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Catherine II was born on April 21, 1729 in Stettin, Germany to parents Prince Christian Auguste and Princess Johanna Elizabeth (“Catherine The Great”).Her mother was princess of Holstein-Gattorp. (“Johannes Elizabeth of Holstein Gattorp 1712-1760”). Her father was the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst (Flantzer, Susan). The royalty authority had remained in the family within Catherine. This event is significant because Catherine would go on to becoming the Czarina of Russia (“Catherine The Great”).
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Catherine at the age of 14 was chosen to go to Russia by Empress Elizabeth to marry her son Grand Duke Peter in 1744. The marriage was beneficial to Catherine’s royal status. Duke Peter was in line for throne making Catherine also in line of the throne ("Catherine The Great"). However the marriage was still a failure leaving Catherine to feel lonely (Rice 129). This event is significant because the marriage to Peter had made Catherine empress, which then leads to her becoming Czarina of Russia.
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In 1754, Catherine's son Paul I was born. Paul I was born to his parents Catherine II and possibly Peter III. No one knew who Paul's father was because both Peter and Catherine had different affairs (Maranzani, Barbara). Catherine and Paul's relationship wasn't very close and Catherine had neglected him (Rice 131). However despite the poor relationship between them, this event is significant because Paul becomes an heir to the throne because he is Catherine's son.
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On December 25, 1761 Empress Elizabeth had passed away. Therefore Peter III had become Emperor of Russia making Catherine the Empress of Russia. Friends had warned Catherine that Peter would divorce her and her reign of empress would go away, but Catherine had ignored those warnings. This event is significant because Catherine becoming empress ascends her power and place on the royal scale, and also leads to her becoming Czarina of Russia kicking Peter III out of power ("Catherine The Great").
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1 year after Catherine had become empress, on June 28, 1762 she had kicked Peter III out of power and became Czarina. When her friends had given her warnings of Peter divorcing her she was advised to flee. The church leaders wanted to replace Peter with Paul I with Catherine as the reagent due to his hostility. Catherine however wanted a larger role for herself. With her lover Gregory Orlov, troops were rallied, Catherine declared herself Czarina, and arrested Peter. ("Catherine The Great").
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In 1763 the French and Indian war came to and end with British victory. The war had lasted 7 years. The French and the British had territorial conflicts. The war ended with British victory and the British took the majority of France's colonies. The British gained Canada, and part of modern day U.S. This event is significant because the British gain land, and power with more colonies, and these colonies end up with more states in the U.S eventually ("1763, The French and Indian War Ends").
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In 1764, the art museum the Hermitage was first founded by Catherine in St. Petersburg. During Catherine's ruling she had founded this museum. The Hermitage was a private gallery for art amassed by the empress or czar ("Hermitage"). This event is significant because the Hermitage advances Russia culturally and makes St. Petersburg a major cultural center. This event is also significant because the Hermitage evolves and over time carries numerous important paintings ("Catherine The Great").
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On August 10,1767 Catherine had published her document "The Great Instruction". The document had recommended that liberal, and humanitarian political theories be used as the basis of the new reformed government. This event is significant because the document served as a major stimulus to Russian political thought throughout Russian history ("Instruction of Catherine the Great").
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In 1768 Catherine declares war on the Turks or the Ottoman Empire. Turkey has demanded that Catherine abstain from interfering with Poland’s internal affairs. Due to this war was declared. In 1774 Russia gained victory. This event was important because Russia’s frontier expanded South, and Russia could now keep a fleet in the Black Sea. These results are especially significant because they increase land and power for Russia (“Russo-Turkish Wars”).
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On July 4th, 1776 the Declaration of Independence is signed which is the document which state that the 13 American colonies are breaking off from Great Britain. Many negative things done by the British had led to the colonists breaking away. This event is significant because it signals the start of The American Revolution to start a new nation in this case the U.S. In this way Britain loses colonies meaning they lose power. ("The Declaration Of Independence").
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In 1784 Ben Franklin invented bifocals which changed the world. He called the invention “double spectacles”. The invention allowed people to see far or near depending on what part of the lens they were looking at. This event is significant because it changed the world so that people with poor vision either far or near could see properly (“When did Benjamin Franklin Invent Bifocals?”).
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In 1786 Catherine the Great makes an elaborate plan to add to education and the arts. She added many secondary and elementary schools for education. Catherine encouraged lots of theatre, music, and paintings to make St. Petersburg and Russia beautiful. This event is significant because it gave Russia a reputation of a center of civilization and it adds on to the achievements of Catherine that proves her nickname as Catherine “the Great” (“Catherine the Great”).
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The industrial revolution popularized in 1790 onwards. The Industrial Revolution was the period of time where everything switched from hand made or agricultural to man-made with machines. It especially popularized in England and occurred in many other places at this time period. This event is significant because the industrial revolution is a major change in how things are made and advances the whole world into making and getting things done efficiently ("The Industrial Revolution").
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In 1793 the cotton gin is invented. This was a machine to help with the harvesting of cotton. This event is significant because it helped the South in the U.S to make more money, and it also increased the demand for slaves to run the machine (Longley, Robert).
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Beethoven dedicated himself to the whole musical study in Vienna. He studied under several successful musicians like Haydn. Beethoven finally made his public debut in Vienna on March 29, 1795. This event is significant because it brought Beethoven on the map of the musical world which led him to compose many other pieces like "Symphony No.1 in C Major". Composing many other pieces made Beethoven a great influence on classical music that still remains today ("Ludwig Van Beethoven Biography").
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On November 06, 1796, Catherine the Great had died in Russia. The Czarina died in an unexpected stroke at the age of 67. Before her death she considered disclaiming Paul I as her heir, but before the could the stroke had occurred. This event is significant because it led to Paul I being the next czar in Russia. Finally it was also significant because Russia had lost a great leader with many achievements ("Catherine The Great").
