Christian August Brockdorf vs Catherine II

Authors

  • M. M. Safonov Saint Petersburg Institute of History of Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg, Russia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.34680/Caurus-2024-3(4)-65-74

Keywords:

Christian August Brockdorf, Grand Duchess Catherine Alexeyevna, Grand Duke Peter Fedorovich, Shuvalov, A. Р. Bestuzhev, memoirs of Catherine II

Abstract

The article analyzes the conflict between Grand Duchess Catherine Alekseevna and major General of the Holstein service, chief Chamberlain of the heir to the Russian throne Peter Fedorovich Christian August Brockdorf. The author concludes that the wife of the Duke of Holstein-Gotop, to whom Peter secretly entrusted the management of the Affairs of the Duchy, met at Brockdorf a man who opposed her ambitious ambitions, expressed in the desire for personal power. The stumbling block was the question of the exchange of Holstein for Oldenburg and Delmenhorst. When Empress Elizabeth was terminally ill, Catherine negotiated a secret exchange with Denmark and received money from Danish diplomats, which she used to increase her popularity in Russian society. The Grand Duchess sought to deprive her husband of territory and sovereign military forces. In her quest for sole power, she was opposed by Peter's favorite Brockdorf. Catherine's struggle with Brockdorf provoked a family conflict, which was never exhausted during the life of the spouses.

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Author Biography

M. M. Safonov, Saint Petersburg Institute of History of Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Candidate of History, senior researcher
e-mail: m.safonov@list.ru

 

References

Bil'basov V. A. (1900a). Istoriya Ekateriny Vtoroj [The History of Catherine the Great]. Vol. 1. Berlin: Izdanie Fridriha Gottgejnera Publ. 659 p. (In Russian).

Bil'basov V. A. (1900b). Istoriya Ekateriny Vtoroj [The History of Catherine the Great]. Vol. 2. Berlin: Izdanie Fridriha Gottgejnera Publ. 830 p. (In Russian).

Chechulin N. D. (1924). Ekaterina II v bor'be za prestol. Po novym materialam [Catherine II in the struggle for the throne. Based on new materials]. Leningrad: Vremya Publ. 133 p. (In Russian).

Ekaterina II. (1909). Perepiska velikoj knyagini Ekateriny Alekseevny i anglijskogo posla sera Charl'za Uil'yamsa. 1756- i 1757 gg. [Correspondence between Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna and the English Ambassador Sir Charles Williams. 1756 and 1757]. Moscow: Imperial Society of Russian History and Antiquities at Moscow University Publ. 361 p. (In Russian).

Ekaterina II. (1989). Zapiski imperatrisy Ekateriny Vtoroj [Memoirs of Empress Catherine II]. Moskva: Orbita Publ. 748 p. (In Russian).

Safonov M. M. (2002). Zaveshchanie Ekateriny II [The Will of Catherine II]. Saint Petersburg: Lita Publ. 312 p. (In Russian).

Shchepkin E. L. (1901). Padenie kanclera A. P. Bestuzheva-Ryumina (po novym dannym Kopengagenskogo i Venskogo arhivov) [The fall of Chancellor A. P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin (according to new data from the Copenhagen and Vienna Archives)]. Odessa: “Economic” typography and lithography Publ. 54 p. (In Russian).

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Published

2024-12-25

How to Cite

Safonov, M. M. (2024). Christian August Brockdorf vs Catherine II. Caurus, 3(4), 65–74. https://doi.org/10.34680/Caurus-2024-3(4)-65-74

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 4 (2024): Caurus

Section

Articles