Tsar Peter III Born: Doomed Husband of Catherine the Great
Peter III ruled Russia for only six months before his wife Catherine organized a coup that removed him from power and likely had him killed. His brief reign is remembered for abolishing the secret police and freeing the nobility from mandatory state service, reforms that survived his overthrow and became pillars of Catherine the Great's far more successful rule.
February 21, 1728
298 years ago
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