Pervomartovtsy (russian: Первома́ртовцы; a compound term literally meaning ''those of March 1'') were the Russian

revolutionaries A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

, members of ''

Narodnaya Volya Narodnaya Volya ( rus, Наро́дная во́ля, p=nɐˈrodnəjə ˈvolʲə, t=People's Will) was a late 19th-century revolutionary political organization in the Russian Empire which conducted assassinations of government officials in an att ...

'', planners and executors of the assassination of

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Gra ...

(March 1, 1881) and the attempted assassination of

Alexander III of Russia Alexander III ( rus, Алекса́ндр III Алекса́ндрович, r=Aleksandr III Aleksandrovich; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 18 ...

(March 1, 1887, also known as "The Second First of March").

March 1, 1881

The assassination in 1881 was planned by Narodnaya Volya's Executive Committee.

Andrei Zhelyabov Andrei Ivanovich Zhelyabov (russian: Желябов, Андрей Иванович; – ) was a Russian Empire revolutionary and member of the Executive Committee of Narodnaya Volya. After graduating from a gymnasium in Kerch in 1869, Zhelyab ...

was the main organizer. After his arrest on February 27, he was replaced by

Sophia Perovskaya Sophia Lvovna Perovskaya (russian: Со́фья Льво́вна Перо́вская; – ) was a Russian Empire revolutionary and a member of the revolutionary organization ''Narodnaya Volya''. She helped orchestrate the assassination of ...

. Alexander II was killed on March 1, 1881 by a

bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the Exothermic process, exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-t ...

, thrown by

Ignacy Hryniewiecki Ignacy Hryniewiecki or Ignaty Ioakhimovich Grinevitsky). (russian: Игнатий Гриневицкий, pl, Ignacy Hryniewiecki, be, Ігнат Грынявіцкі; — March 13, 1881) was a Polish member of the Russian revolutionary socie ...

. Hryniewiecki wounded himself fatally in the assassination;

Nikolai Sablin Nikolai Alekseyevich Sablin (russian: Никола́й Алексе́евич Са́блин), was the son of a petty landowner, was born in 1849 or 1850 (sources vary). While at Moscow University he became involved in revolutionary politics as a ...

committed suicide. Accomplices - Zhelyabov, Perovskaya,

Nikolai Kibalchich Nikolai Ivanovich Kibalchich (russian: Николай Иванович Кибальчич, uk, Микола Іванович Кибальчич, sr, Никола Кибалчић, ''Mykola Ivanovych Kybalchych''; 19 October 1853 – April 3, 188 ...

Hesya Helfman Hesya Mirovna (Meerovna) Helfman (, ) 1855, Mazyr — 1 ( N.S. 13) February 1882, Saint Petersburg), was a Russian revolutionary member of ''Narodnaya Volya'', who was implicated in the assassination of Tsar Alexander II. Biography Early life B ...

Timofei Mikhailov Timofey Mikhailovich Mikhailov (russian: Тимофе́й Михайлович Мих́айлов; — 15 April 1881) was a member of the Russian revolutionary organization Narodnaya Volya. He was designated a bomb-thrower in the assassination of ...

Nikolai Rysakov Nikolai Ivanovich Rysakov (russian: Николай Иванов Рысаков; – 15 April 1881) was a Russian revolutionary and a member of Narodnaya Volya. He personally took part in the assassination of Tsar Alexander II of Russia. He threw ...

- were tried by the Special Tribunal of the Ruling Senate on March 26-29 and sentenced to death by hanging. On April 3, 1881 five Pervomartovtsy were

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

(except for Helfman, whose

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the State (polity), state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to ...

had been postponed due to her

pregnancy Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ca ...

. Her execution was later replaced with

katorga Katorga ( rus, ка́торга, p=ˈkatərɡə; from medieval and modern Greek: ''katergon, κάτεργον'', "galley") was a system of penal labor in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union (see Katorga labor in the Soviet Union). Prisoner ...

for indefinite period of time; she nevertheless died of a

post-natal The postpartum (or postnatal) period begins after childbirth and is typically considered to end within 6 weeks as the mother's body, including hormone levels and uterus size, returns to a non-pregnant state. The terms puerperium, puerperal perio ...

complication in prison). File:I Grinevizky.jpg,

File:Zhelyabov.jpg,

File:Sof'ja Perovskaja 3.jpg,

File:Ni rysakov.jpg,

File:Kibalchich.jpg,

File:Mikhailov tm.jpg,

Timofey Mikhaylov Timofey Mikhailovich Mikhailov (russian: Тимофе́й Михайлович Мих́айлов; — 15 April 1881) was a member of the Russian revolutionary organization Narodnaya Volya. He was designated a bomb-thrower in the assassination of ...

File:G Gelfman.jpg,

File:N A Sablin.jpg,

March 1, 1887

The second "First of March" was planned by members of the "terrorist faction" of ''Narodnaya Volya'', including

Aleksandr Ulyanov Aleksandr Ilyich Ulyanov (russian: Алекса́ндр Ильи́ч Улья́нов; – ) was a Russian revolutionary and political activist. He was the elder brother of Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union. Early life Ulyanov ...

(brother of

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

). On March 1, 1887, they came to

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Nevsky Prospekt Nevsky Prospect ( rus, Не́вский проспе́кт, r=Nevsky Prospekt (street), Prospekt, p=ˈnʲɛfskʲɪj prɐˈspʲɛkt) is the main street (high street) in the federal city of Saint Petersburg, St. Petersburg in Russian Federation, ...

with bombs and waited for the carriage of Tsar Alexander III to pass by. However, they were arrested on the spot before his arrival. All of the 15 accomplices -

Petr Shevyrev Pyotr Yakovlevich Shevyryov (russian: Пётр Я́ковлевич Шевырёв; 6.23(7.5).1863 – 5.8(20).1887) was a Russian revolutionary, member of Narodnaya Volya. In 1883, Shevyrev enrolled in the University of Kharkiv and later t ...

(main organizers),

Pakhomiy Andreyushkin Pakhomy Ivanovich Adreyushkin (May 15, 1865 – May 8, 1887) was a Russian revolutionary, member of Narodnaya Volya ("''People's Will''"), a secret terrorist organization meant to overthrow the Russian tsar. In 1886, Andreyushkin enrolled in St ...

, Vasili Generalov,

Vasili Osipanov Vasili Stepanovich Osipanov (''Осипанов, Василий Степанович'' in Russian language, Russian) (2.21(3.5).1861, Tomsk — 5.8(20).1887), Russian revolutionary, member of Narodnaya Volya (organization), Narodnaya Volya. In 18 ...

(bombthrowers) and ten other people - were tried by the Special Senate Committee on April 15–19 and sentenced. The first five were hanged on May 8, 1887; the rest were sentenced to

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...

banishment Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

, or

References

* Суд над цареубийцами. Дело 1-го марта 1881 года. Под редакцией В.В.Разбегаева. Изд. им. Н.И.Новикова. СПб том 1 и 2. 2014., {{Use mdy dates, date=June 2011 Narodnaya Volya Politics of the Russian Empire Terrorism in the Russian Empire Russian Empire regicides