Catherine the Great & Potemkin: The Imperial Love Affair

Good bio of both Potemkin and Catherine the great that explains how Russia did conquer Crimea and the Ukraine. My second reading as this is surely topical. Good balance of political and personal history

This book is definitely not for anyone with a scholarly bent. It is merely a popular work, for people who watch television. I turned to it with anticipation as I sadly finished studying The Memoirs of Catherine the Great by Cruse and Hoogenboom (also bought from Amazon. I highly recommend it.) The Montefiore book is huge and it laughingly is presented with no less than nineteen blurbs in praise of it. ("Methinks the lady doth protest too much.") Then come four pages of acknowledgements to people all over the world, including princesses. Clearly he did a lot of running around, in fact a real jogger. Then comes his dedication to Santa (turns out that's his wife) and his apology to her for years of their menage a trois with Potemkin. How ridiculous and presumptuous can you get? He has another book, "I Was Stalin's Mistress" or some such. His latest novel was reviewed as "eminently silly" by a British reviewer. I am writing this review due to my disappointment in this book. I was looking forward to something worthy of Catherine's Memoirs. Instead I got Mickey Mouse - but even MM is livelier than this. I did read the introductory section, Potemkin's death. Dull and boring. It has very much the feeling of a list. The Cossacks looked like this. The woman looked such-and-such. I was so disappointed. But I will still look for a worthwhile biography of Potemkin. Catherine the Great has become a favorite of mine - inspired originally by her kindness to Diderot - and I'd like to know more abut the story. But by a real storyteller. Not this ex-banker.

Outstanding biography of the two people who co-creates the political landscape of the time.

This is a detailed and intimate take on the love affair of Catherine the Great and Potemkin, using their own letters as resource material as well as observations from various political cognoscenti to provide a rounded and robust view on two larger than life figures. We are shown Catherine as full of life, a great lover and generous woman as well as a political creature with no compunction about having her adversaries removed from the field. A fascinating read.

This book is another FANTASTIC history by the Russian Historian, Simon Sebag Montefiore! I love the descriptions and the book was easy and delightful to read. Only, it should have been entitled Potemkin, as the book is mainly on him. Still, if you are ready to learn part of what made Russia what it is today (good and bad), this is a strong and worthwhile read.

Prince Potemkin is the most fascinating of all Catherine the Great's lovers. Sebag Montefiore captures this elusive and larger-than-life spirit with remarkable mastery. His Potemkin sparkles, entices, and escapes all stereotypes. We watch and try to understand him, ending up awed and overwhelmed by this man who thwarts our expectations as much as he must have thwarted them during his lifetime.A masterly biography from a historian who knows his craft and is an engaging story teller in his own right. A must read for anyone interested in the history of the Romanovs.

This is just a fantastic story, it has everything. I'm amazed I had never heard it before. Catherine the Great and Prince Potemkin were both fascinating people as was their relationship. As is so often the case truth is stranger than fiction. I've never wanted to visit Russia before but now St Petersburg is on my list. Also great background on what is happening now in the Crimea. I love this book.

This is a wonderful book, filled with the inside stories of how history was made. Many spicy details are recounted here which do not appear in later books, even Montefiore's own, which surprises me. Potemkin shaped the world more than many of the kings and emperors which we study in school.

This book often reads like a novel, but it is serious history. Potemkin had many loves, but he loved Catherine the Great passionately. Simon Montefiore is fascinated by Potemkin. He has carried out detailed research, and convincing proves that his subject was much more than the creator of the notorious Potemkin Villages. How fascinating is Russian history!

A superbly written account of the life (And loves ) of Count Grigory Potemkin. I admit that I knew very little about this important figure of late 18th Century history but then again, according to Montefiore, even the Russians were in ignorance of his colossal influence over Catherine the Great until relatively recently. A man of huge ambitions he was responsible for the advance of the Russian Empire into the Crimea, the Caucasus and other regions around the Black Sea. His overriding ambition was to conquer Constantinople and establish a new empire - something to which the rulers of Russia in the 19th Century continued to aspire. Montefiore describes the many facets of his character - his organisational skills, his ability as a commander of armies, his love of opulence and women and his great espousal of 18th century culture including the establishmen t of 'English Gardens' wherever he went using the skills of William Gould. Above all though, what shines through the story is the mutual love and reliance between him and The Empress Catherine the Great. A must read for anybody interested in the history of Russia

This book is light, engaging, thoroughly researched and allows one to understand the relationship extant between the Crimea, New Russia and the Russian government. I always read history, but the wealth of detail (but not useless detail) allows one to understand both the nature of Catherine the Great's style of management and the story of the development of Russia south to the Black Sea. A must read even if there is no need to take notes or to struggle through weighty discussions. Just use your background knowledge and enjoy.

Simon researches meticulously, writes vividly and has performed a service to the world and to Russia, by correcting the historical record of a quite exceptional warrior and humanitarian.So the text is quite brilliant.But the production process of the Kindle edition has not been well done. The book is littered with typos, especially near the end, to the point where some parts are difficult to understand.

As always an excellent book from the pen of this great historian. I have enjoyed reading it, and yet I must admit I have not quite finished my reading, but I do not intend to give up.For anyone wanting to know about the history of Russia at this time it is invaluable.Don't be put off by the length of the book.