How did Catherine the Great die?
I have received a few inquiries about the so-called “horse story”. I have been studying every aspect of the life of Catherine the Great. One eminent historian explained how such a preposterous story could have started: apparently the anti-monarchy forces in France circulated such rubbish soon after Catherine’s death throughout Europe with the intention of discrediting her many achievements. Catherine had become the enemy of France after she had voiced sharply her outrage when word had reached St. Petersburg that the king and queen had been executed. She ordered the court to declare 6 weeks of mourning on Oct. 27, 1793. This proclamation was in memory of Marie Antoinette, who had been killed a few months after her husband, King Louis XVI. She denounced these evil forces very vocally. She also welcomed many French refugees to St. Petersburg. Each of them had to swear allegiance to the Imperial Crown of Russia. She was very anxious not to transport the seeds of revolution to her own count
