The House of Romanov (also transcribed Romanoff; rus, Романовы, Románovy, rɐˈmanəvɨ) was the reigning
imperial house
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
of
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after the
Tsarina
Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; bg, царица, tsaritsa; sr, / ; russian: царица, tsaritsa) is the title of a female autocratic ruler (mona ...
,
Anastasia Romanova, was married to the First Tsar of Russia,
Ivan the Terrible
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
.
The house became ''
boyar
A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...
s'' (the highest rank in Russian nobility'')'' of the
Grand Duchy of Moscow
The Grand Duchy of Moscow, Muscovite Russia, Muscovite Rus' or Grand Principality of Moscow (russian: Великое княжество Московское, Velikoye knyazhestvo Moskovskoye; also known in English simply as Muscovy from the Lati ...
and later of the
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia or Tsardom of Rus' also externally referenced as the Tsardom of Muscovy, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of Tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter I i ...
under the reigning
Rurik dynasty
The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
, which became extinct upon the death of Tsar
Feodor I
Fyodor I Ivanovich (russian: Фёдор I Иванович) or Feodor I Ioannovich (russian: Феодор I Иоаннович; 31 May 1557 – 17 January (NS) 1598), also known as Feodor the Bellringer (russian: Феодор Звонарь), ...
in 1598. The
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles (russian: Смутное время, ), or Smuta (russian: Смута), was a period of political crisis during the Tsardom of Russia which began in 1598 with the death of Fyodor I (Fyodor Ivanovich, the last of the Rurik dy ...
, caused by the resulting
succession crisis A succession crisis is a crisis that arises when an order of succession fails, for example when a king dies without an indisputable heir. It may result in a war of succession.
Examples include (see List of wars of succession):
*Multiple periods dur ...
, saw several
pretender
A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...
s and imposters (
False Dmitris) fight for the crown during the
Polish–Muscovite War of 1605–1618. On 21 February 1613, a ''
Zemsky Sobor
The Zemsky Sobor ( rus, зе́мский собо́р, p=ˈzʲemskʲɪj sɐˈbor, t=assembly of the land) was a parliament of the Tsardom of Russia's estates of the realm active during the 16th and 17th centuries.
The assembly represented Russi ...
'' elected
Michael Romanov as
Tsar of Russia
This is a list of all reigning monarchs in the history of Russia. It includes the princes of medieval Rus′ state (both centralised, known as Kievan Rus', Kievan Rus′ and feudal, when the political center moved northeast to Grand Duke of Vl ...
, establishing the Romanovs as Russia's second reigning dynasty. Michael's grandson
Peter I Peter I may refer to:
Religious hierarchs
* Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus
* Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint
* Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
, who established the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
in 1721, transformed the country into a
great power
A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power inf ...
through a series of wars and reforms. The direct male line of the Romanovs ended when Empress
Elizabeth of Russia
Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular Russian ...
died childless in 1762. As a result, her nephew Peter III, an agnatic member of the
House of Holstein-Gottorp
Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schlesw ...
(a
cadet branch
In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, title ...
of the German
House of Oldenburg
The House of Oldenburg is a Germans, German dynasty with links to Denmark since the 15th century. It has branches that rule or have ruled in Denmark, Iceland, Greece, Norway, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig, Duchy ...
that reigned in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
), ascended to the throne and adopted his Romanov mother’s house name.
[ Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh. " Burke's Royal Families of the World: ''Volume I Europe & Latin America'', 1977, pp. 460–476. ] Officially known as members of the House of Romanov, descendants after Elizabeth are sometimes referred to as "Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov".
The
abdication
Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other societ ...
of Emperor
Nicholas II
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pola ...
on as a result of the
February Revolution
The February Revolution ( rus, Февра́льская револю́ция, r=Fevral'skaya revolyutsiya, p=fʲɪvˈralʲskəjə rʲɪvɐˈlʲutsɨjə), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and somet ...
ended 304 years of Romanov rule and led to the establishing of the
Russian Republic
The Russian Republic,. referred to as the Russian Democratic Federal Republic. in the Decree on the system of government of Russia (1918), 1918 Constitution, was a short-lived state (polity), state which controlled, ''de jure'', the territ ...
under the
Russian Provisional Government
The Russian Provisional Government ( rus, Временное правительство России, Vremennoye pravitel'stvo Rossii) was a provisional government of the Russian Republic, announced two days before and established immediately ...
in the lead-up to the
Russian Civil War
, date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...
of 1917–1922. In 1918
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
officials
executed the ex-Emperor and his family. Of the House of Romanov's 65 members, 47 survivors went into
exile
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 ...
abroad.
In 1924 Grand Duke
Kirill Vladimirovich, the senior surviving
male-line
Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...
descendant 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 ...
by
primogeniture
Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...
, claimed the headship of the defunct Imperial House of Russia. Since 1991 the succession to the former Russian throne has been in dispute.
Surname usage
Legally, it remains unclear whether any ''
ukase
In Imperial Russia, a ukase () or ukaz (russian: указ ) was a proclamation of the tsar, government, or a religious leader (patriarch) that had the force of law. "Edict" and "decree" are adequate translations using the terminology and concepts ...
'' ever abolished the surname of Michael Romanov (or of his subsequent male-line descendants) after his accession to the Russian throne in 1613, although by tradition members of reigning dynasties seldom use surnames, being known instead by dynastic titles ("Tsarevich Ivan Alexeevich", "Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich", etc.). From , the monarchs of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
claimed the throne as relatives of
Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia (russian: А́нна Петро́вна; 27 January 1708 – 4 March 1728) was the eldest daughter of Emperor Peter I of Russia and his wife Empress Catherine I. Her younger sister, Empress Elizabeth, ...
(1708–1728), who had married
Charles Frederick, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Charles Frederick, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () (30 April 1700 – 18 June 1739) was a Prince of Sweden and Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp and an important member of European royalty. His dynasty, the Dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Gott ...
. Thus they were no longer Romanovs by
patrilineage
Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...
, belonging instead to the Holstein-Gottorp
cadet branch
In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, title ...
of the German
House of Oldenburg
The House of Oldenburg is a Germans, German dynasty with links to Denmark since the 15th century. It has branches that rule or have ruled in Denmark, Iceland, Greece, Norway, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig, Duchy ...
that reigned in Denmark. The 1944 edition of the ''
Almanach de Gotha
The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First published ...
'' records the name of Russia's ruling dynasty from the time of Peter III (reigned 1761–1762) as "Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov".
However, the terms "Romanov" and "House of Romanov" often occurred in official references to the Russian imperial family. The coat-of-arms of the Romanov
boyar
A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...
s was included in legislation on the imperial dynasty,
and in a 1913
jubilee
A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...
, Russia officially celebrated the "300th Anniversary of the Romanovs' rule".
After the February Revolution of March 1917, a special decree of the
Provisional Government of Russia
The Russian Provisional Government ( rus, Временное правительство России, Vremennoye pravitel'stvo Rossii) was a provisional government of the Russian Republic, announced two days before and established immediately ...
granted all members of the imperial family the surname "Romanov". The only exceptions, the
morganatic
Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...
descendants of the
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich (1891–1942), took (in exile) the surname
Ilyinsky.
Origins to 18th century
![1 ruble Nikolai II - 1913](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/1_ruble_Nikolai_II_-_1913.png)
The Romanovs share their origin with two dozen other Russian noble families. Their earliest common ancestor is one
Andrei Kobyla, attested around 1347 as a
boyar
A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...
in the service of
Semyon I of Moscow.
Later generations assigned to Kobyla an illustrious
pedigree
Pedigree may refer to:
Breeding
* Pedigree chart, a document to record ancestry, used by genealogists in study of human family lines, and in selective breeding of other animals
** Pedigree, a human genealogy (ancestry chart)
** Pedigree (animal ...
. An 18th-century
genealogy
Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kins ...
claimed that he was the son of the
Old Prussian
Old Prussian was a Western Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to avoid con ...
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
Old Prussian
Old Prussian was a Western Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to avoid con ...
rebellion of 1260–1274 against the
Teutonic order
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
was named Glande. This legendary version of the Romanov's origin is contested by another version of their descent from a boyar family from Novgorod.
His actual origin may have been less spectacular. Not only is ''Kobyla'' Russian for "
mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...
", some of his relatives also had as nicknames the terms for horses and other domestic animals, thus suggesting descent from one of the
royal equerries. One of Kobyla's sons,
Feodor, a member of the boyar
Duma
A duma (russian: дума) is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions.
The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were for ...
of
Dmitri Donskoi
Saint Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy ( rus, Дми́трий Ива́нович Донско́й, Dmítriy Ivanovich Donskóy, also known as Dimitrii or Demetrius), or Dmitry of the Don, sometimes referred to simply as Dmitry (12 October 1350 – 1 ...
, 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
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
, the former family became known as Yakovlev (
Alexander Herzen
Alexander Ivanovich Herzen (russian: Алекса́ндр Ива́нович Ге́рцен, translit=Alexándr Ivánovich Gértsen; ) was a Russian writer and thinker known as the "father of Russian socialism" and one of the main fathers of agra ...
among them), whereas grandchildren of changed their name to "Romanov".
Feodor Nikitich Romanov was descended from the
Rurik dynasty
The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
through the female line. His mother, Evdokiya Gorbataya-Shuyskaya, was a Rurikid princess from the
Shuysky
The Princes Shuisky (russian: Шуйские, Shuyskiye) was a Rurikid family of Boyars descending from Grand Duke Dimitri Konstantinovich of Vladimir-Suzdal and Prince Andrey Yaroslavich, brother to Alexander Nevsky. The surname is derived fr ...
branch, daughter of
Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky
Prince Alexander Borisovich Gorbatyi-Shuisky (Александр Борисович Горбатый-Шуйский) was probably the most celebrated and popular general of Ivan the Terrible. The town of Gorbatov in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast bears hi ...
.
Rise to power
The family fortunes soared when Roman's daughter,
Anastasia Zakharyina, married
Ivan IV
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
(the Terrible), the
Rurikid
The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
Grand Prince of Moscow, on 3 (13) February 1547.
Since her husband had assumed the title of
tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
, which literally means "
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...
", on 16 January 1547, she was crowned the very first
tsaritsa
Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; bg, царица, tsaritsa; sr, / ; russian: царица, tsaritsa) is the title of a female autocratic ruler (mona ...
of Russia. Her mysterious death in 1560 changed Ivan's character for the worse. Suspecting the boyars of having poisoned his beloved, Tsar Ivan started a
reign of terror
The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervour, ...
against them. Among his children by Anastasia, the elder (Ivan) was murdered by the tsar in a quarrel; the younger
Feodor, a pious but lethargic prince, inherited the throne upon his father's death in 1584.
![Kostromatsar](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Kostromatsar.jpg)
Throughout Feodor's reign (1584–1598), the Tsar's brother-in-law,
Boris Godunov
Borís Fyodorovich Godunóv (; russian: Борис Фёдорович Годунов; 1552 ) ruled the Tsardom of Russia as ''de facto'' regent from c. 1585 to 1598 and then as the first non-Rurikid tsar from 1598 to 1605. After the end of his ...
, and his Romanov cousins contested the ''de facto'' rule of Russia. Upon the death of childless Feodor, the 700-year-old line of
Rurikids
The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
came to an end. After a long struggle, the party of Boris Godunov prevailed over the Romanovs, and the ''
Zemsky sobor
The Zemsky Sobor ( rus, зе́мский собо́р, p=ˈzʲemskʲɪj sɐˈbor, t=assembly of the land) was a parliament of the Tsardom of Russia's estates of the realm active during the 16th and 17th centuries.
The assembly represented Russi ...
'' elected Godunov as tsar in 1598. Godunov's revenge on the Romanovs was terrible: all the family and its relations were deported to remote corners of the Russian North and
Urals
The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through European ...
, where most of them died of hunger or in chains. The family's leader,
Feodor Nikitich Romanov, was exiled to the
Antoniev Siysky Monastery
The Siya Monastery of St. Antonius (''Antonievo-Siysky Monastery'', Антониево-Сийский монастырь) is a Russian Orthodox monastery that was founded by Saint Antonius of Siya deep in the woods, to the south of Kholmogory ...
and forced to take monastic vows with the name
Filaret.
The Romanovs' fortunes again changed dramatically with the fall of the Godunov dynasty in June 1605. As a former leader of the anti-Godunov party and cousin of the last legitimate tsar, Filaret Romanov's recognition was sought by several
impostor
An impostor (also spelled imposter) is a person who pretends to be somebody else, often through means of disguise. Their objective is usually to try to gain financial or social advantages through social engineering, but also often for purposes ...
s who attempted to claim the Rurikid legacy and throne during the
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles (russian: Смутное время, ), or Smuta (russian: Смута), was a period of political crisis during the Tsardom of Russia which began in 1598 with the death of Fyodor I (Fyodor Ivanovich, the last of the Rurik dy ...
.
False Dmitriy I
False Dmitry I ( rus, Лжедмитрий I, Lzhedmitriy I) (or Pseudo-Demetrius I) reigned as the Tsar of Russia from 10 June 1605 until his death on 17 May 1606 under the name of Dmitriy Ivanovich ( rus, Дмитрий Иванович). A ...
made him a
metropolitan, and
False Dmitriy II
False Dmitry II ( rus, Лжедмитрий II, Lzhedmitrii II; died ), historically known as Pseudo-Demetrius II and also called "тушинский вор" ("rebel/criminal of Tushino"), was the second of three pretenders to the Russian throne w ...
raised him to the dignity of
patriarch
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certai ...
. Upon the expulsion of the
Polish army
The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...
from Moscow in 1612, the ''Zemsky Sobor'' offered the Russian crown to several Rurikid and
Gediminian princes, but all declined the honour.
On being offered the Russian crown, Filaret's 16-year-old son
Mikhail Romanov
Michael I (Russian: Михаил Фёдорович Романов, ''Mikhaíl Fyódorovich Románov'') () became the first Russian tsar of the House of Romanov after the Zemskiy Sobor of 1613 elected him to rule the Tsardom of Russia.
He w ...
, then living at the
Ipatiev Monastery
The Ipatiev Monastery (), sometimes translated into English as Hypatian Monastery, is a male monastery situated on the bank of the Kostroma River just opposite the city of Kostroma. It was founded around 1330 by a Tatar convert, Prince Chet, who ...
of
Kostroma
Kostroma ( rus, Кострома́, p=kəstrɐˈma) is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Volga and Kostroma. Popu ...
, burst into tears of fear and despair. He was finally persuaded to accept the throne by his mother
Kseniya Ivanovna Shestova
Boyarinya Kseniya Ioannovna (Ivanovna) Shestova (russian: Ксения Ивановна Шестова (or Романова); 1560–1631) was a spouse of Fyodor Romanov and the mother of Mikhail Romanov.
Life
The origins of Xeniya Ivanovna have b ...
, who blessed him with the holy image of
Our Lady of St. Theodore
The Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God (russian: Феодоровская икона Божией Матери), also known as Our Lady of Saint Theodore and the Black Virgin Mary (Mother of Jesus), Mary of Russia, is the patron icon of the Ro ...
. Feeling how insecure his throne was, Mikhail attempted to emphasize his ties with the last Rurikid tsars and sought advice from the ''Zemsky Sobor'' on every important issue. This strategy proved successful. The early Romanovs were generally accepted by the population as in-laws of
Ivan the Terrible
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
and viewed as innocent martyrs of Godunov's wrath.
Dynastic crisis
![Peter der-Grosse 1838](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Peter_der-Grosse_1838.jpg)
Mikhail was succeeded by his only son
Alexei, who steered the country quietly through numerous troubles. Upon Alexei's death, there was a period of dynastic struggle between his children by his first wife
Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya
Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya (, 1 April 1624 – 18 August 1669) was a Russian tsaritsa as the first spouse of tsar Alexis of Russia. She was the mother of tsar Feodor III of Russia, tsar Ivan V of Russia, and the princess regent Sophia Alekse ...
(
Feodor III
Fyodor III Alekséyevich (in Russian: ''Фёдор III Алексеевич'') or Feodor III Alekséyevich (9 June 1661 – 7 May 1682) was the Tsar of Russia between 1676 and 1682. While disabled and paralyzed from birth, he managed to pass refo ...
,
Sofia Alexeyevna,
Ivan V
Ivan V Alekseyevich (russian: Иван V Алексеевич; – ) was Tsar of Russia between 1682 and 1696, jointly ruling with his younger half-brother Peter I. Ivan was the youngest son of Alexis I of Russia by his first wife, Maria M ...
) and his son by his second wife
Nataliya Kyrillovna Naryshkina
Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina (russian: Ната́лья Кири́лловна Нары́шкина; 1 September 1651 – 4 February 1694) was the Tsaritsa of Russia from 1671–1676 as the second spouse of Tsar Alexis I of Russia, and reg ...
, the future
Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
. Peter ruled from 1682 until his death in 1725.
In numerous successful wars he expanded the tsardom into a huge empire that became a major European power. He led a cultural revolution that replaced some of the traditionalist and medieval social and political system with a modern,
scientific
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
,
Europe-oriented, and
rationalist system.
New dynastic struggles followed the death of Peter. His only son to survive into adulthood,
Tsarevich Alexei
Grand Duke Alexei Petrovich of Russia (28 February 1690 – 26 June 1718) was a Russian Tsarevich. He was born in Moscow, the son of Tsar Peter I and his first wife, Eudoxia Lopukhina. Alexei despised his father and repeatedly thwarted Peter's p ...
, did not support Peter's modernization of Russia. He had previously been arrested and died in prison shortly thereafter. Near the end of his life, Peter managed to alter the succession tradition of male heirs, allowing him to choose his heir. Power then passed into the hands of his second wife,
Empress Catherine
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
, who ruled until her death in 1727.
Peter II, the son of Tsarevich Alexei, took the throne but died in 1730, ending the Romanov male line.
He was succeeded by
Anna I, daughter of Peter the Great's half-brother and co-ruler,
Ivan V
Ivan V Alekseyevich (russian: Иван V Алексеевич; – ) was Tsar of Russia between 1682 and 1696, jointly ruling with his younger half-brother Peter I. Ivan was the youngest son of Alexis I of Russia by his first wife, Maria M ...
. Before she died in 1740 the empress declared that her grandnephew,
Ivan VI
Ivan VI,; – (Julian calendar should be used in this article) Iván or Ioánn Antónovich (12 August 1740 5 July 1764) was an infant emperor of Russia who was overthrown by his cousin Elizabeth Petrovna in 1741. He was only two months old whe ...
, should succeed her. This was an attempt to secure the line of her father, while excluding descendants of Peter the Great from inheriting the throne. Ivan VI was only a one-year-old infant at the time of his succession to the throne, and his parents, Grand Duchess
Anna Leopoldovna
Anna Leopoldovna (russian: А́нна Леопо́льдовна; 18 December 1718 – 19 March 1746), born Elisabeth Katharina Christine von Mecklenburg-Schwerin and also known as Anna Carlovna (А́нна Ка́рловна), was regent of R ...
and
Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick
Anthony Ulrich (; 28 August 1714, Bevern – 4 May 1774 (O.S.), Kholmogory), Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, was Generalissimo of the Army of Russia, and the husband of Anna Leopoldovna, who reigned as regent of Russia for one year.
Biograph ...
, the ruling regent, were detested for their German counselors and relations. As a consequence, shortly after Empress Anna's death,
Elizabeth Petrovna
Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular Russian ...
, a
legitimized
Legitimation or legitimisation is the act of providing legitimacy. Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within a given society. It ...
daughter of Peter I, managed to gain the favor of the populace and dethroned Ivan VI in a ''coup d'état'', supported by the
Preobrazhensky Regiment
The Preobrazhensky Life-Guards Regiment (russian: Преображенский лейб-гвардии полк, ''Preobrazhensky leyb-gvardii polk'') was a regiment of the Imperial Guard of the Imperial Russian Army from 1683 to 1917.
The Pr ...
and the ambassadors of France and Sweden. Ivan VI and his parents died in prison many years later.
House of Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov
![COA Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov chivalric](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/COA_Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov_chivalric.svg)
The
Holstein-Gottorp
Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schlesw ...
s of Russia retained the Romanov surname, emphasizing their
matrilineal descent
Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance o ...
from Peter the Great, through
Anna Petrovna
Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia (russian: А́нна Петро́вна; 27 January 1708 – 4 March 1728) was the eldest daughter of Emperor Peter I of Russia and his wife Empress Catherine I. Her younger sister, Empress Elizabeth, ...
(Peter I's elder daughter by his second wife).
In 1742,
Empress Elizabeth of Russia
Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular List of ...
brought Anna's son, her nephew
Peter of Holstein-Gottorp, to St. Petersburg and proclaimed him her heir. In time, she married him off to a German princess, Sophia of Anhalt-Zerbst.
In 1762, shortly after the death of Empress Elizabeth, Sophia, who had taken the Russian name Catherine upon her marriage, overthrew her unpopular husband, with the aid of her lover,
Grigory Orlov
Prince Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov (russian: Князь Григорий Григорьевич Орлов; 6 October 1734, Bezhetsky Uyezd – 13 April 1783, Moscow) was a favourite of the Empress Catherine the Great of Russia. He became a leader ...
. She reigned as
Catherine the Great
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
. Catherine's son,
Paul I Paul I may refer to:
*Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch
*Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople
*Pope Paul I (700–767)
*Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia
*Paul ...
, who succeeded his mother in 1796,
was particularly proud to be a great-grandson of Peter the Great, although his mother's memoirs arguably insinuate that Paul's natural father was, in fact, her lover
Sergei Saltykov
Count Sergei Vasilievich Saltykov ( rus, link=no, Сергей Васильевич Салтыков, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ səltɨˈkof; c. 1726 – 1765) was a Russian officer (chamberlain) who became the first lover of Empre ...
, rather than her husband, Peter. Painfully aware of the hazards resulting from battles of succession, Paul decreed
house law
House law or House laws (''Hausgesetze'') are rules that govern a royal family or dynasty in matters of eligibility for order of succession, succession to a throne, membership in a dynasty, exercise of a Regent, regency, or entitlement to dynastic ...
s for the Romanovs – the so-called
Pauline Laws
The Pauline Laws are the house laws of the Romanov rulers of the Russian Empire. The name comes from the fact that they were initially established by Emperor Paul I of Russia in 1797.
Paul I abolished Peter the Great's law that allowed each reign ...
, among the strictest in Europe – which established
semi-Salic primogeniture as the rule of succession to the throne, requiring
Orthodox faith for the monarch and dynasts, and for the consorts of the monarchs and their near heirs. Later,
Alexander I Alexander I may refer to:
* Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon 495–454 BC
* Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus
* Pope Alexander I (died 115), early bishop of Rome
* Pope Alexander I of Alexandria (died 320s), patriarch of ...
, responding to the 1820
morganatic
Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...
marriage of his brother and heir,
added the requirement that consorts of all Russian dynasts in the male line had to be of equal birth (i.e., born to a royal or
sovereign
''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'.
The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...
dynasty).
Age of Autocracy
Paul, I was murdered in his palace in Saint Petersburg in 1801. Alexander, I succeeded him on the throne and later died without leaving a son. His brother, crowned
Nicholas I, succeeded him on the throne
in 1825. The succession was far from smooth, however, as hundreds of troops took the oath of allegiance to Nicholas's elder brother,
Constantine Pavlovich
Konstantin Pavlovich (russian: Константи́н Па́влович; ) was a grand duke of Russian Empire, Russia and the second son of Emperor Paul I of Russia, Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. He was the heir-presumptive for ...
who, unbeknownst to them, had renounced his claim to the throne in 1822, following his marriage. The confusion, combined with opposition to Nicholas' accession, led to the
Decembrist revolt
The Decembrist Revolt ( ru , Восстание декабристов, translit = Vosstaniye dekabristov , translation = Uprising of the Decembrists) took place in Russia on , during the interregnum following the sudden death of Emperor Al ...
.
Nicholas I fathered four sons, educating them for the prospect of ruling Russia and for military careers, from whom the last branches of the dynasty descended.
Alexander II, son of Nicholas I, became the next Russian emperor in 1855, in the midst of the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
. While Alexander considered it his charge to maintain peace in Europe and Russia, he believed only a strong Russian military could keep the peace. By developing the army, giving some freedom to Finland, and freeing the serfs in 1861 he gained much popular support for the reign.
Despite his popularity, however, his family life began to unravel by the mid-1860s. In 1864, his eldest son, and heir,
Tsarevich Nicholas, died suddenly. His wife,
Empress Maria Alexandrovna
Maria Alexandrovna ( rus, Мария Александровна), born Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine (8 August 1824 – 3 June 1880), was Empress of Russia as the first wife and political adviser of Emperor Alexander II. She was one of the ...
, who suffered from tuberculosis, spent much of her time abroad. Alexander eventually turned to a mistress,
Princess Catherine Dolgoruki. Immediately following the death of his wife in 1880 he contracted a
morganatic marriage
Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...
with Dolgoruki.
His legitimization of their children, and rumors that he was contemplating crowning his new wife as empress, caused tension within the dynasty. In particular, the grand duchesses were scandalized at the prospect of deferring to a woman who had borne Alexander several children during his wife's lifetime. Before Princess Catherine could be elevated in rank, however, on 13 March 1881 Alexander was assassinated by a hand-made bomb hurled 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 societ ...
. Slavic patriotism, cultural revival, and
Panslavist ideas grew in importance in the latter half of this century, evoking expectations of a more Russian than
cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Food and drink
* Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo"
History
* Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953
Hotels and resorts
* Cosmopoli ...
dynasty. Several marriages were contracted with members of other reigning Slavic or Orthodox dynasties (Greece, Montenegro, Serbia).
In the early 20th century two Romanov princesses were allowed to marry Russian high noblemen – whereas, until the 1850s, practically all marriages had been with German princelings.
![The Romanovs 1892](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/The_Romanovs_1892.jpg)
His son
Alexander III succeeded Alexander II. This tsar, the second-to-last Romanov emperor, was responsible for conservative reforms in Russia. Not expected to inherit the throne, he was educated in matters of state only after the death of his older brother, Nicholas. Lack of diplomatic training may have influenced his politics as well as those of his son, Nicholas II. Alexander III was physically impressive, being not only tall (1.93 m or 6'4", according to some sources), but of large physique and considerable strength. His beard hearkened back to the likeness of tsars of old, contributing to an aura of brusque authority, awe-inspiring to some, alienating to others. Alexander, fearful of the fate which had befallen his father, strengthened
autocratic
Autocracy is a system of government in which absolute power over a state is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject neither to external legal restraints nor to regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perh ...
rule in Russia. Some of the reforms the more liberal Alexander II had pushed through were reversed.
Alexander had inherited not only his dead brother's position as ''
Tsesarevich
Tsesarevich (russian: Цесаревич, ) was the title of the heir apparent or presumptive in the Russian Empire. It either preceded or replaced the given name and patronymic.
Usage
It is often confused with "tsarevich", which is a dis ...
'', but also his brother's Danish fiancée, Princess Dagmar. Taking the name
Maria Fyodorovna upon her conversion to Orthodoxy, she was the daughter of
King Christian IX
Christian IX (8 April 181829 January 1906) was King of Denmark from 1863 until his death in 1906. From 1863 to 1864, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg.
A younger son of Frederick William, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein- ...
and the sister of the future kings
Frederik VIII of Denmark
Frederick VIII ( da, Christian Frederik Vilhelm Carl; 3 June 1843 – 14 May 1912) was King of Denmark from 29 January 1906 until his death in 1912.
The eldest son of King Christian IX, nicknamed the ''Father-in-law of Europe'', Frederick ...
and
George I of Greece
George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination in 1913.
Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen, and seemed destined for ...
, as well as of Britain's
Queen Alexandra
Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...
, consort of
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.
The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...
.
Despite contrasting natures and backgrounds, the marriage was considered harmonious, producing six children and acquiring for Alexander the reputation of being the first tsar not known to take mistresses.
His eldest son, Nicholas, became emperor upon Alexander III's death due to kidney disease at age 49 in November 1894. Nicholas reputedly said, "I am not ready to be tsar...." Just a week after the funeral, Nicholas married his fiancée,
Alix of Hesse-Darmstadt
Alexandra Feodorovna ( – 17 July 1918), Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine at birth, was the last List of Russian royal consorts, Empress of Russia as the consort of Nicholas II of Russia, Emperor Nicholas II from Wedding of Nicholas II and ...
, a favorite grandchild of Queen
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
. Though a kind-hearted man, he tended to leave intact his father's harsh policies. For her part the shy Alix, who took the name Alexandra Fyodorovna, became a devout convert to Orthodoxy as well as a devoted wife to Nicholas and mother to their five children, yet avoided many of the social duties traditional for Russia's tsarinas.
Seen as distant and severe, unfavorable comparisons were drawn between her and her popular mother-in-law, Maria Fyodorovna.
When, in September 1915, Nicholas took command of the army at the front lines during World War I, Alexandra sought to influence him toward an authoritarian approach in government affairs even more than she had done during peacetime. His well-known devotion to her injured both his and the dynasty's reputation during World War I, due to both her German origin and her unique relationship with
Rasputin
Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (; rus, links=no, Григорий Ефимович Распутин ; – ) was a Russian mystic and self-proclaimed holy man who befriended the family of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia, thus ga ...
, whose role in the life of her only son was not widely known. Alexandra was a carrier of the gene for
haemophilia
Haemophilia, or hemophilia (), is a mostly inherited genetic disorder that impairs the body's ability to make blood clots, a process needed to stop bleeding. This results in people bleeding for a longer time after an injury, easy bruising, ...
,
inherited from her maternal grandmother, Queen Victoria.
Her son,
Alexei, the long-awaited heir to the throne, inherited the disease and suffered agonizing bouts of protracted bleeding, the pain of which was sometimes partially alleviated by Rasputin's ministrations. Nicholas and Alexandra also had four daughters: the Grand Duchesses
Olga,
Tatiana
Tatiana (or Tatianna, also romanized as Tatyana, Tatjana, Tatijana, etc.) is a female name of Sabine-Roman origin that became widespread in Eastern Europe.
Variations
* be, Тацця́на, Tatsiana
* bg, Татяна, Tatyana
* germ ...
,
Maria
Maria may refer to:
People
* Mary, mother of Jesus
* Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages
Place names Extraterrestrial
* 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877
* Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
and
Anastasia
Anastasia (from el, Ἀναστασία, translit=Anastasía) is a feminine given name of Greek origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, where it was the most ...
.
The six crowned representatives of the Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov line were:
Paul
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
*Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...
(1796–1801),
Alexander I Alexander I may refer to:
* Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon 495–454 BC
* Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus
* Pope Alexander I (died 115), early bishop of Rome
* Pope Alexander I of Alexandria (died 320s), patriarch of ...
(1801–1825),
Nicholas I (1825–1855),
Alexander II (1855–1881),
Alexander III (1881–1894), and
Nicholas II
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pola ...
(1894–1917).
Constantine Pavlovich
Konstantin Pavlovich (russian: Константи́н Па́влович; ) was a grand duke of Russian Empire, Russia and the second son of Emperor Paul I of Russia, Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. He was the heir-presumptive for ...
and
Michael Alexandrovich, both morganatically married, are occasionally counted among Russia's emperors by historians who observe that the Russian monarchy did not legally permit
interregnum
An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...
s. But neither was crowned and both actively declined the throne.
Gallery
File:Gran Palacio del Kremlin, Moscú, Rusia, 2016-10-03, DD 28-29 HDR.jpg, The Grand Kremlin Palace
The Grand Kremlin Palace (russian: Большой Кремлёвский дворец - ) was built from 1837 to 1849 in Moscow, Russia, on the site of the estate of the Grand Princes, which had been established in the 14th century on Borovitsk ...
, Moscow
File:Grand Kremlin Palace Andreevsky hall 3.jpg, Throne of the Tsar, the Empress and the Tsarevich in the Grand Kremlin Palace
File:Spb 06-2012 Palace Embankment various 14.jpg, The Winter Palace
The Winter Palace ( rus, Зимний дворец, Zimnij dvorets, p=ˈzʲimnʲɪj dvɐˈrʲɛts) is a palace in Saint Petersburg that served as the official residence of the Emperor of all the Russias, Russian Emperor from 1732 to 1917. The p ...
, Saint Petersburg
File:Grand Cascade in Peterhof 01.jpg, The Peterhof Palace
The Peterhof Palace ( rus, Петерго́ф, Petergóf, p=pʲɪtʲɪrˈɡof,) (an emulation of early modern Dutch language, Dutch "Pieterhof", meaning "Pieter's Court"), is a series of palaces and gardens located in Petergof, Saint Petersbur ...
, Saint Petersburg
File:Catherine Palace in Tsarskoe Selo 02.jpg, The Catherine Palace
The Catherine Palace (russian: Екатерининский дворец, ) is a Rococo palace in Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin), 30 km south of St. Petersburg, Russia. It was the summer residence of the Russian tsars. The Palace is part of the ...
, Tsarskoye Selo
Tsarskoye Selo ( rus, Ца́рское Село́, p=ˈtsarskəɪ sʲɪˈlo, a=Ru_Tsarskoye_Selo.ogg, "Tsar's Village") was the town containing a former residence of the Russian imperial family and visiting nobility, located south from the cen ...
File:RUS-2016-Aerial-SPB-Peter and Paul Fortress 02.jpg, Aerial view of the Peter and Paul Fortress
The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a star fortress. Between the first half of the 1700s and early 1920s i ...
with Peter and Paul Cathedral, mausoleum of the Romanovs
Downfall
![Nicholas II and children with Cossacks of the Guard, cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Nicholas_II_and_children_with_Cossacks_of_the_Guard%2C_cropped.jpg)
The
February Revolution
The February Revolution ( rus, Февра́льская револю́ция, r=Fevral'skaya revolyutsiya, p=fʲɪvˈralʲskəjə rʲɪvɐˈlʲutsɨjə), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and somet ...
of 1917 resulted in the abdication of Nicholas II in favor of his brother
Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich.
The latter declined to accept imperial authority save to delegate it to the
Provisional Government
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or f ...
pending a future democratic referendum, effectively terminating the Romanov dynasty's rule over Russia.
After the
February Revolution
The February Revolution ( rus, Февра́льская револю́ция, r=Fevral'skaya revolyutsiya, p=fʲɪvˈralʲskəjə rʲɪvɐˈlʲutsɨjə), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and somet ...
, Nicholas II and his family were placed under house arrest in the
Alexander Palace
The Alexander Palace (russian: Александровский дворец, ''Alexandrovskiy dvorets'') is a former imperial residence near the town of Tsarskoye Selo in Russia, on a plateau about south of Saint Petersburg. The Palace was c ...
. While several members of the imperial family managed to stay on good terms with the Provisional Government and were eventually able to leave Russia, Nicholas II and his family were sent into exile in the Siberian town of
Tobolsk
Tobolsk (russian: Тобо́льск) is a town in Tyumen Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh rivers. Founded in 1590, Tobolsk is the second-oldest Russian settlement east of the Ural Mountains in Asian Russia, and i ...
by
Alexander Kerensky
Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky, ; Reforms of Russian orthography, original spelling: ( – 11 June 1970) was a Russian lawyer and revolutionary who led the Russian Provisional Government and the short-lived Russian Republic for three months ...
in August 1917. In the
October Revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
of 1917 the Bolsheviks ousted the Provisional government. In April 1918, the Romanovs were moved to the Russian town of
Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...
, in the Urals, where they were placed in the
Ipatiev House
Ipatiev House (russian: Дом Ипатьева) was a merchant's house in Yekaterinburg (later renamed Sverdlovsk in 1924, renamed back to Yekaterinburg in 1991) where the former Emperor Nicholas II of Russia (1868–1918, reigned 1894–1917), h ...
. Here on the night of 16–17 July 1918, the entire Russian Imperial Romanov family along with several of their retainers were
executed
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the 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 conclude that t ...
by Bolshevik revolutionaries, most likely on the orders 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 ...
.
Contemporary Romanovs
There have been numerous post-Revolution reports of Romanov survivors and
unsubstantiated claims by individuals to be members of the deposed Tsar Nicholas II's family, the best known of whom was
Anna Anderson
Anna Anderson (born Franziska Schanzkowska, 16 December 1896 – 12 February 1984) was an impostor who claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia. Anastasia, the youngest daughter of the last Tsar and Tsarina of Russia, Nicholas II an ...
. Proven research has, however, confirmed that all of the Romanovs held prisoners inside the
Ipatiev House
Ipatiev House (russian: Дом Ипатьева) was a merchant's house in Yekaterinburg (later renamed Sverdlovsk in 1924, renamed back to Yekaterinburg in 1991) where the former Emperor Nicholas II of Russia (1868–1918, reigned 1894–1917), h ...
in
Ekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administrat ...
were killed.
Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, a male-line grandson of
Tsar Alexander II
Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Fin ...
, claimed the headship of the
deposed
Deposition by political means concerns the removal of a politician or monarch.
ORB: The Online Reference for Med ...
Imperial House of Russia, and assumed, as
pretender
A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...
, the title "
Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias" in 1924 when the evidence appeared conclusive that all Romanovs higher in the line of succession had been killed. Kirill was followed by his only son
Vladimir Kirillovich
Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia (russian: Владимир Кириллович Романов; 21 April 1992) was the Head of the Imperial Family of Russia, a position which he claimed from 1938 to his death.
Early life
Vladimir was bo ...
.
Vladimir's only child,
Maria Vladimirovna
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (russian: Мария Владимировна Романова; born 23 December 1953) has been a claimant to the headship of the Imperial Family of Russia (who reigned as Emperors and Autocrats of al ...
(born 1953), claims to have succeeded her father. The only child of her marriage with
Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia
Franz Wilhelm Prince of PrussiaIn 1919 royalty and nobility were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany; thereafter hereditary titles were to be legally borne only as part of the surname, according tArticle 109of the Weimar Constitution. S ...
,
George Mikhailovich, is her
heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
.
The
Romanov Family Association
The Romanov Family Association (russian: Объединение Членов Рода Романовых, Obyedineniye Chlenov Roda Romanovykh) is an organization for descendants of the former Russian Imperial House. It was created in 1979 and of ...
(RFA) formed in 1979, a private organization of most living male-line descendants of Emperor
Paul I of Russia
Paul I (russian: Па́вел I Петро́вич ; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination. Officially, he was the only son of Peter III of Russia, Peter III and Catherine the Great, although Catherine hinted that he w ...
(other than Maria Vladimirovna and her son), publicly acknowledges that dynastic claims of family members should not be advanced, and is officially committed to support which ever form of government chosen by the Russian people.
[ The Romanoff Family Association Prince Nicholas Romanovich Romanov]
The Romanoff Family Association
/ref>
Execution of Tsar and family
Late on the night of 16 July, Nicholas, Alexandra, their five children and four servants were ordered to dress quickly and go down to the cellar of the house in which they were being held. There, the family and servants were arranged in two rows for a photograph they were told was being taken to quell rumors that they had escaped. Suddenly, a dozen armed men burst into the room and gunned down the imperial family in a hail of gunfire. Those who were still breathing when the smoke cleared were stabbed to death.
The remains of Nicholas, Alexandra and three of their children were excavated in a forest near Yekaterinburg in 1991 and positively identified two years later using DNA analysis. The Crown Prince Alexei and one Romanov daughter were not accounted for, fueling the persistent legend that Anastasia, the youngest Romanov daughter, had survived the execution of her family. Of the several "Anastasias" that surfaced in Europe in the decade after the Russian Revolution, Anna Anderson, who died in the United States in 1984, was the most convincing. In 1994, however, scientists used DNA to prove that Anna Anderson was not the tsar's daughter but a Polish woman named Franziska Schanzkowska.
Initially, gunmen shot at Nicholas who immediately fell dead as a result of multiple bullet wounds. Then the dark room where the family was held filled with smoke and dust from the spray of bullets. With limited visibility, the gunmen shot blindly, often hitting the ceiling and walls, creating more dust and debris. As a result of this many of the gunmen themselves became injured. Alexandra was soon shot in the head by military commissar Peter Ermakov and was killed. It was not until after the room had been cleared of smoke that the shooters re-entered to find the remaining Imperial family still alive and uninjured. Maria attempted to escape through the doors at the rear of the room, leading to a storage area, but the doors were nailed shut. The noise produced as she rattled the doors attracted the attention of Ermakov. Some of the family were shot in the head, but several of the others, including the young and frail Tsarevich, would not die either from multiple close-range bullet wounds or bayonet stabs. The gunmen then proceeded to shoot each family member once again. Even so, two of the daughters were still alive 10 minutes later, and were then bludgeoned with the butt of a rifle ending their lives. Later it was discovered that the bullets and bayonet stabs had been partially blocked by diamonds sewn into the children's clothing.
Following the murder of the Romanov family, the Bolsheviks made several attempts to dispose of the bodies. Initially the bodies were to be thrown down a mineshaft, however the location of the disposal site was revealed to locals causing them to change the location. Instead of a burial, the Bolsheviks decided to burn two of the corpses of the former royal family. Burning the corpses proved to be difficult as it took significant time so the group resorted to disfiguring the pair with acid. In a rush, the Bolsheviks threw nine additional bodies into a grave and covered them with acid as well.
The bodies of the Romanovs were then hidden and moved several times before being interred in an unmarked pit where they remained until the summer of 1979 when amateur enthusiasts disinterred and re-buried some of them, and then decided to conceal the find until the fall of communism. In 1991 the grave site was excavated and the bodies were given a state funeral under the nascent democracy of post-Soviet Russia, and several years later DNA and other forensic evidence was used by Russian and international scientists to make accurate identifications.
The Ipatiev House has the same name as the Ipatiev Monastery
The Ipatiev Monastery (), sometimes translated into English as Hypatian Monastery, is a male monastery situated on the bank of the Kostroma River just opposite the city of Kostroma. It was founded around 1330 by a Tatar convert, Prince Chet, who ...
in Kostroma
Kostroma ( rus, Кострома́, p=kəstrɐˈma) is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Volga and Kostroma. Popu ...
, where Mikhail Romanov had been offered the Russian Crown in 1613. The large memorial church " on the blood" has been built on the spot where the Ipatiev House once stood.
Nicholas II and his family were proclaimed passion-bearer
In Eastern Christianity, a passion bearer ( rus, страстотéрпец, r=strastoterpets, p=strəstɐˈtʲɛrpʲɪts) is one of the various customary titles for saints used in commemoration at divine services when honouring their feast on ...
s by the Russian Orthodox Church
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
in 2000. In Orthodoxy, a passion-bearer is a saint who was not killed ''because'' of his faith, like a martyr; but who died ''in'' faith at the hand of murderers.
Remains of the Tsar
In the mid-1970’s, Dr. Alexander Avdonin discovered the mass grave containing the remains of Nicholas II, Alexandra Feodorovna, and three of five Romanov children. The remains were found near Old Koptyaki road in Ekaterinburg, Russia. The grave contained 44 heavily degraded bone and tooth fragments. Avdonin released his discovery following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 prompting investigation by the Russian government.
The area where the remains were found was near the old Koptyaki Road, under what appeared to be double bonfire sites about 70 meters (230 ft) from the mass grave in Pigs Meadow near Ekaterinburg. The archaeologists stated that the bones were from a boy who approximately between the ages of 10 and 13 years at the time of his death and of a young woman who was between the ages of 18 and 23 years old. At the time, Anastasia was 17 years old while Maria was 19 years. Their brother Alexei would have been 14 within two weeks of his murder. Alexei's elder sisters Olga and Tatiana were 22 and 21 years old at the time of the murder respectively. The bones were found using metal detectors and metal rods as probes. Also, striped material was found that appeared to have been from a blue-and-white striped cloth; Alexei commonly wore a blue-and-white striped undershirt.
In mid-2007, a Russian archaeologist announced a discovery by one of his workers. The excavation uncovered the following items in the two pits which formed a "T":
* remains of 44 human bone fragments;
* bullet jackets from short barrel guns/pistols;
* wooden boxes which had deteriorated into fragments;
* pieces of ceramic which appear to be amphoras which were used as containers for acid;
* iron nails;
* iron angles;
* seven fragments of teeth;
* fragment of fabric of a garment.
Geneticists used a combination of autosomal STR and mtDNA sequencing to detect relationships between the family members' remains. Using a DNA sample from Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, a distant cousin of Alexandra, scientists matched his DNA to her and her children’s remains found in the mass grave. The investigation concluded that Alexei and one Romanov daughter were missing. Experts continue to debate which daughter was missing from the grave as United States experts believe the missing child is Anastasia while Russian experts believe it to be Maria. Many believe that the two children that were not discovered in the grave managed to escape Russia before persecution.
As for Nicholas II, scientists used mtDNA heteroplasmy using samples from Princes Xenia Cheremeteff Sfiri and the Duke of Fife. In the early 1990’s, considerable controversy surrounded the accuracy of mtDNA heteroplasmy for DNA testing particularly for distant relatives. In an attempt to refine the results of the investigation, Russian authorities exhumed the remains of Nicholas II’s brother, George Alexandrovich. George’s remains matched the heteroplasmy of the remains found in the grave indicating that they did in fact belong to Tsar Nicholas II.
After the bodies were exhumed in June 1991, they remained 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. The remains were transferred with full military honor guard and accompanied by members of the Romanov family from Ekaterinburg to St. Petersburg. In St. Petersburg remains of the imperial family were moved by a formal military honor guard cortege from the airport to St Petersburg’s Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral where they (along with several loyal servants who were killed with them) were interred in a special chapel in the Peter and Paul Cathedral near the tombs of their ancestors. At the Cathedral, the remaining Romanov family hosted a formal funeral for Tsar Nicholas II attended by many relatives and representatives from nations worldwide.
Killing of other Romanovs
On 18 July 1918, the day after the killing at Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...
of the tsar and his family, members of the extended Russian imperial family met a brutal death by being killed near Alapayevsk
Alapayevsk (russian: Алапа́евск) is a town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Neyva and Alapaikha rivers. Population: 44,263 ( 2002 census); 50,060 ( 1989 census); 49,000 (1968).
History
Alapayevsk is on ...
by Bolsheviks. They included: Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich of Russia
Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich of Russia (russian: Серге́й Миха́йлович; 7 October 1869 – 18 July 1918) was the fifth son and sixth child of Grand Duke Michael Nikolaievich of Russia and a first cousin of Alexander III of R ...
, Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia
Prince John Constantinovich of Russia (russian: Иоанн Константинович; 5 July 1886 – 18 July 1918), sometimes also known as Prince Ivan or Prince Johan, was the eldest son of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia by ...
, Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia
Prince Constantine Constantinovich of Russia (''Константин Константинович''; 1 January 1891 – 18 July 1918), nicknamed Kostya by the family, was the third son and fourth child of Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovic ...
, Prince Igor Konstantinovich of Russia
Prince Igor Constantinovich of Russia (''Игорь Константинович''; 10 June 1894 – 18 July 1918) was the sixth child of Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovich of Russia by his wife Elisaveta Mavrikievna née Princess Elisabeth ...
and Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley, Grand Duke Sergei's secretary Varvara Yakovleva, and Grand Duchess Elisabeth Fyodorovna, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
and elder sister of Tsarina Alexandra. Following the 1905 assassination of her husband, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich
Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia (''Сергей Александрович''; 11 May 1857 – 17 February 1905) was the fifth son and seventh child of Emperor of All Russia, Emperor Alexander II of Russia. He was an influential figure ...
, Elisabeth Fyodorovna had ceased living as a member of the Imperial family and took up life as a serving nun, but was nonetheless arrested and slated for death with other Romanovs. They were thrown down a mine shaft into which explosives were then dropped, all being left to die there slowly.
The bodies were recovered from the mine by the White Army
The White Army (russian: Белая армия, Belaya armiya) or White Guard (russian: Бѣлая гвардія/Белая гвардия, Belaya gvardiya, label=none), also referred to as the Whites or White Guardsmen (russian: Бѣлогв ...
in 1918, who arrived too late to rescue them. Their remains were placed in coffins and moved around Russia during struggles between the White and the opposing Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
. By 1920 the coffins were interred in a former Russian mission in Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, now beneath a parking area. In 1981 Grand Duchess Elisabeth was canonized
Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christianity, Christian communion declaring a person worthy of Cult (religious practice), public veneration and enterin ...
by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (russian: Ру́сская Правосла́вная Це́рковь Заграни́цей, lit=Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, translit=Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov' Zagranitsey), also called Ru ...
, and in 1992 by the Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
. In 2006 representatives of the Romanov family were making plans to re-inter the remains elsewhere. The town became a place of pilgrimage to the memory of Elisabeth Fyodorovna, whose remains were eventually re-interred in Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
.
On 13 June 1918, Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
revolutionary authorities killed Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia (russian: Михаи́л Алекса́ндрович, r=Mikhail Aleksandrovich; 13 June 1918) was the youngest son and fifth child of Emperor Alexander III of Russia and youngest brother of Nicholas ...
and Nicholas Johnson (Michael's secretary) in Perm
Perm or PERM may refer to:
Places
*Perm, Russia, a city in Russia
** Permsky District, the district
**Perm Krai, a federal subject of Russia since 2005
**Perm Oblast, a former federal subject of Russia 1938–2005
**Perm Governorate, an administra ...
.
In January 1919 revolutionary authorities killed Grand Dukes Dmitry Konstantinovich
Dmitri Konstantinovich of Suzdal (russian: Дми́трий Константи́нович Су́здальский) (1323–1383) was a powerful Prince of Suzdal and Nizhny Novgorod who dominated Russian politics during the minority of his so ...
, Nikolai Mikhailovich, Paul Alexandrovich and George Mikhailovich, who had been held in the prison of the Saint Peter and Paul Fortress in Petrograd
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 ...
.
Exiles
Dowager Empress Maria Fyodorovna
In 1919, Maria Fyodorovna, widow of Alexander III, and mother of Nicholas II, managed to escape Russia aboard , which her nephew, King George V of the United Kingdom, had sent to rescue her, at the urging of his own mother, Queen Alexandra, who was Maria's elder sister. After a stay in England with Queen Alexandra
Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...
, she returned to her native Denmark, first living at Amalienborg Palace
Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family, and is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. Queen Magrethe ll lives here in winter and autumn. It consists of four identical classical palace façades with rococo interiors arou ...
, with her nephew, King Christian X
Christian X ( da, Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm; 26 September 1870 – 20 April 1947) was King of Denmark from 1912 to his death in 1947, and the only King of Iceland as Kristján X, in the form of a personal union rather ...
, and later, at Villa Hvidøre. Upon her death in 1928 her coffin was placed in the crypt of Roskilde Cathedral
Roskilde Cathedral ( da, Roskilde Domkirke), in the city of Roskilde on the island of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand (''Sjælland'') in eastern Denmark, is a cathedral of the Lutheranism, Lutheran Church of Denmark.
The cathedral is the most importan ...
, the burial site of members of the Danish Royal Family.
In 2006, the coffin with her remains was moved to the Sts. Peter and Paul Fortress, to be buried beside that of her husband. The transfer of her remains was accompanied by an elaborate ceremony at Saint Isaac's Cathedral
Saint Isaac's Cathedral or Isaakievskiy Sobor (russian: Исаа́киевский Собо́р) is a large architectural landmark cathedral that currently functions as a museum with occasional church services in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is ...
officiated by the Patriarch Alexis II. Descendants and relatives of the Dowager Empress attended, including her great-grandson Prince Michael Andreevich, Princess Catherine Ioannovna of Russia, the last living member of the Imperial Family born before the fall of the dynasty, and Prince Dmitri and Prince Nicholas Romanov
Nicholas Romanovich Romanov (russian: Николай Романович Романов; 26 September 1922 – 15 September 2014) was a claimant to the headship of the House of Romanov and president of the Romanov Family Association. Although undou ...
.
Other exiles
Among the other exiles who managed to leave Russia, were Maria Fyodorovna's two daughters, the Grand Duchesses Xenia Alexandrovna and Olga Alexandrovna, with their husbands, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich and Nikolai Kulikovsky
Nikolai Alexandrovich Kulikovsky (5 November 1881 – 11 August 1958) was the second husband of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia, the sister of Tsar Nicholas II and daughter of Tsar Alexander III.
He was born into a military landowning f ...
, respectively, and their children, as well as the spouses of Xenia's elder two children and her granddaughter. Xenia remained in England, following her mother's return to Denmark, although after their mother's death Olga moved to Canada with her husband, both sisters dying in 1960. Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, widow of Nicholas II's uncle, Grand Duke Vladimir, and her children the Grand Dukes Kiril
The male name Kiril (or Кирил or Кирилл) is a common first name in the Orthodox Slavic world, in particular in Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Russia. It is also well known in Greece but in different forms like Kyriakos. (Note that in m ...
, Boris and Andrei
Andrei, Andrey or Andrej (in Cyrillic script: Андрэй , Андрей or Андреј) is a form of Andreas/Ἀνδρέας in Slavic languages and Romanian. People with the name include:
*Andrei of Polotsk (–1399), Lithuanian nobleman
*A ...
, and Kiril’s wife Victoria Melita
Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , later Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia (25 November 1876 – 2 March 1936), was the third child and second daughter of Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and of Grand Duchess ...
and children, also managed to flee Russia. Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich, a cousin of Nicholas II, had been exiled to the Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
in 1916 for his part in the murder of Grigori Rasputin, and managed to escape Russia. Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaievich, who had commanded Russian troops during World War I prior to Nicholas II taking command, along with his brother, Grand Duke Peter, and their wives, Grand Duchesses Anastasia
Anastasia (from el, Ἀναστασία, translit=Anastasía) is a feminine given name of Greek origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, where it was the most ...
and Militza, who were sisters, and Peter's children, son-in-law, and granddaughter also fled the country.
Elizaveta Mavrikievna, widow of Konstantin Konstantinovich, escaped with her daughter Vera Konstantinovna and her son Georgii Konstantinovich, as well as her grandson Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich and her granddaughter Princess Catherine Ivanovna to Sweden. Her other daughter, Tatiana Konstantinovna, also escaped with her children Natasha
Natasha (russian: Наташа) is a name of Slavic origin. The Slavic name is the diminutive form of Natalia.
Notable people
* Natasha, the subject of '' Natasha's Story'', a 1994 nonfiction book
* Natasha Aguilar (1970–2016), Costa Rican sw ...
and Teymuraz, as well as her uncle's aide-de-camp Alexander Korochenzov. They fled to Romania and then Switzerland. Gavriil Konstantinovich was imprisoned before fleeing to Paris.
Ioann Konstantinovich's wife, Elena Petrovna, was imprisoned in Alapayevsk and Perm, before escaping to Sweden and Nice, France.
Pretenders
Since 1991, the succession to the former Russian throne has been in dispute, largely due to disagreements over the validity of dynasts' marriages.
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (russian: Мария Владимировна Романова; born 23 December 1953) has been a claimant to the headship of the Imperial Family of Russia (who reigned as Emperors and Autocrats of all ...
claims to hold the title of empress in pretense with her only child, George Mikhailovich from the House of Hohenzollern, as heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
.
Others have argued in support of the rights of the late Prince Nicholas Romanov
Nicholas Romanovich Romanov (russian: Николай Романович Романов; 26 September 1922 – 15 September 2014) was a claimant to the headship of the House of Romanov and president of the Romanov Family Association. Although undou ...
, whose brother Prince Dimitri Romanov
Dimitri Romanovich Romanov (russian: Дмитрий Романович Романов; 17 May 1926 – 31 December 2016) was a descendant of Russia's former ruling dynasty, a banker, philanthropist, and author. He was also a claimant to the heads ...
was the next male heir of his branch after whom it was passed to Prince Andrew Romanov
Prince Andrew Romanoff (born ''Andrew Andreievich Romanoff''; January 21, 1923 – November 28, 2021) was a Russian American artist and author. He was a grand-nephew of Russia's last Tsar, Nicholas II. He was a great-great-grandson in the male ...
and then to his son Prince Alexis Romanoff.
In 2014, a micronation
A micronation is a political entity whose members claim that they belong to an independent nation or sovereign state, but which lacks legal recognition by world governments or major international organizations. Micronations are classified se ...
calling itself the Imperial Throne
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* Imperial, Texas
...
, founded in 2011 by Monarchist Party leader Anton Bakov, announced Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen
Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen (german: Karl Emich Nikolaus Friedrich Hermann Prinz zu Leiningen; russian: Карл Эмих Николаус Фридрих Герман цу Лейнинген; born 12 June 1952), also known by his Orthodox Russi ...
, a Romanov descendant that still originated from Maria's branch, as its sovereign. In 2017, it renamed itself as "Romanov Empire".
Branches of the Romanow
The Russian Imperial Family
The House of Romanov (also transcribed Romanoff; rus, Романовы, Románovy, rɐˈmanəvɨ) was the reigning imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after the Tsarina, Anastasia Romanova, was married to th ...
was split into four main branches named after the sons of Emperor Nicholas I:
*The Alexandrovichi (descendants of Emperor 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 ...
) (with further subdivisions named The Vladimirovichi and The Pavlovichi after two of Alexander II’s younger sons)
*The Konstantinovichi (descendants of Grand Duke Constantine Nicholaevich of Russia)
*The Nikolaevichi (descendants of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia)
*The Mikhailovichi (descendants of Grand Duke Michael Nicolaevich of Russia
Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia (25 October 1832 – 18 December 1909) was the fourth son and seventh child of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia and Charlotte of Prussia. He was the first owner of the New Michael Palace on the Palace Quay in ...
)
Alexandrovichi Branch
The Alexandrovichi last male-line members are represented by descendants of Paul Ilyinsky
Paul Dmitrievich Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (January 27, 1928 – February 10, 2004) was a three-time mayor of Palm Beach, Florida, and the only child of Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia and his morganatic wife, Cincinnati heiress Audrey Emery. ...
(son Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia (russian: Великий Князь Дмитрий Павлович; 18 September 1891 – 5 March 1942) was a son of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, a grandson of Tsar Alexander II of Russia and a ...
) and natural son of Alexander II, Prince George Alexandrovich Yuryevsky
Prince George Alexandrovich Yuryevsky (russian: Гео́ргий Алекса́ндрович Ю́рьевский; 12 May 1872 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html"_;"title="0_April_1872_Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O._S.–_13_September_1913)_wa ...
. However both lines are unable to press their claim to the defunct Russian throne because of their morganatic status.
Alexandrovichi line is thus claimed to be represented by Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (russian: Мария Владимировна Романова; born 23 December 1953) has been a claimant to the headship of the Imperial Family of Russia (who reigned as Emperors and Autocrats of all ...
with her only child, George Mikhailovich from the House of Hohenzollern. The Grand Duchess claim to the throne is based on a claim that all male lines of Romanov are either extinct, illegitimate, or morganatic. Thus triggering semi-salic succession, as the closest female to the last dynast.
Konstantinovichi Branch
This branch could be considered the worst affected branch from the World War I and the Russian Civil War.
From Konstantin 4 sons, one died naturally while two died in the civil war, Grand Duke Nicholas Konstantinovich of Russia
Grand Duke Nicholas Constantinovich of Russia (14 February 1850 – 26 January 1918) was the first-born son of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich and Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna of Russia and a grandson of Nicholas I of Russia.
Early life ...
from pneumonia caused by lack of medical care, while Grand Duke Dmitry Konstantinovich of Russia
Grand Duke Dmitry Konstantinovich of Russia (russian: Дми́трий Константи́нович; 13 June 1860 – 28 January 1919) was a son of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich and a first cousin of Alexander III of Russia. He followed a ...
was executed along three other Romanovs by firing squad at the walls of Peter and Paul Fortress.
Grand Duke Nicholas himself had two sons, one of whom died in Tashkent fighting in the anti-Bolshevik uprising, while the other son escaped through the way of Persia, leaving behind his son and daughter, Kirill and Natalia who were later adopted into the Androsov family. Kirll and Natalia, were the only two Romanov descendants in the male line in the USSR after the Russian Revolution; the rest either fled or were killed. They died without any descendant.
Konstantin other son, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia
Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia ( rus, Константи́н Константи́нович, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin kənstɐnʲˈtʲinəvʲɪtɕ, a=Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov.ru.vorb.oga; 22 August 1858 – 15 June 1915 ...
, had 6 sons and 2 daughters. His fourth son, Prince Oleg died in battle in 1914. Three of his sons Prince John, Prince Constantine. and Prince Igor Constantinovich of Russia
Prince Igor Constantinovich of Russia (''Игорь Константинович''; 10 June 1894 – 18 July 1918) was the sixth child of Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovich of Russia by his wife Elisaveta Mavrikievna née Princess Elisabeth ...
, along with their cousin Vladimir Paley
Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley (russian: Князь Владимир Павлович Палей; 9 January 1897 – 18 July 1918) was a Russian nobleman and poet who was murdered by the Bolsheviks when he was 21 years old.
Life
He was born ...
, were murdered in a mineshaft near Alapayevsk on 19 July 1918. Two other sons managed to escape but didn't leave a descendant.
Only five male members were left in 1920, with the youngest born in 1917. No new member was born since then. Thus this branch died out with the death of Prince Kirill Romanovsky-Iskander
Prince Kirill Alexandrovich Romanovsky-Iskander, or Cyril Iskander Romanov ( rus, князь, Кирилл Александрович Искандер, r=knyaz, Kirill Alexandrovich Iskander) (5 December 1914 – 1992), or simply Prince Iskander, w ...
in 1992.
Nikolavevichi Branch
The legitimate male line of this branch is extinct with the death of Prince Dimitri Romanov
Dimitri Romanovich Romanov (russian: Дмитрий Романович Романов; 17 May 1926 – 31 December 2016) was a descendant of Russia's former ruling dynasty, a banker, philanthropist, and author. He was also a claimant to the heads ...
in 2016. The male line of this branch however is survived by the illegitimate Nikolayev family, descendant of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831–1891)
Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (russian: Великий князь Николай Николаевич; 8 August 1831 – 25 April 1891) was the third son and sixth child of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia and Alexandra Feodorovna. He may ...
to his mistress Catherine Chislova
Catherine Gavrilovna Chislova (Russian: Екатерина Гавриловна Числова) (21 September 1846 – 13 December 1889) was a Russian ballerina. She was the mistress of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich; they had five children.
L ...
Mikhailovichi Branch
This branch was descended from Grand Duke Michael Nicolaevich of Russia. The last common ancestor of the surviving male line of this branch was Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia
Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia (russian: Александр Михайлович ''Aleksandr Mikhailovich''; 13 April 1866 – 26 February 1933) was a dynast of the Russian Empire, a naval officer, an author, explorer, the brother-in ...
. The Grand Duke had 6 sons, Andrei, Feodor, Nikita, Dmitri, Rostislav, and Vasili.
# Prince Andrei Alexandrovich of Russia
Prince Andrei Alexandrovich of Russia ( – 8 May 1981) was the first son and second child of Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia and Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia. He was also the eldest nephew of Nicholas II of Russia, the ...
, his male line is represented only by Prince Andrew Romanoff
Prince Andrew Romanoff (born ''Andrew Andreievich Romanoff''; January 21, 1923 – November 28, 2021) was a Russian American artist and author. He was a grand-nephew of Russia's last Tsar, Nicholas II. He was a great-great-grandson in the male ...
's three sons, As they were born between 1959 and 1969, and has no male descendant, the headship of this branch would likely pass to a descendant of Prince Rostislav
# Feodor, his male line died out, only survived by his great-granddaughter, Tatiana Alexandra (b. 1986), whose status was illegitimate.
# Prince Nikita Alexandrovich of Russia
Prince Nikita Alexandrovich of Russia (17 January Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_January.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 January">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ...
, his line died out with his descendant, Prince Fedor Nikitich Romanoff, suicide on 25 August 2007
# Prince Dmitri Alexandrovich of Russia
Prince Dmitri Alexandrovich of Russia (15 August Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._2_August.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 2 August">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ...
, only had a daughter
# Prince Rostislav Alexandrovich of Russia
Prince Rostislav Alexandrovich of Russia (24 November Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._11_November.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/> O.S._11_November">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html"_;"title="nowiki/>Old_ ...
, he had two sons. From his first son, there are three members of the House of Romanov, born in 1985, 1987, and 2013. While from his second, there are three members, born in 1968, 1972, and 2009.
# Prince Vasili Alexandrovich of Russia
Prince Vasili Alexandrovich of Russia (7 July Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._24_June.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 24 June">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"titl ...
, only had a daughter
Thus this branch only has 9 male line members left.
Romanov family jewelry
The collection of jewels and jewelry collected by the Romanov family during their reign are commonly referred to as the "Russian Crown Jewels" and they include official state regalia as well as personal pieces of jewelry worn by Romanov rulers and their family. After the Tsar was deposed and his family murdered, their jewels and jewelry became the property of the new Soviet government. A select number of pieces from the collection were sold at auction by Christie's
Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
in London in March 1927. The remaining collection is on view today in the Kremlin Armoury
The Kremlin Armoury,Officially called the "Armou/ory Chamber" but also known as the cannon yard, the "Armou/ory Palace", the "Moscow Armou/ory", the "Armou/ory Museum", and the "Moscow Armou/ory Museum" but different from the Kremlin Arsenal. (r ...
in Moscow.
On 28 August 2009, a Swedish public news outlet reported that a collection of over 60 jewel-covered cigarette cases and cufflinks owned by Grand Duchess Vladimir had been found in the archives of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs ( sv, Utrikesdepartementet, UD) is responsible for Swedish foreign policy.
History
The ministry for Foreign Affairs was created in 1791 when King Gustav III set up ''Konungens kabinett för den utrikes brevv ...
, and was returned to the descendants of Grand Duchess Vladimir. The jewelry was allegedly turned over to the Swedish embassy in 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 ...
in November 1918 by Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, later Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna "Miechen" of Russia (Russian: Мари́я Па́вловна; 14 May Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._2_May.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"titl ...
to keep it safe. The value of the jewelry has been estimated at 20 million Swedish krona
The krona (; plural: ''kronor''; sign: kr; code: SEK) is the official currency of the Kingdom of Sweden. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it ...
(about 2.6 million US dollars).
Heraldry
Smaller coat of arms (elements)
The centerpiece is the coat of arms of Moscow that contains the iconic Saint George and the Dragon, Saint George the Dragon-slayer with a blue cape (cloak) attacking golden serpent on red field.
The wings of double-headed eagle contain coat of arms of following lands:
;Right wing
* Tsardom of Kazan, the coat of arms of Kazan that contains black crowned Zilant with red tongue, wings and tail on white field.
* Tsardom of Poland, the coat of arms of Poland that contains a crowned white eagle on a red field.
* Tsardom of Tauric Chersoneses, the coat of arms of Byzantine Crimea that contains black crowned double-headed eagle on golden field, which has a smaller coat of arms with triple crossbeam cross on blue field.
* Grand Duchies of Kiev, Vladimir, and Novgorod, the combined coat of arms of three grand duchies:
** Grand Duchy of Kiev, the coat of arms of Kiev that contains armed archangel (archistrategos) Michael in white on blue field.
** Grand Duchy of Vladimir, the coat of arms of Vladimir that contains golden crowned leopard holding a cross on red field.
** Republic of Novgorod, the coat of arms of Novgorod that contains two black bears holding onto a throne on which crossed stand scepter and cross located under Trikirion, triple candlestick (trikirion) on silver field and two silver fishes on blue field.
;Left wing
* Tsardom of Astrakhan, the coat of arms of Astrakhan that contains five arches golden crown over silver scimitar on blue field.
* Tsardom of Siberia, the coat of arms of Siberia that contains two black sables who hold a crown and a red bow with two crossed arrows pointed down on Ermine (heraldry), ermine field.
* Tsardom of Georgia, the Coat of arms of Georgia (country), Coat of arms of Georgia that also contains the Saint George and the Dragon, Saint George the Dragon-slayer with a red cape (cloak) attacking green serpent on golden field.
* Grand Duchy of Finland, the coat of arms of Finland that contains golden crowned lion holding straight sword and curved sabre on red field with roses.
Family tree
See also
* Romanov impostors
* Ancestors of Nicholas II of Russia
* List of Grand Duchesses of Russia
* List of Grand Dukes of Russia
* List of films about the Romanovs
*The Romanovs Collect: European Art from the Hermitage (exhibition)
Notes
References
Further reading
* Bibliography of Russian history (1613–1917)
External links
Historical reconstruction series "Romanovs" – First Channel, Star Media, Babich Design (2013).
at the Library of Congress has books from the Romanov family.
* hdl:10079/fa/beinecke.romanov, Romanov Collection. General Collection. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Romanov, House Of
House of Romanov,
Tsardom of Russia