Was Catherine the Great an absolute ruler?

Natalie Seaner

In order to be an absolute ruler, you must control nobility, military, religion and
censorship. Was Catherine II an absolute ruler? In my opinion, yes. Though she wasn't as open
about being in control, I think she tried making herself look better than she actually was. Though
she did have some accomplishments for Russia, she did not do anything astounding.
Catherine the Great started out as empress of Russia. Her and her husband, Peter III did
not have a very good relationship. They had no connection so she slept around with a few
guards. Catherine ended up having her husband, Peter III killed. She took over after that and
began her rule. Catherine had some accomplishments but didn't do anything very great.
One thing that makes Catherine the II an absolute ruler is that she did not better the lives
of the serfs. The serfs were slaves for life and made up nearly 50% of Russia's population. Serfs
were considered property, and can be compared to our slaves. I think that Catherine the II
thought about freeing the serfs but once she saw them start to rebel she changed her mind.
Catherine the Great harshly put down the peasant revolt, and then raised the status of nobles and
merchants. This is an example of an absolute ruler because she had control over nobility.
Catherine the Great did not do anything to help these poor people, which tells us that she didnt
care and would rather have serfdom.
To be an absolute ruler you must have control over religion, which is what Catherine the
Great did. She gained control of the Orthodox Church. Catherine the II originally granted the
church all of their land and property but soon changed her mind. She took back everything and
said that the wealth of the church belongs to the state. All of the churches assets became part of
the state, along with over one million serfs and could be subjected to taxes.
Catherine the Great was a power hungry ruler who wanted as much land as she could get.
She did, however conquered many lands. She was able to put one of her many lovers, Stanislaw
Poniatowski on the Polish throne due to that, Catherine gained much of Poland, along with the
Ukraine and Lithuania. Catherine also conquered Siberian and Central Asian people. Perhaps
Catherines greatest achievement, though, was her ability to annex all of Crimea. This
achievement allowed Russia to have access to the Black Sea. This shows that Catherine the Great
was an absolute ruler because she had control over the military.
The last thing that a ruler needs to be considered absolute is censorship. Catherine had to
make everyone believe that her beliefs are the only legit ideas in society. She had control over
censorship by eliminating religion education. Catherine believed in arts and culture. Much like
Peter I she westernized Russia. Catherine brought art and writings and culture from Europe into
Russia even if some Russians disagreed and did not want to modernize. Catherine the Great led
everyone to believe that what she was doing was the right thing and that everyone should obey
her.
In my opinion, I believe that Catherine the Great was not very great. She didn't have
many accomplishments except for annexing the Crimea. Other than that, she did not do anything
that important. Catherine is a prime example of an absolute ruler because she had control over
nobility, military, religion and had censorship. She made sure that her ideas were the only ones
legit in society. Catherine the Great may not have been as harsh as Peter III or Peter I, but, like
them, she was also an absolute ruler.

Bibliography:
Cracraft, James. "Catherine the Great." World Book Student. World Book, 2014. Web. 20 Oct.
2014.
Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
"ABSOLUTE RULERS IN HISTORY." ABSOLUTE RULERS IN HISTORY. N.p., n.d. Web.
20 Oct. 2014.