Latest / The Romanov Dynasty: Rise, Power, and Bloody End — Fexingo History / Catherine the Great and the Potemkin Villages Myth
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about the later Romanovs — the crises, the wars, the tragic end. But there's one figure from the eighteenth century who looms just as large, and we haven't really touched on her yet: Catherine the Great. Luna: Catherine the Great — the German princess who took the throne. Right. Lucas: Exactly. She reigned for 34 years, expanded Russia's borders massively, and became the very symbol of enlightened despotism — at least in theory. But what I want to focus on today is one of the most famous myths about her: the so-called Potemkin villages. Luna: Oh, those fake villages built to impress the empress? I've heard that story. Lucas: That's the one. The legend goes that during Catherine's grand tour of New Russia and the Crimea in 1787, her favorite — and possibly secret husband — Grigory Potemkin, erected elaborate fake settlements along the Dnieper River to convince her that the region was more prosperous than it really was. Peasants were supposedly moved from place to place to create the illusion of thriving villages, and the whole thing was a gigantic sham. Lucas: It's a great story. It's also mostly fiction. Let's start with the actual context. Catherine had been corresponding with Voltaire and Diderot, styling herself as an enlightened monarch. She had just annexed Crimea from the Ottoman Empire in 1783, and she wanted to see her new acquisitions firsthand. Luna: So the tour itself was real. What was Potemkin's actual role? Lucas: Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin was probably the most powerful man in Russia after Catherine. He had overseen the colonization of New Russia — Novorossiya in Russian — which included modern-day southern Ukraine and Crimea. He founded cities like Kherson, which he intended as a major shipbuilding center, and later Nikolaev and Sevastopol. The tour was a chance to show off what he'd built. Lucas: Catherine traveled with a huge entourage: foreign ambassadors, including the Austrian emperor Joseph II, who joined her part of the way. The journey lasted months. They floated down the Dnieper on elaborately decorated galleys, stopping at various settlements. And yes, Potemkin had prepared — but not by faking villages. Luna: He actually built real things, didn't he? Lucas: Absolutely. Kherson was a real city with a fortress, a shipyard, and a functioning port. Sevastopol had a newly constructed naval base. Potemkin had brought in settlers — Russians, Ukrainians, Greeks, Germans, Serbs — and offered them land and tax breaks. The region was genuinely developing, though it was still sparse and rough around the edges. Lucas: What Potemkin almost certainly did was stage-manage the experience. He lined the riverbanks with soldiers in parade uniforms, had peasants clean up and dress in their best clothes, and maybe even moved some livestock closer to the route. But there's no evidence of entire fake villages constructed from painted canvas, which is how the myth is usually told. Luna: So where did the myth come from? Lucas: The earliest version seems to have been spread by Catherine's political enemies — particularly the Saxon diplomat Georg von Gelbig, who wrote a hatchet job biography of Potemkin. Gelbig claimed that Potemkin used painted cardboard houses that were dismantled and moved downstream overnight. Later historians, especially in the West, repeated it uncritically. Lucas: There's also the fact that Catherine's critics back in Russia — like her former minister Alexander Bezborodko — were jealous of Potemkin's influence. The myth served as a convenient way to smear both him and the empress, implying that Catherine was either deluded or complicit in a grand deception. Luna: And the myth stuck. It's still taught in schools sometimes. Lucas: Exactly. The phrase 'Potemkin village' entered the language to mean any impressive facade that masks a shoddy reality. But the real Potemkin was a highly effective administrator and military commander. He reorganized the army, founded the Black Sea Fleet, and directed the successful siege of Ochakov during the Russo-Turkish War of 1787–1792. Lucas: He also had a larger than life personality. He was known for his extravagant banquets, his mood swings, and his unusual relationship with Catherine — she called him 'my dear friend' and 'my pupil' in their letters. Some historians believe they married secretly in 1774. Luna: And Catherine trusted him completely. That's rare for a Romanov ruler. Lucas: Very rare. Most of her other favorites — she had a string of them — were kept for a few years and then retired with a palace and a pension. But Potemkin remained her partner in power until his death in 1791. When he died, Catherine famously wept for days. Lucas: Let's talk about one specific thing the tour actually accomplished: it cemented the annexation of Crimea. Catherine visited the new territories with the Austrian emperor at her side, sending a clear message to the Ottomans that Russia was there to stay. The tour itself was a piece of theater, but not a fraudulent one — it was a performance of power. Luna: And Crimea is still a flashpoint today. That annexation set a pattern. Lucas: It did. Catherine founded cities that are still major today: Sevastopol became the home of the Russian Black Sea Fleet; Odessa, though founded later, grew out of the same wave of colonization. Potemkin was given the title Prince of Taurida — Taurida being the ancient Greek name for Crimea. Lucas: If you're coming with us through these conversations about Russia's imperial history, you might have noticed how often perception and reality blur — from Peter the Great's window on Europe to Catherine's southern project. History podcasts like this one take time to research and produce. A couple of dollars a month genuinely makes a difference — it keeps the show ad-free and independent. If you've gotten something out of these episodes, think about throwing a few bucks at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to support the work. And we really appreciate it. Lucas: So back to Catherine's tour. After the journey, Potemkin was accused of exaggerating the region's prosperity, but the facts tell a different story. In the years after the tour, New Russia continued to grow. By the time Potemkin died, the Black Sea Fleet numbered over 20 ships of the line. The settlements he established became real cities. Lucas: One of the most impressive figures involved was Alexander Suvorov, the legendary general who never lost a battle. He was responsible for fortifying the Crimea and later led the storming of Izmail. And Admiral Fyodor Ushakov commanded the Black Sea Fleet, winning victories at Fidonisi and Tendra. Luna: So the myth of Potemkin villages really does a disservice to what was actually achieved. Lucas: Exactly. It reduces a complex historical project to a punchline. Potemkin was flawed — he was notoriously disorganized, he embezzled funds, he lived lavishly — but the core of the myth is false. The villages were real, the development was real, and the strategic gains were enormous. Lucas: Why did the myth endure? Partly because it's a good story, and partly because it confirmed Western prejudices about Russia as a backward, fake empire. Even today, when politicians talk about 'Potemkin villages' they're tapping into that old stereotype. Luna: And it's always easier to believe the cynical version. Lucas: Right. But the historical record shows that Catherine and Potemkin were engaged in a genuine nation-building project — flawed, expensive, and imperialist, but not a facade. Next time you hear someone use the phrase 'Potemkin village', you'll know there's more to the story.