Catharine I. of Russia
Queen of Peter the Great
1684-1727
Catharine I, Empress of Russia was originally
a peasant's daughter. Her original name was Martha Skavranska
and her parents lived at Ringen, a small village not far from
Dorpt, on Lake Vitcherve, in Livonia. The date of her birth was
April 15, 1684. She was left an orphan when she was fifteen years
of age and from that time on she was brought up mainly by a Lutheran
pastor named Gluck, in Marienburg, Livonia.
In 1702 she married a Swedish horseman.
However, Marienburg was taken by the Russians in the same year,
and Catharine was made a prisoner. While a prisoner, she became
the mistress of Prince Menschikoff. It wasn’t long before she
attracted the attention of Peter the Great, and won so much of
his affections that he married her in 1711. Some years prior to
this, however, she went over to the Greek church, and took the
name of Catharina Alexievna.
When Peter the Great and his army seemed
entirely in the power of the Turkish army on the Pruth in 1711,
Catharine, according to the common account, used skillful bribery
and procured the deliverance of the Russians. From this time forth
she was received with great favor and was solemnly crowned in
1712.
On the death of Peter the Great in 1725,
she was acknowledged Empress and sole ruler of all the Russians.
She showed herself worthy of this high station by completing the
grand designs which her illustrious consort had begun. The first
thing she did on her accession, was to cause every gallows to
be taken down, and all instruments of torture to be destroyed.
She instituted a new order of knighthood, and performed many actions
worthy of a great mind.
She was much loved for her great humanity,
but it wasn't long before she began to yield to the influence
of a number of favorites and addicted herself to drunkenness,
and lived such a life as could not fail to lead her to an early
death.
Catharine died May 17, 1727. After she
died, her daughter, Elizabeth, became empress in her place.