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
Michael of Russia and western music began to take hold in Russia. From his marriage to Eudoxia Streshneva, Michael fathered 10 children: Michael of Russia Michael I of Russia (Russian: Михаи́л Фёдорович Рома́нов, "Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov") () became the first Russian Tsar of the House of Romanov after the zemskiy sobor of 1613 elected him to rule the Tsardom of Russia. He was the son of Feodor Nikitich Romanov (later known as Patriarch Filaret) and of Xenia (later known as "the "great nun"" Martha). He was also a nephew of Feodor I (the last Rurikid Tsar) through his great-aunt Anastasia Romanovna (his paternal