Catherine II was an empress of Russia, and led her country into the political and cultural life of

Europe, carrying on the work began by her husband Peter great. Stemming from Peter the great, causes
people to wonder if Catherine II was an absolute monarch or if she was not. After reading about
Catherine the great it appears to me that Catherine II was not an absolute monarchy, for the many
things she has done to help improve the country of Russia. After Peter the great passed away from being
strangled it was Catherines time to step up to the throne and guide Russia to becoming a more
Westernized place, like Peter wanted.
Catherine the great was not an absolute monarch, In Catherines early life she started out as a
very minor German Princess. Catherine and her family grew up in Settin in a small principality called
Anhalt-Zebest. Her father was the prince of his tiny domain and had a military career. Catherines
mother had very little interest in her and never paid much attention to her as she was growing up,
Catherines mother spent more time with her brother. Catherine was taken care of by her governess
Babette, throughout her life she was not around a lot of power. She was a freer child because her family
and her were not big in royalty and her parents did not have much time for her which caused her to be
let alone to do what she wanted to. If she was not around absolute power then she could not have
inherited that from herself.
Secondly, Catherine II made efforts toward social and political reforms. She did this my putting
together a document known as the Nakaz about how Russias legal system should run. She decided
that every man should be created equal due to this she tried to push for punishment and torture to be
outlawed. Catherine the great also decided to address the situation of countrys serfs. Country serfs
were personal slaves of landowners and these slaves will be the land owners property for life. She knew
that what was going on in Russia was not right, and it was time for a change! Ultimately the Nakaz
became known as a document of ideas, rather than immediate influences.
Lastly, after the Nakaz was finalized Catherine the great brought delegates together from social
and economic classes to form the Legislative commission. Although no laws resulted from the
commission it was the first time in Russian history that Russians across the empire had been able to
express their thoughts on different aspects that needed improvement. In a result to this, Catherine
showed that she did not want absolute power, she wanted a country to work together through good
and bad times.
In conclusion, some believe that Catherine the great was an absolute monarchy while others
believe that she was not an absolute monarchy. However, after conducting research on Catherine the
great I came to the conclusion that Catherine the great was not an absolute monarchy. I am one who
believes this due to Catherine not growing up raised on believe in absolute monarchy, Catherine
wanting to work together with her country to make Russia a better place, and lastly Catherine wanted
everyone in her country to be created equally without torture and punishment. Many believe Catherine
the great was one of the most influential leaders in the world for her great establishments and
accomplishments she had on Russia. Catherine was described as a woman who never stopped ruling
Russia in the best of her ability until her last day on earth December 25
th
1761.
Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
"Prominent Russians: Catherine II the Great." Catherine II the Great Russiapedia The Romanov Dynasty
Prominent Russians. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.