Catherine the Great

Essay by jhenderson10Junior High, 9th gradeA, May 2012

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In 1729, A German princess with the name Sophia Augusta Frederica was born. Sophia was the daughter of a minor German prince and a noblewoman. She was 15 when she travelled to the Kingdom of Russia to marry the Grand Duke, Peter the third. "At the time, Russia was ruled by Empress Elizabeth, a daughter of Peter the Great" (Krull). At the age of 17, Sophia was officially married to Peter the Third and became Royal Duchess of Russia.

Sophie's husband, Peter was very immature and silly. He played with dolls, reenacting the battles of Prussia and Germany. He even tortured animals, claiming they had committed crime (DVD). Peter also did not give much attention to his wife, Sophia. After their wedding night, Sophia was in their room waiting for Peter, who was partying. She waited for hours, and when he did come back, he was drunk and fell asleep straight away.

Peter also thought of Germany and Prussia to be superior to Russia and always favored Germany and Prussia over his own country, Russia. Knowing that Peter was the heir to the throne, Sophia realized that this characteristic of his would not allow him to be a successful ruler. Although Sophia despised her husband, she continued with the marriage, due to her sole desire for the crown. (DVD)

As Peter's husband and Royal Duchess of Russia, Sophia's two main goals were to impress her empress and impress the people of Russia. To do this, first she had to convert from Catholic to Russian Orthodox. Once she had converted, she was given the name Catherine. Next, Catherine had to learn the Russian language as before, she could only speak French. Catherine found time to do this when everyone else was sleeping; she would get up and start reading lessons...