Catherine the Great

Catherine the Great

Catherine II (born Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 1729 in Szczecin – 17 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was Empress of All Russia from 1762 until 1796—the country's longest-ruling female leader. She came to power following a coup d'état that overthrew her husband and second cousin, Peter III. Under her reign, Russia grew larger, its culture was revitalised, and it was recognized as one of the great powers worldwide. In her accession to power and her rule of the empire, Catherine often relied on her noble favourites, most notably Count Grigory Orlov and Grigory Potemkin. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Catherine the Great has received more than 15,175,512 page views. Her biography is available in 111 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 106 in 2019). Catherine the Great is the 6th most popular nobleman (down from 3rd in 2019), the 7th most popular biography from Poland (down from 5th in 2019) and the most popular Polish Nobleman.

Catherine the Great was most famous for her contributions to the arts, including the establishment of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Hermitage Museum. She also expanded the borders of Russia, made it a world power, and was the first woman to rule Russia.