murdered her husband Peter III and proclaimed herself Czarina (1762). She added huge tracts of land to the Russian Empire, while suppressing the peasants and serfs within her realm. A.E.S. "Yekaterina", 1p. folio, [N.p.], Jan. 2, 1764, at the left margin of a letter submitted to Catherine by General Parutin Boltskov on Nov. 13, 1763 regarding the building of a bar at the Summer Palace and the lack of funds for the project. Catherine responds tersely to his request for more funds, in part: "...The stone coolers that you mentioned and the demand for more money from the treasury you are requesting is denied, hence your cost should fit the previous budget". Boldly signed, very good condition and perfect for display.