Ivan KRAMSKOY. Portrait of Alexander III

Alexander III Alexandrovich (1845-1894), Russian Emperor since 1881. Second son of Alexander II. In the first half of the 80s, in the conditions of growing capitalist relations, he abolished the poll tax and lowered redemption payments. From the 2nd half of the 80s. carried out "counter-reforms". Suppressed revolutionary democratic and labor movement, strengthened the role of the police and administrative arbitrariness. During the reign of Alexander III, the annexation of Central Asia to Russia was basically completed (1885), and the Russian-French alliance was concluded (1891-1893).

Nikolay SVERCHKOV. Alexander III

Nikolay DMITRIEV-ORENBURGSKY. Portrait of Emperor Alexander III.

Nikolai SHILDER.Portrait of Alexander III

Zabolotsky P.P. Alexander III

A. Sokolov_Alexander III and his wife Maria-Sofia-Frederica-Dagmara,

in Orthodoxy Maria Feodorovna(1847-1928)

Initially, she was the bride of Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, the eldest son of Alexander II, who died in 1865. After his death, an attachment arose between Dagmara and Grand Duke Alexander Alexandrovich, who together looked after the dying Tsarevich. On June 11, 1866, Tsarevich Alexander decided to propose, about which he wrote to his father on the same day. And on October 28 (November 9), 1866, the marriage took place .Maria, cheerful and cheerful in character, was warmly received by court and metropolitan society. Her marriage to Alexander, despite the fact that their relationship began under such sorrowful circumstances, turned out to be successful; During their almost thirty years of marriage, the couple maintained sincere affection for each other.

Coronation.

Vladimir MAKOVSKY. Portrait of Empress Maria Feodorovna

Ivan KRAMSKOY. Portrait of Empress Maria Feodorovna

Maria Fyodorovna_Heinrich von Angeli

Konstantin MAKOVSKY. Portrait of Empress Maria Feodorovna

Reception of volost elders by Alexander III in the courtyard of the Petrovsky Palace in Moscow. Painting by I. Repin.

Sermon on the Mount 1889. Alexander III with his family. Ivan Makarov.

“The blessing of the Lord is upon you” The family of Alexander III before Christ. Makarov I.K.

Alexander III and Maria Feodorovna had 6 children:

Nikolai Alexandrovich(1868-1918) future Emperor of Russia.

Alexander Alexandrovich(1869-1870)

Georgy Alexandrovich (1871-1899)

Ksenia Alexandrovna (1875-1960)

Mikhail Alexandrovich (1878-1918)

Olga Alexandrovna (1882-1960)

Last family photo. Livadia, Crimea 1893

From left to right: Tsarevich Nicholas, Grand Duke George, Empress Maria Feodorovna, Grand Duchess Olga, Grand Duke Michael, Grand Duchess Xenia and Emperor Alexander III.

ALEXANDER III(1845-94), Russian Emperor since 1881. Second son of Alexander II. In the 1st half. 80s carried out the abolition of the poll tax and lowered redemption payments. From the 2nd half. 80s carried out "counter-reforms". Strengthened the role of the police, local and central administration. During the reign of Alexander III, the annexation to Russia was basically completed. Asia (1885), the Russian-French alliance was concluded (1891-93).

ALEXANDER III, Russian Emperor (since 1881), second son of Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich (later Emperor Alexander II) and Grand Duchess (later Empress) Maria Alexandrovna.

Upbringing. Beginning of government activities

Not being an heir to the throne by birth, Alexander Alexandrovich was preparing mainly for military activities. He became crown prince in 1865 after the death of his elder brother, Grand Duke Nikolai Alexandrovich, and from that time began to receive a more extensive and fundamental education. Among Alexander Alexandrovich’s mentors were S. M. Solovyov (history), J. K. Grot (history of literature), M. I. Dragomirov (military art). The greatest influence on the Tsarevich was the law teacher K. P. Pobedonostsev.

In 1866, Alexander Alexandrovich married the fiancee of his late brother, the Danish princess Dagmar (1847-1928; in Orthodoxy - Maria Fedorovna). The couple had children: Nicholas (later Russian Emperor Nicholas II), George, Ksenia, Mikhail, Olga.

Alexander Alexandrovich was the appointed ataman of all Cossack troops, and held a number of military positions (up to the commander of the troops of the St. Petersburg Military District and the Guards Corps). Since 1868 - member of the State Council and the Committee of Ministers. In the Russian-Turkish War of 1877-78 he commanded the Rushchuk detachment in Bulgaria. After the war, he participated, together with Pobedonostsev, in the creation of the Voluntary Fleet, a joint-stock shipping company designed to promote the government’s foreign economic policy.

Personality and worldview

Alexander Alexandrovich's character traits and lifestyle markedly distinguished him from the court environment. Alexander III adhered to strict moral rules, was very pious, distinguished by frugality, modesty, dislike of comfort, and spent his leisure time in a narrow circle of family and friends. He was interested in music, painting, history (he was one of the initiators of the creation of the Russian historical society and its first chairman). Contributed to the liberalization of external parties social activities: abolished kneeling before the king, allowed smoking on the streets and in public places etc.

Different strong will, Alexander III at the same time had a limited and straightforward mind. In the reforms of his father, Alexander II, he saw primarily negative aspects - the growth of government bureaucracy, heavy financial situation people, imitation of Western models. He had a strong dislike for liberalism and the intelligentsia. These views were reinforced by impressions of the life and customs of higher spheres (his father’s long-term relationship with Princess E.M. Dolgorukova, corruption in government circles, etc.) The political ideal of Alexander III was based on ideas about patriarchal-paternal autocratic rule, the inculcation of religious values in society , strengthening the class structure, nationally distinctive social development.

Beginning of the reign

After the death of Alexander II from a Narodnaya Volya bomb, a struggle broke out between the liberals and the guards at the throne. The leaders of the Pobedonostsev guards (from 1880 - Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod) and the journalist M. N. Katkov opposed the plans for changes in the state structure proposed by the Minister of Internal Affairs M. T. Loris-Melikov. At the insistence of Pobedonostsev, Alexander III issued a manifesto on April 29, 1881, “On the Inviolability of Autocracy,” which led to the resignation of Loris-Melikov and his supporters.

The beginning of the reign of Alexander III was characterized by the tightening of administrative and police repression and censorship (Regulations on measures to protect state security and public peace, 1881; Temporary rules on the press, 1882). By the mid-1880s, the government, through repression, managed to suppress the revolutionary movement, especially the People's Will. At the same time, a number of measures were taken to alleviate the financial situation of the people and mitigate social tension in society (the introduction of compulsory redemption and the reduction of redemption payments, the establishment of the Peasant Land Bank, the introduction of factory inspection, the phased abolition of the poll tax, etc.).

Loris-Melikov’s successor as Minister of Internal Affairs, N.P. Ignatiev, tried to crown the policy of “people’s autocracy” by convening an all-class Zemsky Sobor, but Katkov and Pobedonostsev sharply opposed this. In May 1882, Alexander III replaced Ignatiev with D. A. Tolstoy, a staunch supporter of reactionary-protective policies.

Counter-reforms

With the support of Alexander III, Tolstoy and his successor I. N. Durnovo pursued a policy of counter-reforms that limited the liberal reforms of the 1860-70s. The university charter of 1884 curtailed autonomy high school. It was difficult for children from the lower classes to enter gymnasiums (“circular about cooks’ children,” 1887). Since 1889, peasant self-government was subordinated to zemstvo chiefs - officials from local landowners, who combined judicial and administrative power in their hands. Zemstvo and city regulations (1890 and 1892) tightened the administration’s control over local government, limited the rights of voters from the lower strata of society.

During his coronation in 1883, Alexander III announced to the volost elders: “Follow the advice and guidance of your leaders of the nobility.” This attitude was reflected in measures to protect the class rights of noble landowners (the establishment of the Noble Land Bank, the adoption of the Regulation on Hiring for Agricultural Work, which was beneficial for landowners), strengthening administrative guardianship over the peasantry, and the conservation of the community and the large patriarchal family. Attempts have been made to enhance the public role Orthodox Church(the spread of parochial schools), repression against Old Believers and sectarians intensified. On the outskirts, a policy of Russification was carried out, the rights of foreigners (especially Jews) were limited.

Diplomacy. Economy. Results of the reign

Russia's foreign policy under Alexander III was mainly directed by the tsar himself and was distinguished by pragmatism and a desire to protect the country from being drawn into international conflicts. The main content of this policy was a turn from traditional cooperation with Germany to an alliance with France (concluded in 1891-93). In the 1880-90s, Russia practically did not wage wars (except for the conquest of Central Asia that ended with the capture of Kushka in 1885), which is why the tsar was called the “peacemaker.”

The economic life of Russia during the reign of Alexander III was characterized by economic growth, which was largely due to the policy of increased patronage of domestic industry. Thanks to the activities of the Ministers of Finance N.H. Bunge, I.A. Vyshnegradsky, S.Yu. Witte, the revenues of the state treasury increased. The government of Alexander III encouraged the growth of large capitalist industry, which achieved notable successes (metallurgical production doubled in 1886-92, the network railways in 1881-92 increased by 47%). However, the rapid development of industry came into conflict with archaic socio-political forms, the backwardness of agriculture, the peasant community, and land shortage, which in many ways prepared the way for social and economic crises(famine and cholera epidemic in 1891-92).

The premature death of Alexander III was caused by nephritis.

Alexander III and his time Tolmachev Evgeniy Petrovich

3. ILLNESS AND DEATH OF ALEXANDER III

3. ILLNESS AND DEATH OF ALEXANDER III

Sickness and death are at the core of our destiny.

Gabriel Honore Marcel

1894 became fatal for Alexander III. No one could imagine that this year would be the last for the ruler of Russia, a man whose appearance resembled an epic hero. It seemed that the mighty head of state was the personification of flourishing health. However, life did not spare him. In his youth, he was deeply shocked by the untimely death of his beloved older brother Nikolai.

At the age of twenty-seven he suffered severe form typhus, as a result of which he lost half of his thick hair. A serious test for him was the bloody months of the Russian-Turkish War and the terrorist orgy against his father in the final period of his reign. It was suggested that Alexander III particularly strained his body due to excessive efforts on October 17, 1888, during a train crash in Borki, when he supported the roof of the carriage with his own hands, in which almost his entire family was located. They said that when the bottom of the carriage fell, “the sovereign received a bruise in the kidneys.” However, “regarding this assumption... Professor Zakharyin expressed skepticism, since, in his opinion, the consequences of such a bruise, if there was one, would have manifested themselves earlier, since the disaster in Borki took place five years before the disease was discovered” (186, p. 662).

In the first half of January 1894, the monarch caught a cold and felt unwell. His temperature rose and his cough worsened. Life surgeon G.I. Girsh established that it was influenza (influenza), but the onset of pneumonia was also possible.

Summoned on January 15 to the Anichkov Palace. - surgeon N.A. Velyaminov, in whom the royal couple had special confidence, together with Girsh, listened to the patient. Both doctors found a flu-like inflammatory nest in the lung at a very high temperature, which was reported to the Empress and the Minister of the Court Vorontsov. On January 15, the latter secretly summoned the authoritative therapist G. A. Zakharyin from Moscow, who, after examining the patient, confirmed the diagnosis, somewhat exaggerated the seriousness of the situation and prescribed treatment.

With the active control of Zakharyin and Velyaminov, the treatment went quite normally. In order to neutralize the fables and gossip that had spread throughout the city about the sovereign’s illness, it was decided, at Velyaminov’s suggestion, to issue bulletins signed by the Minister of the Household. The illness of the 49-year-old autocrat came as a surprise to his inner circle and a real shock to royal family. “As reported,” V.N. Lamzdorf wrote in his diary on January 17, “due to the appearance of some alarming symptoms, Count Vorontsov-Dashkov, with the consent of the empress, telegraphed Professor Zakharyin from Moscow. The sovereign's condition turned out to be very serious, and last night the professor compiled a bulletin, published today in the press. Yesterday, at about one o’clock in the afternoon, Grand Duke Vladimir, leaving the sovereign’s room, burst into tears and terribly frightened His Majesty’s children, saying that it was all over and all that remained was to pray for a miracle” (274, p. 24).

According to Velyaminov, from the time the capital learned about the illness of Alexander III, groups of people gathered in front of the Anichkov Palace who wanted to receive information about the emperor’s health, and when a new bulletin appeared at the gate, a crowded crowd grew opposite. As a rule, those passing by piously took off their hats and crossed themselves; some stopped and, turning their faces to the palace, with bare heads, fervently prayed for the health of the popular emperor. By January 25, the crown bearer had recovered, but for a long time he felt weak and weak and began to work in his office, despite the doctors’ requests to give himself rest. Pointing to the sofa, on which piles of folders with cases lay from one arm to the other, he said to Velyaminov: “Look at what has accumulated here over the several days of my illness; all this awaits my consideration and resolutions; If I let things go for a few more days, I will no longer be able to cope with the current work and catch up on what I missed. There can be no rest for me” (390, 1994, v. 5, p. 284). On January 26, the tsar no longer received doctors, Zakharyin was awarded the Order of Alexander Nevsky and 15 thousand rubles, his assistant Dr. Belyaev received 1.5 thousand rubles, and a little later Velyaminov was awarded the title of honorary life surgeon.

Velyaminov notes that Alexander III, like his brothers Vladimir and Alexey Alexandrovich, was a typical hereditary arthritic with a sharp tendency towards obesity. The tsar led a rather moderate lifestyle and, as many of those around him note, contrary to the memoirs of P. A. Cherevin, he was not fond of alcohol.

The health of the monarch, of course, was not contributed to by a number of additional factors, such as constant spicy cooking, excessive absorption of liquid in the form of chilled water and kvass, and many years of smoking. large quantity cigarettes and strong Havana cigars. Alexander was forced from a young age to take part in numerous festive tables with the consumption of champagne and other wines, namesake parties of members of the royal family, receptions, receptions and other similar events.

In recent years, struggling with obesity, he overloaded himself with physical labor (sawing and chopping wood). And perhaps, most importantly, mental fatigue from constant hidden excitement and backbreaking work, usually until 2-3 o’clock in the morning, took its toll. “With all this,” says Velyaminov, “the sovereign was never subjected to treatment with water and, at least temporarily, to an anti-gout regimen. Deadly disease, which struck him in the fall of the same year, would not have been a surprise if the general practitioners had not examined the enormous enlargement of the sovereign’s heart (hypertrophy), found during the autopsy. This mistake made by Zakharyin, and then by Leiden, is explained by the fact that the sovereign never allowed himself to be thoroughly examined and was irritated if it was delayed, so the professor-therapists always examined him very hastily” (ibid.). Naturally, if doctors knew about acute form heart failure in the monarch, perhaps they “with the help of an appropriate regime” could delay the sad outcome for several months. The illness I suffered changed dramatically appearance king Describing the ball in the Winter Palace on February 20, Lamzdorf notes in his diary: “As usual, the sovereign approaches the diplomats lined up in order of seniority at the entrance to the Malachite Hall. Our monarch looks thinner, mainly in his face, his skin has become flabby, he has aged a lot” (174, p. 44).

Alexander III himself cared little about his health and often ignored doctors’ orders. However, as Witte notes, “during the time from Easter to my last all-submissive report (which was probably at the end of July or early August), the sovereign’s illness had already become known to everyone” (84, pp. 436-437). During the summer of 1894, the weather in St. Petersburg was damp and cold all the time, which further intensified the sovereign’s illness. Alexander III felt weak and tired quickly. Remembering his wedding day on July 25 in Peterhof with Grand Duchess Ksenia Alexandrovna, Alexander Mikhailovich later wrote: “We all saw how tired the sovereign looked, but even he himself could not interrupt the tiring wedding dinner before the appointed hour” (50, p. 110) . About the same day, a major official of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, V. S. Krivenko, recalls that those present at the performance in the summer theater, when the autocrat appeared in the box, “were struck by his sickly appearance, the yellowness of his face, with tired eyes. We started talking about jade” (47, op. 2, d. 672, l. 198). S. D. Sheremetev clarifies: “The wedding day of Ksenia Alexandrovna is a difficult day for the sovereign... I stood in the row when it was all over and we were returning through the exit to the inner chambers of the Great Peterhof Palace. The Emperor walked arm in arm with the Empress. He was pale, terribly pale, and seemed to be swaying, stepping out heavily. He looked like complete exhaustion” (354, p. 599).

However, the ruler of Russia strengthened himself and on August 7, when his illness was in full swing, touring the troops in the Krasnoselsky camp, he traveled more than 12 miles.

“On August 7, at about 5 o’clock in the afternoon,” writes N.A. Epanchin, “the sovereign visited our regiment in the camp at Krasnoye Selo... The sovereign’s illness was already known, but when he entered the meeting, it immediately became obvious to us how he felt feeling very unwell. He moved his legs with some difficulty, his eyes were dull, and his eyelids were drooping... You could see with what effort he spoke, trying to be kind and affectionate... When the Emperor left, we exchanged impressions with bitterness and anxiety. The next day, during a conversation with the Tsarevich at the prize shooting, I asked him how the sovereign’s health was, and said that yesterday we all noticed sickly look His Majesty. To this, the Tsarevich replied that the Emperor had not been feeling well for a long time, but that the doctors did not find anything threatening, but they considered it necessary for the Emperor to go south and do less business. The sovereign's kidneys are not functioning satisfactorily, and doctors believe that this largely depends on sedentary life, which in lately the sovereign leads” (172, pp. 163-164). The Tsar’s personal surgeon G.I. Girsh noted signs of chronic kidney damage, as a result of which the Tsar’s usual stay in Krasnoe Selo and maneuvers were shortened.

After Alexander III fell ill from a sharp girdling pain in the lower back, the outstanding clinician-practitioner G. A. Zakharyin was again urgently summoned from Moscow to St. Petersburg, who arrived on August 9, accompanied by therapist Professor N. F. Golubov. According to Zakharyin, after the study, it was revealed “the constant presence of protein and cylinders, that is, signs of nephritis, a slight increase in the left ventricle of the heart with a weak and rapid pulse, that is, signs of consistent heart damage and uremic phenomena (depending on insufficient purification of the blood by the kidneys), insomnia , constantly bad taste, often nausea.” The doctors reported the diagnosis to the Empress and Alexander III, without hiding the fact that “such an illness sometimes goes away, but it is extremely rare” (167, p. 59). As Alexander III’s daughter, Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, notes, “the annual trip to Denmark was cancelled. They decided that the forest air of Bialowieza, located in Poland, where the emperor had a hunting palace, would have a beneficial effect for the health of the sovereign...” (112a, p. 225).

In the second half of August the court moved to Belovezh. At first, the emperor, along with everyone else, “went out hunting, but then became indifferent to it. He lost his appetite, stopped going to the dining room, and only occasionally ordered food to be brought to his office.” Rumors about dangerous disease the monarch grew and gave rise to the most varied and absurd stories and fables. “As they say,” Lamzdorf wrote on September 4, 1894, “the palace in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, for the construction of which 700,000 rubles were spent, turned out to be crude” (174, p. 70). Such speculations happen when the population is left without official information. On September 7, the omnipresent A.V. Bogdanovich wrote in her diary: “In Belovezh, while hunting, he caught a cold. A high fever set in. He was prescribed warm bath at 28 degrees. Sitting in it, he cooled it to 20 degrees by opening the tap with cold water. In the bath his throat began to bleed, he fainted there, and his fever increased. The queen was on duty until 3 a.m. at his bedside” (73, pp. 180-181). Maria Feodorovna called Doctor Zakharyin from Moscow. “This famous specialist,” Olga Alexandrovna recalled, “was a small, plump man who wandered around the house all night, complaining that the ticking of the tower clock was preventing him from sleeping. He begged the Pope to order them to be stopped. I don't think there was any point in his arrival. Of course, the father had a low opinion of the doctor, who, apparently, was mainly occupied with his own health” (112a, p. 227).

The patient attributed the deterioration in his health to the climate of Bialowieza and moved to Spala, a hunting ground near Warsaw, where he became even worse. Therapists Zakharyin and Professor Leiden from Berlin, called to Spala, joined in Hirsch’s diagnosis that the ruler of Russia had chronic interstitial inflammation of the kidneys. Alexander III immediately summoned his second son to Spala by telegraph. It is known that he led. book Georgy Alexandrovich fell ill with tuberculosis in 1890 and lived in Abbas-Tuman at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains. According to Olga Alexandrovna, “dad wanted to see his son for the last time.” George, who arrived soon, “looked so sick” that the king “sat for hours at night at his son’s bedside” (112a, p. 228).

Meanwhile, on September 17, 1894, an alarming message appeared for the first time in the Government Gazette: “His Majesty’s health has not improved at all since the severe influenza he suffered last January; in the summer, kidney disease (nephritis) was discovered, which requires more successful treatment in cold weather. the time of year of His Majesty's stay in a warm climate. On the advice of professors Zakharyin and Leiden, the sovereign departs for Livadia for a temporary stay there” (388, 1894, September 17). The Greek Queen Olga Konstantinovna immediately offered Alexander III her villa Monrepos on the island of Corfu. Dr. Leyden believed that “staying in a warm climate can have a beneficial effect on the patient.” On September 18, we decided to go to Crimea and stop for a few days in Livadia before sailing to Corfu.

On September 21, the royal family arrived on the Voluntary Fleet steamer "Eagle" in Yalta, from where they proceeded to Livadia. The Emperor stayed in a small palace, where he had previously lived as an heir. This palace resembled in its appearance a modest villa or cottage. In addition to the Empress, the Grand Dukes Nicholas and Georgy Alexandrovich also stayed here; the younger children lived in another house. The beautiful weather seemed to slightly cheer up the country’s dejected gentleman. On September 25, he even allowed himself to celebrate mass in the court church, after which he went to Ai-Todor to visit his daughter Ksenia. However, the king’s health did not improve. He did not receive anyone and rode with his wife every day in an open carriage along hidden roads, at times to the Uchan-Su waterfall and to Massandra. Only a few knew about his hopeless condition. The Emperor lost a lot of weight. The general's uniform hung on him like on a hanger. There was a sharp swelling of the legs and severe itching skin. Days of severe anxiety have arrived.

On an urgent call, on October 1, life surgeon Velyaminov arrived in Livadia, and the next day doctors Leiden, Zakharyin and Girsh arrived. At the same time, the Kharkov professor, surgeon V.F. Grube, was brought into the sovereign’s chambers, wishing to cheer him up. The monarch gladly received Grube, a calm, very balanced old man whom he met in Kharkov after train accident October 17, 1888 in Borki. Grube very convincingly explained to the king that it is possible to recover from kidney inflammation, an example of which he himself can serve. This argument seemed quite convincing to Alexander III, and after Grube’s visit he even became somewhat cheerful.

At the same time, it should be noted that from October 3, when the doctors examined the patient rather superficially, he no longer left his rooms. From that day until his death, Velyaminov became almost permanently on duty with him, day and night. After the doctors visited the Tsar, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of the Minister of the Court and bulletins were compiled, which from October 4 were sent to the Government Gazette and reprinted in other newspapers. The first telegram, which made all of Russia shudder, reported: “Kidney disease has not improved. The strength has diminished. Doctors hope that the climate of the Crimean coast will have a beneficial effect on the health of the August Patient.” As time has shown, this did not happen.

Realizing the hopelessness of his situation, suffering from swelling of his legs, itching, shortness of breath and nightly insomnia, the king did not lose his presence of mind, did not become capricious, and was equally even-tempered, kind, kind, meek and delicate. He got up every day, got dressed in his dressing room and spent most of his time in the company of his wife and children. Despite the protests of doctors, Alexander III tried to work, sign files for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and military orders. He signed the last order the day before his death.

His health was so weakened that he often fell asleep while talking with loved ones. Some days serious illness forced him to go to bed after breakfast and sleep.

After the publication of the first bulletins about the illness of Alexander III, members of the imperial family and some of the highest persons of the court gradually began to gather in Livadia.

On October 8, Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna, the Tsar’s aunt, arrived with the Queen of the Hellenes Olga Konstantinovna, his cousin. The Grand Duchess brought to the dying man Father John of Kronstadt, who during his lifetime had the glory of a national saint and wonderworker. That same evening, the tsar’s two brothers, Sergei and Pavel Alexandrovich, arrived in Livadia.

On Monday, October 10, the Tsarevich's highly-named bride, Princess Alice of Hesse, arrived. The heir to the throne noted this fact in his diary: “At 9 1/2 I went with the village of Sergei to Alushta, where we arrived at one o’clock in the afternoon. Ten minutes later, my beloved Alike and Ella arrived from Simferopol... At each station the Tatars were greeted with bread and salt... The whole carriage was filled with flowers and grapes. I was overcome with terrible excitement when we entered our dear Parents. Dad was weaker today and Alike's arrival, in addition to the meeting with Fr. John, they tired him out” (115, p. 41).

During the entire time before his fatal end, Alexander III did not receive anyone, and only between October 14 and 16, feeling better, he wished to see his brothers and grand duchesses Alexandra Iosifovna and Maria Pavlovna.

On the morning of October 17, the patient received Holy Communion. secrets from Father John. Seeing that the sovereign was dying, his legs became swollen, water appeared and abdominal cavity, therapists Leiden and Zakharyin raised the question of performing a small operation on the suffering monarch, which involved inserting silver tubes (drains) under the skin of his legs through small incisions to drain fluid. However, surgeon Velyaminov believed that subcutaneous drainage would not bring any benefit, and vigorously opposed such an operation. The surgeon Grube was urgently called from Kharkov, who, after examining the sovereign, supported Velyaminov’s opinion.

On October 18, a family council was held, in which all four brothers of Alexander III and the minister of the court took part. All the doctors were also present. The heir to the throne and Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich presided. As a result, opinions regarding the operation were evenly divided. No decision was made. On October 19, the dying monarch again confessed and received communion. Despite the incredible weakness, the august patient got up, got dressed, and went to his office desk and signed an order for the military department for the last time. Here, for some time, his strength left him and he lost consciousness.

Undoubtedly, this incident emphasizes that Alexander III was a man strong will, considered it his duty to fulfill his duty while his heart was still beating in his chest.

The king spent the entire day sitting in a chair, suffering from shortness of breath, which was worsened by pneumonia. At night he tried to sleep, but immediately woke up. Lying down was a great torment for him. At his request, he was placed in a semi-sitting position in bed. He nervously lit a cigarette and threw away one cigarette after another. At about 5 o'clock in the morning the dying man was transferred to a chair.

At 8 o'clock the heir to the throne appeared. The Empress went into the next room to change clothes, but the Tsarevich immediately came to say that the Emperor was calling her. When she entered, she saw her husband in tears.

“I feel my end!” - said the royal sufferer. “For God’s sake, don’t say that, you’ll be healthy!” - Maria Fedorovna exclaimed. “No,” the monarch gloomily confirmed, “this is going on too long, I feel that the end is near!”

The Empress, seeing that breathing was difficult and that her husband was weakening, sent for Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich. At the beginning of the 10th hour the entire royal family gathered. Alexander III greeted everyone who entered affectionately and, realizing the proximity of his death, did not express any surprise that the entire imperial family came so early. His self-control was so great that he even congratulated Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna on her birthday.

The dying ruler of Russia was sitting in a chair, the empress and all his loved ones around him were on their knees. At about 12 noon the king said clearly: “I would like to pray!” Archpriest Yanyshev arrived and began to read prayers. A little later, the sovereign said in a rather firm voice: “I would like to join.” When the priest began the sacrament of communion, the sick sovereign clearly repeated after him the words of the prayer: “I believe, Lord, and I confess...” - and was baptized.

After Yanyshev left, the martyr king wanted to see Father John, who at that time was serving mass in Oreanda. Wishing to rest, the autocrat remained with the empress, the crown prince, his bride and children. Everyone else went into the next rooms.

Meanwhile, having finished mass in Oreanda, John of Kronstadt arrived. In the presence of Maria Feodorovna and the children, he prayed and anointed the dying sovereign with oil. As he left, the shepherd said loudly and meaningfully: “Forgive me, king.”

The Empress was kneeling the entire time on her husband’s left side, holding his hands, which were beginning to grow cold.

Since the breathing patient was groaning heavily, Doctor Velyaminov suggested that he lightly massage his swollen legs. Everyone left the room. During a foot massage, the sufferer said to Velyaminov: “Apparently the professors have already left me, and you, Nikolai Alexandrovich, are still messing with me out of your kindness.” For some time the king felt relieved and for a few minutes wished to be alone with the heir to the throne. Apparently, before his death, he blessed his son to reign.

During the last hours, the emperor kissed his wife, but in the end he said: “I can’t even kiss you.”

His head, which was hugged by the kneeling empress, bent to one side and leaned against his wife’s head. The person leaving this life was no longer moaning, but was still breathing shallowly, his eyes were closed, his facial expression was quite calm.

All members of the royal family were on their knees, the clergyman Yanyshev read the funeral service. At 2 hours 15 minutes breathing stopped, the ruler of the most powerful power in the world, Alexander III, died.

On the same day, his son, Nikolai Alexandrovich, who became Emperor Nicholas II, wrote in his diary: “My God, my God, what a day! The Lord called back our adored, dear, beloved Pope. My head is spinning, I don’t want to believe it - the terrible reality seems so implausible... It was the death of a saint! Lord, help us in these hard days! Poor dear Mom!..” (115, p. 43.)

Doctor Velyaminov, who for the last 17 days was almost constantly near Alexander III, noted in his memoirs: “Now more than forty years have passed that I have been a doctor, I have seen many deaths of people of the most diverse classes and social status, I saw dying believers, deeply religious, I also saw non-believers, but such death, so to speak, in public, among the whole family, I have never seen, either before or later, only a sincere believer, a person with a pure soul, like a child’s, with a completely calm conscience, could die like this. Many were convinced that Emperor Alexander III was a stern and even cruel man, but I will say that a cruel man cannot die like that and in fact never dies” (390, issue V, 1994, p. 308). When relatives, court officials and servants said goodbye to the deceased according to Orthodox custom, Empress Maria Feodorovna continued to kneel completely motionless, hugging the head of her beloved husband, until those present noticed that she was unconscious.

For some time the farewell was interrupted. The Empress was lifted in her arms and laid on the couch. Due to severe mental shock, she was in a deep faint for about an hour.

The news of the death of Alexander III quickly spread across Russia and other countries of the world. Residents of the Crimean outskirts closest to Livadia learned about this from the rare shots one after another from the cruiser “Memory of Mercury”.

The sad news spread throughout St. Petersburg at about five o'clock in the afternoon. The majority of the Russian population, as noted in the newspapers, was deeply saddened by the death of the peacemaker Tsar.

“Even the weather changed,” Nicholas II noted in his diary on October 21, “it was cold and roared in the sea!” On the same day, newspapers published his manifesto on his accession to the throne on the front pages. A few days later, a pathological-anatomical autopsy and embalming of the body of the late emperor was performed. At the same time, as the surgeon Velyaminov noted, “a very significant hypertrophy of the heart and fatty degeneration of it was found in chronic interstitial inflammation of the kidneys... the doctors undoubtedly did not know about such a formidable enlargement of the heart, and yet this was the main cause of death. The changes in the kidneys were relatively minor” (ibid.).

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All-Russian Emperor Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov was born on February 26 (old style) 1845 in St. Petersburg in the Anichkov Palace. His father was a reforming emperor, and his mother was a queen. The boy was the third child in a family that later had five more children. His older brother Nicholas was preparing to become king, and Alexander was destined for the fate of a military man.

As a child, the Tsarevich studied without much zeal, and the teachers were undemanding to him. In the memoirs of his contemporaries, young Alexander was not very smart, but he had a sound mind and the gift of reasoning.

Alexander was kind-hearted and a little shy, although he had a distinguished figure: with a height of 193 cm, his weight reached 120 kg. Despite its harsh appearance, the young man loved art. He took painting lessons from Professor Tikhobrazov and studied music. Alexander mastered playing brass and woodwind instruments. Subsequently, he will support Russian art in every possible way and, with sufficient unpretentiousness in everyday life, will collect a good collection of works by Russian artists. And in opera houses with his light hand, Russian operas and ballets will begin to be staged much more often than European ones.

Tsarevichs Nicholas and Alexander were very close to each other. The younger brother even claimed that there was no one closer and more beloved to him except Nikolai. Therefore, when in 1865, the heir to the throne, while traveling in Italy, suddenly felt ill and died suddenly from spinal tuberculosis, Alexander could not accept this loss for a long time. In addition, it turned out that it was he who became a contender for the throne, for which Alexander was completely unprepared.

The young man’s teachers were horrified for a moment. The young man was urgently assigned a course of special lectures, which were read to him by his mentor Konstantin Pobedonostsev. After his accession to the kingdom, Alexander will make his teacher an adviser and will turn to him for the rest of his life. Nikolai Alexandrovich Kachalov was appointed another assistant to the Tsarevich, with whom the young man traveled around Russia.

Enthronement

In early March 1881, after another assassination attempt, Emperor Alexander II died from his wounds, and his son immediately ascended the throne. Two months later, the new emperor published the “Manifesto on the Inviolability of Autocracy,” which stopped all liberal changes in the structure of the state established by his father.

The sacrament of royal coronation took place later - on May 15, 1883 in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. During his reign, the royal family moved to the palace in Gatchina.

Domestic policy of Alexander III

Alexander III adhered to pronounced monarchical and nationalist principles, his actions during domestic policy could be called a counter-reformation. The first thing the emperor did was sign decrees with which he sent liberal ministers to retire. Among them were Prince Konstantin Nikolaevich, M. T. Loris-Melikova, D. A. Milyutin, A. A. Abaza. He made K. P. Pobedonostsev, N. Ignatiev, D. A. Tolstoy, M. N. Katkov the key figures in his circle.

In 1889, a talented politician and financier S. Yu. Witte appeared at court, whom Alexander Alexandrovich soon appointed Minister of Finance and Minister of Transport. Sergei Yulievich did a lot for Great Russia. He introduced the backing of the ruble with the country's gold reserves, which contributed to the strengthening of the Russian currency on the international market. This has led to the flow of foreign capital into Russian Empire increased, and the economy began to develop at an accelerated pace. In addition, he did a lot for the development and construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, which is still the only road connecting Vladivostok with Moscow.

Despite the fact that Alexander III tightened the right for peasants to receive education and vote in zemstvo elections, he gave them the opportunity to take out loans at low interest rates in order to expand their farms and strengthen their position on the land. The emperor also introduced restrictions for the nobles. Already in the first year of his reign, he canceled all additional payments from the royal treasury to those close to him, and also did a lot to eradicate corruption.

Alexander III strengthened control over students and set a limit on the number of Jewish students in all educational institutions, tightened censorship. His slogan was the phrase: “Russia for Russians.” On the outskirts of the Empire, he proclaimed active Russification.

Alexander III did a lot for the metallurgical industry and the development of oil and gas production. Under him, a real boom began in improving the well-being of the people, and terrorist threats completely ceased. The autocrat did a lot for Orthodoxy. Under his reign, the number of dioceses increased, new monasteries and churches were built. In 1883, one of the most majestic buildings was erected - the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

The legacy of his reign, Alexander III left a country with a strong economy.

Foreign policy of Alexander III

Emperor Alexander III, with his wisdom in foreign policy actions and avoidance of wars, went down in history as the Tsar-Peacemaker. But at the same time, he did not forget to strengthen the power of the army. Under Alexander III Russian The fleet became the third after the flotillas of France and Great Britain.

The emperor managed to maintain calm relations with all his main rivals. He signed peace agreements with Germany and England, and also significantly strengthened Franco-Russian friendship on the world stage.

During his reign, the practice of open negotiations was established, and the rulers of the European powers began to trust the Russian Tsar as a wise arbiter in resolving all controversial issues between states.

Personal life

After the death of his heir Nicholas, he was left with a fiancée, the Danish princess Maria Dagmar. Unexpectedly, it turned out that young Alexander was also in love with her. And even despite the fact that for some time he courted his maid of honor, Princess Maria Meshcherskaya, Alexander, at the age of 21, proposed to Maria Sofia Frederica. So for short term Alexander’s personal life changed, which he never regretted later.

After the wedding sacrament, which took place in the large church of the Winter Palace, the young couple moved to the Anichkov Palace, where they lived until Alexander ascended the throne.

In the family of Alexander Alexandrovich and his wife Maria Fedorovna, who, like all overseas princesses, converted to Orthodoxy before marriage, six children were born, five of whom lived to adulthood.

The elder Nicholas would become the last Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty. Of the younger children - Alexander, Georgy, Ksenia, Mikhail, Olga - only sisters will live to old age. Alexander will die at the age of one year, Georgy will die in his youth from tuberculosis, and Mikhail will share the fate of his brother - he will be shot by the Bolsheviks.

The emperor raised his children in strictness. Their clothing and food were very simple. The royal offspring were engaged physical exercise, and received good education. Peace and harmony reigned in the family; spouses and children often traveled to Denmark to visit relatives.

Failed assassination attempt

On March 1, 1887, an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of the emperor. Participants in the conspiracy were students Vasily Osipanov, Vasily Generalov, Pakhomiy Andreyushkin and Alexander Ulyanov. Despite months of preparation terrorist attack under the leadership of Pyotr Shevyrev, the young people failed to carry out their plans to the end. All four were captured by the police and two months after the trial were executed by hanging in the Shlisselburg fortress.

Several members of the revolutionary circle, who were also arrested after the terrorists, were sent into long-term exile.

Death

A year after the assassination attempt, an unpleasant event occurred in the life of the royal family: the train in which Alexander and his relatives were traveling crashed near Kharkov. Part of the train overturned, killing people. The roof of the carriage in which the royal persons were located was held by the mighty emperor for a long time on our own within 30 minutes. With this he saved everyone around him. But such overexertion undermined the king’s health. Alexander Alexandrovich developed kidney disease, which slowly progressed.

In the first winter months of 1894, the emperor caught a bad cold and six months later he felt very ill. A professor of medicine from Germany, Ernst Leiden, was called and diagnosed Alexander Alexandrovich with nephropathy. On the recommendation of a doctor, the emperor was sent to Greece, but on the way he became worse, and his family decided to stop in Livadia in Crimea.

Within a month, the king’s heroic physique faded away before everyone’s eyes and died on November 1, 1894 due to complete kidney failure. Over the past month, his confessor John (Yanyshev), as well as Archpriest John Sergiev, in the future John of Kronstadt, was constantly at his side.

An hour and a half after the death of Alexander III, his son Nicholas swore allegiance to the kingdom. The coffin with the emperor's body was delivered to St. Petersburg and solemnly buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

The image of the emperor in art

Not as many books have been written about Alexander III as about other conquering emperors. This happened because of his peacefulness and non-conflict nature. His person is mentioned in some historical books dedicated to the Romanov family.

In documentaries, information about him is presented in several feeds of journalists and. Feature films in which the character of Alexander III was present began to appear in 1925. A total of 5 films were published, including “The Shore of Life,” in which Lev Zolotukhin played the peacemaker emperor, as well as “The Barber of Siberia,” where he played this role.

The last film in which the hero of Alexander III appears was the 2017 film “Matilda”. He played the king in it.

View of the Gatchina Palace from the station. Porcelain layer. 1870s The family of Emperor Alexander III occupied premises in the Arsenal Square. For personal apartments, rooms on the mezzanine floor were chosen, small and low, similar to cabins. Maria Feodorovna repeatedly noted their comfort and... “lack of embarrassment.” From now on, the Gatchina Palace became a favorite family home for its owners. During their stay in Gatchina, there were educational classes for children, which were held in the morning and after an afternoon walk. In addition to taking courses in various sciences, they danced, played various instruments, and attended gymnastics lessons. They also spent their free time usefully: they cooked, did carpentry, made puppets for their theater, and sewed costumes for them. Toy soldiers were glued together for toy military battles. In addition to boyish hobbies, the youngest son Mikhail enjoyed playing with dolls with his sisters. At the Arsenal they played billiards, tag, and shuttlecock; They rode bicycles along the corridors of the huge palace. In the rooms of the grand dukes there was a stereoscope - a “magic lantern”, with the help of which one could visit distant mysterious countries and again remember the places of past travels. In the evenings, together with Maria Fedorovna, we played four hands on the piano. Parents often organized evenings for children: circus performances, puppet shows. Children's plays, often in foreign languages - German or French, were prepared by the younger inhabitants of the palace themselves.

Theatrical performances in Gatchina were given mainly in December before Christmas and in the spring after Easter. Guests were invited according to a list, up to 260 people - that’s how much the palace theater could accommodate. Most often they showed comedies from Russian and French troupes, sometimes they showed classics (“Dead Souls” by Gogol).

Social life took place in the Arsenal Hall, which was located on the first floor of the Arsenal Square. There were a lot of interesting things here: a Demidov magnet, an organ, a children's slide with a sleigh, a swing in the shape of a boat, billiards, a small stage for home performances. The walls were decorated with stuffed animals and birds, equipped with signs indicating the place and time when they were killed, and most importantly, the author of the shot. Often the inhabitants of the Gatchina Palace listened by telephone to musical works performed in theaters in St. Petersburg. In addition to the obligatory large receptions and balls, entertainment was also organized for a narrow circle of people, where both professional musicians and amateurs - adults and very young - were invited. Balalaika players and a gypsy choir, string orchestras and small violinists performed in front of the crowned and always friendly music connoisseurs.

Among family holidays, every year in Gatchina the birthdays of children were celebrated: March 25 - Grand Duchess Ksenia Alexandrovna, April 27 - Grand Duke Georgy Alexandrovich, May 6 - heir to Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, November 22 - Mikhail Alexandrovich; as well as Christmas, Palm Sunday, Emperor Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna with children on a boat in Gatchina. [Early 1880s]. Photo studio "Kudryavtsev and Co." Easter and the day of transfer of Maltese shrines to Gatchina.

Moments of communication with nature among the closest people were always very important and valued in the family of Alexander III. The emperor and his children could be himself, relax, and simply show his qualities as a hardy, skillful person, a successful fisherman and a sharp shooter. Children and their friends, who came on weekends, trusted him with their secrets, read humorous poems and shared with the emperor the pranks they played on each other. A special attraction was walking through the underground passage from the Echo grotto to the palace and climbing the tower.

Unlike his father, Alexander II, Alexander III, according to the recollections of his contemporaries, was not an inveterate hunter, but loved nature, a simple hunting environment and “hunting farming” - breeding game, dogs, strict adherence hunting laws. In Gatchina and its environs they hunted a variety of animals: bears, wolves, deer, fallow deer, foxes, hares. The birds most often killed were black grouse, pheasants, wood grouse, and less often ducks. Children with early years learned marksmanship and later became participants in hunts near Gatchina; The heir, Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, was a particularly good hunter.

Alexander III was passionate about fishing, and this hobby was passed on to his wife and children. In different ways He preferred catching fish at night to fishing. A catch of several dozen fish was considered unsuccessful for him (pike were counted separately); On average, he caught up to two hundred, going fishing after ten o'clock in the evening, and upon returning he worked until the morning. Maria Fedorovna also became an avid fisherman. The expansive Ksenia often envied her successes: “Mom and I went to the Admiralty, where we first fed the ducks, and then, taking the sailor and fishing rods, we went to the “Moya” (the “Moya-my” boat) under the large bridge near the Menagerie, where we landed and began catch fish! Extremely exciting! Mom caught all the perches, and I caught roaches, and I caught a lot, which offended me!”

In addition to fishing and hunting, there were numerous other entertainments in Gatchina Park. In winter, we organized sleigh rides with guests invited from St. Petersburg, and stopped by the Farm to drink coffee and tea. The park's terraces were adapted into mountains for sledding. The sovereign himself took part in snow battles with great pleasure. In front of the palace they “rolled a blockhead” (snow woman), so big that it took several days to sculpt it. The whole family worked in the park - clearing snow, cutting down trees, lighting fires, baking apples and potatoes. There was a skating rink on the lakes - the biggest fan of skating was Empress Maria Feodorovna.

In the summer we rode around the park in strollers, on bicycles, and on horseback. In the spring, closer to Palm Sunday, they performed a ritual - they planted willows on the islands. They went out to the lakes in boats, kayaks and in dinghies with sailors, often rowing themselves. The children also had at their disposal an “aqua-ped” - a prototype of a modern pedal boat. In 1882, at the beginning of the “electric” boom, a boat with an electric engine even appeared in Gatchina.

For picnics we went to the Gatchina Mill and the Farm, where milk was served with fresh black bread. In Yegerskaya Sloboda you could look at various animals, feed bears and ride donkeys.

When members of Alexander III's family had to part with each other, they were desperately bored, sending frequent letters and telegrams. “Our weather is lovely; living in Gatchina is bliss; It’s just a pity that you’re not here” (Nikolai); “I expect you on the 30th or 1st. Everything is in place in your rooms. Sometimes I walk there and it seems to me that you live in them” (Mikhail).

Being away from home, they imagined all the details of a family idyll: “You are terribly missed here, but I think that you are very happy to be in Gatchina, where it is now so good” (Ksenia from Abas-Tuman); “Now you probably enjoy long walks and rides on the lake in lovely Gatchina!” (Nikolai from the Yellow Sea). After the death of his father, Emperor Nicholas II settled in Tsarskoe Selo, but neither Maria Feodorovna nor the other children left Gatchina. Ksenia Alexandrovna and Alexander Mikhailovich brought their children here, and for Mikhail and Olga, all the ups and downs of their personal lives were connected with Gatchina.

On June 27, 1901, the wedding of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna and Prince Peter of Oldenburg took place in the Gatchina Palace Church. The Emperor ordered everyone to gather in Gatchina by two o'clock. Emergency trains were provided to those arriving, and a direct connection was established from Peterhof via Krasnoye Selo and Strelna. Among those invited were all Olga Alexandrovna’s teachers. The celebrations opened at eight o'clock in the morning with five cannon shots in St. Petersburg and Gatchina, which were festively decorated and illuminated that day.

On the occasion of the wedding, gold items were brought from the Hermitage to “dress the head” of the newlywed before the wedding. According to the ceremony, the bride wore a crown and an ermine robe of crimson velvet, worn over her dress; her train was carried by four chamberlains. When Emperor Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna passed into the palace church, 21 cannon shots were fired. The emperor led the wedding couple to the lectern; with the beginning of the chant “We praise you, God,” 101 cannon shots sounded. The bride's groomsmen were Grand Dukes Mikhail Alexandrovich, Kirill, Boris and Andrei Vladimirovich, who held the royal crowns; The groom's best men are Grand Dukes Dmitry Konstantinovich, Sergei Mikhailovich, Prince Andrei of Greece, Prince Alexander Georgievich of Leuchtenberg.

In the White Hall, a “highest” table was set for forty-seven people and two separate round tables for ten people. There were four similar tables on the balcony, three in the dining room, and eight in the Chesme gallery. A total of 217 people attended the dinner. The cup was presented to Olga Alexandrovna by Count Sergei Dmitrievich Sheremetev. The marriage did not bring joy to the Grand Duchess; the marriage was fictitious due to the fault of the Prince of Oldenburg. Women's happiness came later, when she met in Gatchina the officer of the Cuirassier Regiment Nikolai Kulikovsky, who in 1916 became her husband and friend until the end of her days.

Mikhail also found his destiny in his favorite childhood city. His chosen one was Natalya Wulfert, who lived with her husband in Gatchina. The marriage between the Grand Duke and the former wife of an officer of the Cuirassier Regiment was not recognized by the royal family for a long time. Being forced to live abroad for some time due to his morganatic marriage, he climbed the Eiffel Tower and wrote on a postcard: “From this height you can see Gatchina.” Returning to Russia in 1914, Mikhail again settled with his wife and children in Gatchina and spent his last years here before his arrest, exile and death...

After the October Revolution, the imperial palace in 1918 became a museum, where up to the Great Patriotic War Both the ceremonial and private apartments of all its crowned owners were preserved. In the Gatchina Palace, one of the few, one could see children's rooms: furnishings and children's toys, swings and a slide, desks, numerous collections of trinkets dear to the heart. All this invariably aroused increased interest among visitors.

Unfortunately, the years of hard times destroyed the unique image of the world of childhood that existed for a century and a half in the Gatchina Palace. However, some things that belonged to the great princes and princesses have survived to this day. Thanks to this, it became possible to recreate the intimate world of the royal family, for whom “dear Gatchina” was a beloved Home, where they always wanted to return.