Catherine I of Russia Catherine I of Russia Catherine I (, born , later known as Marta Samuilovna Skavronskaya; – ) was the second wife of Peter the Great and Empress of Russia from 1725 until her death. The life of Catherine I was said by Voltaire to be nearly as extraordinary as that of Peter the Great himself. There are no documents that confirm her origins. Said to have been born on 15 April 1684 (o.s. 5 April), she was originally named Marta Helena Skowrońska. Marta was the daughter of Samuel Skowroński (later spelt "Samuil Skavronsky"), a Roman Catholic peasant from the Polish–Lithuanian
Sophia Alekseyevna of Russia except on Easter day. She died in the Novodevichy Convent six years later. She was fictionally portrayed in Chinese novelist Jin Yong's novel "The Deer and the Cauldron" in which the young protagonist Wei Xiaobao went to Russia and helped her lead the coup against her half-brother Peter I. It was suggested that this event led to the peace between the Qing Empire and Russia in the Nerchinsk Treaty. Vanessa Redgrave portrayed the character of Sophia Alekseyevna in the 1986 miniseries "Peter the Great". Her performance received an Emmy award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries. Sophia Alekseyevna