A) Petrine period – pick one of the following (30% — 1-2 double spaced pages):
1) Documents on Peter I. and Alexis (Source Book, 338-41): How do these documents help you understand Peter’s complicity in his son’s death?
2) Documents on the Russian army (Source Book, 326-28, 332-34): What insights can you gain from these documents about Russia’s rise as a major military power?
3) Pososhkov’s Book on Poverty and Wealth (Source Book, 358-61): What does Pososhkov tell us about the state of Russian society at the end of Peter I’s reign?
B) Catherinian period – pick on of the following (30% — 1-2 double spaced pages):
1) Catherine II in her own words (Source Book, 395-96; Source Book Supplement, 396-97, 403-6): What do these sources reveal about Catherine’s personality? What were her aspirations as empress of Russia?
2) Catherine through foreign eyes (Source Book Supplement, 397-403): How good are these accounts written by French and English diplomats? Did these diplomats understand anything important about Catherine II and her rule’s meaning for the future of Russia?
3) Records of the Legislative Commission, 1767-68 (separate pdf on I-learn): Compare and contrast the voices of nobles, townsmen, and peasants. What do theses voices reveal about the state of Russian society and the prospect of Catherine’s progressive reform projects?
Sample Solution
