1855-1881 Emperor of Russia
The emancipation of the serfs gave Alexander II a lifelong reputation as “The Tsar Liberator” and one of the most liberal rulers of his time. Paradoxically, he also endured the most assassination attempts.
Background
Lived: 1818-1881.
Alexander, born in Moscow, was the eldest son of Nicholas I. He was well-prepared for governing and received a good education as the future heir.
Personal
Alexander II married Maria Alexandrovna from Hesse-Darmstadt. She bore him 7 children. His favourite son Tsarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich died of an illness in 1865
After the empress Maria Alexandrovna fell ill with tuberculosis, the doctors suggested she refrain from intimate intercourse with her husband.
In 1866, Alexander took a mistress 30 years his junior, Yekaterina Dolgorukova. They later had 3 children, and Alexander took his second family to live in the Winter Palace next to his wife’s bedroom. A secret staircase connected his room with Yekaterina’s.
When the empress Maria died of tuberculosis in 1880, Alexander and Yekaterina had a morganatic marriage that scandalized the entire court.
Terror
Alexander II’s reputation as the liberator did not hold sway with the underground radical movements. The group Narodnaya Volya carried out many plots against him.
In 1879, a bomb planted by Sophia Parovskaya blew up the imperial train. In 1880, an explosion in the Winter Palace destroyed the emperor’s dining room, killing 8 people.
Assassination
On 1 March 1881, the same group managed to threw a bomb at the tsar’s carriage near the Winter Palace. Alexander survived and stepped out to helped the wounded, when another bomb was thrown at him that tore off his legs and eventually killed him.
Maria Alexandrovna Romanova
Alexander II
1855-1881 Emperor of Russia
The emancipation of the serfs gave Alexander II a lifelong reputation as “The Tsar Liberator” and one of the most liberal rulers of his time. Paradoxically, he also endured the most assassination attempts.
Background
Lived: 1818-1881.
Alexander, born in Moscow, was the eldest son of Nicholas I. He was well-prepared for governing and received a good education as the future heir.
Personal
Alexander II married Maria Alexandrovna from Hesse-Darmstadt. She bore him 7 children. His favourite son Tsarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich died of an illness in 1865
After the empress Maria Alexandrovna fell ill with tuberculosis, the doctors suggested she refrain from intimate intercourse with her husband.
In 1866, Alexander took a mistress 30 years his junior, Yekaterina Dolgorukova. They later had 3 children, and Alexander took his second family to live in the Winter Palace next to his wife’s bedroom. A secret staircase connected his room with Yekaterina’s.
When the empress Maria died of tuberculosis in 1880, Alexander and Yekaterina had a morganatic marriage that scandalized the entire court.
Terror
Alexander II’s reputation as the liberator did not hold sway with the underground radical movements. The group Narodnaya Volya carried out many plots against him.
In 1879, a bomb planted by Sophia Parovskaya blew up the imperial train. In 1880, an explosion in the Winter Palace destroyed the emperor’s dining room, killing 8 people.
Assassination
On 1 March 1881, the same group managed to threw a bomb at the tsar’s carriage near the Winter Palace. Alexander survived and stepped out to helped the wounded, when another bomb was thrown at him that tore off his legs and eventually killed him.
Maria Alexandrovna Romanova