Fine. I’ll Just Do It Myself
How an inquisitive German girl became an accomplished Russian Tsarina
Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst was born in 1729 into minor nobility, as the Princess to a province in Germany. Her mother groomed her for a successful marriage so that she could elevate the rank of the family, and eventually managed to secure a meeting with Empress Elizabeth of Russia, who had taken in her nephew, Peter the Third, who was the heir to the Russian throne. At 11, the two met and Catherine despised his affinity for alcohol at such a young age and the fact that he still played with toy soldiers.
Elizabeth liked Sophie, however, and arranged for her marriage to Peter. Sophie then determined that she would win the hearts of the Russian people and set out to learn the Russian language and about the Orthodox church, as she had been taught Lutheran theology.
Sophie grew sick from reading and learning Russian late at night and contracted pneumonia. She nearly died from it, but even as she suffered at death’s door, rumors of how she got sick spread. The people loved her for her love of Russia.
There was a point where Sophie’s mother called for a Lutheran priest to give Sophie her last rites, but Sophie managed to say that she would only have her Orthodox father. Empress Elizabeth was further impressed with…
