Nikolai 2 Alexandrovich (May 6, 1868 - July 17, 1918) - the last Russian emperor, who ruled from 1894 to 1917, the eldest son of Alexander 3 and Maria Feodorovna, was an honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. In the Soviet historiographic tradition, he was given the epithet "Bloody". The life of Nicholas 2 and his reign are described in this article.
Briefly about the reign of Nicholas 2
During the reign of Nicholas 2 there was an active economic development of Russia. At the same time, the country lost to the sovereign in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, which was one of the reasons for the revolutionary events of 1905-1907, in particular, the adoption of the Manifesto on October 17, 1905, according to which the creation of various political parties was allowed, and also formed The State Duma. According to the same manifesto, Stolypin's agrarian reform began to be carried out. In 1907, Russia became a member of the Entente and participated in the First World War with it. In August 1915, Nikolai 2 Romanov became the supreme commander in chief. DuringFebruary Revolution On March 2, 1917, the sovereign abdicated. He and his entire family were shot. The Russian Orthodox Church canonized them in 2000.
Childhood, early years
When Nikolai Alexandrovich was 8 years old, his home education began. The program included a general education course lasting eight years. And then - a course of higher sciences lasting five years. It was based on the program of the classical gymnasium. But instead of Greek and Latin, the future king mastered botany, mineralogy, anatomy, zoology and physiology. The courses of Russian literature, history and foreign languages were expanded. In addition, the higher education program included the study of law, political economy and military affairs (strategy, jurisprudence, the service of the General Staff, geography). Nicholas 2 was also engaged in fencing, vaulting, music, and drawing. Alexander 3 and his wife Maria Feodorovna themselves chose mentors and teachers for the future tsar. Among them were military and statesmen, scientists: N. Kh. Bunge, K. P. Pobedonostsev, N. N. Obruchev, M. I. Dragomirov, N. K. Girs, A. R. Drenteln.
Career start
From childhood, the future Emperor Nicholas 2 was interested in military affairs: he perfectly knew the military regulations and traditions of the officer environment, the soldier did not shy away, realizing himself as their mentor-patron, he easily endured the inconvenience of army life at camp maneuvers and training camps.
Immediately after the birth of the futurethe sovereign was enrolled in several guards regiments and made commander of the 65th Moscow infantry regiment. At the age of five, Nicholas 2 (dates of reign - 1894-1917) was appointed commander of the Life Guards of the Reserve Infantry Regiment, and a little later, in 1875, of the Erivan Regiment. The future sovereign received his first military rank (ensign) in December 1875, and in 1880 he was promoted to second lieutenant, and four years later - to lieutenant.
Nicholas 2 entered active military service in 1884, and starting in July 1887 he served in the Preobrazhensky Regiment and reached the rank of staff captain. He becomes a captain in 1891, and a year later - a colonel.
Start of reign
After a long illness, Alexander 3 died, and Nicholas 2 took over the reign in Moscow on the same day, at the age of 26, on October 20, 1894.
During his solemn official coronation on May 18, 1896, dramatic events took place on the Khodynka field. There were riots, thousands of people were killed and injured in a spontaneous stampede.
Khodynskoye field was not previously intended for festivities, as it was a training base for the troops, and therefore it was not landscaped. There was a ravine right next to the field, and the field itself was covered with numerous pits. On the occasion of the celebration, the pits and the ravine were covered with boards and covered with sand, and along the perimeter they set up benches, booths, stalls for distributing free vodka and food. When people, attracted by rumors about the distribution of money and gifts, rushed to the buildings, the decks collapsed,covered the pits, and people fell, not having time to stand up: a crowd was already running along them. The police, swept away by the wave, could not do anything. Only after reinforcements arrived did the crowd gradually disperse, leaving the bodies of mutilated and trampled people on the square.
The first years of the reign
In the first years of the reign of Nicholas 2, a general census of the country's population and a monetary reform were carried out. During the reign of this monarch, Russia became an agrarian-industrial state: railways were built, cities grew, industrial enterprises arose. The sovereign made decisions aimed at the social and economic modernization of Russia: the gold circulation of the ruble was introduced, several laws on workers' insurance, Stolypin's agrarian reform was carried out, laws on religious tolerance and universal primary education were adopted.
Main Events
The years of the reign of Nicholas 2 were marked by a strong aggravation in the internal political life of Russia, as well as a difficult foreign policy situation (the events of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the Revolution of 1905-1907 in our country, the First World War, and in 1917 year - the February Revolution).
The Russo-Japanese War, which began in 1904, although it did not cause much damage to the country, however, significantly shook the sovereign's authority. After numerous failures and losses in 1905, the Battle of Tsushima ended in a crushing defeat for the Russian fleet.
Revolution 1905-1907
January 9, 1905, the revolution began, this date is called Bloody Sunday. Government troops shot down a demonstration of workers, organized, as is commonly believed, by Georgy Gapon, the priest of the transit prison in St. Petersburg. As a result of the executions, more than a thousand demonstrators died, who participated in a peaceful procession to the Winter Palace in order to submit a petition to the sovereign about the needs of the workers.
After this uprising swept many other Russian cities. Armed performances were in the navy and in the army. So, on June 14, 1905, the sailors took possession of the battleship Potemkin, brought it to Odessa, where at that time there was a general strike. However, the sailors did not dare to land ashore to support the workers. "Potemkin" headed to Romania and surrendered to the authorities. Numerous speeches forced the king to sign the Manifesto on October 17, 1905, which granted citizens civil liberties.
Not being a reformer by nature, the king was forced to implement reforms that did not correspond to his convictions. He believed that in Russia the time had not yet come for freedom of speech, a constitution, and universal suffrage. However, Nicholas 2 (whose photo is presented in the article) was forced to sign the Manifesto on October 17, 1905, as an active public movement for political transformation began.
Establishment of the State Duma
The State Duma was established by the Tsar's Manifesto of 1906. In the history of Russia, for the first time, the emperor began to rule in the presence of a representative elected body from the population. That is, Russia is gradually becoming a constitutional monarchy. However, despite these changes, the emperor during the reign of Nicholas 2 still had enormous powers of authority: he issued laws in the form of decrees, appointed ministers and the prime minister, accountable only to him, was the head of the court, the army and the patron of the Church, determined foreign policy course of our country.
The first revolution of 1905-1907 showed the deep crisis that existed at that time in the Russian state.
Personality of Nicholas 2
From the point of view of contemporaries, his personality, main character traits, strengths and weaknesses were very ambiguous and sometimes caused conflicting assessments. According to many of them, Nicholas 2 was characterized by such an important feature as weak will. However, there is a lot of evidence that the sovereign stubbornly strove to implement his ideas and undertakings, sometimes reaching stubbornness (only once, when signing the Manifesto on October 17, 1905, he was forced to submit to someone else's will).
In contrast to his father, Alexander 3, Nicholas 2 (see his photo below) did not give the impression of a strong personality. However, according to people close to him, he had exceptional self-control, sometimes interpreted as indifference to the fate of people and the country (for example, with composure that amazed the sovereign’s entourage, he met the news of the fall of Port Arthur and the defeat of the Russian army in World War I war).
Dealing with state affairs, Tsar Nicholas 2 showed "extraordinary perseverance", as well as attentiveness and accuracy (for example,he never had a personal secretary, and he put all the seals on letters with his own hand). Although, in general, the management of a huge power was still a "heavy burden" for him. According to contemporaries, Tsar Nicholas 2 had a tenacious memory, observation, in communication he was a friendly, modest and sensitive person. Most of all, he valued his habits, peace, he alth, and especially the well-being of his own family.
Nikolai 2 and his family
The sovereign was supported by his family. Alexandra Fedorovna was not just a wife for him, but also an adviser, a friend. Their wedding took place on November 14, 1894. The interests, ideas and habits of the spouses often did not coincide, largely due to cultural differences, because the empress was a German princess. However, this did not interfere with family harmony. The couple had five children: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia and Alexei.
The drama of the royal family was caused by the illness of Alexei, who suffered from hemophilia (blood incoagulability). It was this disease that caused the appearance in the royal house of Grigory Rasputin, who was famous for the gift of healing and foresight. He often helped Alexei cope with bouts of illness.
World War I
1914 was a turning point in the fate of Nicholas 2. It was at this time that the First World War began. The sovereign did not want this war, trying until the very last moment to avoid a bloody massacre. But on July 19 (August 1), 1914, Germany nevertheless decided to start a war with Russia.
In August1915, marked by a series of military failures, Nicholas 2, whose reign history was already approaching the end, took on the role of commander in chief of the Russian army. Previously, it was assigned to Prince Nikolai Nikolaevich (the Younger). Since then, the sovereign only occasionally came to the capital, spending most of his time in Mogilev, at the headquarters of the Supreme Commander.
The First World War intensified Russia's internal problems. The king and his entourage began to be considered the main culprit of the defeats and the protracted campaign. There was an opinion that treason was "breeding" in the Russian government. At the beginning of 1917, the military command of the country, headed by the emperor, created a plan for a general offensive, according to which it was planned to end the confrontation by the summer of 1917.
The abdication of Nicholas 2
However, at the end of February of the same year, unrest began in Petrograd, which, due to the lack of strong opposition from the authorities, grew a few days later into mass political protests against the tsar's dynasty and government. At first, Nicholas 2 planned to use force to achieve order in the capital, but, realizing the true scale of the protests, he abandoned this plan, fearing even more bloodshed that it could cause. Some of the high-ranking officials, politicians and members of the sovereign's retinue convinced him that a change in government was necessary to suppress the unrest, the abdication of Nicholas 2 from the throne.
After painful reflections on March 2, 1917 in Pskov, during a trip on the imperial train, Nicholas 2 decided to sign an act of renunciation ofthrone, passing the reign to his brother, Prince Mikhail Alexandrovich. However, he refused to accept the crown. The abdication of Nicholas 2 thus meant the end of the dynasty.
Last months of life
Nikolay 2 and his family were arrested on March 9 of the same year. First, for five months they were in Tsarskoye Selo, under guard, and in August 1917 they were sent to Tobolsk. Then, in April 1918, the Bolsheviks moved Nicholas and his family to Yekaterinburg. Here, on the night of July 17, 1918, in the center of the city, in the basement of the Ipatiev house, in which the prisoners were imprisoned, Emperor Nicholas 2, his five children, his wife, as well as several close associates of the king, including the family doctor Botkin and servants, without any trial or investigation were shot. Eleven people were killed in total.
In 2000, by the decision of the Church, Nicholas 2 Romanov, as well as his entire family, were canonized, and an Orthodox church was erected on the site of the Ipatiev house.
