Catherine, Empress of All the Russias

Book excerpt: Catherine the Great was one of the most remarkable women in history. Born in 1729 into the family of one of the lesser princelings of Germany, she was married to the heir to the Russian throne at the age of 16. The marriage was an unhappy one and Catherine was banished from her husband's palace but, when Peter came to the throne and was then ousted from it in the space of a few months, it was Catherine who replaced him and became Empress. She ruled her vast domain for more than thirty years, until her death in 1796, and greatly expanded its territories. In her lifetime and since she has been infamous for her intrigues, her possible involvement in political murders, including that of her dethroned husband, and her numerous love affairs. Vincent Cronin's highly readable biography sifts the facts from the legends in Catherine's extraordinary life.