Catherine II: A Russian Empress

When a German Princess rises to become a Russian Empress, the balance of power wavers, like a scale when an object that has been placed on it makes the two sides plunge down and rise up. The importance of her rule lay deep in the mysterious beliefs and womanly control that has been polarised through history by many that remember her reign. Although some historians argue that Catherine II abandoned her initial French philosophy and egalitarianism, it was exactly her egatalarianistic education that lead her to form the mind of a cautious economic philosopher.

Many perspectives shed light on the amount of power Catherine actually possessed and the effect she had on Russia as a female ruler. When Catherine married her ruling partner, Peter III,

One being her thoughts, the other her actions based on what she believed was expected. An example is in the Swedish invasion she cursed at Gustav III when on her own, but openly she kept silent, unconcerned. One could say that she built up a policy of contradictions (Brechka 46). “Ambition alone sustained [her]” (Catherine II quoted in Herzen 40) and such passion to rule and create an egalitarian society of equalism and stability was the goal. The opinions on Catherine’s decisions still vary, however a saloniére responsible for governance of the French Enlightenment, Suzanne Necker mentioned how Catherine was “the model woman of the Century” (Suzanne Necker quoted in Goodman 521). From the female perspective, a strong female ruler instills hope for equality and more representation of both genders. On the opposite spectrum of things, Montesquieu believed that women’s “ weakness...gives them more lenity and moderation” ( Montesquieu quoted in Goodman 522). At the time of her rule, opinions were already mixed and due to the instability of her rule due to her gender, historians and primary sources vary as well. To be taken seriously, Catherine needed a certain coldness and control over those around her. (Meehan-Waters 299). This trait of Catherine’s is described in Mikhail Shcherbatov’s writings, “generally speaking, women are more prone to despotism than men, and as far as

Because of the Enlightenment, many fields of knowledge were taught to Catherine such as Literature where her reading preferences ranged from fiction fantasy worlds, to the autobiographies of Kings and their militaristic attitudes to ruling. Using literature as an escape from her immature husband, Catherine greatly broadened her political and economic views, later leading her to a Laissez-Faire mentality, contradictory to her earlier promises. Some people viewed the act of abandoning her campaign to free serfs as a “gap between her words and actions” (Brechka 39). This led to growing opposition among the lower classes which made it difficult for the developing government to “control the no longer uniform society” (Okenfuss 523). Despite the opposition, she believed that following the implementation of some newly formed laws, a Laissez-Faire approach would allow people to resolve issues amongst themselves. Some of these laws include the Provincial Statute in 1775, Municipal Statute in 1785, Charter of the Nobility in 1785 and a reform in the nation’s schooling system adapted from Prussian and Habsburg systems as part of her Provincial reforms in 1780. They aimed to improve the balance of power and knowledge in her empire and remained in place until the end of serfdom in 1861 and the end of the Soviet Union (Okenfuss 522). Lastly, she wrote the Nakaz law code for the country