ommander-in-chief.

The Russian army recrossed the frontier in 1758, took Koenigsberg and
bombarded Kuestrin on the Oder. Frederick with 32,000 men attacked the
Russian army 89,000 strong at Zorndorf. The Russians fought stubbornly
but were defeated with a loss of 20,000 men. Fermor was recalled, and
succeeded by Soltykof who, in 1759, entered Frankfort on the Oder.
Another battle was fought and Frederick was defeated by greatly
superior numbers. He lost 8,000 men. Prussia was exhausted, but his
enemies, too, began to feel the expense of the war. Elizabeth,
however, was determined to humble the outspoken King when she died
suddenly in 1761. She was succeeded by her nephew Peter Feodorovitch
under the name of Peter III.

Elizabeth, although careless in her mode of living, was a stout
supporter of the Greek Church. In 1742, she agreed with the Holy Synod
to suppress all other churches, as well as the Mosques or Mahomedan
temples in the south. This caused a revolt of the Mahomedans. The Jews
were also expelled in some parts of the empire. A fever of fanaticism
broke out; fifty-three _raskolnik_ in Russia, and one hundred and
seventy-two in Siberia, burned themselves to death.

Count Ivan Schouvalof, one of Elizabeth's friends, believed in
education and was given a free hand. He ordered that the priests and
their children should attend school, on penalty of being whipped. He
founded the University of Moscow, which has educated many learned
Russians. To induce students to enter, he induced Elizabeth to (p. 182)
make a law that all students should be tchins of the tenth grade, and
the professors hold the eighth grade. He sent young men abroad to
study and established higher schools in every Government. Schouvalof
was also the founder of the Academy of Fine Arts at St. Petersburg.

That capital was growing; its population was 74,000 under Elizabeth.
She built the Winter Palace and saw the plans for Tsarskoe Selo, the
magnificent retreat of the Russian emperors. She reestablished the
Senate, as organized by Peter the Great.

XXI--RUSSIA UNDER CATHERINE II (THE GREAT). (p. 183)

Peter III was thirty-four years old when he succeeded to the throne.
Although it was twenty years since his aunt Elizabeth sent for him
from Holstein, he was more of a German than a Russian, and had an
intense admiration for Frederick the Great. He at once reversed
Russia's policy, ordered the commander-in-chief o