Catherine the Great and the 1767 Legislative Commission

In 1767, Catherine the Great convened the Legislative Commission, a grand experiment in Russian governance that brought together over 500 delegates from across the empire — nobles, townspeople, state peasants, and even non-Russian minorities — to draft a new legal code. Drawing on Enlightenment ideas, Catherine prepared her 'Instruction' (Nakaz), a blueprint for reform that borrowed from Montesquieu and Beccaria, but the commission quickly fractured as delegates pushed their own agendas. This episode explores the Nakaz, the debates over serfdom and noble privileges, and why the commission was dissolved without producing a new code. We look at the deputies' petitions, Catherine's balancing act between reform and autocracy, and the commission's legacy as a precursor to later reforms. Featuring the voices of deputies like Grigory Korobin and Prince Mikhail Shcherbatov, and the impact of the Pugachev Rebellion on Catherine's reformist zeal. #CatherineTheGreat #LegislativeCommission #Nakaz #Enlightenment #RussianHistory #SerfdomDebate #Montesquieu #Beccaria #GrigoryKorobin #MikhailShcherbatov #1767 #18thCentury #RussianEmpire #LegalReform #CatherineII #FexingoHistory #History #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo