I like to praise and reward in a loud voice and to scold in a whisper.
You philosophers are lucky men. You write on paper and paper is patient. Unfortunate Empress that I am, I write on the susceptible skins of living beings.
[On Peter III:] He did not have a bad heart; but a weak man usually has not.
God, grant us our desires, and grant them quickly.
I shall be an autocrat: that's my trade. And the good Lord will forgive me: that's his.
Tell a thousand people to draft a letter, let them debate every phrase, and see how long it takes and what you get.