In 1787, Russian Minister Grigori Potemkin set about to prove the value of the Crimean lands to Catherine the Great through an elaborately deceitful plan.

During World War II, the city of Helsinki, Finland, built fake structures which would seem from the air to be important targets for Russian bombers. It was a clever little ruse, and worked quite well. Probably known to the clever Finlanders was the fact that such a ruse was not entirely without historical precedent. There is in fact, a term used for just such a deception. What the people of Helsinki built may be called a Potemkin Village. It is all very ironic, in fact, for this very ruse (or, at least, the name of it) originated in Russia almost one hundred fifty years before it would be used against them.

Minister Potemkin and Princess Catherine

It was in 1787, in fact, that the first Potemkin Villages were established by Russian Minister Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin (after whom they were obviously named).

The events centered on a section of the Ukraine known as Crimea (a peninsula in present day Ukraine stretching south into the Black sea), which had been annexed by Russia during The Crimean War (1854-1856). Minister Potemkin felt personally responsible for this newly annexed land, and so when the Russian Empress Catherine the Great decided to go and visit these lands in 1787, he decided to partake in a bit of deception in order to show her that these lands were truly worth something to her.

In actuality, Crimea was a war-torn and poverty-laden land with very little practical economic or social value. It was not the kind of place which would sufficiently impress an Empress.

What was Potemkin’s answer? He had erected a series of fake, prosperous settlements along the Dnieper river (which flows from Russia to the Black Sea), which were really nothing more than some facade buildings and strategically-placed fires (so that they could be seen during the night, when the Empress would be less likely to spot the fakes.

These villages were called, of course, Potemkin Villages, a named which became forevermore synonymous with deception and fraud.

Results of the Ruse

As the story goes, Catherine II was suitably impressed by the villages, and Minister Potemkin's standing in her eyes was made greater, just as he intended.

Why would Potemkin be so eager to win the Empress' favor? Here is a brief rundown of his resume up until this point:

· Part of a coupe which ousted Peter III and brought Catherine II to power in 1762

· Catherine II's lover

· The most powerful man in Russia, and second only to the Empress, beginning in 1774

· As a result of Catherine's urging, Prince of the entire Holy Roman Empire under Emperor Joseph II, making him one of the most powerful men in the entire world.

One would only assume that with a resume like this, Minister Potemkin would have had no real need to so impress Catherine II with such deceptions. And yet he did.

Potemkin Villages of Today

This somewhat amusing historical footnote is still commemorated today (even though the details of the actual historical event are quite disputed by historians, the most extreme stating that it probably didn't really happen at all) by the use of the phrase named after Potemkin.

For instance: Today in courtrooms, when a group of judges (such as those of the supreme court) or a jury give an opinion, and there is a single vote dissenting from the opinion, this dissent is often known as a “Potemkin Village” as this one opinion is merely a facade, demonstrating that the judgment though unanimous in the end, had been difficult to come to, which was much harder to come by than it would appear.

Indeed, Potemkin left quite a legacy with his actions in Crimea. But it is more than just a phrase that he gave us: He also gave hope to all of those who feel that royalty is above being tricked by aesthetic deception. For this, the world owes him a great thanks.

References:

“Did ‘Potemkin Villages’ Really Exist?” The Straight Dope.

“Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin.” High Beam Encyclopedia.