CATHARINE. 
907 
died. Elizabeth, who loved him to excels, became in- 
confolable, and, in the bitternefs pf her grief, made a vow 
of celibacy. This vow, though fenfual, and even lafci- 
vious, (he kept fo far as never publicly to acknowledge 
any man as her huftiand ; and, upon her afcending the 
throne of her anceftors, (he called Iter nephew the duke 
of Holftein Gottorp to her court, where he was folemnly 
proclaimed, when fourteen years of age, grand duke, with 
the title of imperial highnel?, and declared (uccellor to 
the emprefs Elizabeth. To (ecu re the fucceflion in the 
family of Peter the Great, the emprefs was very defirous 
to have her ncphe. married ; and the princefs of Anhalt- 
Zerbft, not ignorant of the tcnder : brance w.hich (lie 
(till preferved for her brother, conceived, tlie idea of pla¬ 
cing, by means of it, her daughter on the throne of Ruf- 
fia. She communicated her plan to the king of Pruflia, 
who not only applauded it, but lent her his afliflance to 
carry it into execution. Full of ambitious hopes, there¬ 
fore, the princefs repaired with her daughter to St. Pe- 
terfburgh, where (he was received witli friendfliip by Eli¬ 
zabeth, and w here the young Sophia foon made a confi- 
derable impreflion on the mind of the grand duke. As 
Peter was well made, of a good figure, and, though un¬ 
educated, not deftiiute of natural talents, the attachment 
became reciprocal ; and - the princefs of Zerbfl, throwing 
herfelf at the feet of the emprefs, allured her, that the 
two lovers were attached to each other by a pafiion uncon¬ 
querable; and, calling to her mind the love which (lie had 
herfelf borne to the prince of Holftein, conjured her to 
promote the happinefs of that prince’s neice. The ftrata- 
gem fucceeded. The choice of Elizabeth was next day 
announced to the council and to the foreign minifters ; and 
preparations were made for celebrating the marriage with 
a magnificence worthy of the heir of the throne of Ruftia. 
In the mean time the grand duke was feized with the fmall- 
pox, from which, though he recovered, it was with fuch 
a change of features, as rendered him extremely ugly, and 
converted the love of the young princefs of Anhalt, if in¬ 
deed (lie ever felt for him that paffion, into difgnft. She 
was not, how ever, of a difpofition to let a disfigured coun¬ 
tenance frighten her from a throne. She embraced the 
Greek religion, changed her name, and, with the appro¬ 
bation of Elizabeth, was married with great pomp to her 
nephew the grand duke. 
For forrte time this ill-matched pair lived together, tho’ 
without love, yet on terms apparently decent; but a mu¬ 
tual diftike gradually took place between them, which the ' 
courtiers quickly difcovered, and were at pains to foment 
into hatred. Peter, who was once comely, was now ugly, 
and his mind was uninformed. Catharine, if not a beau¬ 
ty, was at lead a fine woman, and highly accompliftied. 
She could find no entertainment in his converfation, and 
he felt himfelf degraded by her fuperiority. A fabtion 
was formed at court, headed by the great chancellor Bef- 
tuchefF, to exclude the grand duke from the throne, and 
to place Catharine at the head of affairs ; and, to accom- 
plilh this end, every art was employed to fill the mind 
of the emprefs Elizabeth with jealoufies of her nephew, 
and w ith a contempt of his character. He was reprefent- 
ed at one time as extremely ambitious, and capable of the 
rnoft daring enterprifes, to get immediate polTcHion of the 
throne ; and at another, as a wretch given up to drunken- 
nefs and to every unprincely vice. Catharine, in the mean 
time, languifhed for that happinefs which (he could not 
find in the fociety of her hufband. Site was fond of plea- 
fure ; but it was that comparatively refined pleafure which 
(lie had enjoyed at the court of Berlin. She loved ball?, 
mil fie, and elegant converfation, and could take no ihare 
in the drunken revels of Peter. Among the young men 
with whom lie was fdrrounded, his chamberlain SoltikofF 
was particularly remarked for the elegance of his fade and 
graces of his perfon ; and, though yet fcarcely more than 
a boy in years, he was faid to have obtained the favours 
of fcveral ladies of the court. Succeh had made him con-, 
fkient and ambitious ; and his ambition prompted him to 
4 
afpire at making a conqueft even of the grand duchefs. By 
ftudying her tafle, and contriving to amufe her, he was at 
laft fuccefsful; and obtained from her imperial highnefs 
every favour which lie could with : but he enjoyed not 
his fortune with moderation, and his enemies contrived to 
get him placed,in an honourable office at a diflance from 
the court. He was commifiioned to repair to Stockholm, 
with the title of envoy extraordinary, to notify to the king 
of Sweden the birth of Paid Petrovitch, (the prelent em¬ 
peror), of whom the grand duchefs had juft been deliver¬ 
ed, Otlober 1, 1754. The prefumi tuous Soltikoff, proud 
of the employment, fet off witli hade to Sweden, and left 
it with equal fpded. But fcarcely had he quitted Stock¬ 
holm, on the wings of love and ambition, when he was 
(topped on the road by a courier, who put into his hands 
an order to go immediately to Hamburgh, and there to 
refide in the quality of minifter plenipotentiary from the 
court of Ritffia. 
Catharine forfome time preferved her attachment to the 
exiled chamberlain ; but, all at once, the prefence of a 
ftranger, whom fortune had brought to the court of Ruf- 
fia, made her forget the lover whom (he no longer faw. 
This perfon was Staniflaus Poniatowlky, the late king of 
Poland, who fit'll made his appearance at St. Peterfburgh 
in the tram of the Britilh ambaffador, and very quickly 
gained the affection of the grand duchefs. In carrying on 
this intrigue, the lovers were not fo cautious as to deceive 
the eyes of the envious courtiers, who reported to the em¬ 
prefs Elizabeth not only all that they faw, but whatever 
they fufpefted. Elizabeth was incenfed, and commanded 
Poniatowlky to quit without delay the dominions of Ruf- 
fia. The accompliftied Pole obeyed; but foon returned 
clothed with a character which made him in fome degree 
independent of the emprefs. The count de B; uhl, then 
prime minifter to the king of Poland, faw of what import¬ 
ance it was to his matter to have a powerful intereft at the 
court of Ruftia. He was likewife no ftranger to the paf¬ 
fion which the grand duchefs entertained for Poniatowlky; 
and, having got that nobleman decorated with the order 
of the White Eagle, fent him back to St. Peterfburgh in 
the quality of minifter plenipotentiary from the republic 
and king of Poland. Nor was this all that Bruhl did for 
the two lovers. Being informed by the chancellor Beftu- 
chefF, that the grand duke and grand duchefs were lan- 
guiftiirfg in a date of penury unworthy of their rank, he 
remitted to Poniatowlky 6000 ducats, to be employed in 
fuch a manner as lie might judge beft for fecuring the fa¬ 
vour of (lie princq and his contort. The ambaffador pro¬ 
fited by the to counfels and benefadtions. He was already 
hire of the grand duchefs’s heart, and he very quickly 
gained the favour of her hufband. The grand duchefs 
w - as fo blinded by her paffion, that (he was never without 
Poniatowlky in her company. She devoted to him the 
whole of her time ; and (lie made this intimacy fo little a 
fecret, that public report was loud to her prejudice. In 
the mean time (lie was delivered of the princefs Anne, 
who lived only fifteen months. The grand duke was the 
only perfon about court who feemed to know nothing of 
what was patting. His whole time was occupied in copy¬ 
ing, with fervile affectation, the air, the manners, the tone, 
of the king of Pruflia ; and in drefling a little army at Ora- 
nianbaum in the Pruffian uniform. His eyes, however, 
were at 1 a ft opened. Some of the courtiers, from hatred 
to the chancellor, who countenanced the intrigue between 
the grand duchefs and the Poli(h ambaffador, roofed his 
jealqufy in order to deftroy their enemy. They fucceeded. 
He forbade his wife to be feen with Poniatowlky, and pre¬ 
vailed with the emprefs to deprive the chancellor of his 
office, and to banifii him to an eftate which he had 120 
verfts ( beyonds Mofcow. Catharine had now to fupport 
at once the averfion of her hufband, the indignation of the 
emprefs, the infulting difdain of a court, v. liich a few days 
‘ efore were lavifti of its afliduities and ftniles : and what 
afilidled her mo ft of all, the dread of lofing for ever her 
favourite Poniatowlky. - Iler courage, however, did not; 
forfakc 
