1729-1796
Tsarina Of Russia

Prussian Princess. Originally named Sophie Fredericke Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst, Catherine was born in Stettin, Prussia. The daughter of a minor German prince, she moved to Russia in 1744 and married Grand Duke Peter of Holstein, a grandson of Peter the Great and heir to the Russian throne, in 1745. Catherine's father was one of many German nobles who aided the Russian tsars with their attempts at Westernization; he had many important connections at the Russian court and managed to parlay these into a royal marriage for his daughter. While the marriage was fraught with difficulties, the precocious, intelligent, and extremely ambitious grand duchess managed to learn a great deal in her adopted country. She learned Russian, survived court intrigues (as well as successfully engaging in some), and by all accounts adapted quickly to Russia. She was required to convert from Lutheranism to...