98 years ago, on January 27, 1918, the grandson of Nicholas I, a cousin of Alexander III, Grand Duke Nikolai Konstantinovich, passed away. The son of the younger brother of Emperor Alexander II made a lot of noise in the royal family. Due to the scandalous criminal history, his name was forbidden to be mentioned in the papers concerning the Imperial House. Officially, he was declared insane and exiled from St. Petersburg. However, despite the fact that all his relatives turned away from him, the prince managed to become a major industrialist in Turkestan, having established the production of cotton and soap.
Fatal meeting at the ball
The fate of the first-born Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich promised to be cloudless. The boy, who was born on February 2, 1850, was named after his grandfather Nikolai. An inquisitive and active child showed great promise. At the age of 18, on his own initiative, he entered the Academy of the General Staff, where he was able to show his abilities, becoming one of the best students. In fact, Nikolai became the first of the Romanovs to graduate from a higher educational institution.
In the future, a successful military career and a comfortable existence awaited him, but everything changed one day, or rather the evening, when he met a beautiful young lady Fanny Lear at a masquerade at the Grand Opera. The 21-year-old Grand Duke was captivated by a mysterious stranger who had recently arrived in St. Petersburg from Paris. By that time, Fanny, whose real name and surname sounded like Harriet Ely Blackford, had already become disillusioned with the bonds of marriage and separated from her husband, from whom she had a little daughter. In her memoirs, she described their first meeting, when they talked and joked about the "despotism of kings", not yet knowing who is who. When she realized what kind of person stood in front of her, then, according to her, she was a lot embarrassed. She described the appearance of the Grand Duke as follows:
“Before me was a young man a little over six feet tall, well-built, broad-shouldered, with a flexible and thin body. He had thick black eyebrows and small, deep in the orbits, greenish eyes, which looked mockingly and incredulously and, as I learned later, glowed like coals during anger; they became radiant in moments of joy. The gaze of these eyes, now sharp and intelligent, now dreamy, penetrated to the depths of the soul and forced to speak the truth, when, wanting to dispel any doubt, he rushed at the interlocutor. People who knew the Grand Duke adored and feared these eyes, and those who did not know were ashamed of their mocking expression ... "
The prince's life was changed by a meeting with Fanny Lear. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
A romance broke out between the young people, which seriously alerted the relatives of Nikolai Konstantinovich. They could not even imagine for a moment that a foreign dancer, who did not have the best reputation, would become a close friend of the emperor's grandson. To cool the ardor of a romantic-minded relative, they sent him on an expedition that was heading to Khiva in Uzbekistan. But returning from a difficult voyage, he continued his meetings with Fanny. The beloved even made a joint trip to Europe.
There is a story that during a trip to Italy they visited the Villa Borghese, where the Grand Duke was greatly impressed by the sculpture depicting the younger sister of Napoleon I, lying naked with an apple in her hand. He wanted to have a copy of this masterpiece, only so that his beloved woman, Fanny Lear, was on the marble bed. The sculpture was commissioned by Tommaso Solari. Currently, the original of this sculpture is in the collection of the Tashkent Museum of Art, and a smaller copy can be seen in the Yusupov Palace in St. Petersburg.
Fanny Lear as Venus with an apple, sculpted by Tommaso Solari. From the collection of the Yusupov Palace in St. Petersburg. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org / Just
Mysterious theft of diamonds
The prince's passion for Madame Lear was so great that he even decided to commit a crime for her. The crime story that caused a scandal among the Romanovs took place in April 1874. Nikolai Konstantinovich's mother noticed the disappearance of three diamonds that adorned the frame of one of her icons. Count Pyotr Shuvalov, chief of the gendarme corps, was involved in the investigation of this case. Evidence led the investigation to the adjutant of the Grand Duke Varnakhovsky, who took the precious stones to the pawnshop. During interrogation, he admitted that he received the diamonds personally from the hands of Nikolai Konstantinovich. As a result, the emperor's grandson was also subjected to a thorough interrogation.
Fanny Lear had a dubious reputation. Photo: Public Domain
“No remorse, no consciousness, except when denial is already impossible, and then we had to pull out vein after vein. Fierce and not a single tear. They implored all that remained saints to alleviate the fate that lay ahead of him with sincere repentance and consciousness! Nothing helped!" - such a note was left in his diary by his father, who was present at the conversation between his son and the gendarmes.
In order not to publicize the story of the theft of diamonds, the family decided to expel the thief from St. Petersburg. It was officially announced that Nikolai Konstantinovich was declared insane. He was deprived of all regalia, awards and inheritance, and the name was forbidden even to be mentioned in the papers concerning the Imperial House. In the fall of 1874, he left the capital with no hope of returning.
Successful entrepreneur Iskander
It would seem that the life of a member of the royal family was broken. For about 7 years he was forced to wander, constantly changing his place of residence. In Orenburg, Nikolai Konstantinovich fell in love with the daughter of a police chief. Since he already had nothing to lose, he married Nadezhda Alexandrovna Dreyer. This event became known to his relatives in St. Petersburg, who were again saddened by the recklessness of a relative. The synod dissolved the marriage. But Alexander III stood up to protect the interests of Nicholas. He legalized this unequal union on one condition - ordering the newlyweds to settle in Tashkent, which they gladly did.
In Tashkent, the couple began to live under the name Iskander. In Turkestan, the Grand Duke was able to show his talent as an entrepreneur, becoming a very successful businessman of those years.
Grand Duke Nikolai Konstantinovich with his wife Nadezhda Alexandrovna in Tashkent. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
His income was about 1.5 million rubles a year, which allowed him to live comfortably and do charity work. Under his leadership there were soap-making and cotton factories, billiard and photographic workshops, rice processing factories.
True, scandals continued to accompany his person. In 1894, Nikolai Konstantinovich again wanted to marry. This time, the chosen one of the 44-year-old hero was the 15-year-old daughter of a resident of Tashkent. Prince Iskander sometimes shocked the public by appearing at events accompanied by two spouses at once.
Palace of the Grand Duke in Tashkent. View of the early XX century. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
Nikolai Konstantinovich died on January 27, 1918 at a dacha near Tashkent. The official cause of death of the 67-year-old man was pneumonia. Later, a version appeared that he was shot by the Bolsheviks, but no documentary evidence of this was found.
Family of Emperor Nicholas I
Spouse.Nikolai's wife Alexandra Fedorovna (01.07.1798-20.10.1860), nee German princess Frederica-Louise-Charlotte-Wilhelmina, was born in Berlin in the family of the Prussian king Frederick Wilhelm and was a sister to Emperor Wilhelm I. She married Nicholas, then Grand Duke, in 1817.
The marriage of Nikolai Pavlovich and Alexandra Feodorovna was a rare love marriage for the imperial family, which this time successfully combined with dynastic calculation. The Empress herself later described her feelings about marriage: “I felt very, very happy when our hands joined; with full confidence I gave my life into the hands of my Nicholas, and he never disappointed this hope.
Alexandra Feodorovna long retained her fragile beauty and grace, and in the first years of marriage, Nicholas simply idolized her. Their family turned out to be quite successful in terms of having children. Unlike his two older brothers, Nikolai became the happy father of seven legitimate offspring. His wife bore him four sons and three daughters: Tsarevich Alexander, Grand Dukes Constantine, Nicholas and Mikhail, Grand Duchesses Maria, Olga and Alexandra.
The father's favorite, who enjoyed his boundless trust, was the firstborn tsarevich Alexander Nikolaevich (04.17.1818-01.03.1881)- the future emperor Alexander II. Raised by the poet V. A. Zhukovsky, he grew up as a man with noble aspirations and impulses. In 1841, his wife became Maria Alexandrovna (1824-1880), princess Maximiliana-Wilhelmina-Augusta-Sophia-Maria of Hesse-Darmstadt, daughter of the Grand Duke of Hesse (Ludwig II of Hesse-Darmstadt). While still an heir, Alexander Nikolayevich took part in the government. He stayed in place of his father when he went on trips.
The second son of Nicholas I was also an outstanding personality - grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich (09.09.1827-13.01.1892).The infatuation of the father-emperor with the personality of Peter I affected his future. Contrary to the established tradition, from childhood he was assigned not to a land guards regiment, but to the navy. In 1831, at the age of four, the Grand Duke received the rank of admiral general. In 1855, at the age of only 28, Constantine began to manage the fleet as minister of the sea. He turned out to be a very talented and active naval commander. Under him, sailing ships were replaced by steam ships, paperwork was simplified, corporal punishment of lower ranks was actually abolished earlier than in the army, capable officers and engineers were involved in service in the navy.
Konstantin Nikolaevich received a good education, was distinguished by his broad outlook, and was known as a liberal in politics. He was one of the ardent supporters and an active advocate of the reforms of the era of Alexander II, especially the abolition of serfdom, which took place largely thanks to his support. Being from 1861 to 1863 the governor of the Kingdom of Poland, he advocated granting Poland more rights within the Russian Empire. In 1865 he became chairman of the Council of State.
After the death of Alexander II, Constantine, under pressure from his nephew, Emperor Alexander III, abandoned all government posts and lived the last years of his life as a private person with his wife Alexandra Iosifovna, Princess of Saxe (daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Altenburg), with whom he was married since 1848.
Their son grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov (1858-1913)one of the most famous grandchildren of Nicholas I. He was born in Strelna, in the famous Konstantinovsky Palace, which now houses one of the residences of the President of Russia. Constantine Jr. received an excellent education at home. Father made sure that history was taught to him by a professor at St. Petersburg University, an outstanding scientist S. M. Solovyov and no less famous author of historical novels K. N. Bestuzhev. G.A. Laroche, the author of works about Glinka and Tchaikovsky, read the theory of music to the young Grand Duke. His family loved music and literature. Konstantin Sr. was not only an outstanding military and statesman, but also the publisher of the popular at the time the magazine "Morskoy Sbornik" (1848-1917), which published chapters from Goncharov's novel "The Frigate Pallada", Ostrovsky's plays, Grigorovich's stories and essays , Pisemsky, Stanyukovich.
Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov began his career as a military man. As a young midshipman, he made sea voyages on frigates "Thunderbolt" and "Svetlana". At the age of 19 he took part in the Balkan War, in the hostilities on the Danube, was awarded the Order of George, 4th degree for bravery. After the fleet he served in the Izmailovsky Guards Regiment, was the chief of the Tiflis grenadier regiment and the commander of the Preobrazhensky Life Guards. From 1889 to the end of his life, Konstantin Konstantinovich was the president of the Academy of Sciences.
But Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov won the greatest fame and even lifetime glory as a poet, published under the rather transparent pseudonym “K. R.". He wrote about himself: "... not because I am a noble family, because the royal blood flows in me, I will earn the trust and love of my native Orthodox people." KR published a lot, he had admirers in the capital and in the provinces, and among his friends were such famous figures of Russian culture as Tchaikovsky, Fet, Maikov. In the society of musicians, poets, artists, he was his own. Until now, the classical romance of PI Tchaikovsky "I Opened the Window ..." to the poems of KR is often heard from the stage, and the poem "Poor Man" about the death of a simple soldier in a hospital has become a folk song. The poet Yevgeny Osetrov, our contemporary, writes that cripples and beggars sang Poor Man in bazaars, marinas and on trains even after the Great Patriotic War, and by its popularity among the people it could only be compared to The Death of the Varyag.
One of his best poems of 1887 "Dedication to the Queen of the Hellenes Olga Konstantinovna" KR addressed to his sister Olga Romanova, a married Greek queen:
To you, to you, my gentle angel,
I dedicate this work;
Oh, let it be loving and diligent
Your eyes will read it.
You inspired these lines to me
They are inspired by you:
Let them be to a distant land
They are carried away to you.
And if the chest hurts
Longing for our side
Let them then involuntarily
You will be reminded of me.
And let at least those help you
The one who is always and everywhere yours,
Who cannot forget you
And whose soul is full of you.
Third son of Emperor Nicholas I grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich (the Elder) (1831-1891)went on a military path. He had the rank of field marshal general, held the posts of inspector general of cavalry and engineering. During the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. was the commander-in-chief of the Danube army.
His son grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich (the Younger) (1856-1929)was a cavalry general, in the First World War he served as commander-in-chief of the Caucasian Front. He managed to survive during the years of the revolution and the Civil War, he ended his life in exile.
The youngest of the sons of Nicholas I later played a large role in the state affairs of the empire - grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich (1832-1909)... Also a professional military man, from 1862 to 1881 he was the governor of the Caucasus and the commander-in-chief of the Caucasian troops. Under him, Chechnya, Dagestan, the western regions of the Caucasus were pacified, and new provinces and districts were established in the south of the Russian Empire. He fought in the Turkish War of 1877-1878, presided over the State Council since 1881.
Mikhail Nikolaevich was married to Grand Duchess Olga Fedorovna, daughter of Duke Leopold of Baden. From this marriage, he had five children: Grand Dukes Nikolai, Mikhail, George, Alexander and Grand Duchess Anastasia. Georgy Mikhailovich was the manager of the Russian Museum, and Alexander Mikhailovich was a major naval theorist, historian, bibliophile and one of the first Russian aviators.
The daughters of Emperor Nicholas I were destined for the traditional fate of "Russian princesses" - to get married, constituting a dynastic party beneficial to the state, and to engage in patronage and charity.
Senior, grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna (1819 - 1876), in 1839 became the wife of Duke Maximilian of Leuchtenberg. Her husband had a noble title and good family ties in Europe, but he did not have his own state, so their family lived in Russia. Maria Nikolaevna was the president of the Academy of Arts, chairman of the "Society for the Encouragement of Arts", made a great contribution to the development of Russian art.
Nikolai's beloved daughter also became an educated and artistically developed person. I– grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna (1822-1892).She received an excellent upbringing and a good education in the field of literature and linguistics, listening to lectures by famous poets P. A. Pletnev and V. A. Zhukovsky, philologist Archpriest G. P. Pavsky. In 1846, the Crown Prince of Württemberg, later the King of Württemberg Charles I, became her husband. There were no children in this marriage, but Olga Alexandrovna went down in the history of this small German state as the creator of many charitable institutions.
The fate of the emperor's youngest daughter was romantic, but sad - grand Duchess Alexandra Nikolaevna (1825-1844).Contemporaries noted that this "princess" was distinguished by rare beauty and great musical abilities. The girl grew up tender, graceful and painfully fragile. Her singing teacher, the Italian Soliva, immediately drew attention not only to the beautiful voice of his ward, but also to her frequent cough. He offered to show her to doctors in Europe, but the court doctors felt that this advice undermined their own authority, and insisted on the dismissal of the teacher. After some time, the state of health of the Grand Duchess worried also the physician-in-law Mandt, but the imperial family did not listen to him.
When Alexandra was 19 years old, her father and mother decided to marry her to the heir to the Danish royal throne, Friedrich Wilhelm, the son of the Landgrave of Hesse-Kassalsky Wilhelm and Landgrave Louise Charlotte. In 1843 the groom arrived in St. Petersburg and stayed here for several months. During this time, young people managed to fall in love with each other and wanted to get married. The court doctors convinced the imperial family that Alexandra Nikolaevna's health was changing for the better, and no one wanted to take Mandt's displeased grumble seriously. And the prince in love did not notice anything, he was already counting the days until the wedding.
The wedding of the Grand Duchess Alexandra Nikolaevna and the young Landgrave Friedrich Wilhelm of Hesse-Kassalsky took place on January 14, 1844. The young people settled in the Winter Palace. But their happiness was short-lived. Soon Alexandra became worse, she developed consumption, which progressed rapidly. In the spring she was transported to Tsarskoe Selo in the hope of the healing power of the village air. But that didn't help either. On the night of July 29, Alexandra Nikolaevna prematurely gave birth to a dead child, and a few hours later she died herself. Thus, this wondrous beautiful flower died in the garden of the imperial family. The tale of the beautiful love of a prince and a princess ended up with a sad ending.
Nikolai could rightfully be proud of his children and grandchildren. He and his wife spent a lot of effort to organize their education and upbringing. The grand dukes and princesses traditionally studied at home, and not in public or private educational institutions. In the palace, they were surrounded by a whole staff of highly qualified teachers, from whom their parents demanded strictness towards their students. The “plan of study” for the heir to the throne, drawn up by V. A. Zhukovsky himself, was designed for 12 years and included Russian and foreign languages, exact and natural sciences, philosophy, history and ethnography, as well as various sports, arts and handicrafts.
Children were severely punished for unlearned tasks or serious mistakes. They could be put on their knees facing the wall, deprived of entertainment and pleasure. All punishments were recorded in a special journal. Attempts to complain about teachers by parents were suppressed.
Children had to observe strict etiquette. At the table, they were not allowed to talk until the adults spoke to them. For violation of etiquette followed by deprivation of dessert. After supper they were allowed to play a little. At exactly 9 o'clock in the evening they should have retired to their rooms and went to bed.
At the same time, adults in the royal family always found time to communicate with children. The heirs of the emperor felt the constant attention of their parents to themselves, their care. Grand dukes and princesses did not grow up in complete isolation. Peers of the same age - sons and daughters of courtiers, teachers and doctors, pupils of cadet corps were invited to the children's holidays. Among them, the royal children and grandchildren had friends. So they were brought up sociability and the habit of secular life, the ability to behave with people of different classes.
The sons of the emperor later used this system in raising their own children. Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich recalled that his father, Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich, demanded that his sons sleep on simple iron beds with thin mattresses. The Grand Dukes Mikhailovich got up at six in the morning, prayed, took a cold bath and had breakfast with tea and butter sandwiches. They were not offered any other food, so as not to pamper and accustom them to luxury, which is not always possible to surround the life of an officer. This was followed by several hours of classes until lunchtime, during which the children sat at the table with their parents.
From an early age, the great dukes and princesses were brought up with an awareness of the predetermination of fate. Boys could choose between serving in the cavalry, artillery, or the navy. The girls were free to choose their hobbies: music, painting, handicrafts, literary studies. Prince Alexander Mikhailovich recalled that his little brother Georgy once timidly said during dinner that he would like to become not a military man, but an artist and paint portraits. There was a cold silence at the table, incomprehensible to the child. He only realized he'd done something reprehensible when the footman didn't put the raspberry ice cream that all the other kids were eating on his plate.
Such a strict, if not harsh, education in the XIX - early XX century. was accepted not only in the Romanov family, but also in many royal and ducal houses of Europe. It almost always gave good results. Children grew up prepared for many challenges. Many of them, especially those who did not become the head of state, had to take part in military campaigns and battles, endure the hardships of an officer's life, see blood and death and not be afraid of shots and cannon fire.
When the younger Romanovs grew up, their parents relaxed their control a little. The youth had the opportunity to have fun at numerous balls and masquerades, for which they did not spare funds at the Nikolaev court. The grand dukes courted pretty ladies-in-waiting, but they did not forget: in order to maintain their positions in the imperial family, a life friend must be chosen not only with heart, but also with head, her nobility must correspond to the status of a member of the royal dynasty. In the middle of the XIX century. Grand dukes married only princesses, while grand princesses married princes. All the hobbies of youth should have remained as such, without turning into a serious relationship.
An example of the attitude to family duty was demonstrated by the emperor Nicholas I. He treated his wife in a chivalrous manner. In his younger years, he was sincerely devoted to her. But over time, their relationship has changed somewhat. Alexandra Feodorovna was distinguished by fragile health. Frequent childbirth undermined him even more. The Empress was increasingly ill, doctors insisted on rest, travel to southern and foreign resorts. The emperor was bored in her absence and, in order to unwind, began to have small intrigues with the ladies of the court, with whom such a handsome man could not help but enjoy success. Nikolai never advertised his novels, sparing the feelings and pride of his wife, whom he still respected.
He continued to adhere to the lifestyle of a respectable family man. The maid of honor, AO Smirnova-Rosset, who was close to the imperial couple, left in her memoirs a detailed description of the usual daily routine of Nicholas I. The tsar got up early and after the morning toilet took a short walk. At nine o'clock he drank coffee in his office, and at ten o'clock he went to the Empress's chambers, then went about business. At one o'clock or at half-past one Nicholas again visited the empress and all the children, and went for a walk again. At four o'clock the whole family sat down to dinner, at six the king went out into the air, and at seven he drank tea with his wife and children. In the evening he worked for several hours in his office, at half past nine he talked with his family and courtiers, dined and went for a walk before bed. About twelve the emperor and the empress went to rest. After the wedding, they always slept in the same bed. Smirnova-Rosset, like many courtiers close to the tsar, wondered when the tsar visited Nelidova.
Varvara Arkadyevna Nelidova for many years was the mistress of Nicholas I, in fact, his second wife. By coincidence, she was EI Nelidova's own niece, the favorite of his father Pavel I. But, unlike his parent, Nikolai never forgot about his marital and paternal duties and was not going to divorce the often ill Alexandra Fedorovna. The Empress knew about this and was rather calm about her husband's heartfelt affection.
In this situation, the disinterestedness of V.A.Nelidova is surprising, who, apparently, sincerely loved Nikolai and was willing to accept any conditions just to stay close to him. Another imperial maid of honor AF Tyutchev, who met the royal mistress in the early 1850s, spoke of her like this: “Her beauty, somewhat mature, was nevertheless still in full bloom. She was probably about 38 years old at this time. It is known what position public opinion attributed to her, which, however, seemed to contradict her manner of behaving, modest and almost stern in comparison with other courtiers. She carefully concealed the grace that is usually shown off by women who enjoy a position like her. "
Protecting the pride of his wife and the future of the dynasty, Nicholas did not officially recognize the children born to him from his relationship with Nelidova. The imperial bastards were adopted by the count Pyotr Andreevich Kleinmichel (1793-1869).Such a service rendered to the sovereign allowed him in the last years of the reign of Nicholas I to take the position of an all-powerful temporary worker. Kleinmichel was the general manager of railways and public buildings. He supervised the construction of the Petersburg-Moscow railway. Immediately after the death of Nikolai Kleinmichel, he was dismissed from all government positions for abuse in his service.
The life of the court in the first two decades of Nikolaev's rule was marked by a large number of balls and masquerades. Nikolai especially liked the amusements in the Anichkov Palace, in which he and his wife lived while still being the Grand Duke and Princess. The emperor loved to dance and court young ladies of the court. Often these courtship ended with a little love adventure. There is a historical anecdote that once, at a masquerade, an already middle-aged tsar was carried away by an elegant young coquette in a mask. All evening he hovered around her and finally invited her into his carriage. When the mysterious counterpart of the emperor took off the mask in a closed carriage, the tsar saw the laughing face of Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, who wished to play her father in this way.
The swan song of Nikolai - a brilliant gentleman and master of subtle flirting - was the winter of 1845, which was engraved in the memory of the courtiers with an endless series of brilliant balls and parties. The lady-in-waiting AO Smirnova-Rosset recalled these winter entertainments: “The Empress was still good, her beautiful shoulders and arms were still lush and full, and by candlelight, at the ball, while dancing, she still outshined the first beauties. In the Anichkov Palace they danced every week in the White Drawing Room; more than a hundred persons were not invited. The sovereign was especially concerned with Baroness Krudner, but he flirted like a young woman with everyone and rejoiced at the rivalry between Buturlina and Krudner. " The king knew how to weave love intrigues and, despite his already considerable age, he still enjoyed it.
In the last third of the reign of Nicholas, contemporaries increasingly began to notice that the emperor seemed to be burdened not only by his state duties, but also by the very need to maintain the luxurious lifestyle traditional for his dignity, which he loved so much in his youth. The well-known artist and art critic A. N. Benois at one time accurately noticed a characteristic feature of the palace architecture and the interior of Nikolayev's time: “The bifurcation of the character of Nikolai Pavlovich, as a person and as an emperor, was reflected in the structures he erected: in all buildings intended for himself and for your family, you can see the desire for intimacy, comfort, convenience and simplicity. " When the empress left for treatment at another resort, the tsar lived quite simply, almost like an ordinary officer in the barracks.
As he neared his fiftieth birthday, Nikolai felt more and more the disappointment in life. The second Peter the Great clearly did not work out of him. Two decades of his reign were behind him, and he did not make any brilliant military victories or grandiose reforms. The enormous and methodical work of the state, which the sovereign did every day, did not bring any significant results. Often, Nikolai spent eighteen hours a day in work and did not receive either benefit or pleasure from this. The maid of honor Smirnova-Rosset recalled how the tsar once told her: “Soon it will be twenty years since I have been sitting in this beautiful place. Often such days are successful that, looking at the sky, I say: why am I not there? I'm so tired..."
Family life was also increasingly depressing. After the brilliant winter of 1845, the empress had to leave for Italy for several months in the spring: her health was badly shaken. After this illness, Alexandra Feodorovna began to fade noticeably, which could not but bother Nikolai. He appreciated in the empress a devoted friend and mother of his children and was afraid of losing her.
In such a depressive state, the emperor met the year 1848, when another wave of revolutions swept across Europe. Nicholas again felt in demand in the role of an all-European gendarme. The last period of his reign began, which went down in history under the name of the "gloomy seven years".
By order of Nicholas I, an army of 300,000 was advanced to the western borders of Russia, ready to suppress any revolt in Prussia, Austria or France. In 1849, at the request of the Austrian emperor, Russian troops defeated the revolution in Hungary and extended the agony of the House of Habsburg for another 60 years.
Inside the country, in order to suppress any revolutionary sentiments, they introduced the most severe censorship in the press. Rumors are spreading about the possible closure of universities. Former favorite of Nikolai, Minister of Education S.S.Uvarov was dismissed for a timid article in defense of university education.
Nikolai is doing everything to preserve the system of conservative autocratic power that he has built, but it collapses before his eyes, unable to withstand the last blow - a clash with the largest European powers during the Crimean War of 1853-1856.
After the successful suppression of the Hungarian revolution, Nicholas I finally came to believe in the power and invincibility of his army. The courtiers tirelessly praised the greatness of the empire. In 1850, the 25th anniversary of the emperor's "prosperous reign" was celebrated with unprecedented pomp and splendor. Inspired by the atmosphere of jingoistic patriotism that reigned in his immediate environment, Nikolai believed that he could deliver a decisive blow to weak Turkey and gain complete control over the Black Sea straits. The old Byzantine project with the capture of Constantinople has surfaced again.
But on the side of Turkey were England and France. The 60,000th Allied Expeditionary Force, armed with the latest military equipment of the time, landed in Crimea. Russia, with the largest army in Europe, suffered a shameful defeat. She lost her entire Black Sea fleet. The heroism of ordinary soldiers and officers was not enough to resist the newest English rifles and long-range guns. A well-known politician, future Minister of Internal Affairs P. A. Valuev wrote then about the Russian army and the empire as a whole: "Above, shine, and below rot."
Emperor Nicholas I experienced this national humiliation almost hardest of all. His army and navy, which he loved so much and which he was so proud of all his life, not only failed to conquer Turkish territories, but were not even able to defend their own. An ordinary commander-in-chief in his place was supposed to resign as a man of honor. However, for the emperor, the law did not provide for such a possibility. Only death could save him from shame. The maid of honor AF Tyutcheva wrote: “In a short period of one and a half years, the unfortunate emperor saw how the stage of that illusory greatness, on which he imagined that he had raised Russia, collapsed under him. And yet it was precisely in the midst of the crisis of the last catastrophe that the true greatness of this man was brilliantly revealed. He was wrong, but honestly wrong, and when he was forced to admit his mistake and its disastrous consequences for Russia, which he loved above all else, his heart broke and he died. He died not because he did not want to survive the humiliation of his own ambition, but because he could not survive the humiliation of Russia. "
In late January - early February 1855, a severe flu epidemic took place in St. Petersburg. Almost the entire imperial family, many courtiers and servants, were ill. Nicholas I also fell ill. Influenza turned into pneumonia, which neither the patient's body nor the court doctors could cope with. Nikolai felt that he was dying. The eldest son and heir Alexander was almost always with him. In a moment of revelation, my father told him: "I am handing you over my team, unfortunately, not in the order I wanted, leaving a lot of trouble and worries."
The king's illness lasted two weeks. On February 18, 1855, Nikolai died. Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich left in his diary the following record about his father's last minutes: “Mandt (imperial life-doctor. - L. S.)follow me. The sovereign asked Bazhanov (his secretary. - L. S.).He communed with all of us. The head is completely fresh. Suffocation. Intense torment. He says goodbye to everyone - to children, to others. I'm on my knees, holding my hand. He stung her. By the end it feels cold. At 1/4 of the 1st it's over. The last terrible torment. " Later, the wife of the heir, who was present at the death of his father-in-law, claimed that shortly before his death the shortness of breath had stopped for a few minutes, and Nikolai was able to speak. His last words to his eldest son were: "Hold everything - hold everything." At the same time, the emperor squeezed Alexander's hand tightly, showing that he must hold tight.
After the death of Nicholas in St. Petersburg, it was rumored that the tsar committed suicide. But there is no good reason behind this gossip. If the emperor did what to hasten his departure, then it was most likely an unconscious non-resistance to the disease, which happened so by the way.
Nikolai ruled Russia for 30 years. This is one of the longest reigns in the history of the Romanov dynasty. It is all the sadder that it was not happy for the country. The fault lies in the personality of the emperor. Probably, the most accurate and imaginative characterization of Nicholas I was given by the lady-in-waiting A. F. Tyutchev, who knew him well, whose memoirs “At the Court of Two Emperors” we have already quoted many times: “Deeply sincere in his convictions, often heroic and great in his devotion to that cause, in which he saw the mission entrusted to him by providence, it can be said that Nicholas I was Don Quixote of autocracy, Don Quixote terrible and harmful, because he possessed omnipotence, which allowed him to subordinate everything to his fantastic and outdated theory and trample underfoot the most legitimate aspirations and rights of his century ".
But Nicholas I nevertheless benefited his empire: he raised the heir to Alexander Nikolaevich as a modern man with a strong character. And he turned out to be ready to carry out a significant part of the reforms that society expected first from his uncle Alexander I, and then from his father. The trouble is that these reforms were at least half a century late.
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Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich (Sandro; April 1 / April 13 (1866-04-13 ) , Tiflis - 26 february, Roquebrune, France) - Russian statesman and military leader, the fourth son of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich and Olga Fedorovna, grandson of Nicholas I.
Biography
Since 1891 - the initiator and founder of the publication of the country's first annual reference book "Military fleets" ("Military fleets and sea reference book for ... year"), headed its regular publication until 1906.
From March 1895 to July 1896 he was a senior officer of the battleship Sisoy the Great.
In 1895, he presented to Nicholas II the program for strengthening the Russian fleet in the Pacific Ocean, developed under his leadership, in which he predicted that in 1903-1904, after the completion of the Japanese shipbuilding program, a war with Japan would begin. The program and related issues were discussed but not adopted, which led to his resignation.
In 1898 he returned to active service in the Navy. From January 31, 1899 - senior officer of the coastal defense battleship "General-Admiral Apraksin".
In 1899-1900, taking into account personal experience of service on the battleship "General-Admiral Apraksin", he developed a draft design of a much more seaworthy 5985-ton coastal defense battleship armed with six rapid-fire 203-mm guns located in four towers, 75-mm anti-mine guns and with a full armor belt (the technical design was carried out by Dmitry Skvortsov). Participated in tenders for the development of projects for a 14,000-ton battleship - Alexander Mikhailovich developed draft designs in 1899, and engineer Skvortsov in 1899-1900, on his instructions, created technical designs for an battleship with a single-caliber armament of sixteen 203-mm guns in eight two-gun turrets ( an approximate analogue of the project of a promising battleship for the Italian fleet developed by the Italian shipbuilder Vittorio Quiniberti at the same time (development of the project of 1898 by the Italian shipbuilder Admiral B. Brin), later with changes embodied in four Italian ships of the type "Regina Elena" ("Regina Elena"), built in 1901-1908) and an armored cruiser. However, the projects of the squadron battleship and the armored cruiser were abandoned (in Italy the projects of B. Brin and V. Kuniberti were "lucky" - they were heavily reworked and the battleships were built), and the construction of the coastal defense battleship, which was supposed to be called "Admiral Butakov", was stopped in very early stage due to lack of funds.
In 1901-1902 he commanded the Black Sea battleship "Rostislav". On January 1, 1903, he was promoted to rear admiral, appointed junior flagship of the Black Sea Fleet with enrollment in the Retinue of His Imperial Majesty.
Since 1898 - member (then - chairman) of the Council for Merchant Shipping. From November 1902 to October 1905, he was the first and only head (chief manager) of the Main Directorate of Merchant Shipping and Ports. This department, created on the initiative of Alexander Mikhailovich, was organized from the departments of the Ministry of Finance (Department of Merchant Shipping, Council for Merchant Shipping, Committee on Port Affairs) and the Ministry of Railways (Department of Commercial Ports). As the chief manager of a separate unit, led. book Alexander Mikhailovich became a member of the Committee of Ministers. As a minister, the Grand Duke faced a hidden, but strong opposition from all the other ministers, who did not want the appearance in their midst of a legally irresponsible member of the imperial family who was not equal to them by protocol; in addition, the ministers were afraid of the further emergence of new departments created specifically for the grand dukes. As a result of the strongest hardware intrigues, the Main Directorate was transformed into a department of the newly created Ministry of Trade and Industry, after which the Grand Duke gave up managing the department that no longer corresponded to his high rank.
Alexander Mikhailovich played an important role in the creation of Russian aviation, he was the initiator of the creation of an officer's aviation school near Sevastopol in 1910, the chief of the Imperial Air Force. Participated in the First World War. Since December 1916 - Field Inspector General of the Imperial WWF. In early 1917, he advocated the creation of a government with the participation of public figures (speaking out against the "responsible ministry").
Alexander Mikhailovich
Consisted of the honorary chairman of the Union of Russian military pilots, the Paris mess-room, the Association of the ranks of the guard crew; participated in the activities of the ROVS, patronized the Society for Aid to Children of the Russian Emigration, National Organizations of Russian Intelligence Service (NORR) and Russian Scouts (NORS).
In exile, he released a memoir entitled "Book of Memories" , the text of which was first published in Paris in 1933 as a supplement to the magazine "Illustrated Russia"; also author of books published in Paris Votre âme (1924), Se connaître (1927) and others. In his memoirs, Alexander Mikhailovich revised his attitude towards Soviet power.
Died on February 26, 1933 in Roquebrune (Alpes-Maritimes department); buried in the local cemetery.
July 19, 2012 In St. Petersburg, on the territory of the Krestovsky yacht club, a bronze bust monument to the Grand Duke was unveiled (sculptor A. S. Charkin).
Family
- order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called (April 1, 1866);
- order of St. Alexander Nevsky (April 1, 1866);
- order of the White Eagle (April 1, 1866);
- order of St. Anne 1st Art. (April 1, 1866);
- order of St. Stanislaus 1st Art. (April 1, 1866);
- order of St. Vladimir, 4th Art. (January 1, 1893);
- order of St. Vladimir, 3rd Art. (December 6, 1906);
- order of St. Vladimir, 2nd class (May 6, 1913).
Not simular!
On whom?
A white marble bust of a classic hero. The austere antique profile of the emperor is directed to the window of the Gatchina Palace. Somewhere there, on a spacious parade ground, stands, as if receiving a parade, the bronze emperor Paul I.
Nikolai Pavlovich does not look like his father ...
I shrug my shoulders, but in the museum hall, where portraits of emperors, empresses, members of imperial families are adjacent, I hear again:
No, not like ... Take a closer look.
How not to look closely? The kinship between Peter III and his son Pavel Petrovich - at least in the portraits - is obvious. The eldest sons of Paul are also an undoubted continuation of the royal family. Here is a cameo depicting Paul's older children: in 1790, Empress Maria Feodorovna personally carved it! Everyone has a snub-nosed “Pavlovian profile”: Alexander, Konstantin, Alexandra, Elena, Maria, Ekaterina ...
But Nikolai? ..
It seems nothing from Paul. He, even according to the admission of loyal courtiers, is "ugly", this one, even according to the admission of very critical publicists like the insidious Marquis de Custine, is the first handsome man. That snub nose, this one has "beautiful, majestic, almost antique facial features" (VV Stasov). That one is "small in stature", this one - under two meters (both children and grandchildren will be tall: "Nikolaev breed"). The one will hide from the conspirators behind the fireplace screen, this one will ride out on horseback under the bullets to the rebellious square ...
Not like Paul. Who do you look like?
The information that has survived in this regard is based on oral traditions, which, however, create a stable tradition. From the partisan poet Denis Davydov to the publicist and publisher Alexei Suvorin, through the entire 19th century: “Emperor Pavel the First knew perfectly well that his third son Nikolai was nailed down by Maria Feodorovna from the gof-furrier Babkin, whom he looked like like two drops of water ... "; "Paul the First was going to confine his wife in a monastery and declare Nikolai Pavlovich and Mikhail Pavlovich illegal." Suvorin was sure that Emperor Nicholas II knew about this, who himself "read all the papers to Panchulidzev ...".
The papers were for sure secret, but one of the testimonies seems to have survived to the trial of curious descendants: a copy of an old letter was published in the magazine "Byloe" in 1925.
If the publications are to be trusted, it turns out that on April 15, 1800, Emperor Paul, driven to despair by the hostility of the environment, opened up to one of his confidants, Count Fyodor Rostopchin:
“As one of the few whom I absolutely trust, I bitterly admit that the cold, official attitude of Tsarevich Alexander oppresses me ... All the more it is sad that Alexander, Constantine and Alexandra are my blood children. Others?<…> God knows! It is wise to put an end to everything in life with a woman, to have more children from her. In my fervor, I drew a manifesto "On the recognition of my son Nikolai as illegal," but Bezborodko begged me not to read it out. All the same, I think of sending Nikolai to Württemberg "to the uncles," from my eyes: the goff-furrier bastard should not be in the role of the Russian Grand Duke!<…> But Bezborodko and Obolyaninov are right: nothing can be changed in the secret life of the kings, since the Almighty has so determined.
Dearest Count, this letter must remain between us. Nature requires confession, and this makes it easier to live and reign. I am staying with you, benevolent Paul. "
Despite the persuasions of the top officials of the empire (Chancellor Alexander Andreevich Bezborodko, Prosecutor General Pyotr Khrisanfovich Obolyaninov), Paul apparently decided to fulfill his threat regarding his younger sons. The record of Denis Davydov has been preserved about this:
“Count Rostopchin was a remarkable man in many ways ... Once he received a letter from Pavel, who ordered him to declare the Grand Dukes Nicholas and Mikhail Pavlovich illegitimate, he, by the way, wrote to him:“ You have the power to order, but I must tell you that if this will be executed, in Russia there will be no dirt to hide the redness of your cheeks under it. " The sovereign wrote in this letter: "You are terrible, but just."
These curious letters were brought to Nikolai Pavlovich, through Count Benckendorff, by the count's stupid and insignificant son. "
The anxiety of the crown-bearer brings a special meaning to almost the only dialogue that has come down to us between Pavel and the very young Nikolai Pavlovich.
Why, - asked the Grand Duke, - the emperor is called Paul the First?
Because there was no other sovereign who would have borne this name before me, - the emperor explained.
Then, - Nikolai reacted, - they will call me Nikolai the First!
If you still ascend the throne, - Pavel answered rather harshly, then looked at Nikolai in thought and left the rooms ...
All surviving evidence, although left in notes and diaries, is based on oral tradition. Pavel's letter to Rostopchin emerged from oblivion at the beginning of the 20th century - but returned to oblivion again. The original, according to the publishers, burned down in 1918 during a fire; neither the copy published in the magazine "Byloe" in 1925, nor even a copy from the copy have survived. There was only "a dark, unproven and unproven legend."
Documents are silent, paintings and sculptures say. And in our time, no, no, yes, it will rustle in the museum hall, between the portraits of Pavel and Nikolai: "No, it doesn't look like ..."
Be that as it may, Empress Catherine did not feel such doubts. Nikolai himself later sincerely believed that his birth - the birth of a long-awaited third grandson - "was the last happy event she experienced." Even during the pregnancy of her daughter-in-law, Maria Feodorovna, the empress was touched by the rude jokes of her second grandson Konstantin (they say, “I have never seen such a belly in my whole life; there will be enough room for four”), and the very birth of a boy, so large, was greeted by her exclamation: "What a hero!"
All the early morning of June 25, 1796, Catherine did not leave the newborn, and at five o'clock the peacefully sleeping Tsarskoe Selo shook from cannon thunder: it was a salute in honor of the Grand Duke. The baby was special: he shouted in a bass voice, it turned out to be an arshin without two vershoks (61 centimeters), and his hands, as Catherine wrote, were “a little smaller than mine”.
And the child was given a special name, unprecedented before in the royal house - in honor of St. Nicholas of Mirliki. No more Petrov! Moreover, Pavlov ...
The baptism took place on Sunday 6 July. By that time, a special gift from the Empress was already ready: a measured icon. According to the old Russian tradition, an icon depicting the patron saint, after whom the child is named, was painted on a narrow board the size of his height at birth. Nicholas will preserve this custom, which dates back to pre-Petrine Russia: they will also make measured icons for his children.
The widow General Lieven solemnly carried the "high-born" to the Tsarskoye Selo church, past the frozen tall guard-transfigurations, on an eyelet pillow, under a blanket of white muslin. And from the font the boy was received by the Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich. This was the wish of Catherine, based on political calculation. Nicholas found a godfather in his elder brother, whom the empress intended to enthroned bypassing her son Paul, and Alexander assumed special responsibility for his possible heir (for three years of marriage, he still had no offspring). Catherine seemed to be looking into the future and hurrying to bring it closer. She didn't have time: the term of her earthly life was coming to an end. The Empress could still rejoice at how “the knight Nikolai” (as she called him) was growing “by leaps and bounds”, but she did not live to see her grandson six months old.
Nicholas I Pavlovich. Born on June 25 (July 6), 1796 in Tsarskoe Selo - died on February 18 (March 2), 1855 in St. Petersburg. Emperor of All Russia from 14 (26) December 1825, Tsar of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland.
The main dates of the reign of Nicholas I:
♦ 1826 - Founding of the Third Section at the Imperial Chancellery - the secret police to monitor the state of mind in the state;
♦ 1826-1832 - Codification of the laws of the Russian Empire by M. M. Speransky;
♦ 1826-1828 - War with Persia;
♦ 1828 - Foundation of the Technological Institute in St. Petersburg;
♦ 1828-1829 - War with Turkey;
♦ 1830-1831 - Uprising in Poland;
♦ 1832 - Cancellation of the constitution of the Kingdom of Poland, approval of the new status of the Kingdom of Poland within the Russian Empire;
♦ 1834 - The Imperial University of St. Vladimir was founded in Kiev (the university was founded by decree of Nicholas I on November 8 (20), 1833 as the Kiev Imperial University of St. Vladimir on the basis of the Vilnius University and the Kremenets Lyceum, which were closed after the Polish uprising of 1830-1831);
♦ 1837 - Opening of the first in Russia railway St. Petersburg - Tsarskoe Selo;
♦ 1837-1841 - The reform of the state peasants, carried out by Kiselyov;
♦ 1841 - It is forbidden to sell peasants one by one and without land;
♦ 1839-1843 - Financial reform of Kankrin;
♦ 1843 - Purchase of peasants by landless nobles is prohibited;
♦ 1839-1841 - Eastern crisis, in which Russia acted together with England against the coalition France - Egypt;
♦ 1848 - The peasants received the right to redeem themselves with land when selling the landlord's estate for debts, as well as the right to acquire real estate;
♦ 1849 - Participation of Russian troops in the suppression of the Hungarian uprising;
♦ 1851 - Completion of the construction of the Nikolaevskaya railway, which connected St. Petersburg with Moscow. Opening of the New Hermitage;
♦ 1853-1856 - Crimean War. Nikolai did not live to see its end - he died in 1855.
Mother - Empress Maria Feodorovna.
Nikolai was the third son of Paul I and Maria Feodorovna. Born a few months before the accession of Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich to the throne. Was the last of the grandchildren born during her lifetime. The birth of Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich was announced in Tsarskoe Selo by cannon firing and bell ringing, and a messenger message was sent to St. Petersburg.
Received an unusual name for the Romanov dynasty. The court historian M. Korf even specially noted that the baby was named "unprecedented in our royal house." In the imperial house of the Romanov dynasty, children were not named after Nikolai. The sources do not contain an explanation of the name Nicholas, although Nicholas the Wonderworker was highly revered in Russia. Perhaps Catherine II took into account the semantics of the name, which goes back to the Greek words "victory" and "people".
Odes were written for the birth of the Grand Duke, one of which was written by G.R.Derzhavin. The namesake is December 6 according to the Julian calendar (Nicholas the Wonderworker).
According to the order established by Empress Catherine II, the Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich from the very birth entered the care of the Empress, but the death of Catherine II that followed soon cut off her influence on the course of the Grand Duke's upbringing. His nanny was Charlotte Karlovna Lieven from Livonian. For the first seven years she was Nikolai's only mentor. The boy sincerely became attached to his first teacher, and during his early childhood, "the heroic, chivalrous noble, strong and open character of nanny Charlotte Karlovna Lieven" left an imprint on his character.
Since November 1800, General M.I.Lamsdorf became the tutor of Nikolai and Mikhail. The choice of General Lamsdorf for the position of educator of the Grand Duke was made by Emperor Paul I. Paul I pointed out: "Just don't make my sons such rakes as German princes." In the highest order of November 23 (December 5) 1800, it was announced: "Lieutenant General Lamsdorf has been appointed to be under his Imperial Highness, Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich." The general stayed with his pupil for 17 years. Obviously, Lamsdorf fully met the pedagogical requirements of Maria Fedorovna. Thus, in a parting letter in 1814, Maria Fedorovna called General Lamsdorf the “second father” of the Grand Dukes Nikolai and Mikhail.
The death of his father, Paul I in March 1801, could not but be imprinted in the memory of four-year-old Nicholas. Subsequently, he described what had happened in his memoirs: “The events of this sad day were preserved in my memory as well as a vague dream; I was awakened and saw Countess Lieven before me. When they dressed me, we noticed through the window, on the drawbridge under the church, the guards, which were not there the day before; there was the entire Semyonovsky regiment in an extremely careless state. None of us suspected that we had lost our father; we were taken down to my mother, and soon from there we went with her, the sisters, Mikhail and Countess Lieven to the Winter Palace. The guard went out into the courtyard of the Mikhailovsky Palace and saluted. My mother immediately silenced him. My mother was lying in the back of the room when Emperor Alexander entered, accompanied by Konstantin and Prince Nikolai Ivanovich Saltykov; he threw himself on his knees in front of his mother, and I can still hear his sobs. They brought him water, but they took us away. It was a pleasure for us to see our rooms again and, I must tell you the truth, our wooden horses, which we forgot there. "
This was the first blow of fate inflicted on him during the most tender age. From that time on, care for his upbringing and education was concentrated entirely and exclusively in the jurisdiction of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, out of a sense of delicacy to which Emperor Alexander I refrained from any influence on the upbringing of his younger brothers.
The greatest concerns of Empress Maria Feodorovna in the upbringing of Nikolai Pavlovich consisted in trying to divert him from the passion for military exercises, which was found in him from early childhood. The passion for the technical side of military affairs, instilled in Russia by Paul I, took deep and strong roots in the royal family - Alexander I, despite his liberalism, was an ardent supporter of the watch parade and all its subtleties, like the Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich. The younger brothers were not inferior in this passion to their elders. Nicholas, from early childhood, had a special fondness for military toys and stories about military operations. The best reward for him was permission to go to a parade or divorce, where he watched everything that happened with special attention, dwelling on even the smallest details.
Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich was educated at home - teachers were assigned to him and his brother Mikhail. But Nikolai did not show much zeal for his studies. He did not recognize the humanities, but he was well versed in the art of war, was fond of fortification, and was familiar with engineering.
Nikolai Pavlovich, having completed the course of his education, was horrified by his ignorance and after the wedding tried to fill this gap, but the predominance of military occupations and family life distracted him from constant office work. “His mind was not processed, his education was careless,” Queen Victoria wrote in 1844 about Emperor Nicholas I.
Nikolai Pavlovich's hobby for painting is known, which he studied in childhood under the guidance of the painter I. A. Akimov and the author of religious and historical compositions, Professor V. K. Shebuev.
During the Patriotic War of 1812 and the military campaigns of the Russian army in Europe that followed, Nicholas was eager to go to war, but was met with a decisive refusal by the empress mother. In 1813, the 17-year-old Grand Duke was taught strategy. At this time, from his sister Anna Pavlovna, with whom he was very friendly, Nicholas accidentally learned that Alexander I had visited Silesia, where he had seen the family of the Prussian king, that Alexander liked his eldest daughter Princess Charlotte, and that it was his intentions so that Nikolai would like - I saw her.
Only at the beginning of 1814, Emperor Alexander I allowed his younger brothers to come to the army abroad. On February 5 (17), 1814, Nikolai and Mikhail left Petersburg. On this trip, they were accompanied by General Lamsdorf, cavaliers: I.F.Savrasov, A.P. Aledinsky and P.I. Arseniev, Colonel Gianotti and Dr. Ruhl. After 17 days, they reached Berlin, where 17-year-old Nikolai first saw the 16-year-old daughter of King Frederick William III of Prussia, Princess Charlotte.
Princess Charlotte - the future wife of Nicholas I as a child
After staying one day in Berlin, the travelers proceeded through Leipzig, Weimar, where they saw their sister Maria Pavlovna. Then through Frankfurt am Main, Bruchsal, where Empress Elizabeth Alekseevna was then staying, Rastatt, Freiburg and Basel. Near Basel, they heard enemy shots for the first time, as the Austrians and Bavarians besieged the nearby fortress of Güningen. Then, through Altkirch, they entered the borders of France and reached the rear of the army in Vesoul. However, Alexander I ordered the brothers to return to Basel. Only when the news of the capture of Paris and the exile of Napoleon I to the island of Elba arrived, did the Grand Dukes receive permission to come to Paris.
On November 4 (16), 1815, during an official dinner in Berlin, the engagement of Princess Charlotte and the Tsarevich and Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich was announced.
After the military campaigns of the Russian army in Europe, professors were invited to the Grand Duke, who were supposed to "read military sciences in the fullest possible extent." For this purpose, the famous engineering general Karl Opperman was selected and, to help him, Colonels Gianotti and Andrei Markevich.
Since 1815, military conversations between Nikolai Pavlovich and General Opperman began.
On his return from the second campaign, starting in December 1815, Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich continued his studies with some of his former professors. Mikhail Balugiansky read "the science of finance", Nikolai Akhverdov - Russian history (from the reign to the Time of Troubles). With Markevich, the Grand Duke was engaged in "military translations", and with Gianotti - reading the works of Giraud and Lloyd about different campaigns of the wars of 1814 and 1815, as well as analyzing the project "about the expulsion of the Turks from Europe under certain given conditions."
At the beginning of 1816, the Abo University of the Grand Duchy of Finland, following the example of the universities of Sweden, petitioned all sincerely: "Will Alexander I deign to grant him a chancellor in the person of His Imperial Highness, Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich, with the monarch's grace?" According to the historian M.M.Borodkin, this idea belongs entirely to Tengström, bishop of the Abo diocese, a supporter of Russia. Alexander I granted the request, and Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich was appointed Chancellor of the University. Its task was to observe the status of the university and the conformity of university life with the spirit and traditions. In memory of this event, the St. Petersburg Mint minted a bronze medal. Also in 1816 he was appointed chief of the equestrian ranger regiment.
In the summer of 1816, Nikolai Pavlovich was supposed to complete his education by undertaking a trip across Russia to get acquainted with his fatherland in administrative, commercial and industrial relations. Upon his return, it was also planned to make a trip to England. On this occasion, on behalf of Empress Maria Feodorovna, a special note was drawn up, which outlined the main principles of the administrative system of provincial Russia, described the areas that the Grand Duke had to pass, in historical, domestic, industrial and geographical relations, it was indicated what exactly could be the subject of conversations between the Grand Duke and representatives of the provincial government, which should be paid attention to.
Thanks to a trip to some provinces of Russia, Nikolai Pavlovich got a clear idea of \u200b\u200bthe internal state and problems of his country, and in England he got acquainted with the experience of the development of the socio-political system of the state. Nikolai's own political system of views was distinguished by a pronounced conservative, anti-liberal orientation.
The growth of Nicholas I: 205 centimeters.
Personal life of Nicholas I:
On July 1 (13), 1817, the wedding of the Grand Duke Nicholas with the Grand Duchess Alexandra Fedorovna, who was called Princess Charlotte of Prussia before her adoption of Orthodoxy. The wedding took place on the birthday of the young princess in the court church of the Winter Palace. A week before the wedding, on June 24 (6) July 1817, Charlotte converted to Orthodoxy and was given a new name - Alexandra Fedorovna, and after her betrothal to Grand Duke Nicholas on June 25 (7) July 1817, she became known as the Grand Duchess with the title of Her Imperial Highness. The spouses were fourth cousins \u200b\u200bto each other (they had a common great-great-grandfather and great-great-grandmother). This marriage strengthened the political alliance between Russia and Prussia.
Nicholas I and Alexandra Fedorovna had 7 children:
♦ son (1818-1881). 1st wife - Maria Alexandrovna; 2nd wife - Ekaterina Mikhailovna Dolgorukova;
♦ daughter Maria Nikolaevna (1819-1876). 1st spouse - Maximilian, Duke of Leuchtenberg; 2nd husband - Count Grigory Aleksandrovich Stroganov;
♦ daughter Olga Nikolaevna (1822-1892). Spouse - Friedrich-Karl-Alexander, King of Württemberg;
♦ daughter Alexandra Nikolaevna (1825-1844). Spouse - Friedrich Wilhelm, Prince of Hesse-Kassel;
♦ son Konstantin Nikolaevich (1827-1892). Wife - Alexandra Iosifovna;
♦ son Nikolai Nikolaevich (1831-1891). Wife - Alexandra Petrovna;
♦ son Mikhail Nikolaevich (1832-1909). Wife - Olga Fedorovna.
Alexandra Fedorovna - wife of Nicholas I
The maid of honor AF Tyutcheva, who lived at court for a long time, wrote in her memoirs: “Emperor Nicholas nourished his wife, this fragile, irresponsible and graceful creature, a passionate and despotic adoration of a strong nature to a weak being, whose only ruler and legislator he feels. For him, it was a lovely bird, which he kept locked up in a golden and bejeweled cage, which he fed with nectar and ambrosia, lulled with melodies and aromas, but whose wings he would have cut off without regret if she wanted to escape from the gilded bars of her cage ... But in her magic dungeon, the bird did not even remember her wings. "
Also had 3 to 9 alleged illegitimate children.
Nicholas I for 17 years was in connection with the maid of honor Varvara Nelidova. According to rumors, the relationship began when, after 7 births of the 34-year-old Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (1832), doctors forbade the emperor to marry her out of fear for her health. The emperor's relationship with Nelidova was kept in deep secrecy.
Varvara Nelidova - mistress of Nicholas I
Decembrist revolt
Nikolai Pavlovich kept his personal diary irregularly, daily entries cover a short period from 1822 to 1825. The entries were made in French in very small handwriting with frequent abbreviations of words. The last entry was made by him on the eve of the Decembrist uprising.
In 1820, Emperor Alexander I informed Nikolai Pavlovich and his wife that the heir to the throne, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, intended to renounce his right to the throne, therefore, Nikolai would become the heir as the next oldest brother. Nikolai himself was not at all happy about such a prospect. In his memoirs, he wrote: “The emperor left, but my wife and I remained in a position that I can only compare with the feeling that, I believe, will amaze a person walking calmly along a pleasant road, dotted with flowers and from which the most pleasant views open up everywhere, when suddenly an abyss opens up under his feet, into which an irresistible force throws him, not allowing him to retreat or return. Here is a perfect portrayal of our dire situation. "
In 1823, Konstantin Pavlovich formally renounced his rights to the throne, since he had no children, was divorced and married a second morganatic marriage to the Polish Countess Grudzinskaya. On August 16 (28), 1823, Alexander I signed a secretly drawn up manifesto, confirming the abdication of the Tsarevich and Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich and confirming the Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich as the Heir to the Throne. On all the packages with the text of the manifesto, Alexander I himself wrote: "Keep until my request, and in the event of my death, disclose before any other action."
On November 19 (December 1), 1825, while in Taganrog, Emperor Alexander I died suddenly. In St. Petersburg, the news of the death of Alexander I was received only in the morning of November 27 during a prayer service for the health of the emperor. Nicholas, the first present, swore allegiance to "Emperor Constantine I" and began to swear in the troops. Constantine himself was at that moment in Warsaw, being the actual governor of the Kingdom of Poland. On the same day, the Council of State met, at which the contents of the Manifesto of 1823 were heard. Finding themselves in an ambiguous position, when the Manifesto pointed to one heir, and the oath was taken to another, the members of the Council turned to Nicholas. He refused to recognize the manifesto of Alexander I and refused to proclaim himself emperor until the final expression of the will of his elder brother. Despite the content of the Manifesto handed over to him, Nicholas urged the Council to take the oath to Constantine "for the peace of the State." Following this call, the Council of State, the Senate and the Synod took an oath of allegiance to "Constantine I."
The next day, a decree was issued on the widespread oath of allegiance to the new emperor. On November 30, the nobles of Moscow swore allegiance to Constantine In St. Petersburg, the oath was postponed until December 14.
Nevertheless, Konstantin refused to come to St. Petersburg and confirmed his abdication in private letters to Nikolai Pavlovich, and then sent rescripts to the chairman of the State Council (December 3 (15), 1825) and the Minister of Justice (December 8 (20), 1825). Constantine did not accept the throne, and at the same time did not want to formally renounce him as an emperor, to whom the oath had already been taken. An ambiguous and extremely tense position of the interregnum was created.
Unable to convince his brother to take the throne and having received his final refusal (albeit without a formal act of abdication), Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich decided to accept the throne according to the will of Alexander I.
In the evening of December 12 (24), 1825 M. M. Speransky drew up a Manifesto on the accession to the throne of Emperor Nicholas I. Nicholas signed it on December 13 in the morning. The Manifesto was accompanied by a letter from Constantine to Alexander I of January 14 (26), 1822 on the renunciation of inheritance and a manifesto of Alexander I of August 16 (28), 1823.
The manifesto on the accession to the throne was announced by Nicholas at a meeting of the State Council at about 22:30 on December 13 (25). A separate clause in the Manifesto stipulated that the time of accession to the throne would be considered November 19 - the day of the death of Alexander I - which was an attempt to legally fill the gap in the continuity of autocratic power.
A second oath was appointed, or, as the troops used to say, "oath" - this time to Nicholas I. The oath in St. Petersburg was scheduled for December 14th. On this day, a group of officers - members of a secret society called an uprising in order to prevent the troops and the Senate from taking the oath to the new tsar and preventing Nicholas I from accessing the throne. The main goal of the rebels was the liberalization of the Russian social and political system: the establishment of a provisional government, the abolition of serfdom, equality of all before the law, democratic freedoms (press, confession, labor), the introduction of a jury trial, the introduction of compulsory military service for all classes, the election of officials, the abolition of the poll tax and the change of the form of government to a constitutional monarchy or republic.
The rebels decided to block the Senate, send a revolutionary delegation there, consisting of Ryleev and Pushchin, and present the Senate with a demand not to swear allegiance to Nicholas I, declare the tsarist government deposed and issue a revolutionary manifesto to the Russian people. However, the uprising was brutally suppressed on the same day. Despite the efforts of the Decembrists to carry out a coup d'état, troops and government agencies were sworn in to the new emperor. Later, the surviving participants in the uprising were exiled, and five leaders were executed.
“My dear Constantine! Your will is fulfilled: I am the emperor, but at what price, my God! At the cost of the blood of my subjects! ”He wrote to his brother, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, on December 14.
The Highest Manifesto, given on January 28 (February 9) 1826, with reference to the “Institution of the Imperial Family” on April 5 (16), 1797, decreed: “First, as the days of our life are in the hand of God: then in case of OUR death, until the legal majority of the Heir, Grand Duke ALEXANDER NIKOLAEVICH, we determine the Ruler of the State and the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Finland, our Beloved Brother, Grand Duke MIKHAIL PAVLOVICH ... ".
Crowned on August 22 (September 3), 1826 in Moscow - instead of June of the same year, as originally planned - as a result of mourning for the Dowager Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna, who died on May 4 in Belyov. The coronation of Nicholas I and Empress Alexandra took place in the Kremlin's Assumption Cathedral.
On May 12 (24), 1829, the coronation of Nicholas I to the Kingdom of Poland took place in the Senatorial Hall of the Royal Castle - a unique event in the history of Russia and Poland.
Full title of Nicholas I as Emperor:
"By God's passing grace We are NIKOLAI the First, the Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod, Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Chersonis-Tavrichesky, Sovereign of Pskov and Grand Duke of Smolensk, Litovsk and Finnish, Prince of Estland, Livonia, Courland and Semigalsky, Samogitsky, Belostoksky, Korelsky, Tversky, Yugorsky, Perm, Vyatsky, Bulgarian and others; Sovereign and Grand Duke of Novgorod Nizov lands, Chernigov, Ryazan, Polotsky, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Belozersky, Udora, Obdorsky, Kondiysky, Vitebsk, Mstislavsky and all the Northern sides Lord and Sovereign Iversky, Kartalinsky, Kabinskiy lands and regions; Cherkassk and Mountain Princes and other Hereditary Sovereign and Owner; Heir of Norway, Duke of Schleswig-Golstinsky, Stormarnsky, Dietmarsky and Oldenburgsky and so on, and so on, and so on. "
The reign of Nicholas I
The first steps of Nicholas I after the coronation were very liberal. The poet was returned from exile, VA Zhukovsky was appointed the main teacher ("mentor") of the heir, whose liberal views could not but be known to the emperor.
The emperor closely followed the process of the participants in the December speech and gave instructions to compile a summary of their criticisms of the state administration. Despite the fact that attempts on the life of the king were punishable by quartering according to the existing laws, he replaced this execution by hanging.
The Ministry of State Property was headed by the hero of 1812, Count P. D. Kiselev, a monarchist by conviction, but an opponent of serfdom. The future Decembrists Pestel, Basargin and Burtsov served under his command. The name of Kiselev was presented to Nicholas I in the list of conspirators in connection with the case of the uprising. But, despite this, Kiselyov, known for the impeccability of his moral rules and the talent of an organizer, made his career under Nicholas I as the governor of Moldova and Wallachia and took an active part in preparing the abolition of serfdom.
Some contemporaries wrote about his despotism. However, as historians point out, the execution of five Decembrists was the only execution in all 30 years of the reign of Nicholas I, while, for example, under Peter I and Catherine II, executions were numbered in the thousands, and under Alexander II, in hundreds. However, it should be noted that more than 40,000 people died during the suppression of the Polish uprising. They also note that under Nicholas I, no torture was used against political prisoners. Even historians who are critical of Nicholas I do not mention any violence during the investigation in the case of the Decembrists (to which 579 people were involved as suspects) and Petrashevites (232 people).
Nevertheless, in October 1827, in a report on the secret passage of two Jews across the river. Prut in violation of the quarantine, which noted that only the death penalty for quarantine violations can stop them, Nikolai wrote: “The perpetrators should be driven through a thousand people 12 times. Thank God, we have never had the death penalty, and it is not for me to introduce it. "
The centralization of power became the most important area of \u200b\u200bdomestic policy. To carry out the tasks of political investigation in July 1826, a permanent body was created - the Third Section of the Personal Chancellery - a secret service with significant powers, the head of which (since 1827) was simultaneously the chief of the gendarmes. The third department was headed by A.F. Orlov, who became one of the symbols of the era, and after his death (1844).
On December 6 (18), 1826, the first of the secret committees was created, the task of which was, firstly, to consider the papers sealed in the office of Alexander I after his death, and, secondly, to consider the issue of possible transformations of the state apparatus.
Under Nicholas I, the Polish uprising of 1830-1831 was suppressed, during which Nicholas I was declared deprived of the throne by the rebels (Decree on the detronization of Nicholas I). After the suppression of the uprising, the Kingdom of Poland lost its independence, the diet and the army, and was divided into provinces.
Some authors call Nicholas I "the knight of autocracy": he firmly defended his foundations and thwarted attempts to change the existing system, despite the revolution in Europe. After the suppression of the uprising of the Decembrists, he launched large-scale measures in the country to eradicate the "revolutionary infection". During the reign of Nicholas I, the persecution of the Old Believers resumed, the Uniates of Belarus and Volyn were reunited with Orthodoxy (1839).
In the Volga region, forcible Russification of local peoples was carried out on a large scale. Russification was accompanied by administrative and economic coercion and spiritual oppression of the non-Russian population of the Volga region.
Emperor Nicholas I paid a lot of attention to the army. The introduction of strict discipline in the army in the first years of the reign of Nicholas I, which was subsequently maintained, was associated with the extreme licentiousness that reigned in the Russian army in the last decade of the reign of Alexander I (after the end of the war with Napoleon). Officers often went not in military uniform, but in tailcoats, even during exercises, wearing an overcoat on top. In the Semenovsky regiment, the soldiers were engaged in craft and trade, and the proceeds were handed over to the company commander. "Private" military formations appeared. So, Mamonov, one of the richest people in Russia, formed his own cavalry regiment, which he himself commanded, while expressing extreme anti-monarchist views and calling the tsar (Alexander I) "beast". Under Nicholas I, army "democracy" bordering on anarchy was curtailed and rigid discipline was restored.
Combat training was considered the foundation of military training. During the Eastern War, it often happened that for the construction of an insignificant field fortification, a non-commissioned engineer supervised its construction, since the infantry officer (or even a sapper who graduated from the cadet corps, and not the Mikhailovskoye or Engineering School) had not the slightest idea about the foundations of field fortification. In this situation, "a non-commissioned engineer conducted the work, the infantry soldiers were the labor force, and their officers were his overseers."
There was a similar attitude to the shooting business.
At the height of the Crimean War, due to the significant loss of officers at the front, one of the emperor's orders was the introduction of drill training in civilian gymnasiums and higher military sciences (fortifications and artillery) at universities. Thus, Nicholas I can be considered the founder of the initial military training in Russia.
One of the greatest merits of Nikolai Pavlovich can be considered the codification of law. Attracted by the tsar to this work, M.M.Speransky performed a titanic work, thanks to which the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire appeared.
During the reign of Nicholas I, the position of serfs was eased. So, a ban was introduced to exile peasants to hard labor, to sell them one by one and without land, the peasants received the right to ransom from the estates being sold. A reform of the management of the state village was carried out and a "decree on obliged peasants" was signed, which became the foundation for the abolition of serfdom. However, the complete liberation of the peasants during the life of the emperor did not take place.
For the first time, there was a sharp decline in the number of serfs - their share in the population of Russia, according to various estimates, decreased from 57-58% in 1811-1817 to 35-45% in 1857-1858, and they ceased to make up the majority of the population. Obviously, a significant role was played by the termination of the practice of "distributing" state peasants to the landowners along with the lands, which flourished under the previous tsars, and the spontaneous liberation of the peasants that began.
The position of state peasants improved, their number by the second half of the 1850s reached about 50% of the population. This improvement was mainly due to measures taken by Count PD Kiselev, who was responsible for the management of state property. Thus, all state peasants were allocated their own allotments of land and plots of forest, and auxiliary cash desks and grain shops were established everywhere, which provided peasants with money loans and grain in case of crop failure. As a result of these measures, not only the welfare of state peasants increased, but also the treasury incomes from them increased by 15-20%, tax arrears decreased by half, and landless laborers who eked out a beggarly and dependent existence by the mid-1850s were practically gone. all received land from the state.
A number of laws were passed that improved the position of serfs. Thus, the landowners were strictly forbidden to sell peasants (without land) and exile them to hard labor (which was previously a common practice); serfs received the right to own land, conduct business and received relative freedom of movement. Earlier, under Peter I, a rule was introduced according to which any peasant who found himself at a distance of more than 30 versts from his village without a vacation certificate from the landowner was considered a fugitive and was subject to punishment. These strict restrictions: the obligatory leave certificate (passport) for any departure from the village, the prohibition on economic transactions and even, for example, the prohibition on giving the daughter in marriage to another village (it was necessary to pay a "ransom" to the landowner) - remained until the 19th century. and were canceled during the first 10-15 years of the reign of Nicholas I.
On the other hand, for the first time, the state began to systematically monitor that the rights of the peasants were not violated by the landowners (this was one of the functions of the Third Section), and to punish the landowners for these violations. As a result of the application of punishments to the landowners, by the end of the reign of Nicholas I, about 200 landlord estates were under arrest, which greatly affected the position of the peasants and the landlord's psychology.
Thus, serfdom under Nicholas changed its character - from the institution of slavery, it actually turned into the institution of rent in kind, which to some extent guaranteed the peasants a number of basic rights.
These changes in the position of the peasants caused discontent on the part of large landowners and nobles, who saw in them a threat to the established order.
Some reforms aimed at improving the situation of the peasants did not lead to the desired result due to the stubborn opposition of the landowners. So, on the initiative of D. G. Bibikov, who later became Minister of Internal Affairs, in 1848 an inventory reform was launched in the Right-Bank Ukraine, the experience of which was supposed to be extended to other provinces. The inventory rules introduced by Bibikov, obligatory for landowners, established a certain size of the peasant's land plot and certain duties for it. However, many landowners ignored their implementation, and the local administration, which was dependent on them, did not take any measures.
First started mass peasant education program... The number of peasant schools in the country increased from 60, with 1,500 students in 1838, to 2,551, with 111,000 students, in 1856. In the same period, many technical schools and universities were opened - in fact, a system of vocational primary and secondary education of the country was created.
The state of affairs in industry by the beginning of the reign of Nicholas I was the worst in the history of the Russian Empire. An industry that could compete with the West, where the industrial revolution was already coming to an end, did not actually exist. In the export of Russia there were only raw materials, almost all types of industrial products needed by the country were purchased abroad.
By the end of the reign of Nicholas I, the situation had changed dramatically. For the first time in the history of the Russian Empire, a technically advanced and competitive industry began to form in the country, in particular, textile and sugar, the production of metal, clothing, wooden, glass, porcelain, leather and other products developed, and its own machines, tools and even steam locomotives began to be produced. ...
From 1825 to 1863, the annual output of Russian industry per worker tripled, while in the previous period it not only did not grow, but even declined. From 1819 to 1859, the volume of cotton production in Russia increased almost 30 times; the volume of engineering products from 1830 to 1860 increased 33 times.
For the first time in the history of Russia, under Nicholas I, intensive construction of hard-surface highways began: the Moscow - Petersburg, Moscow - Irkutsk, Moscow - Warsaw highways were built. Of the 7,700 miles of highways built in Russia by 1893, 5,300 miles (about 70%) were built between 1825-1860. The construction of railways was also started and about 1000 versts of railroad track were built, which gave an incentive to the development of its own mechanical engineering.
The rapid development of industry has led to a sharp increase in urban population and urban growth. During the reign of Nicholas I, the share of the urban population more than doubled - from 4.5% in 1825 to 9.2% in 1858.
Having ascended the throne, Nikolai Pavlovich abandoned the practice of favoritism that had dominated over the previous century. He introduced a moderate system of incentives for officials (in the form of renting estates / property and cash bonuses), which he largely controlled himself. Unlike previous reigns, historians have not recorded large gifts in the form of palaces or thousands of serfs, granted to any nobleman or royal relative. To combat corruption, under Nicholas I, regular audits were introduced for the first time at all levels. Lawsuits against officials have become commonplace. So, in 1853, there were 2,540 officials on trial. Nicholas I himself was critical of success in this area, saying that only he and the heir did not steal in his entourage.
Nicholas I demanded that only Russian be spoken at court. The courtiers, who did not know their native language, learned a number of phrases and pronounced them only when they received a sign that the emperor was approaching.
Nicholas I suppressed the slightest manifestations of freethinking. In 1826, a censorship charter was issued, nicknamed "cast iron" by his contemporaries. It was forbidden to print almost everything that had any political overtones. In 1828, another censorship charter was issued, somewhat softening the previous one. A new increase in censorship was associated with the European revolutions of 1848. It got to the point that in 1836 the censor PI Gaevsky, after serving 8 days in the guardhouse, doubted whether it was possible to let in the press news like that "such and such a king died." When in 1837 in St. Petersburg Vedomosti a note was published about an attempt on the life of the French king Louis-Philippe I, Count Benckendorff immediately notified the Minister of Education S.S.Uvarov that he considered it “indecent to publish such news in the statements, especially by the government published ".
In September 1826, Nicholas I received Alexander Pushkin, who was released from Mikhailov's exile, listened to his confession that on December 14, 1825, Pushkin would have been with the conspirators, but he acted graciously with him: he saved the poet from general censorship (he decided to censor his works himself) , instructed him to prepare a note "On public education", called him after the meeting "the smartest man in Russia" (however, later, after the death of Pushkin, spoke of him and about this meeting very coldly).
In 1828, Nicholas I dropped the case against Pushkin about the authorship of the "Gabrieliada" after the poet's own handwritten letter, which, according to many researchers, was handed over to him personally, bypassing the commission of inquiry, which, in the opinion of many researchers, was recognized as the author of the seditious work after long denials. However, the emperor never fully trusted the poet, seeing in him a dangerous "leader of the liberals," Pushkin was under police surveillance, his letters were revised; Pushkin, having gone through the first euphoria, which was also expressed in poetry in honor of the tsar ("Stanza", "Friends"), by the mid-1830s also began to assess the sovereign ambiguously. "He has a lot of ensign and a little Peter the Great", - this is how Pushkin wrote about Nicholas in his diary on May 21 (June 2), 1834; at the same time, the diary also notes "sensible" remarks to the "History of Pugachev" (the sovereign edited it and gave Pushkin a loan of 20 thousand rubles), ease of use and good language of the tsar.
In 1834, Pushkin was appointed chamber-junker of the imperial court, which greatly bothered the poet and was also reflected in his diary. Pushkin could sometimes afford not to come to balls to which Nicholas I personally invited him. Pushkin, on the other hand, preferred communication with writers, and Nicholas I showed him his displeasure. The role played by the emperor in the conflict between Pushkin and Dantes is assessed by historians controversially. After the death of Pushkin, Nicholas I appointed a pension to his widow and children, while limiting the performances in memory of the poet, showing, in particular, his dissatisfaction with the violation of the ban on dueling.
As a result of the policy of strict censorship, Alexander Polezhaev was arrested for free poetry, and was twice exiled to the Caucasus. By order of the emperor, the magazines "European", "Moscow Telegraph", "Telescope" were closed, its publisher Nadezhdin was also persecuted, F. Schiller was banned from staging in Russia.
In 1852 he was arrested and then administratively exiled to the village for writing an obituary dedicated to the memory (the obituary itself was not passed by the censor). The censor also suffered when he let Turgenev's "Notes of a Hunter" go to press, in which, in the opinion of the Moscow Governor-General Count AA Zakrevsky, "a decisive direction towards the destruction of the landlords was expressed."
In 1850, by order of Nicholas I, the play "Our people - we will be numbered" was banned from staging. The Committee for the Highest Censorship was dissatisfied with the fact that among the characters brought out by the author there was “not one of those venerable merchants in whom piety, righteousness and straightforwardness of mind constitute a typical and integral part”.
The censorship also did not allow some jingoistic patriotic articles and works containing harsh and politically undesirable statements and views, which happened, for example, during the Crimean War with two poems. From one ("The Prophecy") Nicholas I crossed out with his own hand a paragraph in which it was a question of raising a cross over the Constantinople Sophia and about the "all-Slavic king"; the other ("Now you have no time for poetry") was forbidden for publication by the minister, obviously in view of the "somewhat harsh tone of presentation" noted by the censor.
Having received a good engineering education in his youth, Nicholas I showed a fair amount of knowledge in the field of construction equipment... So, he made good proposals for the dome of the Trinity Cathedral in St. Petersburg. Later, already holding the highest position in the state, he closely followed the order in urban planning, and not a single significant project was approved without his signature.
He issued a decree regulating the height of private buildings in the capital. The decree limited the height of any private building to the width of the street on which the building is being built. At the same time, the height of a residential private building could not exceed 11 sazhens (23.47 m, which corresponds to the height of the cornice of the Winter Palace). Thus, the famous St. Petersburg city panorama that existed until recently was created. Knowing the requirements for choosing a suitable site for the construction of a new astronomical observatory, Nikolai personally indicated a place for it on the top of Pulkovskaya Mountain.
The first nationwide railways appeared in Russia, including the Nikolaev railway. It is likely that Nicholas I first got acquainted with the technologies of steam locomotive building and railway construction at the age of 19 during a trip to England in 1816, where the future emperor visited the engineer Stephenson's railway.
Nicholas I, having studied in detail the technical data of the railways proposed for the construction, demanded an expansion of the Russian track in comparison with the European one (1524 mm versus 1435 in Europe), thereby excluding the possibility of delivering the armed forces of a potential enemy deep into Russia. The gauge adopted by the Emperor was proposed by the road builder, the American engineer Whistler, and corresponded to the 5-foot gauge adopted at that time in some "southern" states of the United States.
The high relief of the monument to Nicholas I in St. Petersburg depicts an episode of his inspector's trip on the Nikolaev railway, when his train stopped at the Verebynsky railway bridge.
The naval defense of St. Petersburg under Admiral Traverse relied on a system of wood and earth fortifications near Kronstadt, armed with outdated short-range cannons, which allowed the enemy to destroy them from long distances without hindrance. Already in December 1827, at the direction of the Emperor, work began on replacing wooden fortifications with stone ones. Nicholas I personally considered the projects of the fortifications proposed by the engineers and approved them. And in some cases (for example, during the construction of the fort "Emperor Paul the First"), he made specific proposals to reduce the cost and speed up the construction.
Nicholas I, realizing the need for reforms, considered their implementation a long and careful matter. He looked at a state subordinate to him, as an engineer looks at a complex but deterministic mechanism in its functioning, in which everything is interconnected and the reliability of one part ensures the correct operation of others. The ideal of the social order was army life, completely regulated by regulations.
Foreign policy of Nicholas I was concentrated on three main directions of the foreign policy of the Russian Empire: the fight against the revolutionary movement in Europe; the Eastern question, including Russia's struggle for control of the Bosporus and Dardanelles; as well as the expansion of the empire, advancement in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
An important aspect of foreign policy was the return to the principles of the Holy Alliance. The role of Russia in the fight against any manifestations of the “spirit of change” in European life has grown. It was during the reign of Nicholas I that Russia received the unflattering nickname "the gendarme of Europe." Thus, at the request of the Austrian Empire, Russia took part in suppressing the Hungarian revolution by sending a 140,000-strong corps to Hungary, which was trying to free itself from oppression from Austria; as a result, the throne of Franz Joseph was saved. The latter circumstance did not prevent the Austrian emperor, who feared an excessive strengthening of Russia's positions in the Balkans, from soon taking a position unfriendly to Nicholas during the Crimean War and even threatening her with joining the war on the side of the coalition hostile to Russia, which Nicholas I regarded as an ungrateful treachery; Russian-Austrian relations were hopelessly spoiled until the end of the existence of both monarchies.
The Eastern question occupied a special place in the foreign policy of Nicholas I.
Under Nicholas I, Russia abandoned plans to divide the Ottoman Empire, which were discussed under the previous tsars (Catherine II and Paul I), and began to pursue a completely different policy in the Balkans - a policy of protecting the Orthodox population and ensuring its religious and civil rights, up to political independence ... This policy was first applied in the Akkerman Treaty with Turkey in 1826. Under this treaty, Moldova and Wallachia, while remaining within the Ottoman Empire, received political autonomy with the right to elect their own government, which was formed under the control of Russia. After half a century of the existence of such autonomy, the state of Romania was formed on this territory - according to the Treaty of San Stefano in 1878.
Along with this, Russia sought to ensure its influence in the Balkans and the possibility of unhindered navigation in the straits (Bosphorus and Dardanelles).
During the Russian-Turkish wars of 1806-1812. and in 1828-1829, Russia made great strides in implementing this policy. At the request of Russia, which declared itself the patroness of all Christian subjects of the Sultan, the Sultan was forced to recognize the freedom and independence of Greece and the broad autonomy of Serbia (1830); According to the Unkar-Iskelesiyskiy Treaty (1833), which marked the peak of Russian influence in Constantinople, Russia received the right to block the passage of foreign ships into the Black Sea (which was lost as a result of the conclusion of the Second London Convention in 1841).
The same reasons - support of Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire and disagreements over the Eastern question - pushed Russia to aggravate relations with Turkey in 1853, which resulted in its declaration of war on Russia. The beginning of the war with Turkey in 1853 was marked by a brilliant victory of the Russian fleet under the command of the admiral, who defeated the enemy in the Sinop Bay. This was the last major battle of the sailing fleets.
Russia's military successes provoked a negative reaction in the West. The leading world powers were not interested in strengthening Russia at the expense of the decrepit Ottoman Empire. This created the basis for a military alliance between England and France. Nicholas I's miscalculation in assessing the internal political situation in England, France and Austria led to the country finding itself in political isolation.
In 1854 England and France entered the war on the side of Turkey. Due to its technical backwardness, it was difficult for Russia to resist these European powers. The main hostilities took place in the Crimea.
In October 1854, the Allies laid siege to Sevastopol. The Russian army suffered a series of defeats and was unable to provide assistance to the besieged fortress city. Despite the heroic defense of the city, after an 11-month siege, in August 1855, the defenders of Sevastopol were forced to surrender the city.
At the beginning of 1856, following the results of the Crimean War, the Paris Peace Treaty was signed. Under its terms, Russia was prohibited from having naval forces, arsenals and fortresses on the Black Sea. Russia became vulnerable from the sea and was deprived of the opportunity to conduct an active foreign policy in this region.
Generally during the reign of Nicholas I, Russia took part in wars: Caucasian War 1817-1864, Russian-Persian War 1826-1828, Russian-Turkish War 1828-1829, Crimean War 1853-1856.
Death of Nicholas I
He died, according to historical sources, "at twelve minutes of the first hour in the afternoon" on February 18 (March 2), 1855. According to the official version - due to pneumonia (caught a cold while taking a parade in a light uniform, being already sick with the flu). The funeral service was performed by Metropolitan Nikanor (Klementyevsky).
According to some historians of medicine, the death of the emperor could have occurred due to the consequences of a severe trauma he received on August 26 (September 7), 1836, during a study trip to Russia. Then, as a result of a night traffic accident that happened near the town of Chembar, Penza province, Emperor Nicholas I received a fracture of the collarbone and shock concussion. The diagnosis was made by an accidental physician who, probably, was not able to diagnose the condition of the victim's internal organs. The emperor was forced to stay for two weeks in Chembar to recover. As soon as his health stabilized, he continued his journey. Due to these circumstances, Emperor Nicholas I, after a serious injury, was for a long time without qualified medical care.
The Emperor maintained complete composure at the approach of death. He managed to say goodbye to each of the children and grandchildren and, having blessed them, turned to them with a reminder that they should remain friendly with each other. The last words of the emperor, addressed to his son Alexander, was the phrase "Hold tight ...".
Immediately thereafter, rumors spread widely in the capital that Nikolai had committed suicide. The disease began against the background of disappointing news from besieged Sevastopol and escalated after receiving news of the defeat of General Khrulev near Evpatoria, which was perceived as a harbinger of an imminent defeat in the war, which Nikolai, according to his character, could not survive. The tsar's exit to the parade in frost without an overcoat was perceived as an intention to get a deadly cold, according to the stories, the physician-in-chief Mandt told the tsar: "Sovereign, this is worse than death, this is suicide!"
It can be said with certainty that the illness (mild flu) began on January 27, noticeably intensified on the night of February 4, and in the afternoon the already sick Nikolai went to a divorce; after that, he fell ill for a short time, quickly went on the mend, on February 9, despite the objections of doctors, in 23-degree frost without an overcoat he went to the inspection of the marching battalions. The same thing happened on February 10 in an even more severe frost. After that, the disease worsened, Nikolai spent several days in bed, but the powerful organism took over, on February 15 he has been working all day.
No bulletins were issued about the health of the tsar at that time, which shows that the disease was not considered dangerous. On the evening of February 14, a courier arrived with a message about the defeat at Evpatoria. The news made the most overwhelming impression, especially since Nikolai himself was the initiator of the attack on Evpatoria.
On February 17, the emperor's condition suddenly and sharply deteriorated, and on the morning of February 18, a painful agony set in, which lasted several hours (which does not happen with pneumonia). According to an immediately spreading rumor, the Emperor, at his request, was given poison by the life-medic Mandt. Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna directly accused Mandt of poisoning her brother. The emperor forbade the autopsy and embalming of his body.
Nikolaevskaya Square in Kazan and Nikolaevskaya Hospital in Peterhof are named in honor of Nicholas I.
In honor of Emperor Nicholas I, about a dozen monuments were erected in the Russian Empire, mainly various columns and obelisks, in memory of his visit to this or that place. Almost all of the sculptural monuments to the Emperor (with the exception of the equestrian monument in St. Petersburg) were destroyed during the Soviet era.
Currently, there are the following monuments to the Emperor:
St. Petersburg. Equestrian monument on St. Isaac's Square. Opened on June 26 (July 8) 1859, sculptor P.K. Klodt. The monument has been preserved in its original form. The surrounding fence was dismantled in the 1930s and recreated again in 1992.
St. Petersburg. Bronze bust of the Emperor on a high granite pedestal. Opened on July 12, 2001 in front of the facade of the building of the former psychiatric department of the Nikolaev military hospital, founded in 1840 by decree of the Emperor (now the St. Petersburg Regional Military Clinical Hospital), Suvorovsky prospect, 63. Originally, a monument to the Emperor, which is a bronze bust on granite pedestal, was opened in front of the main facade of this hospital on August 15 (27), 1890. The monument was destroyed shortly after 1917.
St. Petersburg. A plaster bust on a high granite pedestal. Opened on May 19, 2003 on the main staircase of the Vitebsk railway station (Zagorodny prospect, 52), sculptors V.S. and S.V. Ivanovs, architect T.L. Torich.
Velikiy Novgorod. Image of Nicholas I at the Millennium of Russia monument. Opened in 1862, sculptor - M.O. Mikeshin.
Moscow. The monument to the “Creators of Russian Railways” at the Kazan railway station is a bronze bust of the emperor surrounded by famous figures of the railway industry of his reign. Opened on August 1, 2013.
A bronze bust of Emperor Nicholas I was inaugurated on July 2, 2015 on the territory of the Nikolo-Berlyukovsky Monastery in the village of Avdotino, Moscow Region (sculptor A.A.Appolonov).
St. Nicholas Cathedral of the city of Starobelsk. In 1859, a place was determined for the construction of the temple - between Malaya Dvoryanskaya and Sobornaya, Classical and Nikolaevskaya streets. The temple was built in the Baroque style and solemnly consecrated in 1862. The temple is considered an architectural monument of the 19th century and is protected by the state.
In the name of Nicholas I were named: the battleship that participated in the Battle of Tsushima and surrendered to the Japanese after it, the battleship laid down in 1914, but unfinished due to the Civil War, and the civil steamer on which Louis de Heeckeren and Georges Dantes arrived in Russia and sailed away to Europe Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol.
In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Nicholas I, state awards were established by decree of Nicholas II, namely two commemorative medals. The medal "In memory of the reign of Emperor Nicholas I" was awarded to persons who served during the reign of Nicholas I, the medal "In memory of the reign of Emperor Nicholas I" for pupils of educational institutions was awarded to pupils of military educational institutions who studied during the reign of Nicholas I, but rights they did not have the first medal.
The image of Nicholas I in the cinema:
1910 - "The Life and Death of Pushkin";
1911 - "Defense of Sevastopol";
1918 - "Father Sergius" (actor Vladimir Gaidarov);
1926 - The Decembrists (actor Yevgeny Boronikhin);
1927 - The Poet and the Tsar (actor Konstantin Karenin);
1928 - "Secrets of the Ancient Family", Poland (actor Pavel Overllo);
1930 - "White Devil" Germany (actor Fritz Alberti);
1932 - "House of the Dead" (actor Nikolai Vitovtov);
1936 - "Prometheus" (actor Vladimir Ershov);
1943 - Lermontov (actor A. Savostyanov);
1946 - "Glinka" (actor B. Livanov);
1951 - "Taras Shevchenko" (actor M. Nazvanov);
1951 - Belinsky (actor M. Nazvanov);
1952 - “Composer Glinka” (actor M. Nazvanov);
1959 - "Hadji Murat - the White Devil" (actor Milivoye Zhivanovich);
1964 - Sleep (actor);
1965 - "The Third Youth" (actor V. Strzhelchik);
1967 - "Green Carriage" (actor V. Strzhelchik);
1967 - "Wake up Mukhin!" (actor V. Zakharchenko);
1968 - "The mistake of Honore de Balzac" (actor S. Polezhaev);
1975 - "The Star of Captivating Happiness" (actor V. Livanov);
2010 - "Death of Vazir-Mukhtar" (actor A. Zibrov);
2013 - The Romanovs. The seventh film "(actor S. Druzhko);
2014 - "Duel. Pushkin - Lermontov "(actor V. Maksimov);
2014 - Fort Ross: In Search of Adventure (actor Dmitry Naumov);
2016 - "The Monk and the Devil" (actor Nikita Tarasov);
2016 - "Case of the Decembrists" (actor Artyom Efremov)