Search: catherine the great death
Why: My brother told me that when I was in 6th grade.
Answer: No, she died in bed after collapsing from illness. Historians believe the horse myth originated in France, among the French upper classes, soon after Catherine's death as a way to mar her legend.
Source: About.com - European History
The More You Know: People also quote John Alexander's biography on Catherine:
Sometime after nine chamberlain Zakhar Zotov, not having been summoned as anticipated, peeked in her bedroom and found nobody. In a closet adjacent he discovered the Empress on the floor.These gossip mongers like to pretend "closet" means "water closet" and that she died on the toilet. They don't quote the next part of the biography that describes how Catherine was laid in her bed as doctors tried to save her body and priests made rites to save her soul.
