Catherine La Grande

by Henri Troyat

Quelle irrésistible ascension que celle de la petite princesse allemande Sophie d'Anhalt-Zerbst, née en 1726, et qui, à trente-six ans, accède au trône de Russie sous le nom de Catherine II !

Éprise de la culture française, mais ayant appris le russe pour mieux comprendre son peuple, libérale dans ses amitiés - Voltaire, Diderot, d'Alembert - mais autocrate en son gouvernement, pudibonde en paroles mais d'un insatiable tempérament, travailleuse acharnée mais aimant les enfants, les arbres, les animaux... telle fut Catherine la Grande. « Ce roc de volonté est d'une structure complexe », écrit à son sujet Henri Troyat, et il fallait son acuité d'analyse pour en dévoiler tant d'aspects réconciliés dans un extraordinaire goût de vivre et de régner.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Russia, Russian History, Historical, Biography Memoir

544 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Troyat was a French author, biographer, historian and novelist.

Troyat was born Levon Aslan Torossian in Moscow to parents of Armenian descent. His family fled Russia in anticipation of the revolution. After a long exodus taking them to the Caucasus on to Crimea and later by sea to Constantinople and then Venice, the family finally settled in Paris in 1920, where young Troyat was schooled and later earned a law degree. The stirring and tragic events of this flight across half of Europe are vividly recounted by Troyat in 'Tant que la terre durera'.

Troyat received his first literary award, Le prix du roman populaire, at the age of twenty-four, and by twenty-seven, he was awarded the Prix Goncourt.

Troyat published more than 100 books, novels and biographies, among them those of Anton Chekhov, Catherine the Great, Rasputin, Ivan the Terrible and Leo Tolstoy.

Troyat's best-known work is La neige en deuil, which was adapted as an English-language film in 1956 under the title The Mountain.

He was elected as a member of the Académie française in 1959. At the time of his death, Troyat was the longest serving member of the Academy.

From Wikipedia

Reviews

[Maryam Bahrani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each book I read offers a new perspective. In this post, I share my thoughts on this book in both Persian and English hope this will be enjoyable for you :)


هر کتابی که می خوانم دریچه ای به دنیای جدید است .تو این نوشته دیدگاه و تجربه ام از خوندن این کتاب رو به دو زبان فارسی و انگلیسی با شما به اشتراک می ذارم امیدوارم خوندنش براتون لذتبخش باشه :)

Persian (فارسی)


در سرزمینی که برف ها سکوت شب را می شکنند و قصرها در میان زمرمه های سیاست و قدرت می درخشند، پرنسسی از دنیای دوردست هولشتین آلمان پا به عرصه ی تاریخ یک ملت گذاشت. در میان بازی‌های پیچیده ی دربار و رقابت‌های مخفیانه، کاترین راهی دشوار را در پیش گرفت، جایی که هر تصمیم به معنای پیروزی یا سقوط بود. او با ذهنی بی‌بدیل و اراده‌ای خلل‌ناپذیر توانست نه تنها دشمنانش را شکست دهد، بلکه جایگاه خود را در دل تاریخ تثبیت کند. این مسیر پر از لحظاتی است که انسانیت و جاه‌طلبی در هم تنیده می‌شود، و هانری تروایا با قلمی استادانه، ما را به درک عمیق‌تری از جنبه های حقیقی زندگی این زن پشت تاج می‌رساند اما داستان او فقط روایت یک امپراتریس قدرتمند نیست؛ بلکه قصه‌ای است از تضادهای درونی، لحظات شک و پیروزی، و تلاشی مداوم برای ایجاد تعادل میان آرزوهای شخصی و مسئولیت‌های تاریخی؛ با حکمرانی فراتر از نبردها و تصمیمات دیپلماتیک، او معماری فرهنگ جدیدی را بنا نهاد که آثارش همچنان در صفحات تاریخ روسیه به چشم می‌خورد.

از حمایت بی‌وقفه‌اش از هنر و ادبیات گرفته تا اصلاحات اجتماعی که نسلی از اندیشمندان و هنرمندان را به شکوفایی رساند، کاترین کبیر نه‌تنها به‌عنوان یک رهبر، بلکه به‌عنوان نمادی از پیشرفت و نوآوری شناخته شد؛ زنی که سرنوشت نه تنها او را آزمود، بلکه او نیز سرنوشت را به چالش کشید و در جهانی مملو از فرصت‌ها و خطراتی که همواره سایه به سایه تعقیبش می‌کردند، او توانست عرصه خود را دوباره بسازد. سفری که در ظاهر با تاج و تخت آغاز شد، در حقیقت جست‌وجویی مداوم برای یافتن معنا، هویت و جاودانگی بود.

میراث کاترین کبیر همان طور که نویسنده به زیبایی در این اثر به تصویر کشیده، فراتر از مقام و حاکمیت اوست؛ بازتابی است از قدرت ایده‌ها و قابلیت تغییر، که حتی در پیچ‌وخم‌های تاریخ نیز می‌تواند مسیر زندگی و جامعه را دگرگون کند و روایت حکایت او، دعوتی به راستی اندیشیدن است از نقشی که افراد برجسته در شکل‌دهی مسیر جوامع و ارزش‌های بشری ایفا می‌کنند.

English (انگلیسی)


In a land where snow breaks the silence of the night and palaces shine amidst whispers of politics and power, a princess from the distant realm of Holstein, Germany, stepped into the history of a nation. Amid the intricate games of the court and secret rivalries, Catherine embarked on a challenging journey where every decision meant either triumph or downfall. With an unparalleled mind and unyielding determination, she not only defeated her adversaries but also secured her place in the heart of history. This path is filled with moments where humanity and ambition intertwine, and Henri Troyat, with masterful prose, takes us to a deeper understanding of the true facets of this woman behind the crown. Yet, her story is not merely the tale of a powerful empress; it is a narrative of inner conflicts, moments of victory and defeat, and an ongoing effort to balance personal aspirations with historical responsibilities.

Through leadership that transcended battles and diplomatic decisions, she constructed the framework of a new culture, the remnants of which can still be seen in the pages of Russian history. From her unwavering support for art and literature to social reforms that brought forth a generation of scholars and artists, Catherine the Great became not only a leader but also a symbol of progress and innovation; a woman whom fate tested, and who in turn challenged fate. In a world brimming with opportunities and dangers that followed her shadow, she managed to rebuild her realm. A journey that seemed to begin with a throne was, in truth, a continuous quest for meaning, identity, and immortality.

The legacy of Catherine the Great, as beautifully portrayed by the author, transcends her rank and authority. It is a reflection of the power of ideas and the ability to bring about change, which, even in the complexities of history, can redefine the course of life and society. Her story is a call to truly reflect on the role influential figures play in shaping the paths of societies and human values.

[Lynne King · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliant book on Catherine the Great and I was reminded of this author today by Kalliope, who had written a review on Tchaikovsky.

This much acclaimed author, who had moved to France from Russia in the early twentieth century wrote some inspiring biograpies including amongst others, Ivan the Terrible and Dostoyevski.

His greatest achievement, I feel, was being a member of the Academie Française until his death in 2007. Only those who excel stay there.

A highly recommended book.

[MaSuMeH · Rating 3 out of 5]

نمی دانم ریویو برای این کتاب را چطور باید شروع کنم. کتاب رمان نیست. در واقع زندگینامه یکی از بزرگترین زنان تاریخ است که بیش از هر تصویر دیگری زن هست و نیست. کسی که با خواندن زندگی اش برای اولین بار تصویر انسانی از زن دیدم نه تصویر زنانه از انسان. کاترین به معنی واقعی کلمه آدم است بدون اینکه مغلوب جنسیتش شود.کسی که به وقتش معشوق می طلبد به وقتش به جنگیدن می پردازد و به وقتش مادر میشود.آدمی که شیفته فلاسفه بزرگ میشود فلاسفه بزرگ را شیفته خود می کند و نهایتن بر اساس عقل و تدبیر خویش عمل می کند نه علایق اساتید. زنی که نه قدیس است نه شیطان.با تمام تمایلات خوب و بد آدمی. با تمام شکوه و جلال و خطاهای آدمی.تصویری از انسان در بالاترین سطح قدرت.خواندن از این زن حالم را خوب کرد. و برای یکبار هم شده تصویری واقعی از زنی دیدم که می تواند با خصایل انسانی اش از قدرت گرفته تا هوس آدم ها را مجذوب یا دشمن خود کند

*به کتاب سه ستاره دادم چون به گمانم هم نثر کتاب و هم ترجمه می توانست بهتر از این باشد

آذر 94

[Sud666 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; was born on the 2nd of May in 1729. Most people will wonder who is Princess Sophie? Henri Troyat's (1911-2007) masterful biographical history of the Princess from a small German noble family from Pomerania, who is vaulted to the power and title of Catherine II "The Great", Empress of Russia (1762-1796). But before Catherine can achieve supreme power she must navigate the decadent and dangerous Imperial Russian Court of Empress Elizabeth.

Troyat's masterful prose, a rarity in modern writing styles, makes this feel like a novel. Yet, this impeccably researched history has the feel of reading a novel set in Imperial Russia. Not only is the prose a joy to read, his often witty turn of phrases really help to bring historical figures to life, but his insights will truly make you appreciate the decisions and mind set of Catherine.

Catherine, married to the mentally unstable Peter III, takes to her new nation of Russia and its culture and religion. Catherine was instrumental in carrying forward the grand ideas of Peter the great in improving the power of the Russian Empire. She added new territory and instituted reforms that brought Western European academics, literature, art, and fashion to Russia. She also di much to beautify St. Petersburg and she made improvements to many parts of Russia.

But for all her liberal affectations, Catherine was an autocrat extrodinarrie and her policy was aggressively pursued an expansionist Russian policy, as well as making sure the societal standards of the nobles and serfs remained rigidly in place.

Troyat's Catherine is a living, breathing, woman who had her own dreams, goals and desires. While she was a ruthless and powerful figure, her weakness towards physical pleasure and infatuation with her lovers reminds me of Henry VIII (a similar autocrat ruled by his passions).

If you wish to learn about the story of a German Princess who rises to supreme power in Russia and earns the sobriquet Catherine "The Great".

[Петър Стойков · Rating 4 out of 5]

Екатерина 2 е наречена Велика горе-долу както Барак Обама получи Нобеловата награда за мир - няколко месеца след качването си на престола, без да е направила нищо, за да го заслужи. И също като Обама и след това не прави нищо да го заслужи, а само на думи е много модерна, либерална и просветена, но не променя с нищо положението на народа си и кара по старому, без да клати лодката, само с малко по-меки методи.

Може би единственото, което я отличава от повечето останали руски владетели в положителен план е, че не потапя страната в кръв, не извършва масови погроми, убийства, мъчения и заточения в Сибир на собствения си народ - неща, типични за почти всеки владетел на Руската империя.

Анри Троая отново се справя отлично с написването на поредната си автобиография на руска личност не в сухарския историографски стил, а по-литературно и четимо, запазвайки разбира се стриктна историческа достоверност.

Иначе истинското име на "Екатерина" е София Августа Фредерика фон Анхалт-Цербст, защото е немска принцеса. Жени се за престолонаследника на Русия. Който също е роден в Германия и рожденото му име е Карл Петер Улрих фон Холщайн-Готорп - не ме питайте по какви генеалогични еквилибристики бива приет за наследник на Петър Велики.

Така или иначе, тая германска фамилия приемат руски имена, покръстват се и почват да учат руски език. Тя го сваля от престола, убива го и почва да управлява империята и като цяло не се справя особено зле, макар основното занимание през целия й живот да е харченето на наистина неизмеримо немислими суми пари за бижута, дрехи и подаръци за дългата й поредицата от младички официални любовници.

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all of Troyat’s easily digestible biographies of Catherine, Peter, Ivan, and Alexander. I think I learned the most from his Alexander. Troyat’s biographers of many of Russia’s greatest authors are even better than these czar biographies.

[Paul Galván · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anticipando que esta es mi primera reseña, me quito presiones.

Esta novela histórica triunfó en ser un muy buen libro, transmite pasión, impotencia y casi se puede sentir en carne propia la ambición de los personajes. En el contexto de la monarquía zarista rusa, en donde cada intriga tiene efectos multiplicados, se alza una mujer muy humana, con varios defectos y debilidades, empero, está dotada de genialidad y una “buena estrella” (como ella misma llama a su suerte) que la acompañará aún tras su muerte. El último párrafo de este libro, de ocho líneas, es una dosis de éxtasis y recompensa al lector apasionado.

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though a European history buff, I knew virtually nothing of Catherine the Great, so I borrowed this biography from my sister at Christmas and have just finished it. What a story it is! Born Princess Sophia of Anhalt-Zerbst in 1729, a Lutheran from one of many German noble families, she was plucked from obscurity by King Frederick of Prussia, who arranged a marriage between the teenage Sophie and Peter Ulrich of Holstein, grandson of Peter the Great and possible heir to the throne of Russia. The young princess converts to the Orthodox faith, takes the name Catherine and goes with her young husband to the court of the Czarina Elizabeth. The marriage was marked by disdain -- we know this from Catherine's own memoirs, which do not dissemble her dislike for Grand Duke Peter nor his for her -- and Elizabeth was a capricious ruler, who blamed Catherine for the fact her husband refused to sleep with her and provide an heir. Ultimately, according to Troyat, the court facilitated finding a lover for her, and the Grand Duke Paul was born. Catherine took other lovers, learned Russian and gradually assembled a coterie of admirers and supporters.

In early 1762, Elizabeth died and Peter became Czar. His priorities included making the court more Prussian, and humiliating his wife while raising up his mistress. Catherine bore with it -- discretion suited her at that time, as she was pregnant by the dashing Gregory Orlov. She had the baby in secret (when she went into labor, one of her servants set a house on fire some distance away, as the Czar loved watching things burn. He, his mistress and a number of courtiers set off and watched the flames while Catherine gave birth. Her son was raised within the Russian nobility and became known as Count Bobrinski). Peter was an unpopular ruler, small-minded and vindictive, and within months, a plot had formed with the Orlov brothers at its center to depose the Czar and put Catherine in his place. In June 1762, she and her supporters set off for St Petersburg. Army groups they met along the way, distressed by Peter's Prussianization of the military, switched sides and declared their loyalty to her. Though without a drop of Russian blood, she ascended the throne. Peter was arrested. Within weeks he was dead -- probably murdered by one of the Orlovs, though his death remains a historical mystery.

Catherine ruled Russia for more than thirty years. Through a series of wars, she expanded the territory and population of the country, and she built many of its grandest buildings and monuments. In her youth, she had been an idealist, and she maintained a correspondence with the admiring Voltaire for many years. But absolute power grew on her. She could always be ruthless, and by the end of her reign, alarmed by the precedent of the French Revolution, she censored and imprisoned those who suggested liberal steps such as freeing the serfs. She was also a very sensual woman, who took numerous lovers -- they would have a trial run with one of her ladies-in-waiting, and if they made the grade, would be promoted to the imperial bedroom. The story about the horse is apparently urban legend though.

Henri Troyat has written an extremely readable book -- too readable to be fully trustable history, in fact. He often tells us what Catherine or others are thinking and feeling. Several figures, including Catherine, left memoirs but still, Troyat has clearly given himself permission to take novelish license in telling his story. For example, here is Troyat describing what happened when Catherine's granddaughter, Alexandra, was about to be betrothed to the King of Sweden. The young king had come to Russia and all had seemed well, but the two countries had not agreed whether Alexandra would be required to convert to Lutheranism or not.

"At last the double doors swung open. A sigh of relief escaped from a hundred breasts. The celebration could begin. The orchestra conductor waved his baton. Alas! Plato Zubov appeared unaccompanied by the King and with the livid, distraught face of one who bears news of a disaster. He advanced between two rows of petrified courtiers, climbed the steps of the throne and whispered something in the Empress's ear. Catherine's heavy, withered mask never trembled. Only her gaze became fixed. She moved her lips. She was heard to murmur, "I'll teach that puppy!" Alexandra questioned her with an imploring look. A sepulchral silence hung over the assembly. Catherine absorbed the shock. The social affront was more humiliating to her than a military defeat... After a long moment, she pronounced in an expressionless, unrecognizable voice, 'His Majesty Gustavus IV of Sweden has been seized with a sudden indisposition; the betrothal ceremony is postponed.'

Then she rose painfully and left the hall, leaning on the arm of her grandson Alexander, her steps dragging, her features gone slack, her breath short. Behind her, the young fiance fell into a faint. She was carried away. The crowd dispersed, whispering."

Lots of the biography reads like that, and while it keeps the narrative moving, Troyat is clearly sharing his own imagining of the scene with us. However, for a reader like me, who wanted to become acquainted with Catherine and is not seeking a source to footnote, this style works well. Catherine is conveyed in all her complexity and talent, and a fascinating period in Russian and European history is made vivid.

[Natia Morbedadze · Rating 4 out of 5]

მორიგი საინტერესო და ამავე დროს საყოველთაოდ ხელმისაწვდომი ენით დაწერილი ბიოგრაფია ანრი ტრუაიასგან. შეუძლებელია მოსაწყენი იყოს ამბავი ქალისა, რომელმაც ასეთ ეპოქაში იცხოვრა და მაინც შეძლო უმნიშვნელო გერმანელი "დიდგვაროვნების" ოჯახიდან რუსეთის იმპერიის მმარველობამდე მიეღწია. რის ფასად? მაშინდელ სამყაროში, განსაკუთრებით კი ჩვენს "ერთმორწმუნე" სამეზობლოში (რომელიც პეტრე პირველმა კი არა, დრომაც ვერ დააწია ცივილიზაციას. როგორც სახელმწიფო, დღესაც "პოტიომკინის სოფლებში" არსებობს არყის ბოთლით ხელში), არავის უკვირდა გადატრიალება, ქმრის მოკვდინება, შვილებისადმი გულგრილობა, ტერიტორიების მითვისება, გაუთავებელი (სიცოცხლის ბოლომდე) აღვირახსნილობა და ნეპოტიზმი... და ეს ყველაფერი ეროვნული და რელიგიური "საბურველის" ქვეშ... გადაწონის ამ ყველაფერს რეფორმები განათლებაში, მედიცინაში, არქიტექტურაში? ისტორია არ წონის, მხოლოდ ფაქტებს გვიყვება. ბედისწერა კი განსჯის - დედამიწის მართვაზე მეოცნებე ეკატერინე დიდმა იქ დაასრულა ცხოვრების გზა, სადაც მეფეებიც კი ფეხით დადიან, მისი იმპერია კი შეშლილი პავლეს იმედად დარჩა.

[Stela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Andre Makine, în O femeie iubită, pune accentul pe viața amoroasă a Ecaterinei, adunînd date reale, bîrfe, calomnii pentru a dezvălui femeia din spatele figurii istorice, femeia tragică și singură (titlul e ironic). Desigur abordarea metaistorică este mult mai complexă, dar ce m-a îndreptat pe mine spre Ecaterina cea Mare a lui Henri Troyat a fost faptul că, spre rușinea mea, nu știam mai nimic despre această personalitate a istoriei ruse, iar romanul lui Makine îmi stîrnise curiozitatea.

Ei bine, portretul istoric e la fel de copleșitor în această a doua carte ca și cel metaistoric din prima menționată, talentul portretistului la fel de desăvîrșit, dar personalitatea eroinei la fel de dezamăgitoare ca a majorității marilor nume istorice (fie că e vorba de Ludovic al XIV-lea, de Napoleon, de Churchill sau de cîți alții) - amestec de progres și de cruzime, de fapte mari și de meschinării justificate mai mult sau mai puțin de exigențele epocii. Hotărît lucru, măreția eroilor istorici e mult mai măreață în filme și-n (anumite) cărți decît în istorie 😊.

[Ilana (illi69) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this biography by Henri Troyat with a friend seemingly a lifetime ago now, to prepare for a viewing of the upcoming Catherine the Great exhibit at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in 2006:

"Catherine the Great: Arts for the Empire - Masterpieces from The State Hermitage Museum, Russia Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia (1729–1796), was one of history’s greatest art patrons. Visitors will have a glimpse of Imperial Russia with this exhibition of paintings, sculpture, furniture, gems, and decorative arts, including the dazzling 18th century Coronation Coach."

Sir Joshua Reynolds (British, 1723–92), Cupid Untying the Girdle of Venus, 1788. Shown as part of the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal exhibition.

Had to do a bit of searching to find the above information which included the painting shown on an old link since it was over a dozen years ago now... I do remember parts of the exhibit quite well. Certainly that coach is hard to forget. I remember lots of gold. Somehow it was forgivable in the 18th century. But then again, all that gold and fancy dress must have been provocation for the starving peasants of Russia and France, or so one might think... which would explain why such violent revolts a century later. I've since gathered two other biographies about this great patron of arts and letters, and let us not forget, a woman of great appetites. While I can't say I was excessively enraptured with Troyat's biography as far as the reading experience went, he was an academician first and foremost, and nothing about his research or writing or style is at fault; it was very well written and kept my interest as far as describing a fascinating and very intelligent and complex woman who had the rare opportunity of being able to afford having a mind and exert a will of her own at a period in history which wasn't known for giving women many liberties or be especially kind to the "weaker sex". And yet she had the ear of great thinkers in the time of Enlightenment and in many ways helped bring Russia out of the dark ages. This book was the perfect intellectual exercise I wanted and it gave me all the background stories on the many young men who kept her warm at night, as well as all the political plotting and scheming she perforce had to oversee before seeing her depicted in all her rounded rosy white flesh and sumptuous jewels and clothing, surrounded by portraits she commissioned and much of the splendour she caused to be created for her use and which influenced the fashions of her times.

I will enter actual French edition of the book I read asap. I wish I could read Russian, but then I'd reserve it for reading Russian authors of course! :-)

[Bruno Gremez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in its original French version, but I understand that many books of Henri Troyat, including this one, have been translated into English. Henri Troyat tells the amazing story of this German Princess from Pomerania. Catherine the Great (1729-1796) came to power through a coup d'etat after the assassination of her husband Peter III and relied on her countless lovers to access and maintain her grip on Russia. Her reign will remain as a glorious page of Russian history. She will expand Russian territory in the South by conquering Southern Ukraine and Crimea, to the West by partitioning and seizing part of Poland, and to the East by continuing the conquest of Siberia and the Far East. She did not however modernise Russia as she could and should have done. Henri Troyat, with his talent, details in that respect interesting anecdotes of her life, which makes this biography even more interesting. She was fascinated by the Enlightenment, admired authors like Voltaire or Montesquieu, but quickly closed progressive books arguing that there was no way anyone would speak about social ideas and liberty in a country where serfdom was so widespread. While she was expanding the Russian empire, she had to satisfy herself with so-called Potemkin villages during her voyage to Crimea along the river Dnieper. Her lover Grigory Potemkin was indeed building fake villages in order to deceive and let everybody believe that the territory was better occupied and managed than it really was. Another great book by Henri Troyat.

Review by Bruno Gremez

[Dan Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book - you start off liking Catherine, even feeling sympathetic and rooting for her - and end up deploring her. It must be tough to write biographies. Spending months researching a person, committing to writing a book - then discovering that you loathe your subject!

Anyway, Sophie starts life as the daughter of minor German nobility and ends up spending 34 years ruling Russia, earning the title "the Great." I promise to view the claim of "greatness" with scepticism in the future!

Well, she did defeat Turkey repeatedly, adding to Russia's territorial claims, and also emerged as the pivotal power in Europe. But were her subjects better off? That's a definite "maybe." As best I can tell, Catherine let the virtual omnipotence of her position slowly erode her sense of justice. The only advantage that her long reign may have brought was stability. But is stability a good thing in a country as backwards as Russia was?

Catherine did introduce reforms, but they were mostly window dressing. She was very careful to cultivate the goodwill of such famous enlightenment figures as Voltaire. But her propaganda was fairly bought and paid for, since it didn't reflect the reality in Russia. The schools she established were all very clear that they owed their existence to the Czarina. In the end, she strengthened the power of the nobility in relation to the serfs, who were virtual slaves. This is clearly illustrated by the hundreds of thousands of serfs she gifted to ex-lovers. That's right, Catherine could cougar with the best of them, but she was always generous when the affair was over.

The author did a good job in holding his final judgment close to the vest, but 100 pages before the end of the book he finally can't hide it anymore: "she had within her a fundamental, unreasoned conviction that she was an exceptional person..." But I guess we can't be too hard on her - it seems to be a common human failing. But one that is deadly when held by people in power.

So read the book. Get a better understanding of Russia, the country where East meets West. And also learn to take claims of greatness with a grain of salt.

[Maja - BibliophiliaDK ✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have one major issue with the book and the is the sources that Troyat uses; memoirs and secondary litterature. To me, as I study history at the moment, memoirs are big no-no's. At least without having other sources to compare them with, which Troyat doesn't. At times I was completely convinced that what I was reading was simply a 3rd person re-writing of Catherine's own memoirs. Everything seemed to be taken from her memoirs and nothing was original work or research. The reason why I am such a big adversary of the use of memoirs in historical works is, that the writer of a memoir always have an ulterior motive with everything they write. They set out with a goal in mind, either to make themselves out to be heroes, victims, God fearing matyrs or something like that, or to make others out to be the big, bad meanies. Therefore memoirs are a pitfall of lies or at least re-writings of the truth. One must always be very critical of these works, but this critical approach cannot be sensed at all with Troyat. His use of secondary litterature isn't, at the base of it, that bad if it wasn't for the fact that he quotes the quotes in this litterature, meaning that he has not himselv read the primary source, he just chooses to believe that this secondary person has both correctly understood the primary text and correctly quoted it. That is another big no-no. And so, to me, this entire book becomes a BIG NO-NO!

[Sotiris Karaiskos · Rating 2 out of 5]

Δεν μου άρεσε αυτό το βιβλίο. Μου αρέσουν τα ιστορικά βιβλία μου έχουν μια πιο λογοτεχνική και μυθιστορηματική γραφή αλλά νομίζω ότι εδώ ο συγγραφέας φτάνει στην υπερβολή, δείχνοντας ένα πάθος για εμένα ασυγχώρητο για αυτό το είδος των συγγραμμάτων.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The copy I found at the thrift store had a cover like a 1980s Jacqueline Steele romance novel and a bargin bin price of just one dollar, but Troyat's rock-solid research and incisive views of Catherine's life and times shone through nonetheless. Highly recommended.

[Carl R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not fully checked out on most aspects of Russian history, and I didn’t know much about Catherine the Great aside from her reputation for promiscuity and the excellent Shaw one-act. I was somewhat familiar with Henri Troyat’s work from reading his fine biography of Tolstoy and gladly jumped into the pages of Catherine the Great when a neighbor of mine lent me a copy.
You won’t find a more fascinating historical or human figure than Catherine. She’s full of the kind of powers and contradictions that make for the best and the worst among us. Imported to Russia from Germany in 1746 for one of those arranged marriages meant to cement political alliances (Frederick II was the German monarch), she found herself at fifteen married to a loutish son of reigning empress Elizabeth who expected her to start producing babies. Elizabeth knew full well that her son was incapable of heading the country and looked for Catherine to produce a suitable heir. Problem was, Peter was more interested in playing with toy soldiers than in sex. In addition to the mental and emotional conditions that blocked consummation of the marriage, he was afflicted with a condition called Phimosis. I’d never heard of it before, but it’s an apparently not uncommon inability of the foreskin to completely retract. It’s easily repaired with a quick flick of a lancet, but Peter refused the operation until years after the marriage when some buddies got him drunk and forced him to submit. The scalpel didn’t cure the other problems, however, and no babies were in evidence till Catherine took her first in a string of lovers that ended only when she died. Nine years after the wedding, Paul was born and taken from her by Elizabeth to be raised as the next emperor. None too soon. If Catherine hadn’t produced, she was headed for exile or worse, having failed at her most important function. Not her fault? So?
Eventually, of course, it’s Catherine herself who takes the throne. She’s prepared herself psychologically and intellectually by keeping informed about affairs of state, prodigious (if random and unguided) reading, immersion in Russian culture, and a steady correspondence with leading French intellectuals--Voltaire, Diderot, Montesquieu, et al. She sees herself as of masculine mind and temperament, willing and able to take command of armies, courts, kingdoms. Her very ascension to power illustrates the kind of contradictions that characterize her whole life. Shortly after her reign begins, her husband, whom she has imprisoned, is assassinated. Probably she didn’t order the murder, but she is complicit after the fact. Those who did the deed were those who put her in power and she isn’t about to betray them, sad though she might be about the event. They’re all lavishly rewarded, and she wastes little time with regrets. Intellectually she professes the republican ideals of her French correspondents. Problem is, those pesky democratic ideas just won’t work here in Russia, where the people are subject to emotional moods and mysticism that make the whole notion of turning power over to them unthinkable. What’s the difference between a contradicting aspect of character and pure hypocrisy? A hypocrite believes one way and acts another in full knowledge of his betrayal of principle. Catherine embodies and believes it all, feels fully entitled to express and act it all out. She is the Empress.
Generally she’s autocratic, but not brutally so by standards of the time. However, she doesn’t hesitate to buy and sell serfs by the thousands and to increase the power of the aristocracy to solidify the feudal conditions and her own power. The one commoners’ revolt she confronted she treated with a slaughter worthy of Tamburlane. Near the end, shaken by the French Revolution, she began to censor artists and writers as well. Partly through writing her own plays to replace theirs. Good ones, purportedly.
She can fight and negotiate on an international scale with the best in the business. Russian territory expanded enormously during her thirty-five year reign, taking in a heterogeneous population that included Christian and Islam alike, and she had the good sense not to try to convert or subvert the Islamic peoples who became her subjects--A sense lacking in a certain Putin named in the title of this piece. She instituted perhaps the most original currency system in history, printing paper money indiscriminately, its worth based only on the peoples’ faith and willingness to accept its value. No gold involved. Anywhere else, there would have been inflation and collapse. Never happened to her. It was said she could pass leather for money and get away with it. She improved hospitals and medical care in general, volunteered to be the first Russian to be vaccinated against smallpox as an example to her people of the benefits of modern preventative health care.
She was contemptuous of weakness in rulers, thought George III was a fool for letting the American colonies go and criticized Louis XVI for allowing himself to be overturned by the mob. Yet, for all her political shrewdness, she treated her lovers like little gods. She used them for her pleasure as long as she was infatuated, gave them enormous power and influence, then sent them away with riches and serfs enough for long and happy lives. One, a certain Potemkin, (a name even those of us who know nothing of Russian history will recognize even if we don’t know it’s significance), kept himself in power many years after he was banned from her bed by becoming her pimp so that she didn’t have to go to the trouble of picking her lovers herself. He would spot someone, have him tested by a lady-in-waiting, and if he was pronounced satisfactory, pass him on to Catherine.
It is to her that the world owes the splendor of St. Petersburg, which she vastly preferred to Moscow, a city she thought provincial and backward. The first art treasures of the Hermitage were hung by Catherine, and its ranking among the great museums of the world is due entirely to her.
Though Troyat doesn’t specifically mention her influence on U.S. and Canadian history, from the little I know, I think it was considerable. At one point, in an attempt to increase the industriousness of the Russian peasant, she imported Germans as examples in hopes of raising productivity. She gave them land, exemption from taxes, and other benefits to induce them to emigrate. However, those very inducements caused them to be resented by the native populace, and when later rulers not only rescinded her promises, but began to promote the persecution of the foreigners, they left stepmother Russia for the new world. Huge sections of the North American plains owe their Germanic influence to Catherine.
There’s also the story of Thomas Jefferson who, even during his ambassadorial years in Paris, dreamed of exploring the American west. He enlisted a Mr. Ledyard for the task and with him devised a plan to cross Eastern Europe, Russia, and by thus going east enter the U.S. from the west. This was in 1787, and Ledyard got a good start. However, Catherine finally caught him in mid-journey, denied him permission to cross her kingdom, and thus thwarted a trek that might have made Lewis and Clark and Sacajawea unnecessary. Personally, I’m kind of glad Ledyard didn’t make it.
Troyat organizes a huge volume of events, facts, and intrigues in telling a story that has nearly novelistic power to hold a reader’s interest. What will this woman do next and how and to whom? It’s always a wonder to find out.
Vladimir Putin, Russia’s current ruler and the man whom our president has divined as being of good heart, is obviously in the tradition of Catherine in the sense that he views his people as unfit for self-rule. Unfortunately, he appears to have none of her wit or sensuality. She may have had no more patience for democratic principles than Vladimir, but she was a lot more colorful and entertaining. That counts for a lot with me. If I have to read about you every day and put up with what you do, at least amuse me at the same time.

ADDENDUM

THE ARTICLE BELOW APPEARED IN THE WASHINGTON POST NOT LONG AFTER I WROTE THE PIECE ABOVE. DID I CALL IT, OR WHAT?

Vladimir the Great?
Putin's Inspiration Is Much Older Than the Cold War
By Jay Winik
Sunday, September 2, 2007; Page B07

Having just grabbed a piece of the Arctic the size of Western Europe, the Russian military has announced ambitious plans to establish a permanent presence in the Mediterranean for the first time since the end of the Cold War. The guiding hand behind this Russian resurgence is undeniably Russia's enigmatic president, Vladimir Putin.
On the surface, enigmatic seems to be the word. Putin dons well-tailored suits even as he clamps down on domestic opposition and homemade democracy. He flashes a warm smile in the councils of international summitry even as he smashes dissent in Chechnya. He has charmed President Bush even as he stymies U.S. policy in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East. The conventional wisdom is that Putin's background in the KGB is what ultimately drives his more notorious actions, leading foreign policy commentators to raise the specter of a renewed Cold War.



Catherine the Great (Hulton Archive -- Getty Images)


But if the West is truly going to come to grips with Putin and a resurrected Russian state, it would do well to see him not as something relatively new but as something old, drawing on historical roots stretching back to the 18th century and Catherine the Great. Indeed, it is far more likely that Putin and his allies are following not the ghosts of Stalin and Khrushchev but spiritual masters such as Empress Catherine in seeking to reestablish Russia as a great nation on the world stage.
Like Putin, Catherine II was a curiosity in her day, alternately bewitching and confusing her critics and supporters. From early on she was the liberal idol of the great Enlightenment philosophes of Europe. She corresponded with the eminent Voltaire, drew upon Montesquieu in governing Russia (nearly 20 years before the American Founders did), published Helvetius when he was being burned in effigy by Paris's public hangman, and subscribed to Diderot's famed Encyclop?die when it was banned in France. "What a time we live in," Voltaire enthused, "France persecutes the intellectuals while the Scythians protect them!"
Catherine even took the remarkable step of not only corresponding with Thomas Jefferson but helping midwife America's independence through her League of Armed Neutrality, which diplomatically isolated Britain during our Revolutionary War. King George III first approached Catherine, not the Hessians, to request her hardened Cossacks to fight George Washington and the upstart colonials; she turned him down. American-Russian ties thus go way back.
Yet, with eerie echoes for today's world, the once-heralded liberal empress became, within a few years, a reactionary. Though John Adams thought Russia and the United States would be natural allies, Catherine did not even deign to meet with the envoy of fledgling America, Francis Dana, who lamented that he knew "less of the empresses comings and goings" than did her groomsman. And when the French Revolution broke out, Catherine turned her back on decades of Enlightenment and unleashed modern authoritarianism.
She ruthlessly repressed intellectuals in Russia and, short of committing her armies, did everything she could to destroy the "democratic" Jacobin menace emanating from France. "What do cobblers know about ruling?" she barked, having decided that representative government was ill-suited to such a large nation as Russia. Then, in still one more about-face, she openly derided George Washington and condemned the American Revolution she had once professed to admire.
The current carnage in Iraq, along with Russia's latest overtures to Syria and its rising belligerence toward the old Soviet territory of Georgia, bring to mind how deftly Catherine took advantage of the French-led chaos that swept Europe in 1795. She acted to wipe the ancient Kingdom of Poland off the map and carve up its lands. (Ironically, the Polish insurrection against her was bravely spearheaded by Thaddeus Kosciuszko, a hero of America's Revolutionary War.)
Another hallmark of Catherine's Russia with striking portents for today was domestic opinion on the West. To be sure, she took great strides to Europeanize the Russian colossus: She built the Hermitage, amassed a world-class art collection, improved schools and hospitals, and sent French-speaking Russians abroad in droves. But Catherine did little to change the attitude of the average Russian toward what was often disdainfully referred to as "the peninsula of Europe."
Putin, despite smiling Group of Eight photo ops, is in much the same mold. He likens U.S. policies to those of the Third Reich and darkly refers to the foreign enemies who seek to undermine Russia. Even many younger Russians, who analysts once predicted would be America's greatest friends in the post-Cold War era, openly profess their profound hostility to the United States.
Catherine was charming, brilliant, vital and complex. She frequently dominated the global arena over three decades. "If she were corresponding with God," Prussia's Frederick the Great once said, "she would claim at least equal rank." And with haunting lessons for the 21st century, Catherine was a master of presenting two faces to the world -- one to enlightened intellectuals everywhere and one to her own people. Whatever her flirtations with Washington, Franklin, Voltaire, Montesquieu, America or constitutionalism, in the end she cherished the glory of imperial Russia more.
At the age of 67, Catherine was determined that her legacy would live on. She handpicked her successor -- her grandson Alexander -- only to be foiled by her own unexpected death. Within 4 1/2 short years, however, Alexander came to power in a coup, sanctioning the murder of his father and eventually becoming the arbiter of Europe, defeating no less than Napoleon. Similarly, Putin appears to have his own dynastic designs, albeit wrapped in a thinly democratic guise. He is expected to handpick his presidential successor for 2008, while even hinting that he might run again in 2012.
So what should we conclude? It would be a great mistake to see Russia's actions as inevitably heralding a new Cold War. But it would be an equal mistake to ignore the fact that Vladimir Putin has learned well how to play Catherine's impostor game. Just as Catherine became a master of playing the budding democrat abroad while being a despot at home and of professing pacifism while beating the drum of bellicosity across the globe, so too has Putin. He should be viewed accordingly.
Jay Winik's new book, "The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788-1800," will be published next month. He is the author of "April 1865."

[Борислава Чотрева · Rating 4 out of 5]

Макар и руска императрица Екатерина Велика няма руска кръв. Тя се омъжва за Петър III, наследник на Петър Велики. Пристигайки в Русия, посвещава времето си на това да научи руския език, традиции и обичаи, приема източноправославното християнство и бързо се превръща в любимка на народа. Сваля с преврат съпруга си от престола и поема управлението на Русия, за което цял живот е мечтаела. Любовта ѝ към Русия е огромна, самата тя казва, че ако може, би източила кръвта си и би я заменила с руска. Тази любов си личи и по умелото ѝ управление. Екатерина въвежда задължителната ваксинация срещу едра шарка, като първо се ваксинира самата тя заедно със сина си. Вярата ѝ в науката и философията са безгранични. Голяма част от времето си императрицата посвещава на четене и кореспонденция с най-изявените умове на времето си като Волтер. Справя се с вътрешните бунтове в империята, като същевременно разширява и външните ѝ граници. Води разюзден личен живот с много и бързо сменящи се любовници. Въпреки това след смъртта ѝ поданиците ѝ горчиво я оплакват. По нейно време те все пак живеят добре. Екатерина Велика остава в историята като един от най-могъщите владетели, диктували правилата не само в своята империя, а и по целия свят - законодател, военачалник, дипломат, съпруга, майка, баба и императрица на една от най-големите световни империи.

[Bahman Bahman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Russians, even Soviet Russians, continue to admire Catherine, the German, the usurper and profligate, and regard her as a source of national pride. Non-Russian opinion of Catherine is less favorable. Because Russia under her rule grew strong enough to threaten the other great powers, and because she was in fact a harsh and unscrupulous ruler, she figured in the Western imagination as the incarnation of the immense, backward, yet forbidding country she ruled. One of Catherine’s principal glories is to have been a woman who, just as Elizabeth I of England and Queen Victoria gave their names to periods of history, became synonymous with a decisive epoch in the development of her country.

At the end of Catherine’s reign, Russia had expanded westward and southward over an area of more than 200,000 square miles, and the Russian rulers’ ancient dream of access to the Bosporus Strait (connecting the Black Sea with the Aegean) had become an attainable goal. At the end of her reign Catherine claimed that she had reorganized 29 provinces under her administrative reform plan. An uninhibited spender, she invested funds in many projects. More than a hundred new towns were built; old ones were expanded and renovated. As commodities were plentiful, trade expanded and communications developed. These achievements, together with the glory of military victories and the fame of a brilliant court, to which the greatest minds of Europe were drawn, have won her a distinguished place in history.

Catherine’s critics acknowledge her energy and administrative ability but point out that the achievements of her reign were as much due to her associates and to the unaided, historical development of Russian society as to the merits of the empress. And when they judge Catherine the woman, they treat her severely.

Her private life was admittedly not exemplary. She had young lovers up to the time of her unexpected death from a stroke at the age of 67. After the end of her liaison with Potemkin, who perhaps was her morganatic husband, the official favorite changed at least a dozen times; she chose handsome and insignificant young men, who were only, as one of them himself said, “kept girls.” Although in reality devoted to power above all else, she dreamed endlessly of the joys of a shared love, but her position isolated her. She did not love her son Paul, the legitimate heir, whose throne she occupied. On the other hand, she adored her grandsons, particularly the eldest, Alexander, whom she wished to succeed her. In her friendships she was loyal and generous and usually showed mercy toward her enemies.

Yet it cannot be denied that she was also egotistical, pretentious, and extremely domineering, above all a woman of action, capable of being ruthless when her own interest or that of the state was at stake. As she grew older she also became extremely vain: there was some excuse, as the most distinguished minds of Europe heaped flatteries on her that even she ultimately found exaggerated.

A friend of Voltaire and Denis Diderot, she carried on an extensive correspondence with most of the important personages of her time. She was a patron of literature and a promoter of Russian culture; she herself wrote, established literary reviews, encouraged the sciences, and founded schools. Her interests and enthusiasms ranged from construction projects to lawmaking and the collection of art objects; she touched on everything, not always happily but always passionately. She was a woman of elemental energy and intellectual curiosity, desiring to create as well as to control.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sofía Federica Augusta de Anhalt-Zerbst nació en Stettin, Pomerania, en 1729. poco sospechaban sus padres que esa niña, de del todo deseada la madre prefería un varón ni tampoco demasiado agraciada, ocuparía a la edad de treinta y seis años el trono de Rusia con el nombre de Catalina II y que la historia la recordaría como Catalina la Grande. Ya desde muy joven percibió que estaba llamada a cumplir en Rusia una misión política y social sin precedentes. Ambiciosa y dotada de una fuerte voluntad, no vaciló en abandonar su religión, apreder el ruso para sentirse más cerca de su pueblo y poner manos a la obra para imponer sus criterios. La zarina acercó Rusia al resto del mundo, enriqueció sus ideas liberales con la amistad de Voltaire, Diderto y D'Alembert, fue una mujer inteligente y lúcida, trabajadora inagotable, déspota ilustrada y, también, amante entregada.
Henri Troyat, con la agilidad y maestría que le son características, plasma en esta biografía el irrefrenable ascenso al poder de una mujer de insólita y sorprendente personalidad.

Buenisimo, pura novela historica

[Missie · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, I had to put this book down unfinished. While it was a fantastic factual book, that's what it was. It was somewhere between a biography and a "based on fact" historical fiction. I had never read anything about Catherine The Great prior to this book and the one really good thing this book did was make me want to know more about her. I think I'll look up a different book that is more to my taste - "based on fact" historical fiction.

[Maira Arrázola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buena lectura, me gustó la manera en la que explica la evolución desde princesa alemana hasta emperatriz de todas las Rusias, contando sus relaciones con la nobleza europea y el pueblo ruso de la época y como esas interacciones la llevaron a conducirse de la manera en que lo hizo.

[Loukas Tatidis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Emma Judd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Catherine the great low key problematic

[Robert II · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book right after reading Virginia Rounding's biography of the same empress, and I am convinced that my mistake was not that I read either of these, but that I read them in that order rather than the other way around. Troyat sets out to make life of the "Minerva of St. Petersburg" approachable, and he does that well. For an uninitiated reader who knows little of Catherine II's life, and wants to remedy that with a book that holds interest like a novel instead of having the stuffy, academic feel of a textbook (I'm looking at you again, Virginia), this is not by any means a bad place to start. For those who ARE already a little more familiar with her (for instance, those of us who spent the previous month pouring over Rounding's fact-stuffed biography) then there are better choices. The problem, frankly, is exactly what I mentioned above. It's written like a novel.
It's not that the book omits factual information (in fact I found several tidbits and details here that were glossed over in Rounding's bio), or even that he embellishes by occasionally echoing legends (he insists Potemkin did, in fact, lose his eye to the fist of Grigory Orlov when most historians deny this). It's not even the fact that the author takes such an unabashedly negative view of the subject (he spends the entire last chapter portraying Catherine as a narcissist, hypocrite, and absolutely tyrannical parent who would likely have eaten her offspring if she had been born any other species). It's that he interjects so much of his opinion into the book. Admittedly, some of this is unavoidable (a Frenchman writing during the mid 20th century about a Russian monarch could not help but sprinkle heavy doses of dogma about the supposedly primitive and inherently tyrannical nature of Russian society; even if he set out to abstain from doing so, such thinking was kind of in the entire Western world's blood in the author's day and age). But there are entire passages that focus on what the author imagines the individuals in the book felt and thought. The author does a good job of setting these moments up in such a way that the reader typically finds themselves sharing whatever opinion a "character" puts forth (or at least understanding why the one voicing that opinion would), but there were times I had to remind myself that this was intended to be a biography, and not a historical drama with a "based on actual events" tag spliced quasi-believably into the book-jacket somewhere.
In summary: if you're a casual reader looking to gain a passing familiarity with one of history's most... eh, "colorful" monarchs, then you could do worse than this. But if you're a researcher looking for a trustworthy historical source, you might want to give this one a miss.

[Scottnshana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of the Catherine the Great biographies, I think this is the best. I had previously read Troyat's work on her grandson Aleksandr (the Tsar who had to grapple with Napoleon) and knew this one would be as well-researched and interesting. She was basically married off to an arrogant simpleton in order to provide an heir to the Russian throne, and the author clearly describes how unpleasant this duty would have been. On her wedding night, for example "[s]he lay there like a she-goat staked out for bait," while Peter III spent the night playing with toy soldiers instead of consummating the union. She eventually did conceive a son (there were plenty of virile men hanging around the palace) and her mother-in-law promptly took the royal heir away: "In bringing her child into the world, Catherine had lost all rights over him. She was only a womb emptied of its contents [and] was no longer of interest to anyone... The bed in which she had labored and given birth stood between a door and two big windows that did not close properly. An icy wind blew through the room." But, as life is full of DMV moments, Catherine began to read books on the Roman Empire and the Enlightenment to assuage her boredom and loneliness; she wholeheartedly adopted Russian Orthodoxy (her Lutheran family back in Germany was not thrilled) and worked diligently to master her adopted language. Troyat demonstrates how this princess of Anhalt-Zerbst cultivated elite units of the army, inspired a coup (officers from these units killed her husband), and ruled--battling nature (St. Petersburg was built on a swamp), the Turks, plagues, and peasant rebellions in distant parts of her empire. After the French Revolution she became a bit more conservative (she also said that if she would have lost thirteen of her colonies like George III had she would have blown her brains out), and she chose her adopted nation's interests over her own consistently to do so. I would reccommend this book to anyone interested not only in Russian history, but international relations and the ways in which world leaders tackle the task of protecting the interests entrusted to them (I would think that any lover of Kissinger's "Diplomacy" would get a lot out of this narrative) and securing their borders. At the same time there is plenty of court intrigue, sex, and violence to keep the pages turning. She was, says Troyat, "not marrying a face but a country," and I think he has brought diligence, good writing, and solid perspective to revealing how she brought her well-documented lust for life to the task.

[Alenka of Bohemia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good biography, written with ease. Unfortunatelly every single person with the exception of Catherine herself is presented in a very one-dimensional way. Furthermore I felt uncomfortable when the author repeatedly used words like "retarded" to described Peter III and Pavel I. R.K. Massie´s biography of Catherine thus remains the best I have read.

[Karolina Perez Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Catalina la grande era una mujer difícil de descifrar, contradictoria en sus maneras, en su forma de hacer política, sin embargo era un personaje progresista que amaba la literatura, la filosofía, la ciencia, elementos que la llevaron a realizar grandes aportes cómo emperatriz Rusa.
Desde su primera infancia se formó para ocupar un gran lugar en la sociedad y para ser recordada.
Tuvo más de 22 amantes, 2 abortos y tres hijos, ninguno de su esposo, era muy pasional pero nunca estos amores la llevaron a desviarse del objetivo de enaltecer a este País.
Me gusto mucho la biografía pero en algún momento se hace denso de leer.

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never read anything by this author and his translator. For as long as it sat on my bookshelf, I figured it was time to read it. The subject matter was completely unknown to me, and I was captivated by the life and times of this German-born Russian monarch. Subsequent documentaries were watched as a result. I will check out more of this author's work. A great, worthwhile read.

[Señora Colombo · Rating 4 out of 5]

«Se le ocurre que cuando una persona tiene carácter, es suficiente desear profundamente algo para conseguirlo a la larga».

Esta es una de las primeras frases de un libro que nos cuenta la vida de Catalina II, La Grande, emperatriz de Rusia sin ser rusa, siendo mujer y en pleno siglo XVIII. Su predecesora también fue una mujer, porque la Rusia de aquel entonces era un país extraño en el que podían tener cabida las mujeres de una forma que en otros países europeos era impensable, con excepciones.

Catalina era una niña fea, acostumbrada y resignada a su fealdad, y por eso se refugia en los libros, en el saber, en el futuro, y guarda en esos cajones su ansia de afecto. Catalina, entonces Sofía, es una persona que debería haber sido otra persona (un varón, más callada, más sumisa, una madre mejor, etc). «Confía en su estrella» dice el autor al comprobar que ella se sabe menos guapa de lo que le hubiese venido bien en la juventud; ella tiene voluntad, una voluntad que durante el libro no para de compararse con la de un hombre. Sus contemporáneos, de la talla de Voltaire, con los que se cartea, no paran de hacer mención a ello, a su fortaleza casi viril, a lo masculino de su audacia, de sus capacidades. Cuando se enamora o busca amantes, en concreto Gregorio Orlov, estos se sienten amenazados porque ella es la que tiene el poder, “ella es el hombre”, y lo que en un principio les había seducido a todos -a saber, una mujer fuerte, interesante, con su propia opinión, que decide y no se deja dominar por un hombre sino que se deja amar- ahora les horroriza, les hace sentirse “no-hombres” y llegan a despreciarla. Esto, que como digo sucedió en pleno siglo XVIII, sigue sucediendo hoy, en nuestro siglo, donde también abundan los hombres mediocres y en el que el género sigue pesando como una suerte de opresión, porque la mayoría de hombres no entienden o ni siquiera se plantean que amar no es dominar ni humillar a la mujer.

Catalina es conquistadora, y pese a todos los problemas y situaciones adversas, prevalece. Prevalece porque escoge cada día tener vocación para la alegría. Se permite llorar, pero en soledad, secándose ella las lágrimas. Se permite tener ideales, aunque siempre tiene los pies en la tierra y muchas veces se contradice, justificándose las más de las veces en el bienestar de su pueblo, aunque en realidad sea buscando su gloria personal. Esta biografía nos cuenta la vida de Catalina desde el nacimiento al último estertor, y es apasionante ver cómo una chiquilla ya era quien iba a ser y ya tenía esa fortaleza, ese carácter que la hicieron conseguir tantas cosas grandiosas y terribles también. Es una persona compleja, llena de contradicciones, que quizá conoció el amor de verdad o quizá no, ya que en esta época amar a los hijos, al esposo -en su caso, un monstruo- y la vida en general no era algo tan asumido como hoy en día. Pero tuvo sueños, grandes ideales, aspiraciones y una gran fortaleza que la llevaron a emprender grandes cosas cuyo juicio es difícil si te enamoras de ella como persona y no te alejas para ver hasta qué punto fue injusta con el pueblo al que decía amar por encima de todo. En cada etapa de su vida encontramos a una mujer distinta que nos conquista y nos repele por razones distintas, y al releer los primeros capítulos me choca y me sigue chocando que una niña acabe siendo una anciana y lo bien descrito y lo realista que es todo, cosa que no siempre sucede en las biografías, porque al terminar de leer no dudo de la credibilidad de lo que se me cuenta y veo morir a una anciana y no a esa niña y muchacha vivaz y apasionante de Stettin. Es triste cuando su voz se apaga y el narrador sigue describiendo como su hijo Pablo lleva a cabo las últimas tareas para despedirse de ella, porque era una voz llena de fuerza.

Me ha encantado este libro, quizá lo que más el hecho de tener plena conciencia de que la alegría, el coraje, el amor son una vocación, y que la vocación no se elige, sino que tú la eliges cada día, cada segundo, cada minuto.