Peter III of Russia
Emperor of Russia in 1762 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Peter III Fyodorovich (Russian: Пётр III Фёдорович, romanized: Pyotr III Fyodorovich; 21 February [O.S. 10 February] 1728 – 17 July [O.S. 6 July] 1762) was Emperor of Russia from 5 January 1762 until 9 July of the same year, when he was overthrown by his wife, Catherine II (the Great). He was born in the German city of Kiel as Charles Peter Ulrich of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp (German: Karl Peter Ulrich von Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp), but he was a grandson of Peter the Great and a great-grandson of Charles XI of Sweden.
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| Peter III | |
|---|---|
 Portrait by Lucas Conrad Pfandzelt, c. 1761 | |
| Emperor of Russia | |
| Reign | 5 January 1762 – 9 July 1762 |
| Predecessor | Elizabeth |
| Successor | Catherine II |
| Duke of Holstein-Gottorp | |
| Reign | 18 June 1739 – 9 July 1762 |
| Predecessor | Charles Frederick |
| Successor | Paul |
| Born | Karl Peter Ulrich of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp (1728-02-21)21 February 1728 Kiel, Holstein-Gottorp, Duchy of Holstein |
| Died | 17 July 1762(1762-07-17) (aged 34) Ropsha, Russian Empire |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | |
| Issue |
|
| House | Romanov-Holstein-Gottorp |
| Father | Charles Frederick, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp |
| Mother | Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia |
| Religion | Russian Orthodox prev. Lutheran |
| Signature |  |
Peter III could barely speak Russian and pursued a strongly pro-Prussian policy, which made him an unpopular leader. The two countries were on opposing sides of the Seven Years' War, and Russian troops were threatening Berlin at the time of Peter's accession to the throne. He immediately switched sides in the war and withdrew his troops from Prussia, undoing hard-earned gains. He was deposed by troops loyal to his wife, Catherine, who, despite her own German origins, was a Russian nationalist. She succeeded him as empress. Peter died in captivity soon after his overthrow, perhaps with Catherine's approval as part of the coup conspiracy. However, another theory is that his death was unplanned, resulting from a drunken brawl with one of his guards.[1]
Despite his generally poor reputation, Peter made some progressive reforms during his short reign. He proclaimed religious freedom and encouraged education, sought to modernize the Russian army, abolished the secret police, which had been infamous for its extreme violence, and made it illegal for landowners to kill their serfs without going to court. Catherine reversed some of his reforms and carried through others, notably the annexation of church property.[2]