Catherine used all her resources to cover for her weak points. During her reign, Catherine made many reforms in areas of social, educational, and political life of Russia. Of these reforms her educational and economic policies are most gallant as they uniquely transformed Russia.
Catherine the Great improved Russian education especially that of the children and women. Although her institution was originally meant for her grandsons, Catherine adopted basic principles to every childhood education that focused on learning while playing. Furthermore, she built many academies and “Between 1784 and 1798 over 400 new teachers were trained; by the end of the century, there were 3,154 schools, with 790 teachers, and nearly 20,000 pupils of whom some …show more content…
The book held my attention and interest because it was amazing to read about how a German princess became the empress of Russia. Citations are properly documented and backed up with solid evidence. Although the book was very detailed in analyzing Catherine’s ruling methods, some of the facts were hard to follow as it sometimes seemed to jump to a new subtopic. I really enjoyed the organization and depth the book reached in describing each of Catherine’s reforms and her personality. Unlike other authors, Madariaga gave Catherine the dignity and respect she deserved as a ruler. The biography was very informative in analyzing Catherine’s reforms and effects. According to a book review by H.M. Scout, “in a little more than two hundred pages of text, Professor de Madariaga has provided a remarkably fresh, lucid and well-paced survey which is ideal for the student …and also has something to teach the specialist.” As shown by Scout, the biography effectively meets its intention by teaching the readers about Catherine in a less complex context. However, according to historian David Saunders the book contains factual errors, which may not please students. But despite this error, Madariaga uses her mistakes to her advantage by solidly stating her facts with evidence. Furthermore, the book uses both secondary and primary sources that make it credible and well
Catherine the Great improved Russian education especially that of the children and women. Although her institution was originally meant for her grandsons, Catherine adopted basic principles to every childhood education that focused on learning while playing. Furthermore, she built many academies and “Between 1784 and 1798 over 400 new teachers were trained; by the end of the century, there were 3,154 schools, with 790 teachers, and nearly 20,000 pupils of whom some …show more content…
The book held my attention and interest because it was amazing to read about how a German princess became the empress of Russia. Citations are properly documented and backed up with solid evidence. Although the book was very detailed in analyzing Catherine’s ruling methods, some of the facts were hard to follow as it sometimes seemed to jump to a new subtopic. I really enjoyed the organization and depth the book reached in describing each of Catherine’s reforms and her personality. Unlike other authors, Madariaga gave Catherine the dignity and respect she deserved as a ruler. The biography was very informative in analyzing Catherine’s reforms and effects. According to a book review by H.M. Scout, “in a little more than two hundred pages of text, Professor de Madariaga has provided a remarkably fresh, lucid and well-paced survey which is ideal for the student …and also has something to teach the specialist.” As shown by Scout, the biography effectively meets its intention by teaching the readers about Catherine in a less complex context. However, according to historian David Saunders the book contains factual errors, which may not please students. But despite this error, Madariaga uses her mistakes to her advantage by solidly stating her facts with evidence. Furthermore, the book uses both secondary and primary sources that make it credible and well