Abeselom Habtemariam's Reviews > Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman

‘’It is inconceivable with what address she mingles the ease of behavior with the dignity of her rank, with what facility she familirizes herself with the meanest subjects, without losing a point of her authority and with what astonishing magic she inspires at once both respect and affection’’

Robert Zaretsky, Catherine and Diderot, 2019

“This princess seems to combine every kind of ambition in her person. Everything that may add luster to her reign, will have some attraction for her.”

George Vernadsky, A Source Book For Russian History Vol. 2, 1972

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman is the second book in the Romanovs series by Robert K. Massie. It is a work that decisively delivers on its promise of giving the reader a portrait of an empress who had a significant impact on Russian history as well as 18th century European history. Young Catherine, a Lutheran German educated in the French language, perhaps was an unlikely candidate to rule over The Orthodaox Russian Empire. Born in what is now Szczecin, Poland, Cathrine II (or Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst prior to her Orthodox baptism) was a contemporary of George Washington worlds away. She was the head of a nation at a time when, through either conquest or negotiations, the Russian Empire was expanding rapidly.



When writing a historical biography on a figure of Catherines’ significance, it’s easy to get lost in the accomplishment and not give failures their fair due. Many books are guilty of this. However, I thought Massie discusses Catherine's reign in a sensible and fair manner. Catherine was a great patron of the arts, founded many cities, tried to embed many of the enlightenment ideals into Russia’s laws and culture, and built the foundations on which the modernization of education in Russia could thrive. However, the book also shades light on some of the things she fell short of. Catherine was an ardent advocate of European enlightenment. She had had a lifetime of correspondences with Voltaire, Denis Diderot and Friedrich Melchior Grimm (Baron Von). Despite her efforts though, she wasn’t able to abolish the institution of serfdom during her reign (her great grandson Alexander II would abolish it in 1861). The Massacre of Praga during The Kościuszko Uprising, where 20,000 Poles were slaughtered, was also a very dark chapter of her rule.

I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Pugachev's Rebellion (1773-1775). Pugachev’s Rebellion was a violent internal Russian upheaval led by A Don Cossack by the name of Yemelyan Pugachev. It shook the entire Russian empire at a time when it was at war with Turkey. This chapter on The Pugachev rebellion (also wonderfully depicted by Alexander Pushkin’s 1836 novel The Captain's Daughter) was detailed, vivid and informative. Other strengths of the book were Massie’s ability to give the reader a mental image of St. Petersburg; His discussion on how the French Revolution made Cathrine doubt the practicality of The Enlightenment ideals in 18th century Russia; and descriptions of the Crimean journey she undertook with Grigory Potemkin who was her loyal statesman and long time lover. I was so glad that Massie didn’t pay much credit to some of the conspiracies of promiscuity that surround the very mention of Catherine’s name (There’s even a wikipedia page dedicated to some of her alleged escapades).
All told, reading this book was a wonderful experience. It is, in my opinion, the most authoritative work on Catherine The Greats’ life and times.

Final Notes

As part of my plans to read a historical book followed by a related work of historical fiction, I’ve read The Winter Palace: A Novel Of Catherine The Great. It was a pretty good novel that mostly focuses on the earlier years of Cathrine, before she became the Empress of Russia.

In addition, I've watched the HBO mini series ‘’Catherine the Great’’ (2018), starring Helen Mirren as Cathrine II, which was good. But for a much more in-depth immersion, I’d recommend the Russian series ‘’Ekaterina’’ (2014).