Catherine the Great and the Smolny Institute: Educating Women

Catherine the Great and the Serf Economy in Russia

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Catherine the Great shaped and was shaped by the serf economy that underpinned her empire. They discuss the 1765 ukase that allowed landlords to send serfs to hard labor, the 1767 law forbidding serfs from petitioning the empress, and the brutal reality of the obrok (quitrent) system. They examine Catherine's contradictory impulses: her Enlightenment-era Nakaz (Instruction) of 1767, which called for humane treatment of serfs, versus her practical dependence on the nobility's support. The conversation covers key figures like Mikhail Shcherbatov, who warned that serfdom corrupted the nobility, and the serf poet Vasily Kapnist, who secretly criticized the system. They also delve into the serf market and the notorious Saltychikha (Darya Saltykova), a noblewoman who tortured over 100 serfs to death. The episode concludes by reflecting on Catherine's failure to reform serfdom, despite her intellectual engagement with the problem, and how this failure would haunt Russia for generations. #CatherineTheGreat #Serfdom #RussianEmpire #18thCentury #RussianHistory #MikhailShcherbatov #VasilyKapnist #Saltychikha #Nakaz #Obrok #Enlightenment #SerfEconomy #DaryaSaltykova #1767Law #FexingoHistory #History #Russia #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the Potemkin Villages Myth

This episode of Fexingo History dives into one of the most enduring legends surrounding Catherine the Great: the so-called 'Potemkin villages.' Did Grigory Potemkin really build fake settlements to deceive the empress during her 1787 tour of Novorossiya? We trace the origin of the myth to the Saxon diplomat Georg von Helbig, whose 1797 pamphlet 'Potemkin the Taurian' first popularized the tale. We examine the evidence: Potemkin's actual achievements in colonizing New Russia, the construction of real towns like Kherson, Nikolayev, and Sevastopol, and the eyewitness accounts of foreign travelers like William Coxe and the Comte de Ségur, who described thriving communities. We also explore why the myth stuck—partly due to political rivalries at court, partly because it fit European prejudices about Russian backwardness. The term 'Potemkin village' remains a metaphor for deceptive facades, but the historical reality is far more complex and impressive. #CatherineTheGreat #PotemkinVillages #GrigoryPotemkin #Novorossiya #RussianHistory #18thCentury #MythBusting #GeorgVonHelbig #Kherson #Sevastopol #WilliamCoxe #ComteDeSegur #NewRussia #HistoryMyths #EasternEurope #FexingoHistory #Podcast #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and Vasily Chichagov Polar Expedition

In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna dive into one of the most ambitious scientific ventures of Catherine the Great's reign: the 1765–66 polar expedition led by Admiral Vasily Chichagov. Tasked by the Empress and Mikhail Lomonosov with finding a northern sea route to the Pacific, Chichagov sailed three ships into the Arctic ice beyond Svalbard. Lucas recounts the expedition's origins in Lomonosov's polynyas theory, the brutal conditions, and the eventual failure that still yielded valuable hydrographic data. They also explore the broader context of Russian Arctic exploration, the role of the Admiralty College, and how Catherine's patronage of science served her imperial ambitions. A fascinating tale of ambition, ice, and the limits of 18th-century technology. #CatherineTheGreat #VasilyChichagov #ArcticExpedition #RussianHistory #MikhailLomonosov #PolarExploration #NortheastPassage #AdmiraltyCollege #KolaPeninsula #Svalbard #18thCentury #SailingShips #NorthernSeaRoute #ScienceHistory #RussianEmpire #ArcticIce #Exploration #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the Tatar Mirzas: Islam in the Russian Empire

In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore Catherine the Great's surprisingly pragmatic and tolerant policies toward the Muslim Tatar nobility and clergy after the annexation of the Crimean Khanate. They discuss the strategic reasons behind Catherine's 1773 Ukase of Toleration, the co-opting of Tatar mirzas (nobles) and mullahs into the imperial administration, the establishment of the first state-sponsored Muslim institutions like the Orenburg Muslim Spiritual Assembly in 1788, and the creation of the Tatar settlement of Qargha near Orenburg as a center of Islamic learning. The conversation touches on the limits of tolerance—Catherine never considered full integration—and the long-term consequences for Russia's Muslim population. Specific names and terms include: Catherine the Great, Crimean Khanate, Ukase of Toleration (1773), Orenburg Muslim Spiritual Assembly (1788), Mirzas, Mullahs, Qargha, Tatar, Islam, Russian Empire, Novorossiya, Grigory Potemkin, Sheikh Mansur, and the Kazakh steppe. #CatherineTheGreat #TatarMirzas #RussianEmpire #IslamInRussia #CrimeanKhanate #UkaseOfToleration #OrenburgAssembly #Qargha #Novorossiya #GrigoryPotemkin #SheikhMansur #MuslimNobility #EighteenthCentury #EasternEurope #History #FexingoHistory #Podcast #Empire Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the Cossack Rebellion of Pugachev

Lucas and Luna dive into the Pugachev Rebellion (1773–1775), the largest peasant uprising in Russian history. They explore how Emelyan Pugachev impersonated Emperor Peter III, rallying Yaik Cossacks, Bashkirs, Tatars, and serfs against Catherine's regime. The conversation covers the siege of Orenburg, the burning of Kazan, Catherine's response under General Pyotr Panin, and the rebellion's brutal suppression. Lucas explains how the revolt pushed Catherine to strengthen autocracy and abandon her earlier Enlightenment reforms, leading to the abolition of the Zaporozhian Sich and tighter control over the peasantry. They also touch on the literary legacy, including Pushkin's 'The Captain's Daughter' and his 'History of Pugachev'. This episode ties into the show's broader arc of Catherine's domestic challenges and the limits of her enlightened rule. #PugachevRebellion #EmelyanPugachev #CatherineTheGreat #RussianHistory #PeasantWar #YaikCossacks #Orenburg #Kazan #PyotrPanin #ZaporozhianSich #PeterIII #Bashkirs #Tatars #AlexanderPushkin #TheCaptainsDaughter #HistoryofPugachev #18thCentury #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]