She is a Russian tsar, but also a German of Germanic descent; She is a woman, but also the first queen granted the title "the Great" in the Russian history. She was seriously ill in her twilight years and died of stroke, but her brilliant governance and incredible accomplishments made Russia the really most powerful in Europe at that time. Even the doting daughter of Putin was named after her. Who is she? She is the emperor of Russia, Catherine II. And now, let's get insights into her, to be exact, her magnificent life.
她是沙皇，却是拥有日耳曼血统的德国人；她是女人，却是俄罗斯历史上第一位被冠以“大帝”称号的女皇；她晚年重病缠身，中风去世，却因治国有方、功绩显赫，将当时的俄罗斯发展成为名副其的欧洲最强，以致于普京的掌上明珠都以她命名。她是谁？她就是俄皇叶卡捷琳娜二世。今天，让我们一起走进叶卡捷琳娜二世，走进女皇波澜壮阔的一生。
Foreign Emperor
异国君主
How can a foreigner win people's hearts and even ascend the throne？First above all, it is the conversion to Eastern Orthodox Church that counts. Facing tons of scriptures written in Russian, Catherine made her mind to learn Russian well. In order to learn the language well, she slept rather little. It was winter in Russia at that time, with the room rather warm. Thus, once she felt sleepy, she simply stepped on the ice-cold floor and walked around. But winter in Russia was much severer than that in Prussia. Consequently, she was laid up for catching pneumonia. For ten more days she was suffering from a terrible fever and in a coma. All the people thought she was dying and was preparing to handle her final arrangements. Duchess Anhalt specially got her a Lutheran pastor for the last rites. However, Catherine wanted the priest teaching her etiquettes. And surprisingly, after recovery she fluently recited scriptures, fifty pages long, in Russian. The story spread around quickly, all the people around Russia, even the royal, were deeply moved. In that way she won people's hearts.
作为异乡来客，叶卡捷琳娜是如何赢得民心，登基为皇的呢？首先，就是皈依国教——东正教。面对成千上万的俄语经文，叶卡捷琳娜下决心学好俄语。为了学好俄语，她一天睡的很少。当时俄罗斯还是冬天，但房间里很热。所以只要困意袭来，她就索性光着脚在冰凉的地板上走来走去。可是俄罗斯的冬天比在普鲁士要严酷得多，她终于得上了肺炎，因此病倒。索菲娅曾接连十几天处于高烧状态，昏迷不醒。众人以为她已处于弥留，已经开始安排后事。安哈尔特公爵夫人特意找来了一个路德宗牧师为她做临终祈祷，但索菲娅公主却请求把教她东正教礼仪的神父老师找来。令人惊讶的是，痊愈后，她在东正教的皈依仪式上，用俄语流利地背诵了长达五十页的经文。这件事很快就流传开来，全俄的老百姓，甚至于宫廷皇室，都被她深深感动。由此她获得了民心。
The crown of Catherine Ⅱ
Admiration for the Enlightenment
热衷启蒙
As an admirer for the enlightenment in France, Catherine once wrote to Voltaire，saying that, “since 17, when I had time at my disposal, your masterpieces are my best friends.” Under the press of the turmoil in domestic society, Catherine, who was greatly influenced by the enlightenment considered abolishing the slavery, which blocked the social process. On 17th, March, 1775, she released a manifesto declaring that a serf who had gained their freedom shall not be back into serfage again. On 18th, August, 1795，Catherine liberated 10 thousand of her serfs in just one day. In 1780，during American Revolution, European powers generally had a wish to weaken British Empire. Catherine built League of Armed Neutrality to protect the warships of the neutral states from the attack of British Navy. Thus, Catherine contributed a lot to the victory of American Revolution.
作为法国启蒙运动的崇拜者，叶卡捷琳娜致信伏尔泰：“从17岁起，我能自由地支配自己的时间以来，您的著作是我最好的师友。”在国内社会动荡的压力之下，深受启蒙运动熏陶的叶卡捷琳娜考虑废除阻碍社会进步的农奴制。1775年3月17日，叶卡捷琳娜发表宣言，规定已经获得自由的农奴不得再度沦为农奴；1795年8月18日，叶卡捷琳娜一天就解放了自己的10万名农奴。1780年，美国独立战争期间，欧洲列强普遍希望借此削弱大英帝国，叶卡捷琳娜组建武装中立同盟，保护中立国的船只不受英国海军的掠夺，独立战争的胜利，大帝与有荣焉。
Outward Expansion
对外扩张
She held a claim of enlightened despotism and thought that all people are equal before the law. During the rule of Catherine, Russian Empire expanded northward and westward, occupying a huge territory of Crimea, Ciscaucasia, Right-bank Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania and Courland, from the Ottoman Empire and Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Also, Russia also took part in the partition of Poland, together with Prussia, and Austria. Catherine commanded the war against Turkey and occupied the coastal areas along the Black Sea and annexed Crimean Khanate. In that way, Russia, scarred and battered, with crises all around, reached to its peak under the rule of Catherine, and became a super empire across Europe, Asia and America. Do you believe? "Without the nod of Russia, the cannons from Europe could not have any shells launched."
她主张开明专制、倡导法律面前人人平等。在其统治期间，俄罗斯帝国向南、向西扩张，从奥斯曼帝国和波兰立陶宛联邦手中将克里米亚、北高加索、右岸乌克兰、白俄罗斯、立陶宛和库尔兰在内的大片领土纳入囊中。参与俄普奥三次瓜分波兰，对土耳其作战取得黑海沿岸地区，并吞并了克里米亚汗国。由此，千疮百孔、危机四伏的俄罗斯在其治下达到历史顶峰，成为跨欧、亚、美三洲的超级大帝国。你相信吗，“没有俄罗斯的同意，欧洲的大炮不能发射任何一发炮弹”。
The partition of Poland
“If I were able to live up to two hundred years the entire Europe would be under my foot!” Those are the famous words from Catherine. And nowadays, Russia is on the way to its renaissance and resplendence under the leadership of her loyal fan——Putin.
“如果我能活到两百岁，整个欧洲都讲匍匐在我脚下！”这是叶卡捷琳娜著名的一句话。现如今，俄罗斯正在她的忠实粉丝——普京的带领下，走向复兴与辉煌。
Translator: Zhang Boya
Time: 2020-3-25
