Tsar Alexander II (1818-1881) and Empress Maria Alexandrovna (1824-1880)


If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
Erin9 said:
I really think Alexander's assassination was one of Russia's great tragedies. He was moving Russia forward--and Russia desperately needed someone to do that. He might well have been the last decent leader Russia has had.

The People's Will, the group that assassinated him, was--imho--quite stupid and lacked the ability to think ahead.

I read a good book on the "Tsar-Liberator" a few years ago.
Click to expand...

I agree wholeheartedly. It's so sad to wonder what could have happened if he had lived to implement his reforms. I can't believe they killed a Tsar who was actually for reforming the country! I can't even blame Alexander III for becoming a reactionary after seeing his father killed like that.
 
Benedict XVI said:
This story is one that makes me mad. It was so close but the assassins released that if he was able to pass this law then many supporters would be lost because the tsar himself wouldn't be as responsible for there issues. And I think that if any of the history of the tsar they would learn that by killing him the tsarist repression would return.

If he only would have stayed in his carriage we wouldn't talk about him.

Norodnaya volya is the name of the group who killed him.

Do you know the name of that book?
Click to expand...
I get angry too and sad. So many things could have been different.

Iirc, in English, the group is The People's Will....Not that I think their will represented the views of most people. Their recruitment was quite unsuccessful.

The book is Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar by Edvard Radzinsky.
 
Erin9 said:
I get angry too and sad. So many things could have been different.

Iirc, in English, the group is The People's Will....Not that I think their will represented the views of most people. Their recruitment was quite unsuccessful.

The book is Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar by Edvard Radzinsky.
Click to expand...

thank you for the title and I get frustrated with the story.
 
XeniaCasaraghi said:
I agree wholeheartedly. It's so sad to wonder what could have happened if he had lived to implement his reforms. I can't believe they killed a Tsar who was actually for reforming the country! I can't even blame Alexander III for becoming a reactionary after seeing his father killed like that.
Click to expand...

I think Alexander III was always a reactionary though. This simply further solidified his position. He was never going to be the reformer his father was imo.
 
Erin9 said:
I think Alexander III was always a reactionary though. This simply further solidified his position. He was never going to be the reformer his father was imo.
Click to expand...

That is true. Although I am not much of a supporter of him I do support his reaction to his fathers death, it was to be expected for him to act the way he did.
 
In 1880 Alexander II appointed his son, Grand Duke Vladimir as President of the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts.
​
 
The Book of the Coronations of Their Majesties Tsar Alexander II and Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna was published in 1856 by the Imperial Academy of Sciences of St. Petersburg.
Seventeen lithographs and watercolors illustrate the stages of the coronation ceremony.
​
 
The Wikipedia article on Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich mentioned that rumors circulated that Alexander II would have his son Alexander removed from the succession placing Vladimir as his heir.
Is there any further information about this?
​
 
Were there two bombs thrown at Tsar Alexander II?
 
Assassination

St Petersberg, 13 march 1881,
The Tsar was returning to the Winter palace when a bomb was thrown at his carriage. Uninjured, he stepped out and was standing in the road asking questions when another bomb was thrown.
Sasha and Dagmar learnt from Gr Dk Michael that a bomb exploded under the rear axle of his carriage, wounding a Cossack escort and killing a bakers boy in the crowd. The Tsar insisted on enquiring after the casualties. Ivan Grinevitsky who remained unnoticed by the embankment railing calmy hurled another bomb at the tsars feet.
Although the Emperor's face and body were intact, his legs were completely crushed right up to the knees. His right foot was a bleeding mass whith half a boot. Nothing remained of his left foot but the sole of his foot.
The Emperor died at 3.35pm. The eighth attempt on his life had succeeded.

I photocopied the above from a book many years ago. Possibly one similiar to The Royal Chronicles.
A good source for the Romanov's is the web site Alexander Palace Time Machine and their discussion forums. There have been people on there with access to royal diaries and royal journals.
Gr Duke Nicholas N, would be discussed at great length for sure on there.
They even have the secret police reports on Rasputin there.
Cheers. T
 
Terrific painting. Thanks Cyril.
 
Thank you, Tarlita. The details of the painting almost give the scene the impression that it is a drawing.
 
Very interesting!

I once did read, that the Czar survived the first onslaught, just to die in the second, because the coach was armored... Were the mattresses (?), which are visible here, the armour?
 
The coach, a present from the Emperor Napoleon III some years before, was supposedly armoured, (though I imagine that meant extra reinforcements to the bodywork, wheels, hood in those days.)

From what I remember reading of it the first bomb landed among the Cossack guards, several of whom were wounded and dead. The carriage was slightly damaged.

The Tsar got out to inspect the wounded, against the advice of his terrified driver who wanted to flee back to the Palace, and a second conspirator, who was standing by, threw the next bomb near the Tsar's feet. Both he and the Emperor were mortally wounded.
 
Hi Curryong! And thank you for your input!

Yes, a strange story. They had no real security detachments back then. Imagine this today: The bodyguards would do everything to bring the VIP into security and not stand beside, while the VIP is walking around.

But to the armour of the coach: As the picture of @CyrilVladisla #44 shows, the coach on question is looking very fragile.
 
Yes, my first thought when I saw that photo was 'Is this really the coach that was used that day when the assassination attempt occurred?' It looks remarkably fragile and somewhat new for something built in the 1860s, quite frankly.

But anyway, I suppose, as modern assassinations have shown, if a bullet, or a bomb has your name on it then that's your fate. Alexander wanted to check on his Cossacks and I doubt he would have taken notice of any security detail.
 
3 October 2018
Unveiling the exhibition "Imperial Capitals: St. Petersburg - Vienna’ at the Hermitage Museum" with Chancellor Kurz, President Putin presented the museum with a Field Marshal's baton. The baton belonged to Tsar Alexander II.
 
Last edited:
:previous:
A little correction: The austrian politician is 'Chancellor Kurz', not Kurtz.


('Colonel Kurtz' is the name of Marlon Brando's role in "Apocalypse now".)
 
:previous:
Thanks for pointing out my spelling mistake!:flowers: Corrections have been made.
 
Then the posts #50, 51, 52 are deletable...


(BTW I have seen Apocalypse Now again yesterday because of your post. It is a great movie! So, thank you!)
 
Edvard Razinsky's sympathetic biography of Alexander II is excellent.?
 
Empress Marie's poor health prompted her to take various trips to Germany and countries in southern Europe to escape Russia's poor climate, especially during the bitter winters.
 
Tsar Alexander II traded the Kuril Islands to Japan in exchange for Sakhalin. He sold Alaska to the United States. How different would Alaska's history have been if the land had remained as part of Russia?
 
What were the hobbies of Tsar Alexander II?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Blog Real
Cathedral of the Archangel and Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral (Burial sites of Russian monarchs)
Replies
1
Views
521
An Ard Ri
An Ard Ri
Blog Real
King Lodovico I, King Lodovico II and Kingdom of Etruria
Replies
3
Views
620
Blog Real
Blog Real
Blog Real
Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia - 1874
Replies
8
Views
1K
CyrilVladisla
CyrilVladisla
Blog Real
King Louis XVIII of France and Marie Joséphine of Savoy
Replies
2
Views
595
An Ard Ri
An Ard Ri
Blog Real
King Vittorio Emanuele I (1759-1824) and Queen Maria Teresa of Austria-Este
Replies
2
Views
491
Blog Real
Blog Real

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom