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Catherine the Great - II: Not Quite Empress Yet - Extra History (Patreon)

Published:
2017-02-03 18:00:05
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

At last, Sophia (soon-to-be Catherine) met her gallant prince! Well. Maybe not so gallant. Maybe more like "galling." 

PLUS! Vote for Extra Credits in the Shorty Awards up to 3 times per day: http://shortyawards.com/9th/extracreditz

Files

Previews only

Catherine the Great - II: Not Quite Empress Yet - Extra History

Sophia's excitement to meet her future husband deflated when she realized Peter III was a boor who cared nothing about Russia. By contrast, she threw herself into learning the culture with such vigor that she earned the love of the people. She was rechristened Catherine and married Peter... but when he became emperor, his mistakes and her popularity began to add up to a crisis situation. Support us on Patreon! http://bit.ly/EHPatreon (--More below) Grab your Extra Credits gear at the store! http://bit.ly/ExtraStore Subscribe for new episodes every Saturday! http://bit.ly/SubToEC Play games with us on Extra Play! http://bit.ly/WatchEXP Talk to us on Twitter (@ExtraCreditz): http://bit.ly/ECTweet Follow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/ECFBPage Get our list of recommended games on Steam: http://bit.ly/ECCurator ____________ ♪ Get the intro music here! http://bit.ly/1EQA5N7 *Music by Demetori: http://bit.ly/1AaJG4H ♪ Get the outro music here! http://bit.ly/23isQfx *Music by Sean and Dean Kiner: http://bit.ly/1WdBhnm

Comments

Andrew Brooks

Weird, just was on patreon 10 mins ago, shows nothing, walk away from the PC and now looking at my phone on patreon it's apparently been there for 15 mins!? Is Patreon on the PC slower than the App?

Andrew Brooks

Anyway now need to wait till tomorrow to watch. 😔

Jonathan Luoto

And so it begins. The rule of Catherine Zeta Jones.... I mean Catherine the Great

Bright Ops

I feel like Peter's going to be mentioned a bit in Lies... this seems like only the tip of the iceburg that was his screw ups.

Martin Verran

Fifth Comment and Fifth Like...hmmm...maybe it'll be Sixth Comment/like next Time.

RMS Oceanic

If episode one was "Not Quite Catherine yet", will this be "Not Quite Empress Yet", and then "Not Quite Great Yet"? That would be a fun theme naming Oh and the final episode would be "Not Quite Dead Yet"

Michael Jebbett

A whiny man-child undoing the progress of a preceding leader of minority (in this case a woman) for personal gain that undermines the country he rules? AND Russia's involved? Nope, doesn't sound familiar at all.

Christian K.

Why did they use the Russian Federation flag and not the Russian Empire flag?

RMS Oceanic
>>3809519

The one with the Coat of Arms in the corner? I believe that was only for use by the Ruler. The modern Russian Flag has more or less been the same since the early 1700s, Soviet detour aside EDIT: Whoops, missed the Black-Yellow-White one, which was Russia's official flag from 1858 to 1883. Still leaves this flag use above board. Now if the Cross of St Patrick turns up in it before the 1801 Acts of Union... :)

Mornathel

I have a Walpole connection already. After THE Walpole died, his art collection was sold by the 3rd Earl or Orford in 1779 to Cathrine. Btw, I just became a potron to you guys and I am so excited to be able to finally help support Extra History. Thank you for being awesome.

Joo-Hwan Jun

Anyone else had the urge of wanting to kick Peter's jewels with a steel-toed boot?

Teagan Broadhead

BOYSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Christina Maria Jessen

One little note... One of Catherine's lovers, though much later in life, was Bolivar's old ally, Miranda.

Parker

Doesn't Smallpox occasionally cause insanity to its survivors? That might explain the Tsar's actions a bit. If not than maybe the underage drinking that was mentioned in the first episode.

Jim McGeehin

The Second Miracle at the House of Bradenburg probably wouldn't have killed Frederick the way the first one did, but any peace that Empress Elizabeth would have force would have a vastly diminished Prussia. We should give Frederick the Great his due credit, though, his defensive prowess in the campaigns of 1760 and 1761 were handled tremendously well. It was the superior manpower of his opponents that was causing Frederick such ruin, compounded by the failure of the Ottomans to enter the war. Still, the death of Elizabeth and Phillip's Prussia-fanboy status really irked the Russian people the wrong way, and it wouldn't be long before that sort of cultural tension would explode in a coup. Also fun fact: Sophia was actually more closely-related to the Rurikid dynasty of Russia rather than the Romanov.

Kathyrne

This Kitty is so much enjoying the story of Cat the Great. When's the next episode?!?!?!?!? **Great Big Humongous Kitty Hugs!! **

Alex Kyriacou

Am I missing something?? Shouldn't they be going to St. Petersburg??

Christian K.
>>3809519

Ah that makes sense since most of the games I play where they show the Russian flag are set in the 19th century or during the Cold War.

Kacie Rowlette
>>3813751

Probably. Elizabeth spent some of her free time in Moscow, but the then-new Summer Palace is just outside St. Petersburg, in Tsarskoye Selo.

Alex Kyriacou
>>3813751

Ok I stand corrected, I read 'the Romanovs' by Monetfiore and yes, they did initially go to Moscow. My apologies

ExtraCredits
>>3813751

I wondered how many people would notice this. ;) Yes, St Petersburg was the capitol and Elizabeth actually hated Moscow, but she was still holding court in Moscow at the time that Catherine (then Sophia) came racing to meet her.

ExtraCredits
>>3812825

Of course a Kitty would enjoy hearing about another Cat! Next Saturday you'll get more. :)

ExtraCredits
>>3812775

Hey Jim! Remember when I lied to you and said the Second Miracle wasn't going to come up in this series? Whoops! Sorry about that. I checked the script when you asked and must have had a brainfart because obviously it does indeed come up. And glad it did since now we get to hear your extra info about it. :D

ExtraCredits
>>3812486

I'm not certain (not a doctor, of course) but I don't believe smallpox has any lasting effects on brain chemistry. Peter was a messed up dude, but probably not because of smallpox.

ExtraCredits
>>3810068

I've actually been hanging onto that connection for months! I stumbled on it by chance while looking up a connection for one of the other series, and I have been holding onto it ever since. Thank you for joining our little Patreon community, and we hope you love it here!

ExtraCredits
>>3809519

Yep, I was also surprised that this flag was already in use in Catherine's time, but Wikipedia seemed to bear me out (and I trust RMS even more than Wikipedia sometimes, so that's good too). Also, RMS... DRAGONS. FLAGS WITH DRAGONS. FOREVER.

Alex Kyriacou
>>3813751

Just one minor critique for this awesome video: You still kind of imply that Moscow is the capital later in the video, i.e. (Fredrick to Peter III 'Stay in Moscow'). I bet most viewers will pick up on that anyway though. Also, another interesting thing, you use the old Muscovite crown (Monomakh's Cap) for Peter III, even though Peter the Great had introduced more European style crowns, although the magnificent diamond studded Imperial Crown was introduced by Catherine (another thing I just learned :) ). I wonder if this was an artistic comment on his reign, or just a way of associating the audience with Russia? Anyway, I'm excited for the rest, long live Catherine II, Empress and Autocrat of all the Russias!

ExtraCredits
>>3808450

I... am seriously tempted. It even works with the episode ordering. At the time I write this comment I have not yet decided if the desire to do this outweighs my desire to have searchable words in the episode title, but if it does happen, RMS, it will be your fault!

ExtraCredits
>>3808101

Aww, sorry your computer lied to you! There's no delay that I'm aware of (they should update simultaneously) but hey... maybe it was a nice thing to wake up to? I hope so.

ExtraCredits
>>3808227

Oh, you could have a fun time researching him if you wanted to. ;) Though there's an interesting movement now that attempts to reframe him as misunderstood (and at least a little slandered by Catherine and her supporters). I don't quite buy it because I don't think you turn that many people against yourself without being some degree of incompetent, but it is an interesting perspective that helps reframe him more as a person and less as a cartoon villain.

Alex Kyriacou

Watching this makes me really want a Peter the Great series, I know there's a strong Great Northern War contingent among the viewers, so it might happen one day :)

ExtraCredits
>>3813751

Fair point there! I should have caught that, would have been an easy update. Ah well. As for the crown, I did do some research into that, but the best crown I could identify for Peter III was this one which Peter the Great originally wore: <a href="http://pulson.ru/istoriya-i-retro/koronyi-rossiyskoy-imperii-13-foto.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://pulson.ru/istoriya-i-retro/koronyi-rossiyskoy-imperii-13-foto.html</a> You seem to know more about PtG's crown-wearing habits than I do, though, so I probably failed my research role on that one. I would guess he made the switch to European-style crowns after the one I found above, and I just never managed to find a reference for it. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything that was explicitly labeled Peter III's crown, so there was definitely some guesswork going on there. Catherine's crown, being famous, we did indeed find and use as a reference!

Alex Kyriacou
>>3813751

You can kind of see the regalia in the background of Peter III's coronation potrait (the lower left). It does match one of the crowns shown in the link you showed. But, people would be more familiar with Monomakh's cap anyway, so I'm fine with this. Definitely something that could appear in Lies :)

ExtraCredits
>>3813751

Oh my gosh! That is literally the reference image we used to design Peter; I can't believe I missed that stupid crown sitting there! Thank you for finding it, though. I was so close to sleuthing that out correctly!

ExtraCredits
>>3816156

The Great Northern War is not just a contingent; it's practically its own political party by now. I am unceasingly surprised that it hasn't won a vote yet despite being in the top three most popular suggested topics every time.

Martin Verran
>>3808405

The 1934 Film, The Rise of Catherine the Great, is about Catherine's Coup d'etat and the Events Featured in this Episode. The Film itself was Banned in Nazi Germany because its Star, Elisabeth Bergner, was Jewish.

Christina Maria Jessen
>>3812219

He does. He also wrote a comprehension plan for criminal justice reform that includes the abolition of capital punishment. Quite a lot of thoughts on how to organize public education as well. And he's one of the two primary foreign sources for absolutist Denmark along with the British diplomat Molesworth.

Christina Maria Jessen
>>3812486

I think you're thinking of great pox, better known as syphilis. Never heard about smallpox doing anything like that.

Bright Ops
>>3808227

Honestly, I decided to have a look into him and I noticed the movement trying to reframe him as well... While it wasn't exactly an indepth review, the picture I got of Peter was that despite having quite a number of issues as a person, he had a good heart when it came to the bulk of his people (the Serfs) and attempted to do what he could to improve their standard of living... but his inability to even -attempt- to show any kind of respect for politics in his own country, blundering several major events because of it (He could have easily brought an end to the war with Prussia while offering -some- of their lands back while keeping a bit of the hard won gains for Russia and things would have gone at least somewhat better) and the complete lack of respect for his wife lead to his downfall.

Wesley Wu

>this continued for 7 years Jesus christ how horrifying

Jason Youngberg

I know it's been a few centuries, but would it be possible for genetic testing to find out if Catherine's son was Peter's?

ExtraCredits
>>3823337

I suppose if you had intact genetic samples from all three of them, you could tell, but I don't think that we do. Preservation was not the most pressing concern for folks in those times; we don't even have Catherine's crown, as famous and glorious as it was, and have to settle for more modern replicas.

ExtraCredits
>>3823337

That said, leave it to some cheeky historian to track down original clothing or something from all three of them and find viable samples to test with. History is nothing if not an open frontier of discovery!

Alex Kyriacou
>>3823337

Even if Paul was the son of Sergei Salykov (the man that Catherine believed was the biological father) he still would have had some Romanov blood, as Sergei was related to the Romanovs.

ExtraCredits
>>3808450

I did! But I'm going to switch back to normal titles next episode. I liked the little joke, but I don't want Catherine's whole series to be "Not Quite X" implying she was always coming up short.

Ryan Terry

I have been very much enjoying this series, and it brought me on board as a Patreon at last! I like the (coincidental, surely) alignment between this and most recent Epic Rap Battle of History (Ivan vs Alexander had both Fredrick and Catherine in it).

Mornathel
>>3810068

Thank you.I look forward to supporting your valiant efforts to teach amazing history in an amazing way.

Bill Lemmond

Agian, fun and very educational. Happy to support you, with what little I can. :)

ExtraCredits
>>3858467

Welcome to our little community! There wasn't a deliberate effort to align with the recent ERB (this topic was chosen months ago), but if they want to copy us, I'm not complaining! ;) (Also, I kid. I'm sure they choose their topics far in advance as well. I can only imagine how much time those take for them to put together!)