Ch'ildhood

Catherine II, she was born Sophia Augusta Frederica in the German city of Stettin, Prussia, on April 21, 1729. She was the daughter of Prince Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst and Princess Johanna Elizabeth of Holstein-Gottorp. Catherine's parents hoped for a son, therefore, they didn’t show extensive attention toward the daughter, Catherine. As a child, Catherine was close to her governess Babette, who Catherine described as, "the kind of governess every child should have." From her education, Catherine’s worldview go through more widely and get more advanced knowledges.

When Catherine was fifteen, she went to Russia for the invitation of Empress of Empiress Elizabeth to meet the heir, who was the Peter (1728-1762). He was sixteen, however, looked younger and weaker. After Catherine converted to the Russian Orthodox faith, she married Peter in 1745. Because the marriage wasn’t made by truthful love, both were soon unfaithful each other. Although she had a loveless marriage, she read widely and she liked novels, plays, and verse but was particularly interested in the writings of the French Enlightenment.

Characteristics

Got the power by ruling instead of mentally unstable king, his husband
Empress of the Russia
Died in 1796
Goals
1) Ambition.
She realized what marrying Peter would do for her ambition. Robert quotes Catherine as saying, “The title of Queen rang sweetly in my ears.”
2) Hard work. She wanted to control efficiently so learned Russian, build alliances, and ingratiate herself with the Russian people.
3) Courage, Intelligence and Logic.
In 1768, Catherine paid him to come to Russia and inoculate her and her son—and later her grandson. By risking her dynasty, Catherine got the world’s attention. By 1780, more than 20,000 Russians had been inoculated. By 1800, more than 2 million Russians had been inoculated along with millions of other Europeans who followed her example.
had many lovers during her life, especially for her power consolidation.