Catherine+the+Great

__ ﻿ Catherine the Great - Empress of Russia__ Catherine the Great (1729-1796), empress of Russia (1762-1796), who expanded her vast country’s borders south to the Black Sea and west into Europe while continuing the Westernization begun by Peter the Great. The Empress Catherine II of Russia was one of the most powerful figures of the eighteenth century. Considered by many to be an enlightened monarch, she instituted reforms that transformed the world's view of her country and helped to position Russia as a leading world power. Her patronage of the arts in Russia exceeded that of any monarch before or since.

//"I was very affectionate, and gifted with an appearance which was very attractive. I pleased at first glance without employing any arts or pains to that end." // 

Catherine the Great was born in Prussian seaport of Stettin (now Szczecin in Poland) in 1729, starting life as Princess Sophie August Frederika, the daughter of the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst, and his wife, Johanna Elizabeth of Holstein-Gottorp. As she grew up, the young Sophie spent many hours examining her family tree and in later life reflected on these childhood moments.

__Biography __ Name: Sophia Augusta Frederika von Anhalt-Zerbst Lived: 21 April 1720 - 17 November 1796 Place of birth: Stettin (then Germany, now Poland) Place of death: St Petersburg, Russia Nationality: German Famed as: Empress of Russia; patron of the arts and education

__Fact File__
 * The infamous 'horse' story associated with Catherine's death is entirely fictional. As well as the version that suggests she dies on her commode. She actually died of stroke.
 * Catherine is rumoured to have had as many as 300 lovers. It is only really possible to substantiate the fact that she had two husbands and eleven 'favourites'.
 * In 1754, Catherine gave birth to Paul, future emperor of Russia. Paul's father was reputed to be Serge Saltykov, a Russian army officer and Catherine's first lover.

__Timeline__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Born in Stettin on 21st April 1729 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli starts to build the Winter Palace || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Peace treaty between Russia and Prussia || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Edward Jenner discovers that vaccination with cowpox gives immunity to smallpox || __Map of Catherine's Life__ __Sources:__ Catherine the great who married when she was fourteen years old when Empress Elizabeth of Russia sent for her to become a bride for Elizabeth's nephew and heir Peter III, great-grandson of Peter the Great. She was also a scholar, a brilliant stateswoman and the most voracious art collector the world has ever known. She is now the presiding spirit of Russia's greatest museum. In a letter she wrote to Friedrich Melchior Grimm, a Parisian gossip and journalist, in 1790, six years before her death, Catherine was able to congratulate herself on having a collection that outclassed those of all other monarchs of her day. "Besides the paintings and the Raphael Loggia," she wrote, referring to her 4,000 Old Masters and her copies of frescoes Raphael painted for the Vatican Palace in Rome. Part of Catherine the Great's reign included a cultivation of the arts. She built monuments all over the empire, patronized music, education, and the arts, and spent millions of rubles on the Hermitage art collection. Indeed, Catherine, herself, corresponded with leading philosophers and politicians and wrote plays, fables, satires.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Date || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Catherine the Great and Related Events ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1700-1800 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Period of social and political unrest of Europe and US
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1745 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Marries Peter Feodorovich, heir to the Russian throne in St Petersburg ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1754 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Catherine gives birth to Paul, future emperor of Russia
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1756-1763 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Seven Years' War - pitted in Prussia, Hanover and Great Britain against France, Austria, Russia, Sweden and Saxony ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1762 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Overthrows her husband and becomes Catherine II
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1764-1775 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Construction of the Small Hermitage ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1788 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Imposes protectorate on Poland War with Sweden ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1789 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Fearing that the revolution in France might spread, Catherine begins to reverse her liberal reforms ||
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">1796 || <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">Dies in St Petersburg

__Photo Gallery__ __Activities__ __Find-a-Word__ APRIL, AUGUST, CATHERINE, EMPRES, EUROPE, FREDERIKA, GERMANY, GREAT, MONARCH, PATRONAGE, PAUL, PETERSBURG, POLAND, PRINCESS, PRUSSIA, RUSSIA, SOPHIE, STETTIN, SZCZECIN, WOMEN. __Crossword puzzle__ Clues: Across 1. The modern Stettin 4. Catherine's place of birth 7. The continent which Catherine stayed in throughout her life 9. Another way of saying 'queen' 13. Catherine the 14. What Catherine was famed as 15. Catherine was considered by many as an enlightened _ 17. Catherine's middle name 18. The month which Catherine the Great was born Down 1. The daughter of an Emperor 2. The country which Catherine first travelled to 3. Catherine's son, also future emperor of Russia 4. Where Catherine died 5. The modern Russsia 6. Catherine's first name 8. Catherine's birth name 10. Heroine/Villainess 11. The city where Catherine was born 12. The name given of a Russian Empress 16. Catherine was the empress of

__Catherine Cryptogram__

__Unscramble the words__ __Acrostic Poem__ Your task is to write an acrostic poem using the following format:
 * C**
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 * I**
 * N**
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 * T**
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin: 0in;">__Recommended Reading List__
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 * <span style="direction: ltr; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0in; unicode-bidi: embed; vertical-align: middle;">__Women Who Changed the World__,
 * "Catherine the Great".Emusuem Biographies. 12 July 2011
 * Cracraft, James. "Catherine the Great". World Book Encyclopedia. 12 July 2011
 * Zoe Oldenbourg. Catherine the Great. New York: Random House, Inc., 13 July 2011
 * Troyat, Henri. Catherine the Great. New York: E.P. Dutton, 13th July 2011
 * Erickson, Carolly. Great Catherine. New York, Crown Publishers, Inc., 13th July 2011
 * "[|Catherine the Great]". 20th July 2011.
 * Atchinson, Bob. "[|Empress Catherine II 'the Great']". Alexander Palace Biographies. 21st July 2011
 * Riasanovsky, Nicholas. "[|Catherine the Great]." Encarta Encyclopedia. 22nd July 2011

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%;">By: Anni<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 129%;">ℯ