce his engagement, and in February 1712, Catherine was married to Admiral Peter Mikhailov (as Peter decided to call himself). However, the king was not joking, and Catherine became a real queen.
True, the change in position did not affect her character. She continued to be as unpretentious and modest as before. Although there was no outward grace in her, Peter was crazy about her. This is evidenced by their correspondence, in which they share all the news with each other. He is constantly interested in the health of his wife and children. More than a hundred of Catherine's letters have been preserved in his archive. She specially learned to read and write in order to write to her husband during his departures. A strong feeling connected Peter and Catherine for almost twenty years.
Catherine was not stupid, had a natural mind. In 1711, the tsarina accompanied Peter on the Prut campaign and, as best she could, supported him during the difficult negotiations that led to the conclusion of a peace treaty important for Russia.
In 1715, their long-awaited son was finally born, named Peter after his father. Apparently, in order to make him the sole heir, the tsar first disinherited and then executed his eldest son Alexei (from Evdokia Lopukhina), accusing him of treason.
However, in 1719 little Peter died. To prevent possible civil strife, Peter decides to bequeath the throne to his wife, and in the spring of 1724 he even declares her empress and crowns her with the imperial crown during a solemn prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral.
And yet, just at this time, Catherine made friends with the young valet Vilim Mons. A few months later, Peter found out about their connection and acted with his characteristic ruthlessness: Mons was executed, Catherine's close associates were exiled, the will was destroyed.
Peter didn't know then that he didn't have long to live. In January 1725, he died of an unexpected cold (which still causes controversy and doubts whether it was a "cold"?), without leaving a new will.
The situation was taken advantage of by Peter's closest associates - Alexander Menshikov, Pyotr Tolstoy and Fyodor Apraksin. Relying on the guards devoted to them, they elevated Catherine to the throne. Thus began her short reign. It lasted only three years. In fact, Catherine I was little involved in the affairs of the state. Power was in the hands of Menshikov, as well as the Supreme Privy Council, hastily organized by him.
To strengthen the political position of Russia, the daughter of Catherine I, Anna, was married to Duke Friedrich Karl of Holstein-Gottorp.
The Empress spent her days in entertainment. She began a fiery romance with the young Peter Sapega. Obviously succumbing to Menshikov's insistent persuasion, she signed a will in which the heir to the throne was declared Grand Duke Peter, heir to Tsarevich Alexei. His bride was the daughter of Menshikov.
The daughters of Catherine I, Anna and Elizabeth, begged their mother not to do this. But Catherine I trusted Menshikov all her life and made him the almost unlimited ruler of Russia. Perhaps she did not suspect that her will would take effect so quickly. In the summer of 1727, she unexpectedly died, and a period in Russian history began, known as the era of palace coups.
The early years of the empress are shrouded in many secrets, at present there is absolutely no reliable information about this period. The origin and exact country are also not known, historians still cannot give a truthful and accurate answer. One version says that she was born on April 5, 1684 in the Baltic region in the vicinity of the mountains, at that time these territories were under the command of the Swedes.
Another version says that her homeland was Estonia, then she was born in a local small town at the end of the seventeenth century, it also says that she was from peasants. There is another version that her father was a certain Skavronsky, who served a local warrior and subsequently fled, settled there in the areas of Marienburg and started a family. It is worth noting that Katya was not called Russian, her roots were different. Therefore, when she received the throne, her name Marta Skavronskaya was changed to the one already known in world literature.
adolescence
In those days, a plague roamed the world, her family also did not manage to avoid this scourge. According to legend, when the princess was born, her parents died of illness. She had only one relative left, but he gave the baby to another family. Then, in 1700, the Northern War began, where Russia was the enemy of Sweden. In 1702, the fortress of Marienburg was taken by the Russians, a girl with a certain Gluck was a prisoner and they were sent to Moscow.
Martachka was settled in a strange family, and she was there as a servant, she was not taught to read and write. However, another version also says that the mother never died of the plague, but simply gave her daughter to the family of the same Gluck. It is already said here that she was not a servant, but was trained in spelling and other innovations that are supposed to be secular. It is also said according to other sources that at the age of seventeen she was married to a Swede on the eve of the capture of the fortress, a few days later her husband went missing. From these data, we can say that the future princess does not have one hundred percent of her biography data.
History of Peter and Catherine
Peter, on one of his trips to Menshikov, met Martochka, then she became his loving woman. Then Menshikov himself lived in St. Petersburg, the emperor at that time was traveling to Livonia, but he decided to visit and stayed there. On the day of arrival, he met his lady of the heart, then she served the guests' table. Then the king asked everything about her, watched her and told her to bring and light a candle before going to bed. Then they spent the night together, then the king left and finally left one ducat to his nightly mistress.So the first meeting of the king with the princess took place, if it were not for her, she would never have become the heir to the throne. After the victory in the Battle of Poltava in 1710, a triumphal procession was arranged, where the captured Swedes were led. Then Martha's husband, nicknamed Kruse, was also led along this procession, after his words that the girl was his, he was sent into exile, where he died in 1721.
A year after the first meeting with the king, Catherine gave birth to a son, and a year later, the second, and they all died after some time. Peter called his wife Vasilevskaya, after which he ordered her to live with her sister Natashka, where she learned to read and write and became very friendly with the Menshikov family. Two years later, the future princess converted to Orthodoxy and after that she was baptized, then became Alekseevna Mikhailova. The surname was given on purpose so that Marta remained secret, and received a patronymic from the red.
Mistress and wife
Peter loved her very much, he considered her the only one in his life. Although the prince had many other mistresses, various fleeting meetings, he loved only her. The latter knew about it. The king himself often suffered from severe headaches, the empress was his only remedy. When the king had an attack, his love sat next to him and hugged him, then the king fell asleep within a minute.
With the onset of the spring of 1711, the tsar was supposed to go on a Prussian campaign, then he brought out all his friends and relatives and indicated that Catherine was considered his wife and queen. He also pointed out that in the event of death, consider her the rightful queen. A year later, the wedding took place and from that moment Catherine became a legal wife. Then she followed her husband everywhere, even during the construction of the shipyard. In total, the princess gave birth to ten children, but many died in younger age.
Ascension to the throne
The king was a great builder of new reforms, also regarding thrones he also changed the whole system. In 1722, a very significant reform was launched, according to which, not the first son of the king becomes the heir to the throne, but the person appointed by the ruler himself, so any subject could head the throne. A year later, namely on November 15, 1723, a coronation manifesto was issued. It happened a year later on May 7th.
During his last year, Peter was very ill, and in the end he fell completely ill. Then Catherine understood that something had to be done, the king was very ill, so his death was near. She summoned Prince Menshikov and Tolstoy, gave them a decree, and she herself asked that it was necessary to lure those in power to her side, because the tsar did not have time to draw up a will. Already on January 28, 1725, Catherine was proclaimed empress and heiress, most of the nobles and the guards helped her in this.
Board results
During the reign of the empress, there was no autocracy, almost everything was decided by a secret council. However, much also depended on the Senate, which bowed more to the Empress, who subsequently renamed him the Great. The count also had a lot of power, he had a good relationship with the princess, especially since he once took it to his house. The future heiress herself was a simple ruling lady and practically did not conduct state affairs, she was not even interested in them. Everything was run by the council, as well as the great figures Tolstoy and Menshikov. However, she kept showing interest in some industry. Namely, to the fleet, because she inherited it from her husband. Further, the council was disbanded, the documents were determined and created by the secret council, she only needed to sign them.
During the years of the reformer's reign, there were many wars, all this burden and cost fell on the common people, who were rather tired of pulling all this. Also, the time of bad harvests has come, the prices for products began to grow restlessly. With all this, unrest began to grow in the country. Catherine ordered to reduce taxes from seventy-four kopecks to seventy. Martha herself was not a reformer, therefore she did not appoint anything and did not make innovations, she dealt only with small details beyond politics and state issues.
During this time, embezzlement of public funds and other arbitrariness at the state level began to develop very much. Although she did not understand anything in public affairs, she was poorly educated, but the people simply adored her, because she was a native of him. She helped a lot ordinary people gave charity. She was invited to the holidays dreamed that she was a godfather. She practically did not refuse and gave money to each godson. In total, she ruled for two years from 1725 to 1724. During this time, she opened an academy, organized a trip to the Bering Strait and introduced the Order of Nevsky, which was made a Saint.
Sudden death
After the death of the tsar, Catherine's life went into full swing. She began to run around hot places, arranged all kinds of balls, went to festivities and celebrated a lot. Because of the endless parties, the ruler undermined her health and fell ill. Immediately she developed a cough, then it began to intensify. And then it turned out that she had problems with one lung and it was damaged, then the doctors concluded that she had no more than a month to live.
On the evening of May 6, 1727, she died when she was 43 years old. However, before her death, she managed to draw up a will, she did not have time to sign, so her daughter vouched for her and put her signature. According to the will, the throne passed to the son-in-law, who was the grandson of Peter the Great. During their lives, these people were a very successful and good couple, Marta always supported him and reassured her husband.
After the death of the princess, there were many rumors that she was a very walking woman. She spent all her time drinking and celebrating, while others said that she simply wanted to forget the death of her beloved. However, the people loved her, and she won over many men, while remaining the empress. We can say one thing with certainty that this girl began the era of women's rule in the Russian Empire.
