A Brief History
On October 22, 1721, Peter I, better known as Peter the Great, Czar of All Russia for nearly four decades at this point, announced the existence of the Russian Empire, the first time Russia had been so declared. What was so “great” about Peter?
Digging Deeper
Well, for one thing, he created the Russian Empire, which he proclaimed after defeating Sweden. Ruling with an iron fist, Peter was a prototypical absolute monarch. Some of his accomplishments include modernizing the Russian Navy and switching to the Julian Calendar, as well as personally updating the written Russian language.
While he was at it, busily modernizing Russia, he also founded the city that bears his name, though named after the Apostle Peter, St. Petersburg, a city today that boasts a population of about six million that served as the capital of Russia until 1918.
A sort of renaissance man, Peter also fostered science and education to pull Russia out of the grasp of myth and superstition. Peter also reformed the Russian government Another “great” aspect of Peter was his imposing height, six feet eight inches tall, leading other to call him a “Modern Goliath!”
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: Who is your favorite Russian leader?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Hughes, Lindsey. Peter the Great: A Biography. Yale University Press, 2004.
Massie, Robert. Peter the Great: His Life and World. Knopf, New York, 2009.
