Catherine the Great's Court Painter Dmitry Levitzky

Catherine the Great's Court Painter Dmitry Levitzky

Step into the gilded halls of Catherine the Great's Winter Palace and meet Dmitry Levitzky, the Ukrainian-born portraitist who captured the faces of Russia's Enlightenment. From his iconic Smolny Institute series—seven full-length portraits of young noble girls in theatrical costume—to the formidable Empress herself in her 1783 coronation portrait, Levitzky blended Western Rococo elegance with a distinctly Russian sensibility. Lucas and Luna explore how Levitzky's brush served Catherine's propaganda machine, why he fell from favour under Paul I, and the mysterious circumstances of his death in 1822, nearly blind and forgotten. Along the way, they visit the Imperial Academy of Arts, the Moscow Foundling Home, and the studio of Levitzky's mentor, the engraver Georg Friedrich Schmidt. Discover how one painter's career mirrors the arc of Catherine's reign: dazzling, complex, and ultimately overshadowed by the autocracy it served. #DmitryLevitzky #CatherineTheGreat #RussianArt #18thCenturyPortraiture #SmolnyInstitute #ImperialAcademyOfArts #WinterPalace #RussianEnlightenment #Rococo #Neoclassicism #Ukraine #GeorgeFriedrichSchmidt #PaulI #PortraitPainter #RussianEmpire #History #FexingoHistory #ArtHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great's War with Sweden 1788–1790

In this episode of Catherine the Great, Lucas and Luna explore the Russo-Swedish War of 1788–1790, a conflict that erupted while Russia was already fighting the Ottoman Empire. Catherine faced her cousin King Gustav III of Sweden, who launched a surprise attack hoping to reclaim lost territories. We delve into the naval Battle of Hogland, where Russian Admiral Samuel Greig fought Swedish Admiral Rudolf Cederström to a draw, and the dramatic Battle of Svensksund, a humiliating Russian defeat that nearly cost Catherine her Baltic fleet. The war was also a propaganda battle: Gustav staged an opera about himself, while Catherine mocked him in a comedy play. The episode covers the peace treaty of Värälä, which restored the status quo but left both sides claiming victory. We discuss how this war distracted Catherine from her southern ambitions, the role of Finnish nationalism, and the curious figure of Gustav III, an enlightened despot who fancied himself a military genius. The war's legacy includes a strengthening of Swedish neutrality and a strain on Russian resources that foreshadowed later conflicts. #CatherineTheGreat #RussoSwedishWar #GustavIII #BattleOfHogland #BattleOfSvensksund #SamuelGreig #RudolfCederström #BalticFleet #TreatyOfVärälä #18thCenturyHistory #SwedishHistory #RussianEmpire #FinnishHistory #NavalHistory #Propaganda #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great's Italian Architect: Giacomo Quarenghi

In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the life and work of Giacomo Quarenghi, the Italian architect who shaped Catherine the Great's vision for St. Petersburg and its surroundings. From the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoe Selo to the Smolny Institute and the Hermitage Theatre, Quarenghi's neoclassical designs defined an era. Learn how a Bergamo-born architect became the empress's favorite builder, the challenges of construction in Russia's cold climate, and the political symbolism embedded in Catherine's building program. Discover the story behind the Horse Guards Manege and the Academy of Sciences, and how Quarenghi's legacy survived into the Soviet era. This episode offers a fresh angle on Catherine's reign through the lens of architecture and cultural exchange. #CatherineTheGreat #GiacomoQuarenghi #RussianArchitecture #Neoclassicism #StPetersburg #TsarskoeSelo #HermitageTheatre #AlexanderPalace #SmolnyInstitute #18thCentury #RussianEmpire #ItalianArchitects #FexingoHistory #History #Architecture #Enlightenment #CulturalExchange #ArtHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great and the Charter to the Nobility of 1785

In 1785, Catherine the Great issued two landmark charters that redefined Russian society: the Charter to the Nobility and the Charter to the Towns. This episode focuses on the nobles' charter, which codified their rights and privileges—exemption from taxes, corporal punishment, and compulsory service—while also creating provincial assemblies and a system of honor courts. Lucas and Luna explore how these laws reflected Enlightenment ideas about liberty and property, yet deliberately excluded the vast majority of Russians: the serfs. They discuss the role of figures like Prince Mikhail Shcherbatov, who argued for even greater noble privileges, and the practical consequences of legally separating the nobility from other estates. The episode also touches on the parallel city charter, which granted limited self-government to a small merchant elite. With serfdom reaching its peak, Catherine's reforms reveal the tensions between her intellectual commitments and the realities of autocratic rule. Listeners will gain a concrete understanding of how Russia's social hierarchy was formalized in the late 18th century. #CatherineTheGreat #CharterToTheNobility #RussianHistory #1785 #Nobility #Serfdom #MikhailShcherbatov #ProvincialAssembly #HonorCourts #Enlightenment #RussianEmpire #CharterToTheTowns #LegalReform #EstatesOfTheRealm #18thCentury #Autocracy #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Catherine the Great's Medical Crusade: Smallpox Inoculation

In 1768, Catherine the Great made a dramatic gamble to modernize Russia: she voluntarily underwent smallpox inoculation, risking her life to set an example for her empire. This episode explores the little-known story of her collaboration with British physician Thomas Dimsdale, the science of variolation versus vaccination, and the fierce opposition from the Russian Orthodox Church and conservative nobles. We trace how Catherine's personal courage and Enlightenment ideals converged in a public health campaign that saved thousands of lives, even as it revealed the limits of reform in an autocratic state. The discussion covers the Tsarskoe Selo inoculation, the secret journey of Dr. Dimsdale, the role of Count Grigory Orlov, and the establishment of the first smallpox hospitals in St. Petersburg and Moscow. We also touch on the broader context of 18th-century medical knowledge, the global exchange of ideas between Europe and Russia, and the surprising fact that Catherine inoculated her son Paul and grandson Alexander. This episode offers a vivid look at how one empress used her own body as a political instrument to fight a disease that killed millions. #CatherineTheGreat #SmallpoxInoculation #ThomasDimsdale #Variolation #Enlightenment #RussianEmpire #18thCenturyMedicine #HistoryOfMedicine #TsarskoeSelo #GrigoryOrlov #EmpressOfRussia #PublicHealth #RussianOrthodoxChurch #PaulIRussia #AlexanderIRussia #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]