Catherine I of Russia to bribe the Ottoman grand vizier Baltacı Mehmet Pasha into allowing a retreat. Mehmet allowed the retreat, whether motivated by the bribe or considerations of trade and diplomacy. In any case Peter credited Catherine and proceeded to marry her again (this time officially) at Saint Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg on 9 February 1712. Catherine was Peter's second wife; he had previously married and divorced Eudoxia Lopukhina, who had borne him the Tsarevich Alexis Petrovich. Upon their wedding, Catherine took the style of her husband and became Tsarina. When Peter elevated the Russian Tsardom to Empire, Catherine became Empress. The
Tsarevna Catherine Ivanovna of Russia Russia in 1722 with her surviving daughter. The couple never divorced, but they never saw each other again. On the death of Peter II in 1730, the Supreme Privy Council considered Catherine as a candidate for the tsardom as the eldest daughter of Ivan V, but the fear that her spouse would gain influence in Russia and her own independent and capricious nature led to her widowed younger sister Anna, Duchess of Courland, being chosen instead, because she was considered more docile. Catherine was involved in the events of 7 March 1730, when a group of nobles (between 150 and