House of Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov Russia
Country:	Russia
Parent house:	House of Oldenburg
Titles:	Tsar (before 1721) Emperor (since 1721)
Founder:	Michael of Russia
Final ruler:	Nicholas II
Current head:	Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia or Maria Vladimirovna, Grand Duchess of Russia
Founding year:	1613
Deposition:	1917
Ethnicity:	Russian (White/Caucasian)

The House of Romanov (Рома́нов, pronounced [rʌˈmanəf]) was the second and last imperial dynasty of Russia, which ruled the country from 1613 to 1761. From 1761 to 1917, Russia was ruled for five generations by a line of the House of Oldenburg descended from the marriage of a Romanov grand duchess to the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp. This line was officially also called Romanov, although genealogists sometimes style it, more accurately, Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov. Romanov, sometimes spelled Romanoff, Romanow (Russian: ), or Romanova (feminine; Романова), is a common Slavic last name, which is derived from the name Roman (Роман). It may refer to: Alexandra Romanova, see a disambiguation page there Andrew Romanoff, an American politician Boris Romanov (1889-1957), a Soviet historian Eva Romanová (b. ... Image File history File links Romanov_Flag. ... The House of Oldenburg is a North German noble family and one of Europes most influential Royal Houses. ... Tsar (Bulgarian, Serbian and Macedonian цар, Russian  , in scientific transliteration respectively car and car ), occasionally spelled Czar or Tzar and sometimes Csar or Zar in English, is a Slavonic term designating certain monarchs. ... An emperorrefers to Nick Herringshaw, a title, empress may only indicate the wife of an emperor (empress consort. ... “Michael Romanov” redirects here. ... Nicholas II redirects here. ... Nicholas Romanovich Romanov or Nikolai Romanovich Romanov (Николай Романович Романов), (born September 13, 1922) is the President of the Romanov Family Association. ... H.I.H. Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, Titular Empress and Autocrat of all the Russias Maria Vladimirovna of Russia, Mariya Vladimirovna Romanova (Мари́я Влади́мировна Рома́нова) (born December 23, 1953) is regarded by some Nobiliary Genealogists and Russian Monarchists as the Head of the Imperial Family of Russia and Titular Empress and Autocrat of... For the documentary series, see Monarchy (TV series). ... // For other uses, see Dynasty (disambiguation). ... The House of Oldenburg is a North German noble family and one of Europes most influential Royal Houses. ... The House of Romanov (Рома́нов, pronounced ) was the second and last imperial dynasty of Russia, which ruled the country for five generations from 1613 to 1761. ... The term duke is a title of nobility which refers to the sovereign male ruler of a Continental European duchy, to a nobleman of the highest grade of the British peerage, or to the highest rank of nobility in various other European countries, including Spain and France (in Italy, principe... Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp was a duchy consisting of areas within Schleswig and Holstein, in present-day Denmark and Germany. ...

Origins

Coat of Arms of Russian Empire

The Romanovs share their origin with two dozen other Russian noble families. Their earliest common ancestor is one Andrei Kobyla, attested as a boyar in the service of Semyon I of Moscow. Later generations assigned to Kobyla the most illustrious pedigrees. An 18th century genealogy book claimed that he was the son of the Prussian prince Glanda Kambila, who came to Russia in the second half of the 13th century, fleeing the invading Germans. Indeed, one of the leaders of the Prussian rebellion of 1260-1274 against the Teutonic order was named Glande. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla (Russian: ) was a progenitor of the Romanov dynasty of Russian tsars and many Russian noble families. ... A boyar (also spelled bojar, Romanian: ) was a member of the highest rank of the feudal Bulgarian, Romanian, and Russian aristocracy, second only to the ruling princes, from the 10th century through the 17th century. ... Simeon Ivanovich Gordyi (the Proud) (Семён Иванович Гордый in Russian;) (7 November 1316 - 27 April 1353), Grand Prince of Moscow and Grand Prince of Vladimir, oldest son of Ivan Kalita. ... A pedigree is a list of ancestors (usually implying distinguished), a list of ancestors of the same breed (usually in the case of animals), the purity of a breed, individual, or strain, or a document proving any of these things. ... Teutonic Knights, charging into battle. ...

Possibly, Kobyla's origins were less spectacular. Not only is Kobyla Russian for mare, but some of his relatives were also nicknamed after horses and other house animals, thus perhaps suggesting descent from one of the royal equerries. One of Kobyla's sons, Fyodor, a boyar in the boyar duma of Dmitri Donskoi, was nicknamed Koshka (cat). His descendants took the surname Koshkin, then changed it to Zakharin, which family later split into two branches: Zakharin-Yakovlev and Zakharin-Yuriev. During the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the former family became known as Yakovlev (Alexander Herzen being the most illustrious of them), whereas grandchildren of Roman Zakharin-Yuriev changed their name to Romanov. Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... Konyushy (Belarusian: Канюшы, Polish: Koniuszy, Russian: Конюший) is literally translated as Master of the Horse, Equerry. ... Fedor Andreevich Kobylin, byname Koshka (the Cat) (Russian: ) (? - 1407) was the youngest son of Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla and progenitor of the Romanov dynasty and Sheremetev family. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with State Duma. ... Statue of Dmitri Donskoi (1862). ... Ivan IV (August 25, 1530–March 18, 1584) was the first ruler of Russia to assume the title of tsar. ... Aleksandr Ivanovich Herzen (Алекса́ндр Ива́нович Ге́рцен) (April 6 [O.S. 25 March] 1812 in Moscow - January 21 [O.S. 9 January] 1870 in Paris) was a major Russian pro-Western writer and thinker known as the father of Russian socialism. He is held responsible for creating a political climate leading to the emancipation...

Rise to power

A crowd at the Ipatiev Monastery imploring Mikhail Romanov's mother to let him go to Moscow and become their tsar (Illumination from a book dated 1673).

The family fortunes soared when Roman's daughter, Anastasia Zakharyina, married the young Ivan IV of Muscovy in February 1547. When her husband assumed the title of tsar, she was crowned the very first Tsarina. Their marriage was an exceedingly happy one, but her untimely and mysterious death in 1560 changed Ivan's character for the worse. Suspecting the boyars of having poisoned his beloved, the tsar started a reign of terror against them. Among his children by Anastasia, the elder (Ivan) was murdered by the tsar in a quarrel; the younger Fyodor, a pious and lethargic prince, inherited the throne upon his father's death. Image File history File links Kostromatsar. ... Image File history File links Kostromatsar. ... The Ipatiev Monastery (Ипатьевский монастырь in Russian) is a male monastery in Kostroma. ... In the strictest definition of illuminated manuscript, only manuscripts decorated with gold or silver, like this miniature of Christ in Majesty from the Aberdeen Bestiary (folio 4v), would be considered illuminated. ... Anastacia of Russia (??? - 1560) was the wife of the first Russian Tsar, Ivan IV of Russia, also known as Ivan the Terrible. In the summer of 1560, Anastacia fell ill to a lingering illness. ... Ivan the Terrible redirects here. ... Tsar (Bulgarian, Serbian and Macedonian цар, Russian  , in scientific transliteration respectively car and car ), occasionally spelled Czar or Tzar and sometimes Csar or Zar in English, is a Slavonic term designating certain monarchs. ... A Tsarina, also spelled czarina, is an English arrangement of Russian and Bulgarian word цари́ца (tsaritsa or czaritsa), which was the title of Tsars wife or a female autocratic ruler (monarch) of Russia or Bulgaria. ... The Oprichnina (Russian: Опричнина) formed a section of Russia ruled directly by the Tsar under Ivan the Terrible. ... Feodor presents a golden chain to Boris Godunov. ...

Throughout Fyodor's reign, the Russian government was contested between his brother-in-law, Boris Godunov, and his Romanov cousins. Upon the death of childless Fyodor, the 700-year-old line of Moscow Rurikids came to an end. After a long struggle, the party of Boris Godunov prevailed over the Romanovs, and the former was elected new Tsar. Godunov's revenge to the Romanovs was terrible: all the family and its relatives were deported to remote corners of the Russian North and Ural, where most of them died of hunger or in chains. The family's leader, Feodor Nikitich Romanov, was exiled to the Antoniev Siysky Monastery and forced to take monastic vows with the name Filaret. Tsar Boris I Boris Feodorovich Godunov (Бори́с Фёдорович Годуно́в) (c. ... The Rurik Dynasty was the ruling dynasty of Kievan Rus, Rus principalities, and early Russia from 862 to 1598. ... Ural (Russian: ) is a geographical region in Russia, around Ural Mountains. ... Fyodor Nikitich Romanov (Russian: Фёдор Никитич Романов) (1553 — October 1, 1633) was a Russian boyar who after temporary disgrace rose to become patriarch of Moscow as Filaret (Russian: Филарет), and became de-facto ruler of Russia during the reign of his son, Mikhail Feodorovich. ... Antoniev Siysky Monastery is located on a cape of the Great Mikhailovo Lake. ... Feodor Nikitich Romanov (1553-1633) was a Russian boyar who after temporary disgrace raised to become patriarch of Moscow and de-facto ruler of Russia during the reign of his son, Mikhail Feodorovich. ...

A 16th-century residence of the Yuryev-Zakharyin boyars in Zaryadye, near the Kremlin.

The Romanovs' fortunes again changed dramatically with the fall of the Godunov dynasty in 1606. As a former leader of the anti-Godunov party and cousin of the last legitimate Tsar, Filaret Romanov was valued by several impostors who attempted to claim the Rurikid legacy and throne during the Time of Troubles. False Dmitriy I made him a metropolitan, and False Dmitriy II raised him to the dignity of patriarch. Upon expulsion of Poles from Moscow in 1612, the Assembly of the Land offered the Russian crown to several Rurikid and Gediminid princes, but all of them declined the honour of it. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2592x1944, 1458 KB) Romanov boyar residence in Zaryadye I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2592x1944, 1458 KB) Romanov boyar residence in Zaryadye I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Zaryadye (Russian: ) is a historical district in Moscow established in 12-13th centuries within Kitai-gorod. ... The Moscow Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin ( Russian: Московский Кремль) is the best known kremlin ( Russian citadel). ... An impostor is a person who pretends to be somebody else, often to try to gain financial or social advantages through social engineering, but just as often for purposes of espionage or law enforcement. ... The Time of Troubles (Russian: Смутное время, Smutnoye Vremya) was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last of the Moscow Rurikids, Tsar Feodor Ivanovich in 1598 and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. ... False Dimitriy I (Cyrillic Лжедмитрий; other transliterations: Dimitry, Dimitri, Dimitrii) was the Tsar of Russia from July 21, 1605 until his death on May 17, 1606 under the name of Dimitriy Ioannovich (Cyrillic Димитрий Иоаннович). He was one of three impostors who claimed during the Time of Troubles to be the youngest son... In hierarchical Christian churches, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop (then more precisely called Metropolitan archbishop) of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of an old Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital. ... False Dmitry II (Russian: Лжедимитрий II), also called the thief of Tushino, was the second of three pretenders to the Russian throne who claimed to be the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, tsarevich Dmitry. ... For other senses, see Patriarch (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... The zemsky sobor (Russian: зе́мский собо́р) was the first Russian parliament of the feudal Estates type, in the 16th and 17th centuries. ... Rurik Dynasty ... ...

On being offered the Russian crown, Filaret's 16-year-old son Mikhail Romanov, then living at the Ipatiev Monastery of Kostroma, burst into tears of fear and despair. He was finally persuaded to accept the throne by his mother Kseniya Ivanovna Shestova, who blessed him with the holy image of Our Lady of St. Theodore. Feeling how insecure his throne was, Mikhail attempted to stress his ties with the last Rurikid tsars and sought advice from the Assembly of the Land on every important issue. This strategy proved successful. The early Romanovs were generally loved by the population as in-laws of Ivan the Terrible and innocent martyrs of Godunov's wrath. Mikhail at the Ipatiev Monastery. ... The Ipatiev Monastery (Ипатьевский монастырь in Russian) is a male monastery in Kostroma. ... Fire-observation watchtower in Kostroma (1825-28). ... Boyarynia Kseniya Ioannovna (Ivanovna) (Russian: ) was a spouse of Fyodor Romanov and a mother of Mikhail Romanov. ... A 1703 copy of the original icon. ... Ivan IV (August 25, 1530–March 18, 1584) was the first ruler of Russia to assume the title of tsar. ...

The era of dynastic crises

Tsar Michael and his son tsar Alexis standing beneath an icon of Christ known as the Mandylion.

Mikhail was succeeded by his only son Alexei, who steered the country quietly through numerous troubles. Upon his death, there was a period of dynastic struggles between his children by his first wife (Feodor III, Sofia Alexeevna, Ivan V) and his son by his second wife, Nataliya Kyrillovna Naryshkina, the future Peter the Great. New dynastic struggles followed the death of Peter, who had his only son Alexei executed and never named another heir. The Romanov male line actually expired in 1730, with the death of Peter II on the very day of his projected wedding. The last female Romanovs were his aunts, Empresses Anna Ioannovna (1693-1740) and Elizabeth Petrovna (1709-1762), who reigned successively for most of the period from 1730 to 1762. As neither Anna nor Elizabeth produced a male heir, the succession could devolve either on a Brunswick grand-nephew of Anna (Ivan VI of Russia) or on a Holstein nephew of Elizabeth (Duke Karl Peter Ulrich of Holstein-Gottorp), who was also an heir presumptive to the throne of Sweden. Elizabeth naturally favoured her own nephew, although he was of petulant character. With the accession of Karl Peter Ulrich as Emperor Peter III in 1762 the new reigning dynasty of Holstein-Gottorp, or Oldenburg-Romanov, began. This article is about the religious artifacts. ... According to the legend, King Abgarus received the Image of Edessa from the apostle Thaddeus. ... Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov (In Russian Алексей Михаилович Романов) (March 9, 1629 (O.S.) - January 29, 1676 (O.S.)) was a Tsar of Russia during some of the most eventful decades of the mid_17th century. ... Feodor (Theodore) III of Russia (In Russian: Фёдор III Алексеевич) (June 9, 1661 - May 7, 1682) was the Tsar of all Russia, during whose short reign (1676-82) the Polish cultural influence in the Kremlin was paramount. ... Sophia Alekseyevna (Софья Алексеевна in Russian) (September 17(27), 1657 — July 3(14), 1704), regent of Russia in 1682-1689, daughter of tsar Aleksey I of Russia and Maria Miloslavskaya. ... Ivan V Ivan V Alekseyevich (Russian: Иван V Алексеевич, September 6 [O.S. August 27] 1666 — February 8 [O.S. January 29] 1696) was a joint tsar of Russia (with his younger half-brother Peter I) who co-reigned between 1682 and 1696. ... Natalia Kirillovna Naryshkina (September 1, 1651 - February 4, 1694) was a Russian tsarina. ... Peter the Great or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov (Russian: Пётр I Алексеевич Pyotr I Alekse`yevich, Пётр Великий Pyotr Veli`kiy) (9 June 1672 – 8 February 1725 [30 May 1672–28 January 1725 O.S.][1]) ruled Russia from 7 May (27 April O.S.) 1682 until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his... Alexei Petrovich interrogated by his father Alexius Petrovich (Алексей Петрович in Russian) (1690-1718), a Russian tsarevich, was the son of Tsar Peter I and his first wife Eudoxia Lopukhina. ... Pyotr (Peter) II Alekseyevich (Russian: Пётр II Алексеевич or Pyotr II Alekseyevich) (October 23, 1715 – January 30, 1730) was Emperor of Russia from 1727 until his death. ... The crown of Anna Ioannovna Anna Ivanovna (In Russian: Анна Ивановна) (February 7, 1693 - October 28, 1740) reigned as Duchess of Courland from 1711 to 1730 and as Empress of Russia from 1730 to 1740. ... Charles van Loo. ... Brunswick-Lüneburg was an historical state within the Holy Roman Empire. ... H.I.M. Ivan, Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias, with his mother Anna Leopoldovna Ivan VI of Russia (Иоанн Антонович), (August 23, 1740 - July 16, 1764), reigned as Emperor of Russia 1740 - 1741, was the son of Prince Antony Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg and of the princess Anna Leopoldovna... Holstein (Hol-shtayn) (Low German: Holsteen, Danish: Holsten, Latin and historical English: Holsatia) is the southern part of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany, between the rivers Elbe and Eider. ... Peter III (February 21, 1728 – July 17, 1762) (Russian: ) was Emperor of Russia for six months in 1762. ...

The Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov Dynasty

The Holstein-Gottorps of Russia, however, kept the surname Romanov and sought to emphasise their female-line descent from Peter the Great. Paul I was particularly proud to be great-grandson of the illustrious Russian monarch, although his German-born mother, Catherine II (of the House of Anhalt-Zerbst), insinuated in her memoirs that Paul's real father had been her lover Serge Saltykov. Painfully aware of the hazards resulting from battles of succession, Paul established the house law of the Romanovs, one of the strictest in Europe, basing the succession to agnatic primogeniture, as well as requiring Orthodox faith from the monarch and dynasts, as well as from the consort of emperor and from those of first heirs in line. Later, Alexander I, facing prospect of a morganatic alliance of his brother and heir, added the requirement that consorts of Russian dynasts had to be of equal birth (i.e., born to a royal or sovereign house). Otherwise their children forfeited all rights to the throne. Peter the Great or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov (Russian: Пётр I Алексеевич Pyotr I Alekse`yevich, Пётр Великий Pyotr Veli`kiy) (9 June 1672 – 8 February 1725 [30 May 1672–28 January 1725 O.S.][1]) ruled Russia from 7 May (27 April O.S.) 1682 until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his... Paul I of Russia (Russian: ; Pavel Petrovich) (October 1, 1754-March 23, 1801) was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. ... Catherine the Great redirects here. ... Anhalt-Zerbst was a principality located in Germany. ... Sergei Vasilievich Saltykov (c. ... House law or House laws are rules that govern a dynastic family in matters of the order of succession and regency. ... Primogeniture is inheritance by the first-born of the entirety of a parents wealth, estate or office, or in the absence of children, by collateral relatives in order of seniority of the collateral line. ... Orthodox icon of Pentecost. ... A morganatic marriage is a type of marriage which can be contracted in certain countries, usually between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husbands titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage. ... Sovereignty is the exclusive right to have control over an area of governance, people, or oneself. ...

Paul I was murdered in his palace in Saint Petersburg. Alexander I succeeded him on the throne, and later died without having left a male heir. Nicholas I, a brother of the latter monarch, was surprised to find himself on the throne. His era, like the one of Paul I, was marked by enormous attention to the army. Nonetheless, Russia lost the Crimean War, although it had some brilliant admirals on its side, including Pavel Nakhimov. Nicholas I fathered four sons, all of whom, he thought, could one day face the challenge of ruling Russia. Trying to prepare all the boys for the future, he provided an excellent education, especially a military one, for all of them. Combatants Allies: Second French Empire British Empire Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Sardinia Russian Empire Bulgarian volunteers Casualties 90,000 French 35,000 Turkish 17,500 British 2,194 Sardinian killed, wounded and died of disease ~134,000 killed, wounded and died of disease The Crimean War (1853–1856) was fought... Admiral Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov (June 23, 1802 - June 28, 1855) was one of the most famous admirals in Russian naval history, best remembered as the commander of naval and land forces during the Siege of Sevastopol (Sevastopol) in the Crimean War. ...

Alexander II became the next Russian emperor. Alexander was an educated, intelligent man, who held that his task was to keep peace in Europe and Russia. However, he believed only a country with a strong army could keep the peace. By paying attention to the army, giving much freedom to Finland, and freeing the serfs in 1861, he gained much support (Finns still dearly remember him). His family life was not so happy-his beloved wife Maria Alexandrovna had serious problems with her lungs, which led to her death and to the dissolution of the close-knit family due to his quick morganatic remarriage to his long time mistress, Princess Catherine Dolgoruki. His legitimization of his children by Catherine, and rumors that he was about to crown his new wife Empress, ending the morganatic status of his second marriage, caused great tension with the entire extended Romanov family. In particular, the Grand Duchesses were scandalized at the thought of being made permanently subordinate to Catherine Dolgoruki, since as an Empress she would retain precedence over all of them even after her husband's death. She would even have precedence over the future Empress, as Empress Dowagers were ranked higher than Empress Consorts in the Russian system of protocol. On March 13, 1881, Alexander was killed after returning from a military parade. Slavic patriotism, cultural revival, and Panslavist ideas grew in importance in the latter half of this century, drawing the dynasty to look more 'Russian'. Yet tighter commitment to orthodox faith was required of Romanovs. Several marriages were contracted with princesses from other Slavic monarchies and other orthodox kingdoms, and even a couple of cadet-line princesses were allowed to marry Russian high noblemen - when until 1850s, practically all marriages had been with German princelings. Princess Maximilienne Wilhelmine Marie of Hesse and by Rhine (8 August 1824 - 8 June 1880) was a princess of the Grand Duchy of Hesse and, as Maria Alexandrovna (in Russian Мария Александровна), Empress consort of Alexander II of Russia. ... Princess Yekaterina Mikhailovna Dolgorukaya (In Russian Княжна Екатерина Михаиловна Долгорукая) (14 November 1847 - 15 February 1922) Catherine was the daughter of Prince Mikhail Dolgoruky and Vera Visnevskaya. ... is the 72nd day of the year (73rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... ...

Wedding of Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna.

Alexander II was succeeded by his son Alexander III of Russia. A gigantic and imposing, if somewhat dull man, with great stamina, great lethargy, and poor manners. Alexander, fearful of the fate which had befallen his father, strengthened autocratic rule in Russia. Many of the reforms the more liberal Alexander II had pushed through were reversed. Alexander, at his brother's death, not only inherited the throne, but also a betrothed - Scandinavian princess Maria Fyodorovna. Despite contrasting natures and size, the pair got on famously, and produced six children. Image File history File links Laurits Tuxen (1853-1927). ... Image File history File links Laurits Tuxen (1853-1927). ... Alexander III Alexandrovich (10 March 1845 – 1 November 1894) (Russian: Александр III Александрович) reigned as Emperor of Russia from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894. ... Nicholas (Nikolai) (September 20 1843 - April 24, 1865) was Tsarevich of Russia from March 2, 1855 till his death in 1865. ... Maria Feodorovna Romanova, born Princess Dagmar of Denmark (November 26, 1847–October 13, 1928) was Empress Consort of Russia. ...

The eldest, Nicholas, became Tsar upon his father's sudden death (due to kidney disease) at age 49. Unready to inherit the throne, Nicholas reputedly said, "I am not ready, I do not want it. I am not a Tsar." Though an intelligent and kind-hearted man, lacking any preparation to rule, he continued his father's harsh polices. His Tsarina, the emotionally fragile German princess Alexandra Fyodorovna, was also a liability. While the Tsar bustled about on the front lines during World War I, the stubborn, traditionalist Tsarina held sway in court and in government. Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna of Russia (Russian: ), born Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (German: ) 6 June 1872 – 17 July 1918, was Empress consort of Nicholas II, the last Tsar of the Russian Empire. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ...

Constantine Pavlovich and Michael Alexandrovich, although sometimes counted among Russian monarchs, were not crowned and never reigned. They both married morganatically, as did Alexander II with his second wife. Six crowned representatives of the Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov line include: Paul (1796-1801), Alexander I (1801-1825), Nicholas I (1825-55), Alexander II (1855-81), Alexander III (1881-94), and Nicholas II (1894-1917). Constantine was known for his repugnant physical features which resembled those of his father, Emperor Paul. ... Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovitch of Russia (1878-1918) Grand Duke Michael of Russia, Mikhail Aleksandrovich Romanov (Russian: Михаи́л Александрович Рома́нов) (St. ... Paul I of Russia Paul I of Russia (Russian: Pavel Petrovich, Павел I Петрович) (October 1, 1754 - March 23, 1801) was an Emperor (Tsar) of Russia (1796 - 1801). ... Alexander I of Russia (Russian: Александр I Павлович / Aleksandr I Pavlovich) (December 23, 1777 – December 1?, 1825) served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and Ruler of Poland from 1815 to 1825, as well as the first Grand Duke of Finland. ... Nicholas I (Russian: Николай I Павлович, Nikolaj I Pavlovič), July 6 (June 25, Old Style), 1796 – March 2 (18 February Old Style), 1855), was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. ... Alexander (Aleksandr) II Nikolaevich (Russian: Александр II Николаевич) (Moscow, 29 April 1818 – 13 March 1881 in St. ... Alexander III Alexandrovich (10 March 1845 – 1 November 1894) (Russian: Александр III Александрович) reigned as Emperor of Russia from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894. ... Nicholas II redirects here. ...

Downfall

One of the imperial Fabergé eggs presented by Nicholas II to his wife.

All these emperors (except Alexander III) had German-born consorts, a circumstance that cost the Romanovs their popularity during World War I. Nicholas's wife Alexandra Fyodorovna, although devoutly Orthodox, was particularly hated by the populace, largely because of her German origins. Download high resolution version (699x933, 140 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (699x933, 140 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Moscow Kremlin egg, 1906 A Fabergé egg is any one of sixty eight [1] jewelled eggs made by Peter Carl Fabergé and his assistants for the Russian Tsars and private collectors between 1885 and 1917. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ... Princess Alix of Hesse, as Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia (1872-1918) Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (Alix Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice, 6 June 1872 - 17 July 1918), was the consort of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the last Tsar of Russia. ... The Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (Russian: ), also known as the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia, is a body of Christians who are united under the Patriarch of Moscow, who in turn is in communion with the other patriarchs and primates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

Alexandra Fyodorovna had inherited a mutation gene, causing Haemophilia, from her grandmother, Queen Victoria. This caused her son's, the long-awaited heir to the throne, Alexei's hemophilia. Nicholas and Alexandra also had four daughters (Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia). Haemophilia figured prominently in the history of European royalty. ... Queen Victoria redirects here. ... Tsarevich Alexei (1904-1918) Tsesarevich (Tsarevich) Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia (In Russian Царевич Алексей Николаевич) (August 12, 1904 - July 17, 1918), of the House of Romanov, was a Tsarevich of Russia and was the youngest child of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Alexandra of Hesse. ... Haemophilia or hemophilia is the name of any of several hereditary genetic illnesses that impair the bodys ability to control bleeding. ... Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia (Olga Nikolaevna Romanova) (in Russian Великая Княжна Ольга Николаевна; November 15 [O.S. November 3] 1895 – July 17, 1918) was the eldest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II, the last autocratic ruler of the Russian Empire, and of Empress Alexandra of Russia. ... Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaievna of Russia (Tatiana Nikolaievna Romanova) (In Russian Великая Княжна Татьяна Николаевна), (May 29 (O.S.)/June 10 (N.S.), 1897 - July 17, 1918), was the second daughter of Tsar Nicholas II, the last autocratic ruler of Russia, and of Tsarina Alexandra. ... Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (Maria Nikolaevna Romanova) (In Russian Великая Княжна Мария Николаевна), (June 14 (O.S.)/June 26 (N.S.), 1899 – July 17, 1918) was the third daughter of Nicholas II of Russia and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna. ... Her Imperial Highness Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia (Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanova, (Russian: (June 18 [O.S. June 5] 1901 — July 17, 1918), was the youngest daughter of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia, the last sovereign of Imperial Russia, and his wife Alexandra Fyodorovna. ...

When the Romanov family celebrated the tercentenary of its rule, in 1913, the solemnities were clouded by numerous bad omens. The face of Our Lady of St. Theodore, the patron icon of the family, became badly blackened. Grigori Rasputin proclaimed that the Romanov's power would not last two years after his death if a Romanov caused his death. He was murdered by a group of nobles, including Nicholas II's nephew by marriage (Felix Yussupov) and a cousin (Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich), on 16 December 1916. Two months later, the February Revolution of 1917 resulted in abdication of Nicholas II in favor of his brother Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich. The latter declined to accept the throne, terminating the Romanov dynasty's rule over Russia. Omens or portents are signs encountered fortuitously that are believed to foretell the future. ... A 1703 copy of the original icon. ... Rasputin redirects here. ... Prince Felix Yusupov (Феликс Феликсович Юсупов) (March 23, 1887 – September 27, 1967), (variously transliterated from Russian as Yussupov, Yossopov, Iusupov, Youssoupov, or as Feliks, Graf Sumarrokow-Elston (граф Сумароков-Эльстон)), was a Russian nobleman best known for murdering Grigori Rasputin, the mystic peasant faith healer whom Yusupov and other Russian... Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia, of the Imperial House of Romanov (Дмитрий Павлович Романов) (September 18, 1891 – March 5, 1941) was a Russian imperial dynast, one of the few Romanovs to escape murder by the Bolsheviks after the Russian Revolution. ... is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Friday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The February Revolution in 1917 in Russia was the first stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917. ... Nicholas II can refer to: Pope Nicholas II Tsar Nicholas II of Russia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The House of Romanov (Рома́нов, pronounced ) was the second and last imperial dynasty of Russia, which ruled the country for five generations from 1613 to 1761. ...

After the February Revolution, Nicholas II and his family were placed under house arrest. Several members of the Royal Family, including Grand Duke Cyril Vladimirovich of Russia, managed to establish good relations with the interim government and eventually fled the country during the October Revolution. Grand Duke Cyril Vladimirovitch of Russia, (Kirill Vladimirovitch Romanov) (October 12 (N.S.), 1876—October 12, 1938) was a member of the Russian Royal Family. ...

Yekaterinburg's "Church on the Blood," built on the spot where the last Tsar and his family were killed.

On July 17, 1918, Bolshevik authorities, led by Yakov Yurovsky, shot Nicholas II, his immediate family, and four servant members in the cellar of the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg, Russia. The family was told that they would be photographed to prove to the people that they were still alive. The family was arranged appropriately and left alone for several minutes. Soon the very people that were protecting them entered and shot them. At first, the girls did not die because of the jewels sewn into their corsets. These jewels were for protection but also so that the family could have some money for when they fled the country. The shooters were horrified at how the girls were able to withstand the bullets and feared that the family really was in power due to Divine Right^{[citation needed]} (the idea that Kings and Queens are placed on the throne by God). To solve that problem, the shooters tried to stab them with bayonets. That failed, too, because of the jewels, so then, they were shot in the head at close range. Ironically, the Ipatiev House has the same name as the Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma, where Mikhail Romanov had been offered the Russian Crown in 1613. The spot where the Ipatiev House once stood has recently been commemorated by a magnificent cathedral "on the blood." After years of controversy, Nikolai II and his family were proclaimed passion-bearers by the Russian Orthodox church in 2000. (In orthodoxy, a passion-bearer is a saint who was not killed because of his faith like a martyr but died in faith at the hand of murderers.) Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 429 KB)Yekaterinburgs Church on the Blood File links The following pages link to this file: Yekaterinburg Categories: Images with unknown source ... Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 429 KB)Yekaterinburgs Church on the Blood File links The following pages link to this file: Yekaterinburg Categories: Images with unknown source ... Yekaterinburg (Russian: , also romanized Ekaterinburg, formerly Sverdlovsk) is a major city in the central part of Russia, the administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast. ... Church on Blood in Honor of All Saints Resplendent in the Russian Land in Yekaterinburg. ... is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the Bolshevik faction in the RSDLP 1903-1912. ... Yakov Yurovsky Yakov (Yankel) Mikhailovich Yurovsky (June 19 [O.S. June 7] 1878 in Tomsk, Siberia, Russia – before 2 August 1938 in Moscow) is best known as the chief executioner of Russias last emperor Tsar Nicholas and his family after the Russian Revolution of 1917. ... Nicholas II redirects here. ... Yekaterinburgs Church on the Blood, built on the spot where the Ipatiev House once stood. ... Photograph of snow-covered Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburgs Church on the Blood, built on the spot where the Tsar and his family were murdered. ... The Ipatiev Monastery (Ипатьевский монастырь in Russian) is a male monastery in Kostroma. ... Fire-observation watchtower in Kostroma (1825-28). ... The Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (Russian: ), also known as the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia, is a body of Christians who are united under the Patriarch of Moscow, who in turn is in communion with the other patriarchs and primates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

To read what the author declared to be a first-person account of the murders and the disposal of the bodies, told to him by the fatally ill Peter Zacharovitch Ermakov, see chapters eight through twelve of Richard Halliburton's "Seven League Boots". With the aid of a translator, Halliburton, who was in Ekaterinburg in 1930, heard the confession of Ermakov, who claimed to have been a member of the party of assassins, and to have been the one who killed the Czarina, Dr. Botkin, and the cook. Richard Halliburton (9 January 1900 – presumed dead after 24 March 1939) was an American traveler, adventurer, and author. ...

In 1991, the bodies of Nicholas II and his wife, along with three of their five children and four of their servants, were exhumed (although some questioned the authenticity of these bones despite DNA testing). Because two bodies were not present, many people believed that two Romanov children escaped the killings. There was much debate as to which two children's bodies are missing. A Russian scientist made photographic superimpositions and determined that Maria and Alexei were not accounted for. Later, an American scientist concluded from dental, vertebral, and other remnants that it was Anastasia and Alexei that were missing. Much mystery surrounded Anastasia's fate. Several films have been produced, including the full length animated feature Anastasia by Twentieth Century Fox, suggesting that she lived on. Anastasia is an American Academy Award-nominated animated feature film produced and directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman at Fox Animation Studios, and was released on November 14, 1997 by Twentieth Century Fox. ... Related articles FOX Television Network Fox Searchlight Pictures Fox Entertainment Group List of Hollywood movie studios List of movies Variant of current 20th Century Fox logo External links 20th Century Fox Movies official site Twentieth Century Fox is also the punning title of a song by The Doors on their...

After the bodies were exhumed in June, 1991, they sat in laboratories until 1998, while there was a debate as to whether they should be reburied in Yekaterinburg or St. Petersburg. A commission eventually chose St. Petersburg, so they (along with several loyal servants who died with them) were interred in a special chapel in the Peter and Paul Cathedral near the tombs of their ancestors. The Peter and Paul Cathedral is located inside the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. ...

In September 2006, Empress Marie Fedorovna, the consort of Alexander III, was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral beside her husband. Having fled Russia at the time of the Revolution, she had spent her remaining years in exile in her native Denmark, where she was initially buried in Roskilde Cathedral. The transfer of her remains was accompanied by elaborate ceremonies, including at St. Isaac's officiated by the Patriarch. For monarchists, the reburial of the Empress in the former Imperial Capital, so many years after her death, further underscored the downfall of the dynasty. Princes Dmitri and Nicholas Romanov were present at the ceremony, along with Princess Catherine Ioanovna, daughter of Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia. Other members of the Imperial Family present included the descendants of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna including Prince Michael Andreevich of Russia the senior direct male descendant. Princess Catherine who was 90 years old at the time, and passed away in Montevideo Uruguay the following year, was the last member of the Imperial Family to be born before the fall of the dynasty, and was ultimately to become the last surviving uncontested dynast of the Imperial House of Russia. Roskilde Cathedral Roskilde Cathedral (Danish: Roskilde Domkirke), in the city of Roskilde on the Island of Zealand (Sjælland) in eastern Denmark was the first Gothic cathedral to be built of brick and its construction encouraged the spread of this Brick Gothic style throughout Northern Europe. ... The cathedral dominates the city skyline St. ... Prince Dimitri Romanovich Romanov (born 4 March 1926) is an author and the younger brother of Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia a claimant to headship of the Imperial House of Russia. ... Nicholas Romanovich Romanov or Nikolai Romanovich Romanov (Николай Романович Романов), (born September 13, 1922) is the President of the Romanov Family Association. ... His Highness Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia (Иоанн Константиович) (July 5, 1886–July 18, 1918) was the elder son of HIH Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia by his wife Elisaveta Mavrikievna née HH Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg. ...

In September of 2007, the skeletal remains of two bodies were found in a burned field near Ekaterinburg. In April 2008, the governor of the region Sverdlovsk made public that DNA-research has proved the remains to belong to Crown Prince Alexei and his older sister Grand Duchess Marie.

Contemporary Romanovs

Contrary to common belief, the Romanov family is far from extinct. The proper line of succession to the Russian throne is contested, but the Russian people have so far evidenced little popular support for the resurrection of a Russian monarchy, even on a constitutional basis. The Monarchy of Russia was abolished in 1917 following the February Revolution, which forced Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate. ...

Further reading

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

an assessment (1880) of the Romanov dynasty

• Bergamini, John D. The Tragic Dynasty: A History of the Romanovs. Putnam, 1969.
• Crankshaw, Edward. "The Shadow of the Winter Palace: Russia's Drift to Revolution, 1825-1917"
• Dunning, Chester S.L. Russia's First Civil War: The Time of Troubles and the Founding of the Romanov Dynasty, Penn State Press, 2001 ISBN 0-271-02074-1
• Halliburton, Richard. "Seven League Boots".
• Lincoln, Bruce. "The Romanovs".
• Lincoln, Bruce. "Nicholas I: Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias".
• Massie, Robert K. "Peter The Great".
• Massie, Robert K. "Nicholas and Alexandra".
• Massie, Robert K. "The Romonavs: The Final Chapter"
• Troyat, Henri "Catherine the Great".
• Troyat, Henri "Alexander I".
• Radzinsky, Edvard "Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar".
• Radzinsky, Edvard "The life and death of Nicholas II".
• Van der Kiste, John. The Romanovs, 1818-1959: Alexander II of Russia and His Family. Sutton Publishing, 1998.

Image File history File links Wikisource-logo. ... The original Wikisource logo. ...

See also

• Tsars of Russia family tree
• List of Grand Dukes of Russia
• List of Grand Duchesses of Russia
• Ancestors of Nicholas II of Russia
• Line of succession to the Russian Throne

This is a list of those members of the Russian Imperial Family who bore the title Velikiy Knjaz (usually translated into English as Grand Duke, but more accurately Grand Prince). ... This is a list of those members of the Russian Imperial House who bore the title Velikaia Kniaginia (usually translated into French and English as Grand Duchess, but more accurately Grand Princess). ... // Here are listed the ancestors of the ruling members of the House of Romanov. ... The Monarchy of Russia was abolished in 1917 following the February Revolution, which forced Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate. ...

External links

• The Romanov Memorial
• Frozentears.org -- A media library of the Last Imperial Family.
• The Romanov fund for Russia -- The official website for Romanov fund.
• The Romanov Family Association-- The Romanov Family Association's official website.
• Alexander Palace Time Machine-- Imperial Russia History Site.
• Family Tree of the ruling Romanovs
• The Romanovs Today About the Romanov Family Association.
• Romanov Family Album - From "The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library", a collection of family photographs.
• Genealogy of the Imperial House of Russia (Requires Java)
• The Russian Imperial Succession Supports the claims of the descendants of the Grand Duke Kirill.
• The Romanovs: Their Empire, Their Books, New York Public Library.
• The Murder of Russia's Imperial Family, Nicolay Sokolov. Investigation of murder of the Romanov Imperial Family in 1918. In Russian
• Nikolay II - Live and Death, Edvard Radzinski. Nicholas II - "Live and Death". In Russian
• Mother of Last Russian Tsar to Be Reburied, by Moscow News
• Romanov’s Dynasty
• The Romanovs in Film A complete filmography of the Romanovs.
• All Russian Monarchist Center
• Official website of Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia
• Official website of Maria Vladimirovna, Grand Duchess of Russia
• Russian History Magazine Articles about the Romanovs from Atlantis magazine.