Catherine the Great: References & Edit History
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Additional Reading
Primary sources.
Mémoires de Catherine II, ed. by Dominique Maroger (1953; Eng. trans. 1955), is of great importance for the history of Catherine’s beginnings and for an analysis of her character. This edition is not complete, but it constitutes a choice made among the various versions of the autobiography begun by Catherine; all versions stop very near to the date of her accession to power. Equally important are the Correspondance of Catherine II with Voltaire (published in various editions of the complete works of Voltaire, as well as in the Evdokimov edition of the complete works of Catherine II, 1893); the Correspondance avec le Baron F.M. Grimm (1774–1796), Grot edition (1878), is interesting for its autobiographical character; Grimm was Catherine’s confidant. See also Lettres d’ amour de Catherine II à Potemkine, Georges Oudard edition (1934), which unfortunately is edited without chronological order.
Works about Catherine II and her reign.
V.A. Bilbassov, Geschichte Katharina II, 3 vol. (1891–93; also published in French as Histoire de Catherine II, 1900), is the most important work written about Catherine II, with quotations from many documents of the period; the last volume was banned in Russia under the tsarist regime. Ian Grey, Catherine the Great: Autocrat and Empress of All Russia (1961), a remarkable work, is a penetrating analysis of Catherine’s character and notably of her relationships with Potemkin. Olga Wormser, Catherine II (1957; in French), is particularly interesting for its analysis of the social and cultural situation in Russia. Z. Oldenbourg, Catherine de Russie (1964; in French), is a work devoted primarily to the first half of Catherine’s life.
Article Contributors
Primary Contributors
Other Contributors
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Michael DearGraduate of the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, School of Applied Linguistics and Cultural Studies in Germersheim, Germany. Translator, reviser and editor at the Deutsche Bundesbank since 1997.
Other Encyclopedia Britannica Contributors
Article History
| Type | Description | Contributor | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modified title of Web site: ABC listen - Late Night Live - Who was the real Catherine the Great? | Aug 24, 2026 | ||
| Updated spelling and added cross-references. | Jul 06, 2026 | ||
| Anniversary information added. | Apr 28, 2026 | ||
| Add new Web site: Heritage History - How a Woman Dethroned a Man. | Feb 16, 2026 | ||
| Anniversary information added. | Nov 13, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: ABC listen - Late Night Live - Who was the real Catherine the Great? | Jul 31, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: Academia - CATHERINE THE GREAT ЕКАТЕРИНА ВЕЛИКАЯ (an essay from ● "ПОРТРЕТ РУССКОГО ЯЗЫКА XVIII ВЕКА") (PDF). | Apr 25, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: BBC - You're Dead To Me - Catherine the Great. | Feb 15, 2025 | ||
| Questions and answers added. | Feb 11, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: Royal United Services Institute - Episode 9: Catherine the Great: Russia�s Black Sea Expansion. | Sep 10, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Presidential Library - Catherine II the Great was born. | Mar 28, 2024 | ||
| First paragraph modernization. | Feb 21, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - Did Catherine the Great of Russia have syphilis? | Jan 04, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: World History Encyclopedia - Catherine the Great. | Nov 05, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Ancient Origins - Destined for Glory: The Reign of Empress Catherine the Great. | Apr 03, 2023 | ||
| Map added. | May 14, 2021 | ||
| Media added. | Dec 10, 2020 | ||
| Revised titles of select article sections. | Oct 22, 2020 | ||
| Media added. | Sep 03, 2019 | ||
| Corrected display issue. | Dec 27, 2017 | ||
| Changed title of the "Assessment" section to "Legacy." | Nov 15, 2017 | ||
| Add new Web site: LiveScience - Catherine the Great: biography, accomplishments and death. | Jan 19, 2017 | ||
| Add new Web site: King's College - Women's History Resource Site - Biography of Empress Catherine II of Russia. | Jan 19, 2017 | ||
| Changed article title from Catherine II to Catherine the Great. | Sep 28, 2016 | ||
| In the second paragraph, changed "deception" to "disappointment." |
|
Dec 29, 2015 | |
| Added video. | Mar 20, 2015 | ||
| Replaced photograph. | Aug 22, 2014 | ||
| Changed "the Crimea" to "Crimea." | Apr 08, 2014 | ||
| Add new Web site: RT Russiapedia - Biography of Catherine II the Great. | Apr 12, 2013 | ||
| Add new Web site: Old and Sold - Biography of Catherine II. | Apr 12, 2013 | ||
| Media added. | Mar 12, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg - Era of Catherine the Great. | Aug 10, 2007 | ||
| Added new Web site: Minnesota State University in United States of America - Biography of Catherine the Great. | Aug 10, 2007 | ||
| Added new Web site: Russia The Great - Biography of Empress Catherine II "the Great". | Aug 10, 2007 | ||
| Added new Web site: Saint-Petersburg.Com - Catherine the Great. | Aug 09, 2007 | ||
| Article revised. | Nov 10, 2005 | ||
| Article revised. | May 29, 2002 | ||
| Article added to new online database. | Jul 20, 1998 |