Enlightened despots

If only we could all be free of our "relatives' corrupting influence"...

It was on this day in 1762 that Catherine the Great assumed power in Russia. She accomplished that feat, with the help of her lover, by rallying the army regiments of St. Petersburg against her ruling husband and second cousin, Peter III. As one of the so-called “enlightened despots” of her time, Catherine was a booster of the arts and believed that it would be worthwhile to educate girls. She established the Smolny Institute of Nobel Maidens in St. Petersburg whose purpose, according to its decree, was to “give the state educated women, good mothers, useful members of the family and society.” Girls lived at the school from age six to 18 and were not allowed to go home for visits or see their family members lest they be subject to their relatives’ corrupting influence. Catherine remained on the throne for 34 years, longer than any other female leader in Russian history. WA