The future Empress Elizabeth preferred a carefree life, having lost her betrothed (the future Catherine the Great’s uncle) to smallpox. The first time the lively daughter of Peter the Great was begged to seize the throne, she rolled over and went back to sleep. Thanks to family ties with Johanna, Empress Elizabeth would next turn her matchmaking eyes to his former court playmate, the socially astute and well-educated Sophie. His “most conscientious teacher,” she would poignantly recall of her future husband’s troubled early life, “was the ballet master Landé, who taught him to dance.”Ī few years later, it would be this ill-prepared and abused boy whom the childless Russian empress Elizabeth, searching for a legitimate Romanov heir, would pluck away from Prussia. No one seemed to take his education seriously. He found solace in toy soldiers and playing the violin, poorly. On one court visit in 1739, at age 10, Sophie met her recently orphaned second cousin, Karl Peter Ulrich-the only surviving grandson of Tsar Peter I, better known as Peter the Great.Īttuned to the whisperings of court gossip, Sophie overheard that the child duke was hotheaded and, though just 11, “inclined to drink.” Young Peter was physically abused by his primary tutor and often left hungry as punishment. It was part of an early campaign to arrange a marriage for the girl, who, while plain in appearance, had an abundance of charm. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Īlthough anxious over this “devil of pride” in her daughter, Johanna nonetheless brought Sophie on her travels to northern German courts. Years later, in what would become some 700 pages of lively, frank, and self-justifying memoirs and letters, the Russian empress would write of her entry into the world: “I was not very joyfully welcomed.” Their mismatched marriage was an unhappy one, and a daughter was unlikely to raise the family fortunes. Her mother, Johanna, was a master at exploiting social and family connections, while her father, Prince Christian Augustus of Anhalt-Zerbst, had a name more impressive than his quiet frugal self. Sophie Friederike Auguste was raised on the fringes of power in the Prussian empire. ( What’s so great about Frederick? The warrior king of Prussia.) In the end, however, it was Russia that would be transformed by her. At 14, she was summoned to Russia to change her name, religion, and language to marry a future tsar. Her childhood was lacking in parental love but rich in education–and social striving. Just be prepared for your iPod’s battery to run out: no way you’re finishing a game in less than three hours.Īddendum: I hear Civ V is incorporating several elements from Civ Revolution, and I can’t be happier.In 1729 a baby girl was born to fading Prussian nobility in the bleak garrison town of Stettin, Germany (Szczecin, Poland, today). In the end, it’s a great way to waste your time. Choose the Mongols, for example, and every conquered barbarian city comes under your control. (Also, Catherine the Great is very easy on the eyes.) Biggest change from the original, by the way: each civilization has their own specific attributes. I’ve played a few Civs, with Russia perhaps matching my style the best. Civilization Revolution plays like the the original Civ, the one that have my obsessive-compulsive brain hard-wired to finish until all enemies on the board were crushed under the heel of my mighty armies. The game is simpler than I remember from Civ III, but that’s a good thing! It’s a back to basics approach. I wish the map was larger, and that you could play against more than four opponents.īut other than that, it was Civ magic all over again. And, of course, my long lost love, Civilization. I was looking for games to play, and, like the old fogey that I was, I went for games that I was highly familiar with. What brought me back? The iPod/iTouch version of Civilization Revolution. I was older, and there was not enough time in the day. Civ III was fine, but the game was so skewed against world domination strategies (the most fun part of Civ!) that I never warmed up to it the same way I did the previous versions. Somewhere on my old Pentium, there’s an incomplete Lord of the Rings mod on the hard drive. That one was modifiable, and I remember trying futilely to create games based on my own worlds. It really is the gaming world’s version of crack.Ĭiv II came out, and I was just as addicted. I remember being in college and spending 7 pm to 7 am in the computer lab just playing Civ. You know, I’ve been playing Civilization since the first one.
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