On February 26, 1845, the third child and second son were born to the future Emperor Tsarevich Alexander Nikolayevich. The boy was named Alexander.
Alexander 3. Biography
During the first 26 years, he was brought up, like other grand dukes, for a military career, since his elder brother Nikolai was to become the heir to the throne. By the age of 18, Alexander the Third was already in the rank of colonel. The future Russian emperor, according to the reviews of his educators, did not differ much in the breadth of his interests. According to the recollections of the teacher, Alexander the Third "was always lazy" and began to catch up only when he became the heir. An attempt to fill in the gaps in education was carried out under the close supervision of Pobedonostsev. At the same time, from the sources left by the educators, we learn that the boy was distinguished by perseverance and diligence in calligraphy. Naturally, excellent military specialists, professors of Moscow University, were engaged in his education. The boy was especially fond of Russian history, culture, which over timeturned into a real Russophilia.
Aleksandr was sometimes called slow-witted by his family members, sometimes for excessive shyness and clumsiness - "pug", "bulldog". According to the memoirs of his contemporaries, outwardly he did not look like a heavyweight: he was well-built, with a small mustache, and a bald patch that appeared early. People were attracted by such traits of his character as sincerity, honesty, benevolence, lack of excessive ambition and a great sense of responsibility.
The beginning of a political career
His serene life ended when, in 1865, his older brother Nikolai died suddenly. Alexander III was declared heir to the throne. These events stunned him. He immediately had to take up the duties of the Tsarevich. His father began to introduce him to state affairs. He listened to the reports of ministers, got acquainted with official papers, received membership in the State Council and the Council of Ministers. He becomes a major general and ataman of all the Cossack troops of Russia. That's when I had to make up for the gaps in youth education. His love for Russia and Russian history was formed by the course of Professor S. M. Solovyov. This feeling accompanied him all his life.
Tsesarevich Alexander the Third stayed for quite a long time - 16 years. During this time he received
combat experience. Participated in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878, received the Order of St. Vladimir with swords" and "St. George 2nd class. It was in the war that he met people who later became hisassociates. Later, he created the Volunteer Fleet, which was a transport fleet in peacetime, and combat in wartime.
In domestic political life, the Tsarevich did not adhere to the views of his father, Emperor Alexander II, but did not oppose the course of the Great Reforms either. His relationship with his parent was also complicated by personal circumstances. He could not come to terms with the fact that his father, with his living wife, settled his favorite E. M. in the Winter Palace. Dolgoruky and their three children.
The Tsarevich himself was an exemplary family man. He married the bride of his deceased brother, Princess Louise Sophia Frederica Dagmar, who after the wedding adopted Orthodoxy and a new name - Maria Feodorovna. They had six children.
Happy family life ended on March 1, 1881, when a terrorist act was committed, as a result of which the father of the Tsarevich died.
The reforms of Alexander 3 or the necessary transformations for Russia
On the morning of March 2, members of the State Council and the highest officials of the court took the oath to the new Emperor Alexander III. He said that he would try to continue the work begun by his father. But the firmest idea of further actions did not appear for a long time. Pobedonostsev, an ardent opponent of liberal reforms, wrote to the monarch: “Either save yourself and Russia now, or never!”
The Emperor's political course was most accurately outlined in a manifesto dated April 29, 1881. Historians called it the "Manifesto on the Inviolability of Autocracy." It meant major adjustments to the Great Reforms of the 1860s and 1870s. The priority task of the government was to fight the revolution.
The repressive apparatus, political investigation, secret-investigative services, etc. were strengthened. Government policy seemed cruel and punitive to contemporaries. But to those who live at the present time, it may seem very modest. But we won't go into that in detail now.
The government tightened education policy: universities were deprived of autonomy, a circular “On Cook's Children” was issued, a special censorship regime was introduced regarding the activities of newspapers and magazines, and zemstvo self-government was curtailed. All these transformations were carried out to exclude that spirit of freedom,
who hovered in post-reform Russia.
The economic policy of Alexander III was more successful. The industrial and financial sphere was aimed at introducing a gold backing for the ruble, establishing a protective customs tariff, and building railways, which created not only the means of communication necessary for the domestic market, but also accelerated the development of local industries.
The second successful area was foreign policy. Alexander the Third received the nickname "emperor-peacemaker". Immediately after accession to the throne, he sent a dispatch to foreign countries, which announced: the emperor wants to maintain peace with all powers and focus his special attention on internal affairs. He professed the principles of strong and national (Russian) autocratic power.
But fate gave him a short life. In 1888, the train in which the emperor's family was traveling,suffered a terrible crash. Alexander Alexandrovich found himself crushed by the collapsed ceiling. Having great physical strength, he helped his wife, children and got out himself. But the injury made itself felt - he developed a kidney disease, complicated after the "influenza" - the flu. On October 29, 1894, he died before reaching the age of 50. He said to his wife: “I feel the end, be calm, I am completely calm.”
He did not know what trials his dearly beloved Motherland, his widow, his son and the entire Romanov family would have to endure.
