Catherine the Great. Life told by herself

“Happiness is not as blind as it is imagined. And in particular, the happiness of individual personalities is a consequence of their qualities, character and personal behavior... ” - with such words, Catherine the Great summed up the results of her long life and many years of government (as many as 34 years - the longest leaders in domestic history). The princess from the provincial German principality captured the crown of the Russian Empire, overthrowing her husband, but managed to turn the country into a superpower, in which, according to the "Catherineic Orlov", "not a single gun in Europe dared to shoot without our permission." For three decades, until her death, Catherine constantly returned to notes about her life, clarifying and complementing them. The manuscript of the secrets of the empress was stored under the heading “especially secret” imposed by her son Paul, and Nicholas I commanded to destroy all copies of the “shameful document”, strictly forbidden to read it even the royal dynasty.

The forbidden memoirs of Catherine II are strikingly frank Even for the present time, this is a real confession, self -analysis and a self -portrait of a strong woman, much more realistic than the famous ceremonial portraits, as well as a wide panorama of the life of a brilliant court, customs of the highest nobility, “worries” and the entertainment of courtiers.

This publication included not only the memoirs of Catherine II, but also personal letters of the great empress to his favorites-Count Yuzef Ponatovsky and the brightest Prince Grigory Potemkin-Tauride.