Catherine's Manifesto of Silence

There was probably a lot of head scratching and puzzlement in St. Petersburg on June 4, 1763. On that day, to the beating of drums, a manifesto was read out in all the city’s major squares and public places: the Manifesto of Silence, also known as the «Указ о неболтании лишнего», which might be translated as “The Decree on Tongue Wagging” or “The Anti-Prattle Decree.” The manifesto was basically a stern warning by Catherine II to people of “corrupt morals and thoughts,” whom she proclaimed were making judgments on matters “not pertaining to them” and infecting “other weak-minded people” without regard for “the condemnation and dangers to which such indecent ruminations are subject.” In other words, watch what you say or you might find yourself in hotter water than you realize.

The manifesto probably caused quite a few Petersburgers to delve into their memories and ask themselves whether something they said might have brought on this expression of royal wrath. Meanwhile, the true targets of Catherine’s displeasure knew exactly who they were. Among these “corrupt blabbermouths” were some who, just one year before, in June 1762, had helped Catherine ascend to the throne by overthrowing her despised husband, Peter III. Some of them may even have had a hand in Peter’s mysterious death, which supposedly came about inadvertently, in the course of a quarrel with one of his jailers. (“And all of a sudden, there he was, dead!”)

The members of the nobility who had helped “mother empress” attain the throne knew their futures were secure, as Catherine had always been well-disposed toward the aristocracy in general and those most devoted to her in particular. However, some who participated in the conspiracy that toppled Peter were doing better than others. The Orlov brothers, young officers of undistinguished lineage, were not only rewarded with vast estates and the peasants that went with them, but after a few months were elevated to the title of count.

Everyone knew that the handsome Grigory Orlov was the empress’ “favorite” (or, to put it less delicately, lover) and that his cunning and clever brother Alexei had, apparently, organized Peter’s murder and enjoyed great influence at court. This was all more or less tolerable. Favorites were nothing new at the Russian court. What was harder to swallow was rumors that the empress was planning to marry “Grishka” Orlov. That was too much.

There was also talk that the aged Field Marshal Bestuzhev-Ryumin was collecting signatures for a petition to humbly beseech the empress to marry and give Russia an heir. Of course, Russia already had an heir in the person of Catherine’s nine-year-old son Paul, but she was so disturbed by the idea that he would one day gain the throne that she herself alluded rather openly to her marital infidelity and the fact that Paul was not Peter’s son. Furthermore, child mortality was quite high in those days, and just one bout of smallpox could disrupt the line of succession. Better to have an heir in reserve. Such were the weighty considerations of state behind the idea that Catherine should marry. And everyone knew that Grigory Orlov was the most likely groom.

There were also rumors that Count Nikita Ivanovich Panin, who also played a role in bringing Catherine to power and was in charge of Paul’s education, had asked the empress whether it was true that she was planning to marry. Catherine had answered in the negative, but her tone and facial expression caused Panin to doubt her sincerity. Panin purportedly told the empress that Russia was prepared to pledge allegiance to Catherine II, but not to a “Mr. Orlov.” Whether or not the Count actually summoned the courage to utter such words is a matter of speculation.

Subsequent events are clouded in obscurity. Apparently a certain Fyodor Khitrovo, a gentleman of the bedchamber who had recently quarreled with Grigory Orlov, began to recruit others dissatisfied with the Orlovs’ towering presence at court to join him in a plot to kill the brothers. One member of the conspiracy immediately wrote a denunciation and brought the affair out into the open.

Interestingly, Catherine was far more worried about her own safety than the life of her lover and his brothers. During the first years of her reign, the empress was in constant fear of a coup. After all, as a minor German princess brought to Russia by a twist of fate, she understood just how tenuous her claim to power was. Such a coup would hardly be out of keeping with Russian history (either before or after her reign). Therefore, the first thought that came to her mind upon hearing of the plot was that the conspirators wanted to kill not only the Orlovs, but her own royal personage.

Grigory Orlov

When interrogators brought to light the fact that, in reality, the conspirators merely wanted to protect their empress from her over-ambitious favorite, her wrath evaporated. Those involved in the plot survived more or less unscathed, and Khitrovo was merely expelled from court and sent to live on his estate. Apparently, scheming to kill the Orlovs did not strike the empress as a particularly heinous crime, especially as the conspirators did not have time to take any concrete steps.

With the ceremonial reading of the “Anti-Prattle Decree,” the case was brought to a close, all tongue-waggers were appropriately chastened, and any thought Catherine may have entertained of marriage to Grigory Orlov was nipped in the bud. Whether she was influenced by Panin’s purported words about “Mr. Orlov” or by a general sense that marriage to him would deal a blow to her popularity (or perhaps a simple lack of desire for such a union) will forever remain a mystery. Nevertheless, the Orlovs retained their influence at court, and for some time Grigory Orlov continued to enjoy Catherine’s favor.

Nikita Panin, however, was soon sent into retirement – not for any impertinent words he may or may not have uttered, but for instilling too much free-thinking in Paul and for too openly grooming him to rule the country. It did not help that Panin was an advocate of limiting the power of the sovereign. Catherine had little patience for such radical ideas.

Did Catherine ever marry? There is some evidence to suggest that she entered into a secret marriage with her later and most prominent favorite, Grigory Potyomkin, however the union was never announced either to her court or to the Russian people.

Fyodor Khitrovo (whose last name, incidentally, translates as “cunning, crafty”) went down in history as one of Russia’s most selfless conspirators, having brought the tsaritsa to the throne without coveting rank or honor for himself. His driving desire was the country’s wellbeing. After 1863, he lived eleven years at Troitskoye, his estate in Oryol Province, where he died in 1774.

Perhaps he took comfort in the thought that he played a role in saving Russia from being ruled by “Mr. Orlov.”