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5 Minute Biographies
United Kingdom
Приєднався 12 кві 2013
5 Minute Biographies brings you interesting things about interesting people in about 5 minutes, whether they be watched on our UA-cam channel, heard on our podcast or read on our website.
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As an Amazon Associate, I am able to earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Any links to product recommendations will clearly state that they take you to the Amazon site. Please note that although I may earn a commission from any purchase you subsequently make, this does not affect the price you pay.
So, for clarity, I, Wayne Armstrong (operating as 5 Minute Biographies) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.fr, amazon.es, amazon.it and amazon.de.
Amazon affiliate disclosure
======================
As an Amazon Associate, I am able to earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Any links to product recommendations will clearly state that they take you to the Amazon site. Please note that although I may earn a commission from any purchase you subsequently make, this does not affect the price you pay.
So, for clarity, I, Wayne Armstrong (operating as 5 Minute Biographies) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.fr, amazon.es, amazon.it and amazon.de.
Catherine the Great
Catherine the Great, born Sophia Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst on May 2nd, 1729, in Stettin, Prussia (now Szczecin, Poland), was the longest-reigning female empress of Russia, ruling from 1762 to 1796. A German princess by birth, she rose to power through a dramatic coup d’état that dethroned her husband, Peter III. Her 34-year reign was marked by territorial expansion, cultural modernisation, and a fervent embrace of Enlightenment ideals.
Catherine’s journey to the Russian throne began in a minor German princedom. With her family facing financial difficulties, her prospects improved when she was invited to Russia in 1744 at the age of 15. Here, she converted to Russian Orthodoxy, taking the name Catherine, and married Peter, heir to the throne. The marriage, however, was a loveless one. Peter was immature and openly disloyal, leading Catherine to cultivate relationships at court and forge alliances with the military.
However, on October 1st, 1754, Catherine gave birth to a son Paul. Officially the son of Peter III he would go on to succeed his mother as emperor of Russia upon her death. In 1776 Paul married Princess Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg and his children included the future Alexander I of Russia and Nicholas I of Russia.
In 1762, with Peter’s unpopularity at its peak, Catherine, backed by the military’s elite guards, staged a bloodless coup. Peter was subsequently deposed and died, though the exact circumstances remain murky. It is alleged that he was assassinated, but after an autopsy it was officially declared that he suffered from a severe attack of haemorrhoidal colic and an apoplexy stroke.
Crowned Catherine II at the Assumption Cathedral in Moscow on September 22nd 1762, the new empress embarked on a grand mission to transform Russia.
A student of Enlightenment philosophers like Voltaire and Montesquieu, Catherine believed in the power of reason and progress. She embarked on a series of reforms to modernise Russia’s legal system, education, and administration. She commissioned a new legal code, the Instruction, which aimed to be more humane and just, though serfdom remained firmly in place. Education was a particular focus, with the establishment of the Smolny Institute, the first state-funded school for girls in Russia.
Catherine was also a shrewd diplomat and military leader. She oversaw a significant expansion of Russia’s territory, particularly in the south. Through victories against the Ottoman Empire and the partitions of Poland, she secured access to the Black Sea and expanded Russian influence in Eastern Europe. This territorial expansion, however, came at the cost of human suffering and the subjugation of non-Russian peoples.
Despite her focus on modernisation, Catherine was not a champion of democracy. She ruled with an absolute hand, suppressing dissent and tightening control over the nobility. A series of peasant rebellions, particularly the Pugachev Uprising of 1773-75, exposed the simmering discontent amongst the peasantry and the limitations of her reforms.
Catherine’s personal life was as colourful as her reign. She surrounded herself with a series of favourites, most notably Grigory Potemkin, with whom she enjoyed a long and influential relationship. These relationships fuelled gossip and scandal throughout Europe but also provided her with trusted advisors and confidantes.
As a patron of the arts and sciences, Catherine transformed St Petersburg into a cultural hub. She amassed a vast collection of Western European art, forming the core of the Hermitage Museum today. She corresponded with leading intellectuals, commissioned philosophical and historical works, and even dabbled in writing herself composing plays and educational texts.
Catherine the Great’s legacy remains complex and contested. Hailed as a moderniser and a strong leader by some, she is also criticised for her ruthless expansionism and her perpetuation of serfdom. Regardless of perspective, her impact on Russia was undeniable. She transformed the nation from a largely isolated state into a major European power, leaving behind a rich cultural legacy and a complex historical figure for future generations to grapple with. Catherine died on November 17th, 1796, at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, leaving behind a vast empire and a reputation that fascinates historians and the public alike.
Catherine’s journey to the Russian throne began in a minor German princedom. With her family facing financial difficulties, her prospects improved when she was invited to Russia in 1744 at the age of 15. Here, she converted to Russian Orthodoxy, taking the name Catherine, and married Peter, heir to the throne. The marriage, however, was a loveless one. Peter was immature and openly disloyal, leading Catherine to cultivate relationships at court and forge alliances with the military.
However, on October 1st, 1754, Catherine gave birth to a son Paul. Officially the son of Peter III he would go on to succeed his mother as emperor of Russia upon her death. In 1776 Paul married Princess Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg and his children included the future Alexander I of Russia and Nicholas I of Russia.
In 1762, with Peter’s unpopularity at its peak, Catherine, backed by the military’s elite guards, staged a bloodless coup. Peter was subsequently deposed and died, though the exact circumstances remain murky. It is alleged that he was assassinated, but after an autopsy it was officially declared that he suffered from a severe attack of haemorrhoidal colic and an apoplexy stroke.
Crowned Catherine II at the Assumption Cathedral in Moscow on September 22nd 1762, the new empress embarked on a grand mission to transform Russia.
A student of Enlightenment philosophers like Voltaire and Montesquieu, Catherine believed in the power of reason and progress. She embarked on a series of reforms to modernise Russia’s legal system, education, and administration. She commissioned a new legal code, the Instruction, which aimed to be more humane and just, though serfdom remained firmly in place. Education was a particular focus, with the establishment of the Smolny Institute, the first state-funded school for girls in Russia.
Catherine was also a shrewd diplomat and military leader. She oversaw a significant expansion of Russia’s territory, particularly in the south. Through victories against the Ottoman Empire and the partitions of Poland, she secured access to the Black Sea and expanded Russian influence in Eastern Europe. This territorial expansion, however, came at the cost of human suffering and the subjugation of non-Russian peoples.
Despite her focus on modernisation, Catherine was not a champion of democracy. She ruled with an absolute hand, suppressing dissent and tightening control over the nobility. A series of peasant rebellions, particularly the Pugachev Uprising of 1773-75, exposed the simmering discontent amongst the peasantry and the limitations of her reforms.
Catherine’s personal life was as colourful as her reign. She surrounded herself with a series of favourites, most notably Grigory Potemkin, with whom she enjoyed a long and influential relationship. These relationships fuelled gossip and scandal throughout Europe but also provided her with trusted advisors and confidantes.
As a patron of the arts and sciences, Catherine transformed St Petersburg into a cultural hub. She amassed a vast collection of Western European art, forming the core of the Hermitage Museum today. She corresponded with leading intellectuals, commissioned philosophical and historical works, and even dabbled in writing herself composing plays and educational texts.
Catherine the Great’s legacy remains complex and contested. Hailed as a moderniser and a strong leader by some, she is also criticised for her ruthless expansionism and her perpetuation of serfdom. Regardless of perspective, her impact on Russia was undeniable. She transformed the nation from a largely isolated state into a major European power, leaving behind a rich cultural legacy and a complex historical figure for future generations to grapple with. Catherine died on November 17th, 1796, at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, leaving behind a vast empire and a reputation that fascinates historians and the public alike.
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I love your voice
Great man. Thank you for your service 🫡
Thomas Paine is without a doubt by favorite of the Founding Fathers.
EVIL COMMIE
One of my favorite underrated actresses ❤
Wasn t he adopted by a Jewish family?
How come you don’t mention he was adopted by a Jewish family? Just read that in a credible source . So which story is true? ua-cam.com/users/shortso_pwQ6zPckE?si=uhAGtZzt-ANDgXhE
I remember reading he went to jail like 19 times or something crazy like that. I’m surprised that was left out. Well I guess you gotta make it as close to 5 minutes as possible
Quel destinée, unique.
What about mistreatment of his kids! You seem to have left that out.
Plasm 32 My Best Chapter of all the time.After plams 23 of my parents.Doing good at home the place where I was born and raised as a young boy before the Deatht of my parents.Moving to the city at the Ophanega.God has been good to me all the way.He keeps his promises.Wish me well
The Bible is real
evil man, why are you celebrating him
He was Castro's political prisoner executioner.
God bless good man great for ocean preservation.
Well to late it 2024 still happy birthday
You ought to read the books. I find it pointless to listen to you. Have a good day.
Racist bullshit,fjb
Creepy! Stooop
thanks, you just made me pass a 100 point assignment 👍
CONARY
He looks like sean cnary😊
You look good for your age
Fascinating life! Your biography of Gus March Phillipps deserves far more views than what I see here.
She's gorgeous 😍
Great video 👍
Thanks 👍
Perhaps Mr Gay Bucket could be made The Patron Saint of Catholic Sexual Offenders who would prefer that nobody outside The Church would put their nose in places where it does not belong
She once stated, "My life has been a series of emergencies." Evidently she was right.
many churches at the time did not allow blacks
I appreciate if there was no background music.
The Battle of Trafalgar... Those were the days! But given the current absolutely pathetic state of the "Royal" Navy - and indeed the entirety of "Great" Britain! - today Admiral Nelson is probably spinning is his grave.
Please fix the reading of these words, or skips.
First time on this site, and love the idea of it. However, the skipping of words - is disconcerting. Will try one more, but sound issues are so off, they need to be addressed.
Grateful for this. I am a teacher. Do you have a transcript of this available for students?
Hi, yes, you can see the written version of the episode on the website - 5minutebiographies.com. Thanks
My independent research, conducted over the last 15 years, included a deep dive into Charles Dickens and the origins of "A Christmas Carol." I uncovered a great deal of evidence suggesting he was not the original author. Rather, he hurriedly re-worked the completed manuscript of an American couple named Mathew and Abby Whittier.
John Dickens (Charles father) owed aboujt 45 pounds. Which is why he was sent to prison. Not a lot of money!
Somewhere around £2k today.
In 1987, The Republic of Marshall Islands issued commemorative stamps/envelope covers in honor of Marshallese 50th anniversary of Amelia Earhart’s WITNESSED landing on Mili Atoll. While Earhart’s last flight from Lae, Papua New Guinea to Howland Island was 2500+ miles, the Purdue donor-funded, govt-subsidized ($$) Lockheed Electra 10-E [fueled with 1151 gallons] had an extended range of 4300+ miles. Lockheed engineer (Robert T. Elliot) and technician (Rollo Christy) interviewed, declared military-grade (Fairchild) reconnaissance cameras were installed to Electra’s modified fuselage. Navy microfilm clerk (Caroll F. Harris) assigned to Earhart’s files, recalled complete photographic details of surveillance camera operation/installation to the Electra’s hull. Aviation pioneer Amelia M. Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan were apprehended circumnavigating the globe in July 1937 near Barre Island (Endriken), Mili Atoll, Marshall Islands, by Imperial Japan for military asset surveillance. ONI discovered Earhart’s Japanese captivity thru radio intercept code breaking, and a 1937 Jaluit Atoll intelligence photo*. Marshall Islands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs in July 2017 certified Jaluit Island (Jabor) dock in 1937 ONI photo (*exhibiting photographic evidence of Earhart & Noonan) was built by Japanese forces in 1936. Interned as prisoners to Japanese regional Jaluit Atoll headquarters, eventually to Saipan’s westside Garapan prison, they endured brutal agony, ultimately expiring on Saipan, never returning home again. The U.S., unprepared for an objectionable skirmish with Japan in 1937, did not enter these Japanese-mandated Marshall Islands. Without fanfare, without ulterior motives, ONI, Adm. Nimitz, USMC Gens. Erskine, Vandegrift, and Watson, the 2nd Marine Division 1944 Saipan invasion commander, substantiated Earhart and Noonan perished on Saipan for aerial reconnaissance through intelligence interrogation of Saipanese civilians and Chamorro guards employed by the Kenpeitai-Japan’s military police. Admiral Nimitz’s 1965 sincere words to S.F.’s KCBS investigator, and Amelia Earhart researcher Fred A. Goerner, “Now that you’re going to Washington, Fred, I want to tell you Earhart and her navigator went down in the Marshalls and were picked up by the Japanese.” Hundreds of native witnesses (B. Amaron: Noonan’s injury medic called Earhart “Meel-Ya”) from Mili, Jaluit , Kwajalein Atolls, and Saipan (J. B. Akiyama upon seeing Earhart, “I thought it was a man”) placed her in Micronesia, west of Howland Island. Scores of US military witnesses: Former Marine code clerk Pvt. Earskin J. Nabers’ report of his receptions of top-secret messages on Saipan revealed the discovery and plans to burn Amelia Earhart’s Electra. Nabers observed plane destroyed on Aslito Airfield, eliminating evidence. Thomas Devine sighted Amelia’s Electra on Saipan’s Aslito’s hanger. Devine attested to initials “FN” and “AE” carved on Amelia’s Garapan prison cell wall, as well as plate on cell door reading “July 29, 1937.” Robert Wallack discovered Earhart’s briefcase and personal effects in blown safe on Saipan. In 1964, Everett Henson Jr. (Sacramento,Ca.), and Bill G. Burks (Dallas,Tx.), came forward as 2 former U.S. Marines who recovered skeletal fragments of Earhart and Noonan in unmarked graves alongside supervising Capt. Tracy Griswold (Erie, Pa.) near a small graveyard on Saipan in July of 1944, depositing remains in metal canisters for transport back home. With federal govt. subsidizing involvement ($$), the U.S. built an airstrip (Howland Is.), docked a Coast Guard ship guiding Amelia (USCGC Itasca), created worldwide flight plan logistics, assigned a 17-day Navy Task Force search, for a covert mission using celebrity status as cover. Follow former US military’s, Saipanese and Marshallese FIRSTHAND corroborated evidence, not backward agency spin-influencing narratives (i.e. Roswell balloon, Oswald, etc.). The govt. steamrolled the public into swallowing fiction while rejecting honorable servicemen, and Pacific Islander testimony (Bikini Atoll A-bomb detonations to add). Remembering perilous war era turmoil, the govt.’s nexus was vanquishing Imperial Japan, thus undercover operatives from 1937 were expendable. As victors of war and subsequent writers of history, the U.S. chose self-serving American egocentrism forthwith, erasing exposed damage to its reputation. Lastly, 170 confidential pages listed in Amelia Earhart’s federal National Archives (Office/Chief of Naval Operations) file, which included a report dated Jan. 7, 1939 declaring Earhart a prisoner in the Marshall Islands are missing. Therefore, Amelia’s Earhart’s tragic war-era captivity, is blacklisted and sequestered by Washington for U.S. pre-war clandestine operations, WWII presidential political legacies, and American-Japanese geopolitical post-war diplomacy. 🤗
Wasn't he a descendant of Thomas Cromwell who also played a major part in influencing the monarchy?
He was distantly related - it is believed that Oliver Cromwell was the great-great nephew of Thomas Cromwell's sister, Katherine Cromwell.
Thank you!!
You're welcome!
I love how short and detailed this video is and also you have suck a lovely voice ❤
Thankyou!
What the heck is wrong with the sound editing?!
Great video, thank you very much , note to self(nts) watched all of it 8:18
Richard,(Dickie) Wells❤❤❤❤
Să-mi Rps Rps Rps❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Sweet, relaxing and warm personality, with his huge sense of humor and charming singing style. A great entertainer- Dean Martin. Above all, A beautiful human. He’ll always be loved, remembered. What a 5mins bio could tell so much about a man- A legend. Thank you for the post.
When i skiped 1 day school i did not get a job, i got a kicked in the rear end.
John Wayne and Clark Gable are the best of them all God bless them
Thank you 🙏 great 👍 man 🎺🕺🏼☝️story 👏👏👏👍🎥
To a T I'm king of America! As a president just like this man I concord over all!
❤❤❤