Catherine II was great not only in matters of state, but also in love. After all, she was a woman. A woman who was brought to a foreign country at a fairly young age was given in marriage to the unloved and, to put it mildly, strange heir to the throne of Peter. A woman who was oppressed in every possible way by Elizabeth, who was hated by almost the entire female part of the imperial court during the life of Elizabeth.
It is not surprising that Catherine's lovers began to appear even before her reign. According to some experts, the number of Catherine's lovers reached 23 people. It should be noted that many of her lovers are not a fleeting hobby (there were some), but quite serious relationships. Her chosen ones became favorites, participated in public affairs and did a lot of good for Russia.
Saltykov Sergey Vasilievich
The first of the reliably known lovers of Catherine. Their relationship began in the spring of 1752. Ekaterina and Peter have been married for 7 years, but there are no children. And according to one version, Saltykov was "set up" by Catherine in order for her to become pregnant. It is also still widely believed that he is the father of Pavel Petrovich, the future Emperor of Russia. But this has not been reliably proven.
Stanislav August Poniatowski
In 1756, the romance between Catherine and a member of the English embassy, Stanislav Poniatowski, begins. There is again a version that he is the father of Catherine's daughter Anna, who died in infancy. Ekaterina thanked Stanislav for his love. He became king of Poland.
Orlov Grigory Grigorievich
The handsome, tall, educated, fearless Guardsman of the Semyonovsky Regiment simply could not help but become the favorite of the Empress. especially since he helped Catherine ascend the throne. Their romance lasted over 10 years. At first, Orlov "played" only the role of a lover, and since 1762 he has become her favorite. Performs many responsible assignments. At the same time, he manages to love not only the Empress, but Catherine forgives him everything. She even considered the option of marrying Orlov, but those close to her dissuaded her. Catherine gave birth to a son from Orlov, Alexei Bobrinsky.
Vasilchakov Alexander Semyonovich
Becomes a lover, and then a favorite of Catherine, while Orlov was in negotiations with the Ottoman Empire. Young and handsome (17 years younger than Catherine), he could not stay in favor for a long time. He was succeeded by a more powerful successor.
Potemkin-Tavrichesky Grigory Alexandrovich
In addition to being a favorite of the Empress, Potemkin left a mark on history and other glorious deeds. He was a talented commander and statesman. It was he who presented the Crimea as a gift to his queen.
Zavadovsky Petr Vasilievich
He replaced Potemkin at the “post”, but rather quickly he himself was removed from favor, not without Potemkin’s intrigues. It is believed that he truly loved Catherine. At the same time, he was a good statesman, which he continued to do after parting with the Empress.
Zorich Semyon Gavrilovich
A handsome hussar, 14 years younger than Catherine. Potemkin's adjutant, then head of Ekaterina's bodyguards, then... understandable. Potemkin also contributed to the speedy departure of Zorich from St. Petersburg.
Rimsky-Korsakov Ivan Nikolaevich
Personally selected by Potemkin to replace Zorich, 25 years younger than Ekaterina. Catherine gave him money, houses, jewelry. But a year later she found Bruce with the Countess. That was the end of his favour.
Lanskoy Alexander Dmitrievich
Again presented to the Empress by Potemkin. He did not get into politics, relations with Catherine developed very well and romantically, but he died 4 years later from a fever. Catherine sincerely experienced his death.
Dmitriev-Mamonov Alexander Matveevich
Picked up for Catherine ... of course, Potemkin. But he fell in love with the maid of honor of the Empress. Catherine did not forgive this. But Alexandra let go in peace, even allowing her to marry the “homeowner”.
Zubov Platon Alexandrovich
Younger than Catherine for 38 years (!). brightened up the last years of the life of Catherine the Great. He was actively involved in politics, displacing even the powerful Potemkin.
There is also a list of at least a dozen names of Catherine's lovers. But they were not officially favorites, and we will not analyze fleeting connections and palace rumors. So the list is impressive. And pay attention: among the favorites of Catherine there were no ordinary people, rogues, dummies. And in this case, Catherine was the Great.
Much is known, but who were the close friends of the autocrat? There are three court ladies with whom the empress shared her personal experiences: Marya Perekusikhina, Anna Protasova and Anna Naryshkina. She entrusted other favorites - Ekaterina Dashkova and Alexandra Branitskaya - with affairs of state importance. Kultura.RF tells how these ladies managed to win the friendship of Catherine the Great.
Marya Perekusikhina
Maria Perekusikhina. Image: New York Public Library Digital Collection
Marya Savvishna Perekusikhina, or simply Savvishna, as she was often called, was one of the closest friends of the Empress. It is not known for certain how a girl from a poor noble family in the Ryazan province ended up at the royal court. She was simple, poorly educated, did not speak foreign languages, but Catherine valued her primarily for her devotion, sincerity, complaisance and wisdom.
Only Perekusikhina, of all the ladies of the court, had the privilege of entering the empress's room at her first call; in the rank of Chamber Jungfrau, she dressed the Empress, and in subsequent years, becoming a chamber maid of honor, she acted as steward at the completion of her morning toilet and was responsible for preparing for bed. Over time, these rituals became the responsibility of simple ladies-in-waiting, but Perekusikhina never left the post of observer. Catherine II shared with her family and love secrets, listened to her opinion about the nobles of the court, asked for everyday advice.
Perekusikhina was inseparable from Catherine II - not only at court, but also during the empress's travels to cities and distant regions. The favorite had great influence: she could promote promotion, arrange someone's marriage, ask for money from the empress and achieve an audience. At the same time, the courtiers noted that the maid of honor never used her position to the detriment of the state or the patroness.
It was Perekusikhina who first discovered Catherine II when she had a stroke in 1796, and remained with the empress during the last minutes of her life. After the death of the Empress, Paul I removed Perekusikhina from the court and assigned her a generous pension.
Anna Protasova
Dmitry Levitsky. Portrait of Anna Protasova. 1800. State Russian Museum
17-year-old Anna Protasova was enrolled in the court staff thanks to the patronage of her uncle, Grigory Orlov. Catherine II tried for a long time to facilitate the wedding of Protasova and Arkady Morkov, a real privy councilor and diplomat, but the plans of the empress were not destined to be realized. The poor Protasova family could not provide the bride with a dowry, and Anna herself was a real ugly girl. “Mademoiselle Protasova was repulsively ugly, black, bearded and made me laugh with the majesty of her appearance”, - the Russian art critic Nikolai Wrangel wrote about the maid of honor.
When Protasova became a mature lady and never started a family, Catherine II granted her the title of chamber maid of honor. Her duties included supervising the work and behavior of the ladies-in-waiting and the staff of chamber pages. The luxurious apartments of the ladies-in-waiting were located next to the chambers of the empress, so that Protasova could come at the first call and serve her in the bedroom. She repeatedly accompanied Catherine on her travels: she went with her to Vyshny Volochek, to the Crimea. The privileges that the position gave Protasova consisted of a generous salary and the opportunity to keep the empress company during dinner. Anna Protasova was not the last figure at court: they sought her support, they were afraid of her, they fawned over her.
Protasova remained faithful to Catherine until the end of her life and was next to the Empress in the most difficult moments.
Unlike Marya Perekusikhina, Pavel I treated Anna Protasova favorably: she retained the title of maid of honor and the rooms she occupied. Moreover, he awarded Protasova with the Order of St. Catherine, appointed her a decent pension and granted 100 souls of serfs. And all because Protasova was a relative of the favorite of Paul I - Count Fyodor Rostopchin.
Anna Naryshkina
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Johann Heinrich Schmidt. Portrait of Ekaterina Naryshkina. 1785.
Countess Anna Naryshkina (nee Rumyantseva) was not so much a friend as an accomplice of the Empress in love affairs. The acquaintance of the countess and the future empress took place in 1749. 19-year-old Anna Rumyantseva married Alexander Naryshkin, chamberlain of the small court of Ekaterina Alekseevna and Pyotr Fedorovich. The ruling Empress Elizaveta Petrovna ordered that Catherine personally help the bride prepare for the wedding - and the women quickly found a common language.
In those years, they had a lot in common: they were young and had a light disposition. Ekaterina Alekseevna, moreover, needed a faithful friend who would organize her meetings with favorites and keep love affairs secret - which Naryshkina coped with brilliantly. The women were also brought together by a common grief: for many years they were childless. “... My condition has changed after 9 years, counting from the day of my wedding, but she is still in the same position, and has been married for 24 years”, - Catherine II recalled in her Notes.
Their friendship became fateful not only for Ekaterina Alekseevna, but for the entire state. The Naryshkins were among the organizers of the palace coup, as a result of which Catherine the Great ascended the throne.
After the death of Catherine, Anna Naryshkina remained at court, and Paul I not only did not deprive the mother's favorite of her privileges, but also appointed her to the position of chamberlain - head of the court ladies' staff.
Ekaterina Dashkova
Dmitry Levitsky. Portrait of Ekaterina Dashkova. 1784. Private collection
The meeting of Countess Ekaterina Vorontsova with the future Catherine II took place in 1758. Vorontsova was introduced to the Grand Duchess as one of the most educated women in Russia. And this was not an exaggeration: she had an excellent education, spoke four languages, understood mathematics, had a talent for dancing and drawing. In her youth, Vorontsova lived with her uncle, Chancellor of the Russian Empire Mikhail Vorontsov, and read almost all of his home library. It turned out that Ekaterina Alekseevna shared the literary tastes of a new acquaintance, which gave rise to their mutual sympathy.
When Peter III took the throne, Ekaterina Dashkova, at that time already the wife of Prince Mikhail Dashkov, joined the organizers of the coup d'état: she believed that the new sovereign would lead Russia to death with her views and plans. Thanks to the intelligence and prudence of Dashkova, many aristocrats were attracted to the side of Ekaterina Alekseevna: Count Nikita Panin, Count Kirill Razumovsky, Ivan Betsky, Prince Fyodor Baryatinsky and others.
In 1762, after the accession of Catherine, the unanimity between the comrades-in-arms was shaken. The new empress deeply offended Dashkova, not mentioning her merits in organizing the coup. The end of their friendship came when Catherine II found out that Dashkova did not approve of her marriage to Grigory Orlov.
Alexandra Branitskaya
Joseph Maria Grassi. Portrait of Alexandra Branitskaya. 1793. Private collection
Countess Alexandra Branitskaya was the niece of Grigory Potemkin, a favorite of Catherine II. Potemkin introduced an 18-year-old relative to court and secured the rank of maid of honor for her. Branitskaya did not have a good education and outstanding appearance, but she possessed amazing wisdom and had a powerful patron, which more than compensated for her shortcomings.
Branitskaya fell in love with the Empress so much that she made her a chamber maid of honor. She became one of the close associates of the empress and became her confidant, almost a member of the family. The content of Branitskaya was expensive for the state treasury: according to the records in the books of the Court Office, up to 400 rubles a day went to the table of Catherine's favorite. Her rooms were located not far from the chambers of the Empress, she often spent time with her and sometimes accompanied Catherine on her travels.
In 1787, the Empress awarded Branitskaya with the Order of St. Catherine. After the death of Catherine, Branitskaya, like many other persons objectionable to Paul I, was no longer accepted at court - she left for the Bila Tserkva estate and lived there until the end of her life.
About the episodes of the historical television series about the Russian Empress, which puzzled the audience.
Examination for the heir to the throne
Did Empress Catherine the Great really test the ability of the heir to increase the dynasty on the maid of honor, or did the screenwriters come up with this piquant plot? - this is one of the questions asked by the audience of this series.
From the writings of historians it is clear that this was the case. And such tests were practiced at royal courts long before the accession of Catherine the Great.
Why did the choice of the empress fall on the maid of honor Sofya Stepanovna Chartoryzhskaya? Probably because of her natural adventurousness, inherited from her mother, Anna Ushakova. After all, she, having fallen in love with the future father of Sophia, ran away from her lawful spouse. Needless to say, such behavior for a noble lady was reprehensible.
But there was love, and that excuses a lot. And Sofya Stepanovna undertook only to portray love. True, for a goal even higher than the happiness of two hearts: in the interests of the state. And who knows, maybe, having started this game, she not only turned Pavel Petrovich's head, but she herself was carried away by the young man fascinated by her?
In the series, Pavel Petrovich's tutor Panin, with amazement, finds him once in an unambiguous situation with Sofia Stepanovna. But there is evidence that this exam for the Tsarevich was invented not without the participation of Panin, and the intimate meetings of the “couple in love” took place just in the possession of the educator.
Sofia Stepanovna was a widow at the time of this exam. Merry widow.
The heir, contrary to the fears of the empress, successfully passed the exam. The maid of honor had a son from him.
The boy was named Semyon. His patronymic was given to him by Afanasyevich (although the variant Ivanovich is also found in the stories about him), and his surname was Veliky.
Catherine at first took the baby away from her mother with the intention of raising him herself, not thinking about her feelings, but after a while the child was returned to Sofya Stepanovna. Then, in due time, he was sent to a school where the children of people who were not noble, but who served at court, were brought up.
Semyon became a naval officer, showed courage in the war with the Swedes.
The Empress continued the practice, begun by Peter the Great, of internships for young Russian naval officers abroad, where the fleet was well developed. It is not surprising that one of these Russian groups sent to England to serve on long-distance British ships included her grandson Semyon Veliky.
Unfortunately, the long-distance voyage for the royal offspring turned out to be fatal. The young officer died in a shipwreck.
However, there is an alternative version of his fate. It is connected with the story of the mysterious old man Fyodor Kuzmich.
For a long time, a beautiful legend has been heard that Emperor Alexander the First did not die in Taganrog in 1825, but staged his own death in order to move away from the disgusting court and continue his life in solitude and prayers under the name of Fyodor Kuzmich.
But Alexander Pavlovich is not the only candidate for the role of the mysterious semi-hermit. In the list of those who could hide under this name, and his half-brother Semyon Afanasyevich (but really - Pavlovich) the Great.
And what happened to the maid of honor Sofya Stepanovna after she "tested" the heir to the throne?
She married the son of Hetman Razumovsky - Peter Kirillovich.
Pyotr Kirillovich knew about her relationship with the heir, and was five years younger than Sofya Stepanovna, but still he did not have a soul in her.
Peter and Sofia Razumovsky began to live abroad. This was allegedly required by the health of Sofya Stepanovna, who was gnawed from the inside by a worm - a tapeworm. But it is possible that the matter is not in the state of health, but in the fact that everyone - both Razumovsky, and Catherine, and the heir - was simply calmer.
Pyotr Razumovsky was among those few to whom the heir to the throne was disposed. Having become emperor, he appointed Razumovsky to the senators. I had to return to St. Petersburg and begin to fulfill my duties. Sofya Stepanovna, of course, followed her husband, but she died, barely having time to get used to the old new place.
“She loved her neighbor, she did not judge the vicious,
You loved me, you loved all people,
Love for the Savior was the light of your ways,” such an epitaph was carved on her monument by her inconsolable husband.
Sofya Ushakova - Chartoryzhskaya - Razumovskaya in the TV series "Catherine" was played by Lyubava Greshnova. Unlike the northerner Sofia Stepanovna Greshnova was born in the south, in Kharkov. She and her husband, also an actor, moved to Moscow five years ago.
It seems that the role in the historical series has become an unexpected joy for Greshnova. In her previous interviews, she did not show a desire to play a historical character, but said that she would be glad to star in a funny comedy, and most of all, in an action film about saving civilization. Of course, in the lead role.
Panin is not a villain
There is no more colorful character in the series "Catherine" than Nikita Ivanovich Panin, whose role is played by Sergei Koltakov.
Panin is one in many faces here: a wise adviser to the empress, but at the same time a political intriguer. A strict and demanding mentor to the heir to the throne, but at the same time the person himself is sometimes unscrupulous. A proud man who does not hide his dislike for the influential favorite Orlov. An aged groom, in love with his young bride, who, however, despises him, a dishonest duelist ...
Was it really like that?
Among the shortcomings of Panin in the memoirs of his contemporaries are called laziness, gluttony, intrigue, but villainy is not hinted at.
They say that if it were not for laziness, Nikita Panin could have been lucky to become the favorite of Elizabeth Petrovna, but he simply overslept the hour of the meeting. And Elizaveta Petrovna preferred another gentleman - Alexei Razumovsky.
In general, Panin's personality has been surrounded by legends for a long time. He was called the organizer of the conspiracy that brought Catherine the Great to the throne, there were rumors about their romantic relationship. Once even an impostor showed up, claiming that he was the illegitimate son of Ekaterina and Panin.
It is difficult to say whether Panin fell under the female charms of Catherine, but as a ruler he was disappointed in her. He thought that he would become only a regent under Paul until he came of age, but she took the throne seriously and for a long time. He drew up a draft of such a state reorganization of Russia so that the autocracy of the ruler was limited by law - Catherine decided that he did not take into account the peculiarities of the national character ...
Although this project testified to the oppositional moods of the author, Catherine entrusted him with the upbringing of the heir to the throne, and the most important issues of foreign policy. Catherine respected Panin for his enlightenment and wide erudition. And there was also fame about him as an incorruptible person, which is worth a lot at all times.
Despite his free-thinking, Nikita Panin was by no means a liberal to the marrow of his bones, if we mean by this condescension and tolerance. For example, when shortly after Catherine's accession to the throne, a conspiracy against herself was revealed among the military, the Empress did not strictly punish anyone. The conspiring officers escaped with exile. But it was Panin who noticed the empress about the destructiveness of such kindness, capable, in his opinion, of multiplying the ranks of the conspirators.
In the series, the inconsistency of Nikita Panin's nature is brought to the point of deceit. In his declining years, he falls in love with the young Countess Sheremeteva, wooing her. The girl’s father considers such a marriage an excellent match, but Anna, who managed to fall in love with another educator of the heir to the throne, Semyon Poroshin, is in despair.
The plague stole Anna from life literally the day before the wedding with Panin. But in the series, Anna also suffers from the horror of living with an unloved husband, and this horror is worse than death.
Cinematic Panin challenges Poroshin to a duel, seriously injures him and tells his servants to throw the dying man into a ditch. That is, in fact, vilely finishes.
The officer, writer and publicist Semyon Poroshin did not really live long. Only 28 years old. But not at all Panin and not a duel (there is no evidence of any duel with Panin) was the reason for this.
Catherine removed Panin from business when Nikita Ivanovich was already 74 years old. The old man did not reconcile himself and did not calm down. When meeting with the heir, he did not miss the opportunity to point out mistakes in the reign of the empress. Even the trip around Europe, which Catherine offered to make to her son and his wife after the birth of their first-born Alexander, Panin interpreted as her desire to excommunicate Paul from power and proclaim her grandson as her direct heir in his absence.
Although this "prophecy" of Panin, which made Pavel Petrovich very nervous, did not come true, the heir did not lose confidence in his main mentor.
But this has more to do with the history of the reign of Paul the First than Catherine the Great.
- Conspiracy revealed! We are dead! - with such an exclamation, Princess Vorontsova-Dashkova burst into Catherine's bedroom and froze on the threshold. The Empress was washing her lace cuffs in the pelvis.
- Empress, what are you doing?!
- Can't you see, I'm erasing. What surprises you? I was prepared not for the Russian empresses, but, God forbid, for the wife of some German prince. Therefore, they taught to wash and cook ...
The future empress of the vast Russian empire, Catherine the Great, was born not in a luxurious palace, but in an ordinary German house and received a bourgeois education: she was really taught to clean and cook.
Her father, Prince Christian-August, was the younger brother of a sovereign German prince, but due to a constant lack of money, he was forced to take a job. And Sophia-Augusta-Frederica-Emilia, as Catherine was called in childhood, despite her royal origin, played in the city square with the children of burghers, received slaps from her mother for poorly polished boilers and respectfully kissed the hem of the dress of the wives of wealthy citizens, if they went into house.
Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp and Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst are the parents of the future Empress Catherine the Great.
Catherine's mother, John Elisabeth, was a domineering and riotous woman. It was even rumored that Catherine's real father was none other than Frederick the Great himself. He also proposed the candidacy of the young Princess Sofikhen as a wife to the Russian heir to the throne, Peter, when he heard a rumor that Empress Elizaveta Petrovna was looking for a bride for her nephew, to whom she intended to leave the throne.
This is what the future Catherine the Great looked like when she arrived in Russia, being a simple German princess Sophia Augusta Frederica. Portrait by Louis Caravaca
So the little German princess from the dirty city streets ended up in the shining gold of the Russian Imperial Palace. Having received the name Catherine in baptism, the future wife of the heir to the throne began to study with the best court teachers and fabulously succeeded not only in the Russian language, but also in the art of flirting.
Having inherited from her mother an indefatigable sexual temperament, Catherine launched her seduction at the Russian court. Even before the wedding, she flirted so openly with the court don Juan Andrei Chernyshev that, in order to avoid rumors, Elizabeth was forced to send the poor count abroad.
Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna at the age of 16 (1745). Groot painting
As soon as Catherine turned sixteen, Elizaveta Petrovna hurried to marry the German princess to Peter, making it clear to her that her only duty was to give birth to an heir.
After the wedding and a magnificent ball, the young people were finally taken to the marriage chambers. But Catherine woke up, as she lay down - a virgin. Peter remained cold to her both on their wedding night and for many months afterwards. Some are looking for the reasons for such an attitude towards his wife in the infantilism and dementia of Peter, others in his tragic love.
Peter III with Catherine II
Peter fell in love with the maid of honor Natalia Lopukhina, whose mother was Elizabeth's personal enemy. Lopukhina Sr. was Anna Ioannovna's favorite lady of state and catered to the Empress in every possible way, humiliating her hated daughter-in-law, Princess Elizabeth.
The historical anecdote has survived. Balls were often held in the Lopukhins' house. Elizabeth was also invited there. Once Lopukhina bribed Elizabeth's maids and offered them a sample of yellow brocade with silver, from which the princess sewed her dress for the ball.
When Elizabeth entered the living room, there was an explosion of laughter. The walls, chairs, armchairs and sofas in the room were upholstered in the same yellow and silver brocade. The humiliated princess rushed out of the palace and sobbed for a long time in her bedroom.
Natalya Fyodorovna Lopukhina. Engraving by L. A. Seryakov.
Some authors explain the hostile attitude towards Lopukhina on the part of Elizabeth Petrovna by successful rivalry in amorous affairs. Subsequently, trying to explain to themselves the reasons for the disgrace that befell her, contemporaries recalled another case:
One day, Lopukhina, famous for her beauty and therefore arousing the jealousy of the empress, decided, either out of frivolity or in the form of bravado, to appear with a rose in her hair, while the empress had the same rose in her hair.
In the midst of the ball, Elizabeth forced the guilty one to kneel, ordered the scissors to be brought, cut off the criminal rose along with the strand of hair to which it was attached, and, having rolled two kind slaps on the guilty person, continued to dance. When they told her that the unfortunate Lopukhina had lost her senses, she shrugged her shoulders: “Nothing to her fool!”
Empress Elizabeth I Petrovna Romanova
When Peter asked his royal aunt for permission to marry Lopukhina's daughter, Elizabeth decided to take revenge. She accused Lopukhina of high treason, and the court sentenced the unfortunate countess to death. Elizabeth, by her "great mercy", mitigated the punishment. Lopukhina the elder was shamefully whipped on Trinity Square, her tongue was cut out, and she was exiled to Siberia.
After this tragic story with the mother of his beloved, Tsarevich Peter went crazy. But Catherine did not seek to please her husband: she quickly found solace in the arms of the Swedish envoy Count Polenberg. Empress Elizabeth turned a blind eye to the relationship of the young: she needed an heir, but Catherine still could not get pregnant.
Meanwhile, in the bed of the eighteen-year-old princess, one favorite replaced another: Kirill Razumovsky, Stanislav Poniatovsky, Zakhar Chernyshev (brother of Andrei exiled abroad), Lev Naryshkin and the Saltykov brothers, who knew a lot about love. Their mother, nee Golitsyna, was famous throughout Petersburg for drunkenness and debauchery in the soldiers' barracks - there were rumors that she had three hundred lovers among the empress's grenadiers.
Lev Alexandrovich Naryshkin - the famous court joker and rake of the times of Peter III and Catherine II.
After a few years of marriage, a miracle happened - Catherine became pregnant. Sergei Saltykov openly boasted that he was the father of the future heir, and was expelled from St. Petersburg. Later in Sweden, he spread terrible rumors about the debauchery of the Russian princess and assured that she herself hung on his neck, made appointments, and he supposedly deceived and did not come, which made Catherine suffer unspeakably.
Elizaveta Petrovna was so pleased with the good news that she gave her pregnant daughter-in-law one hundred thousand rubles and a lot of jewelry. The poor German princess, who came to Russia with three dresses and half a dozen handkerchiefs, began to squander the Russian treasury with money.
The born baby was named Pavel and immediately taken away from the young mother. However, Catherine was not interested in her son and never loved him. It is still unknown who was the real father of Pavel - they call Zakhar Chernyshev, and Lev Naryshkin, and other lovers of the princess. Among the guesses, an amazing fact is noted: Pavel is unusually similar to his official father, Pyotr Fedorovich - which History does not joke about ...
Peter III and Paul I
After the death of Elizabeth, Peter III ascended the throne and declared that for depraved behavior he would exile Catherine to a monastery, and he would marry Elizabeth Vorontsova, his mistress. But by that time, with the help of her favorites, Catherine had woven a huge network around Peter.
Chancellor Panin, Prince Baryatinsky, Catherine's lover Grigory Orlov and four of his brothers organized a conspiracy against the emperor. But then one of the conspirators got scared and decided to warn the emperor - Peter did not attach any importance to his words, for which he paid not only with the throne, but also with his life.
At the court of Catherine II in Russia, favoritism became a new position, as at the court of Louis XIV in France, and bed careerists were recognized as people who served the fatherland and the throne. For their love efforts, they received palaces and considerable financial resources from the Russian treasury.
The bedroom of Elizaveta Petrovna was inherited for a long twenty years by her successor Catherine.
But Catherine was a passionate woman and could not live without a man. In her palace there was a special room with a huge bed. If necessary, a secret mechanism divided the bed into two parts with a wall - the favorite remained on the hidden half, and on the second, the empress, who had not cooled down from love pleasures, received ambassadors and ministers.
Catherine had a weakness for huge, gigantic men with a sensual face. Potential lovers were represented to the Empress by Chancellor Panin and Countess Bruce, who at court was called the “assay lady”.
Count Nikita Ivanovich Panin
Panin was Catherine's constant lover - he was smart, not demanding, not jealous. He appeared in the bedroom of the empress no more than once a week, and in his free time in his harem, consisting of serf concubines - every day he acquired a new girl, and gave away those who were bored to friends or sold them.
For Catherine, he chose tall soldiers who were not distinguished by intelligence, so as not to create rivals for himself. Once Panin and Countess Bruce recommended the handsome Potemkin.
Catherine was embarrassed by the fact that the lieutenant-general had only one eye (Grigory Orlov once knocked out his second in a fit of jealousy), but the countess convinced Catherine that Potemkin was going crazy with love for the empress.
Empress Catherine II and His Serene Highness Prince Grigory Alexandrovich Potemkin-Tavrichesky
After a night of love, Catherine promoted Potemkin to lieutenant general, gave him a magnificent palace and a million rubles for its arrangement. This is how bed careers were made in one night under Catherine.
But it seemed to Potemkin that the imperial gifts were not enough - once at dinner he demanded that Catherine make him a member of the State Council. Catherine was horrified:
- But my friend, it's impossible!
- Wonderful! Then I go to the monastery. The role of your kept woman does not suit me!
Catherine began to cry and left the table. Potemkin did not come to the favorites' room. Catherine cried all night, and the next morning Potemkin was appointed senator.
Once Potemkin left for St. Petersburg on business for a few days. But the Empress could not be left alone for a long time. Once in the Tsarskoye Selo Palace, Catherine woke up at night from the cold. It was winter, and all the wood in the fireplace had burned down. She slept alone - Potemkin was in St. Petersburg on business.
Catherine II in Tsarskoye Selo park for a walk. Painting by artist Vladimir Borovikovsky
Not finding servants behind the screen, Catherine went out into the corridor, along which a stoker with a bundle of firewood on his shoulders was just walking. From the sight of this young Hercules of enormous growth, carrying firewood like a feather, Catherine took her breath away.
- Who are you?
- Court stoker, Your Majesty!
Why didn't I see you before? Fire up the fireplace in my bedroom.
The young man was delighted with such favor of the empress and lit a huge fire in the fireplace. But Catherine was not satisfied:
"Don't you understand how to keep the Empress warm?"
And the stoker finally understood. And the next morning he received an order to grant him the hereditary nobility, ten thousand peasants, an order never to return to St. Petersburg and change his surname to Teplov - in memory of how he warmed the empress.
In her old age, Catherine reached complete debauchery. Hefty men were no longer enough for her - and she turned her passion to a young gypsy, presented to her by Potemkin.
Countess Natalya Aleksandrovna Zubova (née Suvorova) is the only daughter of Field Marshal Suvorov, who affectionately called her "Suvorochka".
There were rumors at court about how the empress treated her maids and young peasant women. At the final exam at the Smolny Institute, the Empress drew attention to a beautiful graduate, who turned out to be Suvorov's daughter.
Give your daughter to me as a favorite.
Having heard about the adventures of the Empress, Suvorov replied:
- Mother, to die for you - I will die, but I will not give you my Suvorochka!
The angry empress sent the old man along with her daughter to their estate, forbidding them to appear at court - which was exactly what Suvorov needed.
In the absence of Potemkin, Catherine had many lovers: Ambassador Bezborodko and his secretaries Zavadovsky and Mamonov, the nephew of the midwife Zorich, guard officers Korsakov and Khvostov, and finally, the provincial youth Alexander Lanskoy.
Potemkin accidentally saw the twenty-year-old Lanskoy and introduced him to the Empress. The young man had an angelic appearance: huge blue eyes filled with sadness, blond curls, a slight blush on his cheeks and coral lips. He would have looked like a girl if not for his huge height and broad shoulders.
Alexander Dmitrievich Lanskoy. Portrait by D. G. Levitsky (1782).
He accepted Catherine's attention as the concern of his mother, besides, he was too loyal to his state to refuse something to the empress. He was ashamed of the position of the imperial concubine, but over time he became attached to Catherine with all his heart. The Empress was touched by such reading love of an innocent young man who had not known women at all before her.
Her aging heart was so jealous of Sashenka that Catherine locked her lover in several rooms, surrounding her with unheard of luxury. The Empress awarded Lanskoy with the title of count, huge lands, tens of thousands of peasants. But the young man in love did not need ranks and wealth - he was probably the only favorite who loved the empress like a woman. And the empress said to Potemkin:
- My soul, I'm going to marry Lansky.
What did he do to deserve such an honor?
- He never cheated on me.
Potemkin lowered his eyes. He himself cheated on Catherine almost every day with different women.
A month later, Lanskoy took to his bed. And not one court doctor could make an accurate diagnosis. Catherine knew that her lover was poisoned on behalf of Potemkin. Catherine wrote to her friend:
“I, sobbing, have the misfortune to tell you that General Lansky is gone ... and my room, which I loved so much before, has now turned into an empty cave.”
Virgilius Eriksen. Catherine II in mourning.
After the death of her beloved, the empress walked around the palace like a shadow. She abandoned all state affairs and did not receive anyone. It was so unlike her ... Apparently, the love that she did not know in her youth overtook her in her old age.
The only topic that the Empress kept up the conversation was about Alexander Lansky, the only place she visited was his grave. She spent many hours at Lansky's grave in anguish and tears. Potemkin was furious. He was jealous - and to whom, to the deceased? In fits of anger, Potemkin circled like a kite among the guards officers. Finally, he chose Alexander Yermolov, made him his adjutant and sent him to Catherine.
His calculation was justified: Yermolov occupied the favorites' room, which had been empty for almost half a year. Still, Catherine was a woman, and the desire to love overcame her grief for the loss. Noticing that one of the ladies-in-waiting was secluded with Eromlov, Catherine ordered the soldiers to flog the aristocrat to the point of blood in the presence of the other eleven ladies-in-waiting - so that it would not be habitual.
Alexander Petrovich Ermolov, favorite of Catherine II, lieutenant general, chamberlain.
Tall and slender, blond, with a good complexion, Yermolov attracted attention with his handsome appearance, and only a wide, flat nose, for which Potemkin called him "le negre blanc", spoiled his face.
Yermolov was too stupid, arrogant and narcissistic, besides he liked to play and often ran away from the empress to gambling houses and to prostitutes.
Potemkin himself, disappointed in Yermolov, successfully arranged for his rapid fall. The Empress willingly got rid of the boring favorite, inviting him on June 29, 1786 to go abroad on a trip. Not possessing the greed of other favorites, Yermolov received relatively little: 4,000 souls and about 400,000 in money; he did not care about the enrichment of all his relatives, as others did.
His place was soon taken by another adjutant of Potemkin - Alexander Mamonov.
Graph Alexander Matveevich Dmitriev-Mamonov (1788)
"Priceless Sasha" - so called Empress Mamonov. But Sasha began to disappear somewhere more and more often. He was not there on that ill-fated night when the tired Catherine returned from a meeting of the Council. She waited for him half the night, but greeted him playfully:
- Where are you, gracious sovereign, deigned to disappear?
- Mother Empress ... - his tone and facial expression did not bode well. “You have always been kind to me, and I am frank with you. I can no longer carry out my duties near Your Majesty.
Catherine's face changed:
- What's the matter, did you deign to joke?
- No, your majesty. I fell in love with another and ask your gracious permission to marry her. Her name is Princess Shcherbatova.
What can an aging woman who has lost her former attractiveness answer when a young lover says that he fell in love with another, good and young?
- I give you permission to marry. Moreover, I will arrange your wedding myself.
On June 20, 1789, the following was written in the “Diary” of State Secretary Khrapovitsky:
“... before the evening exit, Her Majesty herself deigned to betroth Count A. M. Mamonov to Princess Shcherbatova; they, on their knees, asked for forgiveness and are forgiven. The groom was granted 2,250 souls of peasants and 100,000 rubles and ordered to leave Petersburg the very next day after the wedding.
Having settled in Moscow, Dmitriev-Mamonov was at first pleased with his fate, but a year later he decides to remind Catherine of himself, writes pitiful letters to her, asks her to return his former favor, to allow him to come to St. Petersburg. The reply of the empress soon convinced him that his hopes were in vain.
The legend that Catherine, out of jealousy, sent bailiffs dressed in women's clothes to Shcherbatova, who brutally flogged her in the presence of her husband, is not true.
His Serene Highness Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov is the last favorite of Catherine II.
Meanwhile, a new and last favorite reigned in the palace - in 1789, the dizzying career of the 22-year-old second-captain Platon Zubov began. He inherited the room of favorites from his brother, Valerian Zubov, who was the empress's lover for a very short time.
On June 21, 1789, through the mediation of the state lady Anna Nikitichna Naryshkina, the wife of Oberschenk Alexander Alexandrovich Naryshkin, Zubov, "carried through the top", received a special reception from the Empress, and since then spent every evening with her.
Three days later, on June 24, Zubov received 10 thousand rubles and a ring with a portrait of the Empress, and ten days later, on July 4, 1789, he was promoted to colonel, granted to the adjutant wing of Her Imperial Majesty and settled in the palace, in the wing adjutant quarters, which were previously occupied by Count Dmitriev-Mamonov.
Those around him hated him, but the empress showered alms on her last favorite: on October 3, 1789, Zubov was appointed cornet of the Cavalier Guard Corps with promotion to major general; on February 3, 1790, he was awarded the Order of St. Anne; Orlov and the Polish White Eagle and St. Stanislav, September 8, 1790 - the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, March 12, 1792 promoted to lieutenant general and appointed Adjutant General of Her Imperial Majesty.
Platon Alexandrovich Zubov - Most Serene Prince of the Roman Empire, Chief of the First Cadet Corps, Yekaterinoslav, Voznesensky and Taurida Governor-General.
Diploma of the Roman Emperor Franz II, dated January 27 (February 7), 1793, Senator, Privy Councilor Alexander Nikolayevich Zubov and his sons, Adjutant General, Lieutenant General Platon, Major General Nikolai, Chamber Junker Dmitry and Major General Valerian Aleksandrovichi, elevated, with their descendants, to the dignity of a count of the Roman Empire. The adoption of the aforementioned title and its use in Russia in the same year was followed by the Highest permission.
Platon Zubov was arrogant, arrogant and loved only one thing in the world - money. Having received unlimited power, he mocked Tsarevich Pavel, completely sure that he would not get the throne. Potemkin planned to kill the new favorite, but did not have time - he died.
"Prince G.A. Potemkin-Tauride. From a rare engraving by Skorodumov.
The war with the Turks undermined Potemkin's health, he caught malaria in the Crimea. Catherine again showered him with orders and distinctions, but above all with money, which, however, he never had in abundance, because he generously distributed them.
When the war ended, he once again visited St. Petersburg. On the way back, he fell ill. He fainted, suffocated. Suddenly he decided that he must certainly visit Nikolaev - he himself founded this city and loved it very much; he believed that the forest air there would heal him. October 4, he set off.
Before leaving, no matter how difficult it was for him, he wrote a message to Catherine: “My beloved, my almighty Empress. I no longer have the strength to endure my suffering. Only one salvation remains: to leave this city, and I gave the order to deliver me to Nikolaev. I don't know what will happen to me." On October 5, 1791, on the second day of the journey, Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin died. He was 52 years old.
"The death of Prince G.A. Potemkin-Tauride. From the engraving by Skorodumov
The Empress sobbed for a long time and inconsolably, arranged a magnificent funeral for her former favorite and ordered two monuments to be erected to him. During the reign of Catherine from the Russian treasury, palaces and jewelry worth nine million rubles and forty thousand peasants passed into Potemkin's pocket.
After the death of Potemkin, during which Platon Aleksandrovich Zubov did not play, however, a prominent role in public affairs, the importance of Zubov increases every day. Many of the posts previously held by Potemkin are being transferred to him.
On July 23, 1793, he was awarded a portrait of the Empress and the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called, on July 25, 1793 he was appointed governor-general of Yekaterinoslav and Taurida, on October 19, 1793 - general feldzeugmeister and general director over fortifications, on October 21, 1793 - chief of the Cavalier Guard Corps, January 1, 1795 he was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir I degree.
Portrait of Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov. Lumpy Senior I.B. 1790s
All affairs were handled by his three secretaries: Altesti, Gribovsky and Ribas. Count Zubov himself, on August 18, 1795, receives huge estates in the newly annexed Polish regions - Shavelsky savings in 13669 souls of serfs with an income of 100 thousand rubles. And soon, after the annexation of the Duchy of Courland, Zubov was granted the Ruental (Rundal Palace) ducal palace built by Rastrelli.
By the end of the reign of Empress Catherine II, His Serene Highness Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov became the bearer of the following high-profile title:
“general feldzeugmeister, general director over fortifications, over the Black Sea fleet, Voznesenskaya light cavalry and the Black Sea Cossack army commander in chief, Adjutant General of Her Imperial Majesty, Chief of the Cavalier Guard Corps, Yekaterinoslav, Voznesensky and Taurida Governor General, State Military Collegium member, Imperial Honorary philanthropist of the educational house, honorary lover of the Imperial Academy of Arts and orders of the Russian St. Apostle Andrei, St. Alexander Nevsky, St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir I degree, royal Prussian Black and Red Eagle, Polish White Eagle and St. Stanislav and Grand Duke Holstein St. Anna Cavalier.
This last favorite of Catherine II was a participant in the assassination of Emperor Paul I.
Catherine II. Artist Fyodor Stepanovich Rokotov.
On November 16, 1796, as usual, Catherine, getting out of bed and drinking coffee, went to the toilet room, and, contrary to her usual habit, stayed there longer than usual.
The valet on duty of the Empress Zakhar Zotov, sensing something unkind, quietly opened the door of the dressing room and saw with horror the body of Catherine lying on the floor. Her eyes were closed, her complexion was purple, and wheezing came from her throat. The Empress was transferred to the bedchamber. During the fall, Catherine dislocated her leg, her body became so heavy that six people of the room servants did not have enough strength to lift him onto the bed. Therefore, a red morocco mattress was laid on the floor and the dying empress was laid on it.
The Empress had a cerebral hemorrhage, according to the terminology of the 18th century - "apoplexy." According to the Chamber Fourier magazine - this kind of diary-chronicle of the life of Her Majesty - "suffering continued uninterruptedly, sighing of the womb, wheezing, at times an eruption of dark sputum from the larynx."
Despite the fact that Catherine did not regain consciousness, the Chamber Fourier journal reports that the Empress was confessed by her confessor, communed with the holy mysteries and unction with oil by Metropolitan Gabriel. True, it remains unclear how a person lying in an unconscious state can confess and take communion ...
Meanwhile, the doctors continued to conjure over the immobile body that used to be Empress Catherine - her body: they applied Spanish flies to her legs, put emetic powders in her mouth, let "bad blood" out of her hand. But all was in vain: the empress’s face turned purple, then filled with a pink blush, her chest and stomach constantly rose and fell, and the court lackeys wiped the sputum flowing from her mouth, straightened her arms, then her head, then her legs.
Doctors predicted that death would come at 3 o'clock the next day, and indeed, at this time, Catherine's pulse noticeably weakened. But her strong body continued to resist the impending death and lasted until 9 pm, when the life physician Rogerson announced that the Empress was ending, and the happy Pavel, his wife, older children, the most influential dignitaries and room servants lined up on both sides of the morocco mattress.
At 9:45 in the afternoon, Great Catherine sighed for the last time and, along with others, appeared before the judgment of the Most High. For we will all be there: those who have titles occupy a whole paragraph, and those who do not have them at all ...
September 22 marked the 267th anniversary of the birth of Sofia Stepanovna Ushakova (1746 - 1803), in the marriage of Razumovskaya, maid of honor, metress of Emperor Paul I from whom,
According to rumors, she had a son, Semyon, who at birth received the surname Veliky.
Sofya Spepanovna was the daughter of the Governor-General of St. Petersburg, Senator and Privy Councilor S.P. Ushakov, who, among other things, wrote monographs on agricultural issues (“On the Fertility of Winter Bread” and “On Sod Roofing”).
Information about Sofya Stepanovna's childhood and youth is extremely scarce. Her first husband was Count Adam-Yuri Czartoryski, the adjutant wing of Peter III, who by the end of his life had risen to the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs; in her second marriage (1770s), she bore the title of Countess Razumovsky, and her husband was Count Pyotr Kirillovich, one of the eldest sons of the last hetman of Ukraine, Kirill Grigoryevich Razumovsky. Moreover, Sofya Stepanovna was five years older than her husband, which was the subject of constant dissatisfaction with her father-in-law, who did not like her and called her a “cartoise woman”.
These circumstances, obviously, were the reason that the countess lived with her husband almost without a break abroad - in Italy, Switzerland, Holland, as well as in Paris and in the south of France, in Montpellier, a very fashionable and prestigious resort at that time. Their marriage was childless, which evil tongues regarded as a consequence of the countess's illness.
Upon the accession to the throne of Paul I, P.K. Razumovsky was appointed to the Senate and the couple returned to Russia. Shortly after returning home, on September 26, 1803, the countess died and was buried at the Lazarevsky cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. Over time, her grave was adorned with a monument with the following epitaphs on all four cardinal points:
Tombstone on the grave of S.S. Razumovskaya
On the east side:
"In the hope of the resurrection of the dead / Here lies the ashes / of the Lady Real Privy Councilor of the Countess / Sofia Stepanovna Razumovskaya nee Ushakova / born September 11, 1746, / died September 1803, 16 days".
On the west side:
"Grih burdened the soul! the flesh oppressed my spirit,
But you me, my God! I loved you so much!
Under the burden of the cross to you, my God cried out:
Your love from the cross breathed hope into me;
Not appearing your coffin balm, you poured into mine, Savior;
Saved by You, before Your judgment I appeared".
On the north side:
"In the darkness of faith you loved the Savior,
She loved her neighbor, she did not judge the vicious,
You loved me, you loved all the people,
Love for the Savior was true of your ways ..
O my priceless friend, unforgettable friend of the heart,
The ashes of my dear wife, the precious ashes of the heart!
Accept this monument as a pledge of my love,
Rest until the pipe - live in the dawn of heaven!"
On the south side:
"Having passed the phenomena of the world, completing your earthly path,
Come to your world of beings, heavenly soul!
Flow to the father of love, through the son is exemplary,
Reign with the Eternal, be blessed forever,
Enjoy with Him in the non-evening days;
What did you reap here in joy!
Thus the orphan prays, the widow calls thus,
Your friend sighs here and sheds tears".
