Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina is the daughter of Catherine the Great- the Empress of Russia who was also the longest ruling leader of the country. She ruled for 34 years between 1762-1796, and was married to Pyotr III Fyodorovich. But, he wasn’t the father of Yelizaveta.
There’s a lot of speculation about the birth of Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina. To find out more about her birth and death, keep reading!
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Bio
As indicated earlier, Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina is the daughter of Catherine the Great. She was born on the 24th of July, 1775 in Moscow, Russian empire. Yelizaveta’s father was allegedly Prince Grigory Potemkin- a Russian military leader, nobleman, and statesman. Many historians also referred to him as a “favourite” of Catherine the Great.
The term Favourite was mainly used in the 16th and 17th century for intimate companions of a ruler- some favourites had sexual relations with powerful men and women and some didn’t. It all depends on a monarch’s needs.
Grigory Potemkin was born on the 11th of October, 1739 while Catherine the Great was born on the 2nd of May, 1729. Hence, she was a decade older.
Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina Birth
According to many historians, no one knows who is the father of Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina. But according to many testimonies from the family, a baby suddenly appeared in Grigory Potemkin’s home. That baby was named Yelizaveta and her surname was Tyomkina. How was this possible? Especially when Catherine the Great was married to Pyotr III Fyodorovich?
Many witnesses from both families say that Catherine the Great got married to Grigory Potemkin secretly. But, there is no evidence to confirm this story and Yelizaveta was raised in the Samoilov household. There is no evidence of Catherine acknowledging her as her daughter. Thus, making it difficult to ascertain the truth.
Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina Siblings
If Catherine the Great is truly the mother of Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina, then she had three half-siblings. All of Catherine’s children were believed to have been fathered by different men because she couldn’t get pregnant by him for many years. This could corroborate the story but there is no evidence to back it up.
Below are the Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina’s possible siblings;
- Paul (I) Petrovich: In Catherine’s memoirs, she implies that Saltykov (one of her favourites) is his father.
- Anna Petrovna: Her father was Stanisław August Poniatowski- King of Poland between 1764-1795
- Alexei Grigorievich Bobrinsky: His father was Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov. (another favourite of Catherine).
Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina Kids
Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina got married to Ivan Khristoforovich Kalageorgi, a Russian statesman. But there is no information about the date or place of the wedding.
They had three kids together- Varvara Ivanovna Kalageorgy, Ekaterina Ivanovna Lutkovskaja, Aleksandr Ivanovich Kalageorgy,
The major reason why many historians doubt that Catherine II is the mother of Yelizaveta Grigoryevna Tyomkina is because she was 45 years old on the year of her birth. Nevertheless, the empress had 23 lovers while she was alive so the chances are high.