Catherine the Great

Catherine the Great came from minor German nobility to rule become Empress of Russia and one of the most extraordinary women of the eighteenth century. Dan is joined today on the podcast by Hilda Hoogenboom author of Noble Sentiments and the Rise of Russian Novels. Hilda is a literary historian who has delved deep into the archive material about Catherine, much of it written by Catherine herself, which details her thoughts about constitutions and how governments should be run. Hilda also helps bust some of the myths around Catherine's life and reign, in particular, the misogynistic rumours about her sex life which have persisted long after the end of her reign.

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