 The 1763 law limiting freedom of movement by requiring the peasant to get a permit from the landlord before he/she could leave the property has been cited as evidence that Catherine enserfed peasants in the name of fiscal expediency,".Catherine's correspondence largely acted as propaganda intended to assure Voltaire (and Europe) of Russia's prosperity.Handicapped by distance and a lack of information, Voltaire was simply too willing to believe in Catherine's liberalism.