Author(s): Savannah Ottmar

Presentation: oral

In this paper I investigate the nature of the relationship between Catherine II of Russia and the French philosophe Voltaire. I seek to identify why Catherine reached out to Voltaire and which particular benefits were expected and registered for each of them, partially through examining their significant correspondence from 1763 through 1778. I argue that Catherine reached out to Voltaire in order to use his influence as one of the most famous and widely read philosophers of the Enlightenment to construct her reign as legitimate to the world. As a new, foreign-born, female leader coming to power in the wake of the Russian emperor’s assassination (with rumors of her collusion), Catherine needed to be viewed as a legitimate ruler in the eyes of the cultivated West and to give sanction to her more radical initiatives. Voltaire was an important fulfillment of this—he also needed to rebuild his state of influence, especially in France; by involving himself with and celebrating Catherine he could raise his intellectual and popular authority. I frame my arguments from the perspective of Catherine’s political motivations and Voltaire’s professional ones, feeding too off each’s vanity and desire for personal celebration. This was a mutually beneficial relationship.

The College of Idaho     2112 Cleveland Blvd Caldwell, ID  8360     USA 208-459-5011    800-2C-IDAHO