I have previously read a 1733 edition of Voltaire's The History of Charles XII. King of Sweden, and enjoyed it immensely so when I stumbled upon a 1769 edition of History of the Russian Empire Under Peter the Great my interest was very much piqued.

The 1769 edition contains both Parts I & II together in one volume. The book begins with an interesting rant about 'fake history' essentially criticising how numerous publishers in the 1700s were apparently paying authors to write falsified history that sold well. Rather interesting in light of today's screaming claims of 'fake news' from some corners.

After this it delves into the Russian Empire as it stood prior to Peter I's (Peter the Great) rise to power, and the machinations of Sophia Alekseyevna as she attempted to claim the throne. It then moves onto Peter I's acknowledgement of his and his countries short comings in terms of the arts, mathematics, technology (shipbuilding, etc), laws, and his tour of Europe where he went and essentially harvested the required knowledge to raise the Empire of Russia from it's rather pitiful state to a world power by the closing of his life.

Whilst the descriptions of the wars with Charles XII of Sweden, the Ottoman Empire and Persia were interesting I couldn't help but feel compared to the earlier work (The History of Charles XII) it just wasn't as good. I didn't find myself riveted to the pages as the past unfolded. There is some really good parts, but there's also quite a lot of just okay parts and some rather dull parts.

If you're interested in the history of Europe and of Russia in the late 1600s and early 1700s it is worth a read, but if you've no interest in these topics you're likely better off reading something more to your interests. ( )