Peter the GreatPeter the GreatPresentation by

Shvetsova Alexandra

Peter the Great Peter the Great ((1672-17251672-1725))

Peter the Great was proclaimed Tzar at age 10, but due to a power struggle he had to rule under the patronage of his sister Sofia. He seized control from her when he was just 17. His real name was Peter Alexejevich Romanov.

Modern Russia started with the rule of Peter the Great.

He realized that Russia should be westernized to ensure its independence.

Already fascinating by mechanical inventions, he studied government and business models of the

West.

Peter the Great acceded to the throne at 18th August 1682. The great Russian Tsar

and later the Emperor, he ruled the country during 43 years. Many important

state events happened during this time.

There are some interesting facts from public and private life of Peter the

Great.

In his childhood Peter could play without meals and sleep roundthe clock. But at that he was quite assiduous and diligent.

Peter’s reforms began with the order to shave off beards.

This order concerned all state people, with the exception of clergy and peasants.

Besides, courtiers were ordered to wear the foreign clothes.

For the disobedience was proclaimed death penalty. Sometimes the Tsar has been cutting off boyars’ beards

himself.

During his life Peter the Great learned many trades. He learned shipbuilding, navigation, watches- and paper-

making; besides, he learned the trades of carpenter, bricklayer,

gardener and attended a dissecting room.

Peter the Great couldn’t learn only one thing: the braiding of bast shoes.

He thought there was no trade more difficult than that one.

Peter the Great also took the great interest in medicine, especially dentistry.

He used to like tearing out teeth. Sometimes he went too far and tore out

healthy ones.

According to historic documents Peter the Great

was rather tall – 2,04 meters (6′ 8” inches). But his foot-size was only 38 (7).

In order to learn soldiers to differ the right and the left, Peter the Great ordered them to reel

on the left foot hay and on the right one straw. During the parade drill’s exercises the sergeant major commanded: “hay – straw, hay – straw”,

and the company measured out pace. Meanwhile in many European countries three centuries ago

the concepts “right” and “left” differed only well-educated people. The peasants

also didn’t know the right side from the left one.

Peter the Great was the first who fastened skates to shoes. Earlier skates were simply tied

to shoes with strings and straps. The idea about skates fastened to shoes

Peter the Great took from Holland while he was travelling through the foreign countries.

Peter the Great brought over a lot of interesting things from Holland, too. Among

them were tulips. Bulbs of these plants

appeared in Russia in 1702. The Tsar was so charmed because of these flowers

that he established a special garden’s office to order them from abroad.

Alexander Menshicov,

right-hand man and friend of Peter the Great, was almost alliterated, as many other associates of the Tsar.

Peter the Great disliked hard drinking very much. In 1714 he invented how to fight this problem.He just gave out medals for drunkenness. This medal making from cast ironweighed about 7 kg (without regard for chains).The people in police stations hang the medal on the drinker’s neck and he had towear this decoration during a week.

In November 1724, Peter the Great dived into the cold northern

ocean to assist in a ship rescue. It led to his illness and death in January 1725.