For 10 centuries, the representatives of the ruling dynasties determined the domestic and foreign policy of the Russian state. As you know, the greatest prosperity of the state was under the rule of the Romanov dynasty, the descendants of an old noble family. Its ancestor is Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla, whose father, Glanda-Kambila Divonovich, baptized Ivan, came to Russia in the last quarter of the 13th century from Lithuania.

The youngest of the 5 sons of Andrei Ivanovich, Fedor Koshka, left numerous offspring, which include such surnames as Koshkin-Zakharyins, Yakovlevs, Lyatskys, Bezzubtsevs and Sheremetevs. In the sixth generation from Andrei Kobyla, in the Koshkin-Zakharyin family, there was a boyar Roman Yuryevich, from whom the boyar family originates, and later the Romanov tsars. This dynasty ruled in Russia for three hundred years.

Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov (1613 - 1645)

The beginning of the reign of the Romanov dynasty can be considered February 21, 1613, when the Zemsky Sobor took place, at which the Moscow nobles, supported by the townspeople, proposed to elect the sovereign of all Russia, 16-year-old Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. The proposal was accepted unanimously, and on July 11, 1613, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, Mikhail was married to the kingdom.

The beginning of his reign was not easy, because the central government still did not control a significant part of the state. In those days, the robber Cossack detachments of Zarutsky, Balovia and Lisovsky walked around Russia, which ruined the state, already exhausted by the war with Sweden and Poland.

So, the newly elected king had two important tasks: the first, the end of hostilities with his neighbors, and the second, the pacification of his subjects. He was able to cope with this only after 2 years. 1615 - all free Cossack groups were completely destroyed, and in 1617 the war with Sweden ended with the conclusion of the Stolbovsky peace. According to this agreement, the Muscovite state lost access to the Baltic Sea, but peace and tranquility were restored in Russia. It was possible to begin to bring the country out of a deep crisis. And then the government of Michael had a chance to make a lot of efforts to restore the devastated country.

At first, the authorities undertook the development of industry, for which foreign industrialists were invited to Russia on favorable terms - miners, gunsmiths, foundry workers. Then the turn came to the army - it was obvious that for the prosperity and security of the state it was necessary to develop military affairs, in connection with this, in 1642, transformations began in the armed forces.

Foreign officers trained Russian military men in military affairs, “regiments of a foreign system” appeared in the country, which was the first step towards creating a regular army. These transformations were the last in the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich - 2 years later the tsar died at the age of 49 from "water sickness" and was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Kremlin.

Alexei Mikhailovich, nicknamed the Quietest (1645-1676)

His eldest son Alexei began to reign, who, according to contemporaries, was one of the most educated people of his time. He himself wrote and edited many decrees and was the first of the Russian tsars to personally sign them (others signed decrees for Mikhail, for example, his father Filaret). Meek and devout, Alexei earned the people's love and the nickname of the Quietest.

In the first years of his reign, Alexei Mikhailovich took little part in state affairs. The state was ruled by the tsar's educator boyar Boris Morozov and the tsar's father-in-law Ilya Miloslavsky. Morozov's policy, which was aimed at strengthening the tax oppression, as well as the lawlessness and abuse of Miloslavsky, caused popular indignation.

1648, June - an uprising broke out in the capital, followed by uprisings in southern Russian cities and in Siberia. The result of this rebellion was the removal of Morozov and Miloslavsky from power. 1649 - Alexei Mikhailovich had a chance to take over the government of the country. On his personal instructions, they compiled a set of laws - the Cathedral Code, which satisfied the main wishes of the townspeople and nobles.

In addition, the government of Alexei Mikhailovich encouraged the development of industry, supported Russian merchants, protecting them from the competition of foreign merchants. They adopted customs and new trade charters, which contributed to the development of domestic and foreign trade. Also, during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, the Muscovite state expanded its borders not only to the south-west, but also to the south and east - Russian explorers mastered Eastern Siberia.

Fedor III Alekseevich (1676 - 1682)

1675 - Alexei Mikhailovich declared his son Fyodor the heir to the throne. 1676, January 30 - Alexey died at the age of 47 and was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Kremlin. Fedor Alekseevich became the sovereign of all Russia and on June 18, 1676 he was married to the kingdom in the Assumption Cathedral. Tsar Fyodor ruled for only six years, he was extremely independent, power was in the hands of his maternal relatives - the boyars Miloslavsky.

The most important event of the reign of Fyodor Alekseevich was the destruction in 1682 of localism, which made it possible for not very noble, but educated and enterprising people to advance in the service. In the last days of the reign of Fyodor Alekseevich, a project was drawn up on the establishment in Moscow of the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy and theological school for 30 people. Fedor Alekseevich died on April 27, 1682 at the age of 22, without making any order regarding the succession to the throne.

Ivan V (1682-1696)

After the death of Tsar Fyodor, ten-year-old Peter Alekseevich, at the suggestion of Patriarch Joachim and at the insistence of the Naryshkins (his mother was from this family), was proclaimed king, bypassing his older brother, Tsarevich Ivan. But from May 23 of the same year, at the request of the boyars Miloslavsky, he was approved by the Zemsky Sobor as the "second tsar", and Ivan - the "first". And only in 1696, after the death of Ivan Alekseevich, did Peter become the sovereign tsar.

Peter I Alekseevich, nickname the Great (1682 - 1725)

Both emperors pledged to be allies in the conduct of hostilities. However, in 1810 relations between Russia and France began to take on an openly hostile character. And in the summer of 1812, a war broke out between the powers. The Russian army, having expelled the invaders from Moscow, completed the liberation of Europe with a triumphant entry into Paris in 1814. The successfully ended wars with Turkey and Sweden strengthened the country's international position. In the reign of Alexander I, Georgia, Finland, Bessarabia, and Azerbaijan became part of the Russian Empire. 1825 - during a trip to Taganrog, Emperor Alexander I caught a bad cold and died on November 19.

Emperor Nicholas I (1825-1855)

After the death of Alexander, Russia lived for almost a month without an emperor. On December 14, 1825, the oath was announced to his younger brother Nikolai Pavlovich. On the same day, an attempted coup d'état took place, later called the Decembrist uprising. The day of December 14 made an indelible impression on Nicholas I, and this was reflected in the nature of his entire reign, during which absolutism reached its highest rise, the costs of officials and the army absorbed almost all state funds. During the years, the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire was compiled - a code of all legislative acts that existed in 1835.

1826 - a Secret Committee was established to deal with the peasant question, in 1830 a general law on estates was developed, in which a number of improvements were designed for the peasants. About 9,000 rural schools were organized for the primary education of peasant children.

1854 - the Crimean War began, ending with the defeat of Russia: according to the Paris Treaty of 1856, the Black Sea was declared neutral, and Russia was able to regain the right to have a fleet there only in 1871. It was the defeat in this war that decided the fate of Nicholas I. Not wanting to admit the fallacy of his views and beliefs, which led the state not only to a military defeat, but also to the collapse of the entire system of state power, the emperor, it is believed, deliberately took poison on February 18, 1855.

Alexander II the Liberator (1855-1881)

The next from the Romanov dynasty came to power - Alexander Nikolaevich, the eldest son of Nicholas I and Alexandra Feodorovna.

It should be noted that he was able to somewhat stabilize the situation both within the state and at external borders. Firstly, under Alexander II, serfdom was abolished in Russia, for which the emperor was nicknamed the Liberator. 1874 - a decree on universal military service was issued, which abolished recruiting kits. At this time, higher educational institutions for women were created, three universities were founded - Novorossiysk, Warsaw and Tomsk.

Alexander II was able to finally conquer the Caucasus in 1864. Under the Argun Treaty with China, the Amur Territory was annexed to Russia, and under the Beijing Treaty, the Ussuri Territory. 1864 - Russian troops began a campaign in Central Asia, during which the Turkestan Territory and the Ferghana Region were captured. Russian dominion extended up to the peaks of the Tien Shan and the foot of the Himalayan range. Russia also had possessions in the United States.

However, in 1867 Russia sold Alaska and the Aleutian Islands to America. The most important event in Russian foreign policy during the reign of Alexander II was the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878, which ended with the victory of the Russian army, which resulted in the proclamation of the independence of Serbia, Romania and Montenegro.

Russia received part of Bessarabia, torn away in 1856 (except for the islands of the Danube Delta) and a cash contribution of 302.5 million rubles. In the Caucasus, Ardagan, Kars and Batum with their environs were annexed to Russia. The emperor could still do a lot for Russia, but on March 1, 1881, his life was tragically cut short by a bomb of terrorists of the People's Volunteers, and the next representative of the Romanov dynasty, his son Alexander III, ascended the throne. Hard times have come for the Russian people.

Alexander III the Peacemaker (1881-1894)

During the reign of Alexander III, administrative arbitrariness increased to a large extent. In order to develop new lands, mass migration of peasants to Siberia began. The government took care of improving the life of workers - the work of minors and women was limited.

In foreign policy at that time, there was a deterioration in Russian-German relations and there was a rapprochement between Russia and France, which ended with the conclusion of the Franco-Russian alliance. Emperor Alexander III died in the fall of 1894 from kidney disease, which worsened due to bruises received during a railway accident near Kharkov and constant immoderate alcohol consumption. And power passed to his eldest son Nikolai, the last Russian emperor from the Romanov dynasty.

Emperor Nicholas II (1894-1917)

The entire reign of Nicholas II passed in an atmosphere of growing revolutionary movement. At the beginning of 1905, a revolution broke out in Russia, which laid the foundation for reforms: 1905, on October 17, the Manifesto was issued, which established the foundations of civil freedom: the inviolability of the person, freedom of speech, assembly and unions. They established the State Duma (1906), without the approval of which no law could enter into force.

According to the project of P.A. Stolshin, an agrarian reform was carried out. In the field of foreign policy, Nicholas II took some steps to stabilize international relations. Despite the fact that Nicholas was more democratic than his father, popular dissatisfaction with the autocrat was growing rapidly. At the beginning of March 1917, the chairman of the State Duma, M.V. Rodzianko, told Nicholas II that the preservation of autocracy was possible only if the throne was handed over to Tsarevich Alexei.

But, given the poor health of his son Alexei, Nicholas abdicated in favor of his brother Mikhail Alexandrovich. Mikhail Alexandrovich, in turn, abdicated in favor of the people. The republican era has begun in Russia.

From March 9 to August 14, 1917, the former emperor and members of his family were kept under arrest in Tsarskoye Selo, then they were transferred to Tobolsk. On April 30, 1918, the prisoners were brought to Yekaterinburg, where on the night of July 17, 1918, by order of the new revolutionary government, the former emperor, his wife, children, and the doctor and servants who remained with them were shot by the Chekists. Thus ended the reign of the last dynasty in the history of Russia.

On July 17, 1918, the royal family was shot. The lack of information about what happened gave rise to myths and "surviving Romanovs." There were about 230 impostors.

Successful Impostor

Marja Boodts (self-proclaimed Olga) is without a doubt the most successful of the "Romanov impostors"! She first appeared in France before the start of World War II: she collected donations from well-wishers for the completely impoverished "grand princess who miraculously escaped." Naturally, she was arrested for fraud and at the trial she called herself a Polish gentry.

The second time she appeared in the early 1950s, zealously rejecting her identity with the "pre-war" swindler. The impostor was quite convincing! She managed to convince Prince Nikolai of Oldenburg and Crown Prince Wilhelm of her veracity, who paid her a rather substantial pension until the end of her life. The pension was enough for a comfortable life in a villa near Lake Como (Italy).

Marja Boodts claimed that she owed her miraculous salvation to a certain peasant woman who replaced her in the Ipatiev house.

Detail: there were 28 self-proclaimed Olgas in total!

Mystery Changeling

Michelle Anshe convinced that she came to Paris directly from Siberia! Her appearance in the French capital in the early 1920s really interested the public: the fact is that outwardly Michelle really looked like a Grand Duchess.

The impostor did not want to talk about how she managed to “avoid the Yekaterinburg execution”, declaring only that she would reveal the whole truth face to face to her “grandmother”, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna. But ... the date did not take place! Here begins the most mysterious part of the story: Michelle Anshe died under mysterious circumstances in her house in one of the Parisian suburbs. The passport in the name of Michel Anshe turned out to be fake, and the French police classified the circumstances of the death, which gave rise to a new wave of rumors. One of the most popular: the Bolsheviks got to the "surviving Tatyana".

Detail: total self-proclaimed Tatyan - 33!

Secret impostor

An unknown person who called herself Averis Yakovelli appeared in one of the Polish villages on January 23, 1919. The villagers immediately noticed that her whole body was covered with scars from injuries. Later medical certificates confirmed that the injuries were quite serious!

Averis Yakovelli made several attempts to return to Russia, but ended up marrying a Polish soldier named Karl Dianogy in 1921 and had a son, Nikolai.

In 1956, Nikolai Dyanogii died of hemophilia, a disease that plagued the imperial family. Then she repeated more than once that "the whole family died, every single one", this was perceived as a belated recognition of "royal origin".

Detail: total self-proclaimed Mary - 53!

Changeling with a "dizzying career"

Anna Anderson. Probably, the real name of the impostor was Franziska Schanzkowska. After an unsuccessful suicide attempt, she ended up in a psychiatric clinic in Berlin. There, one of the patients “recognized” the Grand Duchess in her, after which the legend was actively supported by Russian emigrants.

For more than twenty years, the applicant tried to achieve recognition in European courts as a Grand Duchess, but did not particularly succeed in this. However, her person is still popular: modern Anderson fans are sure that the genetic examination that proved her relationship with the Shantskovsky family is nothing more than a fake.

Detail: The self-proclaimed Anastasias are best known for the "dizzying career" of the first Anna Anderson. The last of the false Anastasia, Natalya Bilikhodze, died in 2000. Total self-proclaimed Anastasius - 33!

Imposter loser

Rumors that not all members of the royal family were shot, and Alexei Nikolaevich miraculously survived and is now hiding somewhere, create fertile ground for impostors. Alexei Putsiato was one of the first who tried to pass himself off as a “miracle of the saved” Tsarevich.

Little is known about his personality and origins. It is believed that he was born in a prosperous intelligent family, otherwise how to explain his good education, erudition and excellent manners?! All this, coupled with a cunning mind and ingenuity, advised the young man to call himself the king's son, who nevertheless escaped death.

Alexey Putsiato decided to try his luck, but he was not lucky! His deceit was revealed by the former teacher of the Tsarevich, the Frenchman Zhillard. In the end, the impostor had to confess his deception, after which he was arrested.

Detail: total self-proclaimed Alekseev - 81.

“The Fifth Daughter of Romanov” No. 1

Suzanne Katharina de Graaf declared herself the never-existing Alexandra Romanoff, the "fifth daughter" of the Tsar. The legend of the impostor was quite bold: she was born in 1903, when the queen had a false pregnancy "officially". Nicholas and Alexandra could not present their fifth daughter to the court and people, and therefore she was sent to be raised in Holland, where she was secretly sent by Philip Nizier, a “clairvoyant and sorcerer” who was a trusted person of Empress Alexandra.

“The Fifth Daughter of Romanov” No. 2

Irina Romanova - real name unknown. Argentine, posing as the "fifth daughter of the king", born during exile in Tobolsk. The girl allegedly managed to be transported abroad with the secret consent of the Soviet government.

A.N. sunsets

Over the past 20 years, many traditions and values ​​of our centuries-old history have returned to the life of Russia. The distortion in the public consciousness that existed for a long time, which forced one to treat the entire more than a thousand-year pre-revolutionary period with condescension at best, and more often with disdain, has irrevocably gone. Moreover, it became clear that the traditions never died in the minds of the people. As soon as there was greater freedom for self-expression of the individual, interest in history sharply and rapidly increased, and in particular, in those institutions that connect us with it with living threads that have not lost continuity. In the first place among them are the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Imperial House.

But if church history from antiquity to the present day, albeit limitedly, exclusively from a Marxist point of view, still continued to be studied under the communist regime, then a taboo was imposed on the recent history of the Romanov dynasty. It was officially believed that the execution of Nicholas II and his relatives ended the Romanovs once and for all. The presence of the legitimate heirs of the dynasty could only be found out by chance, from the phrases of satirical novels, such as "You, I hope, are a Kirillian?", And feuilletons in the Crocodile magazine. Even in scientific monographs on the history of emigration, members of the imperial house contained no more than two or three mean phrases.

In part, this taboo by inertia continues to take place today. Of course, now we know much more about the fate of the Romanovs in exile. And, nevertheless, as a rule, both in textbooks and in popular science publications, the history of the Romanov dynasty ends with the execution of the royal family in 1918.

Meanwhile, the Russian Imperial House as an institution - the bearer of certain ideals and values ​​- continues to exist on its historical legal basis. Moreover, over the past 16 years, the dynasty has been slowly but surely returning to the social and cultural life of modern Russia.

The Romanovs ruled Russia for 304 years. The first tsar of this dynasty was summoned by people's representatives at the Zemsky Sobor in 1613 on the basis of the closest relationship of the Romanovs in the female line with the extinct Rurik dynasty. “Not a single Royal House began so unusually,- wrote N.V. Gogol, How did the House of Romanovs begin? Its beginning was already a feat of love. The last and lowest subject in the state offered and laid down his life in order to give us the Tsar, and with this pure sacrifice he already inextricably linked the Sovereign with his subjects. Love entered our blood, and all of us began a blood relationship with the Tsar. And so the ruler merged and became one with the subject, that we all see a general misfortune - whether the Sovereign forgets his subject and renounces him, or whether the subject forgets his Sovereign and renounces him. How clearly it also turns out to be the will of God - to choose for this the name of the Romanovs, and not another! How incomprehensible is the enthronement of an unknown youth to the Throne!” .

The succession to the throne under the first Romanovs was carried out as before, in accordance with the order of direct male primogeniture, from father to eldest son, and in the absence of male offspring - to brothers in order of seniority. Peter the Great, due to a conflict with Tsarevich Alexei, changed this order. 4 years after the death of his son, on February 5, 1722, the emperor issued a nominal decree "On the right of succession to the throne", according to which the reigning emperor could arbitrarily appoint his heir and cancel the appointment already made in favor of another. The abolition of the legal order of succession to the throne led to a series of "palace coups" in the XVIII century.

Emperor Paul I, aware of the viciousness of such a system, on the day of his coronation on April 5, 1797, promulgated and enacted a new act of succession to the throne - “so that the state is not without an heir, so that the heir is always appointed by the law itself, so that there is not the slightest doubt who will inherit”. The law of Emperor Paul I belongs to the so-called Austrian system of succession to the throne, i.e. based on the right of male primogeniture with the transition of succession to the female line after the suppression of the last dynastic male line.

In 1820, Emperor Alexander I supplemented his father's law with a provision on the status of descendants of members of the dynasty from unequal (morganatic) marriages. From now on “if any person from the Imperial Family enters into a marriage union with a person who does not have a corresponding dignity, that is, who does not belong to any Reigning or Sovereign House; in such a case, a Person of the Imperial Family cannot communicate to another the rights belonging to the Members of the Imperial Family, and children born from such a union do not have the right to inherit the Throne.

In this form, the law on succession to the throne, codified under Emperor Nicholas I, continues to be an act of dynastic law to this day. It was the existence of the law that allowed the House of Romanov to survive after the revolution of 1917, not just as a collection of relatives, but as a historical institution with a legitimate succession of primacy.

After the 1917 Revolution, twelve male and six female members of the Russian Imperial House were executed in Soviet Russia, including two born foreign princesses and four born members of the Imperial House. But the Bolsheviks failed to completely exterminate the Romanovs.

Nineteen male and twenty-four female members of the Romanov House turned out to be outside of Russia, including seven born princesses of European Houses who married members of the Imperial House and seventeen born Grand Duchesses and Princesses of the Blood who entered into equal or morganatic marriages. Under the conditions of emigration, the Imperial House was replenished with two males and two females.

After the execution in the summer of 1918 of Emperor Nicholas II, heir to the Tsarevich and Grand Duke Alexei Nikolaevich and Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich, i.e. of all male offspring of Emperor Alexander III, the rights to the throne (by virtue of Article 29 of the Fundamental State Laws of the Russian Empire) passed to the family of the next son of Emperor Alexander II - Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, who died in 1908.

The senior representative of this family was Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, who left with his family for Finland in June 1917. In April 1920, the Grand Duke moved to Zurich (Switzerland), and a year later - to Cannes in the south of France. At the first time of his life in exile, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich did not make any statements, because. then there were still strong hopes that the imperial family and Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich managed to escape. By 1922, however, those hopes had largely faded. The question arose about the further existence of the dynasty and about the principles on which this existence would be possible under conditions of exile. It followed from the dynastic law of the Russian Empire that the responsibility for this lay with the dynastic eldest member of the imperial house.

Still assuming the possibility of rescuing at least Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich (the story of whose death was the most vague and unexplored), Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich decided to proclaim himself Guardian of the Sovereign's Throne, which he did on August 22, 1922 in Cannes. This act assumed that the Grand Duke was currently “observing” the throne, the rights to which he was ready to transfer at any moment to one of his elders in the order of succession to the throne, if they turned out to be alive. Later, in 1924, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, having familiarized himself with the materials of the investigation of N. Sokolov and the information received about the execution of Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich, came to the final conviction that none of his predecessors in the line of succession could escape. In June, Kirill Vladimirovich moved to Coburg (Germany), where on September 13, 1924 he issued a manifesto on accepting the title of Emperor of All Russia in exile. This act meant that the Russian Imperial House continued to exist in exile as a historical institution, that relations between its members were still governed by the norms of the Fundamental Laws of the Russian Empire on succession to the throne, and that the Head of the Imperial House de jure had all the rights and duties of the Emperor.

The manifesto of Kirill Vladimirovich was supported by almost all the surviving members of the imperial house. Empress Dowager Maria Feodorovna, who did not dispute the rights of Kirill Vladimirovich, but considered his act “premature”, as she did not lose hope of saving any of her sons or grandson, and Grand Dukes Nikolai and Peter Nikolaevichi reacted critically to this act. with the son of the latter, prince of imperial blood, Roman Petrovich, who believed that the question of the monarchy and the personality of the emperor should be decided by the people's will. This last position, of course, involved a complete rejection of the norms of dynastic law. Its adoption would doom the Romanov dynasty to extinction, because. with such an approach, there were no longer any principles that would give the imperial house the status of a historical institution.

The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, represented by its First Hierarch, Metropolitan Anthony (Khrapovitsky), supported Kirill Vladimirovich. Unconditionally recognized his status as the head of the Russian Imperial House and all European dynasties. At the same time, a fairly significant part of the Russian emigration stood in the position of the so-called "non-prejudice", which caused the non-recognition of Kirill Vladimirovich as emperor by such organizations as the Russian All-Military Union (ROVS), the Supreme Monarchist Council (Navy) and a number of others.

After the death of Emperor Kirill Vladimirovich in 1938, his only son, Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich, became the head of the imperial house. The new head of the dynasty decided not to accept the title of emperor, since the manifesto of September 13, 1924 had already determined the status and continuation of the dynastic right. In the political situation that existed at that time, Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich considered that his refusal to accept the title of emperor would help attract more supporters to his activities from among those organizations and public figures who were not ready to clearly declare their loyal position. Almost all right-wing emigrant organizations, including the ROVS and the Navy, declared their loyalty to the new head of the dynasty.

In 1948, Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich, the only male member of the imperial house in exile, entered into an equal marriage with the daughter of the head of the Georgian royal house, Prince George Alexandrovich Bagration-Mukhransky, Leonida. The fact of this marriage ensured the transfer of the rights of the head of the house to the offspring of the Grand Duke (otherwise, the inheritance would have to pass through the female line to a foreign dynasty).

In 1953, a daughter, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, was born from this marriage. When she reached dynastic majority in 1969, the Grand Duke issued a dynastic act, according to which his daughter was proclaimed guardian of the throne in case the Grand Duke died before any of the male members of the imperial house (all of them were in old age and did not have descendants with dynastic rights). Seven years later, in 1976, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna entered into an equal marriage with Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia, who converted to Orthodoxy and received the Russian title of Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich. In a special marriage contract, concluded on the eve of the wedding and registered with the French justice authorities, all the conditions were stipulated related to the fact that the Grand Duchess is the inevitable heir to the title of head of the imperial house in the near future.

In 1981, a son, Grand Duke Georgy Mikhailovich, was born from this marriage. And in 1989, the last, in addition to Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich, a male member of the Russian Imperial House, Prince of Imperial Blood Vasily Alexandrovich, died. The need for guardianship of the throne disappeared, since, according to Article 30 of the Basic Laws of the Russian Empire, after the death of Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich, the inheritance of the throne was to pass into the female line to his daughter, which happened in 1992.

At present, the head of the Russian Imperial House is Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna. In addition to her, Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna and Grand Duke Georgy Mikhailovich are members of the Russian Imperial House.

All other relatives of the Romanovs, born from morganatic marriages, do not belong to the Russian Imperial House. There is the so-called "Association of the Romanov family", consisting of the morganatic descendants of the dynasty and headed by N.R. Romanov - the son of the prince of imperial blood Roman Petrovich. The legal status of this "Association", of course, has nothing to do with the legal status of the Russian Imperial House.

The process of returning the Romanov dynasty to the life of modern Russia began in 1991. On November 5-11, 1991, Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich and his wife visited St. Petersburg in connection with the return of her name to the northern capital. When the head of the dynasty died on April 21, 1992, he was buried in the family tomb of the Romanovs in the Peter and Paul Fortress. He was buried by Patriarch Alexy II. The new head of the imperial house, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna and members of her family have already visited their homeland more than 50 times. In Moscow, the Office of Her Imperial Highness passed the state registration. The Grand Duchess takes part in various charity events. Detailed information about the life and activities of the imperial family is regularly posted on the official website of the Russian Imperial House www. website

In 2001, in agreement with the command of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the Grand Duchess revived the military order of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and extended the right to receive it to the military personnel of the Russian Federation. Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II awarded the Empress with the Church Order of St. Olga of the 1st degree, and the Grand Duchess ranked the most holy patriarch in the highest dynastic order of St. Andrew the First-Called. Revived in Russia in organizational forms and the Order of St. Anna. Imperial orders, which are not only and not so much insignia as honorary corporations, also pursue social-patriotic, charitable and cultural work as their goal.

A significant place in the activities of the imperial family is occupied by the legal direction. An important legal undertaking, supported by the Russian Orthodox Church, was the demand of the Grand Duchess for the rehabilitation of the executed royal family, i.e. about the recognition by the state of the fact that Nicholas II and his relatives became victims of political repression on social, class and religious grounds. After an almost 3-year trial, on October 1, 2008, the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation confirmed the correctness of the head of the Russian Imperial House, canceled the previous illegal decisions of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation and lower courts, recognized Sts. The royal martyrs were victims of political repression and issued certificates of their rehabilitation to the Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna.

Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna often visits her homeland and takes part in various events held at the state level in connection with historical events.

Speaking about the role of the Russian Imperial House in our days, its head, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, always emphasizes that the dynasty is in no way involved in politics and directs all its efforts to help compatriots in the revival of faith, patriotism, national unity, morality and all the best customs of our multinational people. Remaining a living symbol and bearer of the royal idea, the imperial family will under no circumstances agree to the restoration of the monarchy against the will of the people and is ready to serve the fatherland under any circumstances.

International experience shows that not only in monarchical, but also in republican countries, historical dynasties bring considerable benefits in the spiritual, cultural and even economic sense. The reintegration of the Russian Imperial House into the life of Russia is steadily developing and acquiring new forms based on tradition and taking into account the requirements of the times.

The House of Romanov celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2013. The day when Mikhail Romanov was proclaimed tsar remained in the distant past. For 304 years, the descendants of the Romanov family ruled Russia.

For a long time it was believed that with the execution of the imperial family of Nicholas II, the entire royal dynasty was finished. But even today the descendants of the Romanovs live, the Imperial House exists to this day. The dynasty is gradually returning to Russia, to its cultural and social life.

Who belongs to the dynasty

The Romanov clan originates in the 16th century, with Roman Yuryevich Zakharyin. He had five children, who gave rise to numerous offspring that have survived to this day. But the fact is that most of the descendants no longer bear this surname, that is, they were born on the maternal side. Representatives of the dynasty are considered only the descendants of the Romanov family in the male line, who bear an old surname.

Boys in the family were born less often, and many were childless. Because of this, the royal family was almost interrupted. The branch was revived by Paul I. All the living descendants of the Romanovs are the heirs of Emperor Pavel Petrovich,

Branching family tree

Paul I had 12 children, two of them illegitimate. Their ten legitimate children are four sons:

• Alexander I, who ascended the Russian throne in 1801, did not leave behind legitimate heirs to the throne.
• Konstantin. He was married twice, but the marriages were childless. Had three who were not recognized as descendants of the Romanovs.
• Nicholas I, All-Russian Emperor since 1825. He had three daughters and four sons from his marriage to the Prussian princess Frederica Louise Charlotte, in Orthodoxy Anna Feodorovna.
• Michael was married with five daughters.

Thus, only the sons of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I continued the Romanov dynasty. So all the remaining descendants of the Romanovs are his great-great-great-grandchildren.

Continuation of the dynasty

Sons of Nicholas I: Alexander, Constantine, Nicholas and Michael. They all left behind offspring. Their lines are informally called:

• Alexandrovichi - the line went from Alexander Nikolaevich Romanov. Now live the direct descendants of the Romanovs-Ilyinskys Dmitry Pavlovich and Mikhail Pavlovich. Unfortunately, they are both childless, and with their passing away, this line will be stopped.
• Konstantinovichi - the line originates from Konstantin Nikolaevich Romanov. The last direct descendant of the Romanovs in the male line died in 1992, and the branch was cut short.
• Nikolaevichi - descended from Romanov Nikolai Nikolaevich. To this day, a direct descendant of this branch, Dmitry Romanovich, lives and lives. He has no heirs, so the line is fading.
• The Mikhailovichi are the heirs of Mikhail Nikolaevich Romanov. It is to this branch that the rest of the Romanov-men who live today belong. This gives hope to the Romanov family for survival.

Where are the descendants of the Romanovs today

Many researchers were interested in whether the descendants of the Romanovs remained? Yes, this great family has male and female heirs. Some branches have already been interrupted, other lines will soon fade away, but the royal family still has hope for survival.

But where do the descendants of the Romanovs live? They are dispersed throughout the planet. Most of them do not know the Russian language and have never been to the homeland of their ancestors. Some people have different last names. Many got acquainted with Russia exclusively through books or reports from television news channels. And yet, some of them visit their historical homeland, they do charity work here and consider themselves Russians at heart.

When asked if there were descendants of the Romanovs, one can answer that today there are only about thirty known offspring of the royal family living in the world today. Of these, only two can be considered purebred, because their parents entered into marriages according to the laws of the dynasty. It is these two who can consider themselves full representatives of the Imperial House. In 1992, they were issued Russian passports to replace the refugee passports they used to live abroad until that time. Funds received as sponsorship from Russia allow family members to pay visits to their homeland.

It is not known how many people live in the world who have "Romanov" blood in their veins, but they do not belong to the family, as they came from the female line or from extramarital affairs. Nevertheless, genetically they also belong to an ancient family.

Head of the Imperial House

Prince Romanov Dmitry Romanovich became the Head of the House of Romanov after the death of Nikolai Romanovich, his elder brother.

Great-great-grandson of Nicholas I, great-grandson of Prince Nicholas Nikolaevich, son of Prince Roman Petrovich and Countess Praskovia Sheremetyeva. He was born in France on May 17, 1926.

Since 1936 in Italy, later - in Egypt. In Alexandria, he worked at the Ford automobile plant: he worked as a mechanic, he sold cars. Upon returning to sunny Italy, he worked as a secretary in a shipping company.

I visited Russia for the first time back in 1953 as a tourist. When he got married in Denmark with his first wife, Johanna von Kaufmann, he settled in Copenhagen and worked there for more than 30 years in a bank.

All numerous members of the royal family call him the Head of the House, only the Kirillovich branch believes that he does not have legal rights to the throne due to the fact that his father was born in an unequal marriage (Kirillovichi, the heirs of Alexander II - this is Princess Maria Vladimirovna, who herself claims to the title of head of the Imperial House, and her son Georgy Mikhailovich, who claims the title of crown prince).

Dmitry Romanovich's old hobby is orders and medals from different countries. He has a large collection of awards, about which he writes a book.

The second time he was married in the Russian city of Kostroma with Dorrit Reventrow, a Danish translator, in July 1993. He has no children, therefore, when another last direct descendant of the Romanovs goes into the world, the branch of the Nikolaevichs will be cut short.

Legitimate members of the house, the fading branch of Alexandrovich

Today, such true representatives of the royal family are alive (in the male line from legal marriages, direct descendants of Paul I and Nicholas II, who bear the royal surname, the title of prince and belong to the Alexandrovich line):

• Romanov-Ilyinsky Dmitry Pavlovich, born in 1954 - the direct heir of Alexander II in the male line, lives in the USA, has 3 daughters, all married and changed their last names.
• Romanov-Ilyinsky Mikhail Pavlovich, born in 1959 - the half-brother of Prince Dmitry Pavlovich, also lives in the USA, has a daughter.

If the direct descendants of the Romanovs do not become fathers of sons, then the Alexandrovich line will be interrupted.

Direct descendants, princes and possible successors of the Romanov family - the most prolific branch of Mikhailovich

• Alexey Andreevich, born in 1953 - a direct descendant of Nicholas I, married, no children, lives in the USA.
• Petr Andreevich, born in 1961 - also a purebred Romanov, married, childless, lives in the USA.
• Andrei Andreevich, born in 1963 - legally belongs to the Romanov family, has a daughter from his second marriage, lives in the USA.
• Rostislav Rostislavovich, born in 1985 - the direct successor of the clan, not yet married, lives in the USA.
• Nikita Rostislavovich, born in 1987 - a legitimate descendant, not yet married, lives in the UK.
• Nicholas-Christopher Nikolaevich, born in 1968, is a direct descendant of Nicholas I, lives in the USA, has 2 daughters.
• Daniel Nikolaevich, born in 1972 - a legal member of the Romanov family, married, lives in the USA, has a daughter and a son.
• Daniil Danilovich, born in 2009 - the youngest legitimate descendant of the royal family in the male line, lives with his parents in the United States.

As can be seen from the family tree, only the branch of Mikhailovich gives hope for the continuation of the royal family - the direct heirs of Mikhail Nikolaevich Romanov, the youngest son of Nicholas I.

Descendants of the Romanov family who cannot inherit the royal family, and controversial applicants for membership of the Imperial House

• Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, born in 1953 - Her Imperial Highness, who claims the title of Head of the Russian Imperial House, is the legitimate heiress of Alexander II, belongs to the Alexandrovich line. Until 1985, she was married to Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia, from whom in 1981 she gave birth to her only son George. At birth, he was given the patronymic Mikhailovich and the surname Romanov.
• Georgy Mikhailovich, born in 1981 - the son of Princess Romanova Maria Vladimirovna and the Prince of Prussia, claims the title of Tsarevich, however, most representatives of the Romanov dynasty rightly do not recognize his rights, since he is not a descendant in the direct male line, namely, the right of inheritance is transferred through the male line. His birth is a joyful event in the Prussian palace.
• Princess Elena Sergeevna Romanova (by her husband Nirot), born in 1929, lives in France, one of the last representatives of the Romanov family, belongs to the Alexandrovich line.
• born in 1961 - the legal heir of Alexander II, now lives in Switzerland. His grandfather George was an illegitimate son from the Emperor's relationship with Princess Dolgorukova. After the relationship was legalized, all the children of Dolgorukova were recognized as legitimate from Alexander II, but the Yuryevsky received the surname. Therefore, de jure, George (Hans-Georg) does not belong to the Romanov family, although de facto he is the last descendant of the Romanov dynasty in the male line of the Alexandrovichs.
• Princess Tatyana Mikhailovna, born in 1986 - belongs to the house of the Romanovs along the line of Mikhailovich, but as soon as he gets married and changes his surname, he will lose all rights. Lives in Paris.
• Princess Alexandra Rostislavovna, born in 1983 - also a hereditary descendant of the Mikhailovich branch, not married, lives in the USA.
• Princess Karline Nikolaevna, born in 2000 - is the legal representative of the Imperial House in the line of Mikhailovich, unmarried, lives in the USA,
• Princess Chelly Nikolaevna, born in 2003 - a direct descendant of the royal family, not married, a US citizen.
• Princess Madison Danilovna, born in 2007 - on the line of Mikhailovich, a legal family member, lives in the USA.

Unification of the Romanov family

All other Romanovs are children of morganatic marriages, and therefore cannot belong to the Russian Imperial House. All of them are united by the so-called "Association of the Romanov family", which was headed in 1989 by Nikolai Romanovich and performed this duty until his death, in September 2014.

The biographies of the most prominent representatives of the Romanov dynasty of the 20th century are described below.

Romanov Nikolai Romanovich

Great-great-grandson of Nicholas I. Watercolor painter.

Saw the light on September 26, 1922 near the French city of Antibes. There he spent his childhood. In 1936 he moved to Italy with his parents. In this country, in 1941, directly from Mussolini, he received an offer to become the king of Montenegro, which he refused. Later he lived in Egypt, then again in Italy, in Switzerland, where he married Countess Svevadella Garaldeschi, then returned to Italy again, where in 1993 he took citizenship.

"Association" headed in 1989. On his initiative, in Paris in 1992, a congress of the Romanov-men was convened, at which a decision was made to create the Russian Relief Fund. In his opinion, Russia should be a federal republic, where the central government is strong, the powers of which are strictly limited.

He has three daughters. Natalia, Elizaveta and Tatyana started families with Italians.

Vladimir Kirillovich

Born on August 17, 1917 in Finland, in exile with Sovereign Kirill Vladimirovich. He was raised as a truly Russian person. He was fluent in Russian, many European languages, knew the history of Russia perfectly, was a well-educated erudite person and felt true pride that he belongs to Russia.

At twenty, the last direct descendant of the Romanovs in the male line became the Head of the Dynasty. It was enough for him to enter into an unequal marriage, and by the 21st century there would no longer be legitimate members of the imperial family.

But he met Princess Leonida Georgievna Bagration-Mukhranskaya, daughter of the Head of the Georgian Royal House, who became his legal wife in 1948. In this marriage, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna was born in Madrid.

For several decades he was the Head of the Russian Imperial House and, by his own decree, announced the right of his daughter, born in a legal marriage, to inherit the throne.

In May 1992 he was buried in St. Petersburg in the presence of many family members.

Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna

The only daughter of Prince Vladimir Kirillovich, a member of the Imperial House in exile, and Leonida Georgievna, daughter of the Head of the Georgian Royal House, Prince George Alexandrovich Bagration-Mukhransky. Born legally on December 23, 1953. Her parents provided her with a good upbringing and an excellent education. At the age of 16, she swore allegiance to Russia and its peoples.

After graduating from Oxford University, she received a degree in philology. He is fluent in Russian, many European and Arabic languages. She has worked in administrative positions in France and Spain.

The imperial family owns a modest apartment in Madrid. The house in France was sold due to the inability to maintain it. The family maintains an average standard of living - by the standards of Europe. Has Russian citizenship.

Upon reaching the age of majority in 1969, according to the dynastic act issued by Prince Vladimir Kirillovich, she was proclaimed guardian of the throne. In 1976, she married Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia. With the adoption of Orthodoxy, he received the title of Prince Mikhail Pavlovich. The current pretender to the Russian throne, Prince Georgy Mikhailovich, was born from this marriage.

Tsesarevich Georgy Mikhailovich

He claims to be the heir to the title of His Imperial Highness the Sovereign.

The only son of Princess Maria Vladimirovna and the Prince of Prussia, born in marriage on March 13, 1981 in Madrid. A direct descendant of the German Emperor Wilhelm II, Russian Emperor Alexander II, Queen Victoria of England.

He graduated from school in Saint-Briac, then continued his studies in Paris at the College of St. Stanislaus. Lives in Madrid since 1988. He considers French to be his native language, he is fluent in Spanish and English, he knows Russian a little worse. He first saw Russia in 1992, when he accompanied the body of his grandfather, Prince Vladimir Kirillovich, together with his family to the burial place. His independent visit to the Motherland took place in 2006. He worked in the European Parliament, the European Commission. Single.

In the House's anniversary year, it established a cancer research fund.

Andrey Andreevich Romanov

Great-great-grandson of Nicholas I, great-grandson of Alexander III. Born in London on January 21, 1923. Now lives in the United States, California, in Marin County. He knows the Russian language perfectly, because always and everyone in his family spoke Russian.

Graduated from London Imperial Service College. During World War II, he served on a warship of the British Navy as a sailor. It was then, escorting cargo ships to Murmansk, that he visited Russia for the first time.

He has been an American citizen since 1954. In America, he was engaged in agriculture: farming, agronomy, agricultural technology. I studied sociology. He worked for a shipping company.

Among his hobbies are painting and graphics. Creates works in a "childish" manner, as well as color drawings on plastic, which is later heat-treated.

He is in his third marriage. From the first marriage he has a son Alexei, from the second two: Peter and Andrey.

It is believed that neither he nor his sons have rights to the throne, but how candidates can be considered by the Zemsky Sobor on a par with other descendants.

Mikhail Andreevich Romanov

The great-great-grandson of Nicholas I, the great-grandson of Prince Mikhail Nikolaevich, was born in Versailles on July 15, 1920. Graduated from the Royal College of Windsor, London Institute of Aeronautical Engineers.

He served in the Second World War in Sydney in the Volunteer Air Force Reserve of the British Navy. He was demobilized in 1945 to Australia. There he remained to live, being engaged in the aviation industry.

He was an active member of the Maltese Order of the Orthodox Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, even elected protector and Grand Prior of the Order. He was part of the Australians for Constitutional Monarchy movement.

He was married three times: in February 1953 to Jill Murphy, in July 1954 to Shirley Crammond, in July 1993 to Julia Crespi. All marriages are unequal and childless.

He passed away in September 2008 in Sydney.

Romanov Nikita Nikitich

Great-great-grandson of Nicholas I. Born in London on May 13, 1923. Childhood passed in the UK, then in France.

He served in the British Army. In 1949 he moved to the USA. He received a master's degree in history from Berkeley University in 1960. He earned his living and studying by himself, working as a furniture upholsterer.

At Stanford University, and later at San Francisco, he taught history. He wrote and published a book about Ivan the Terrible (co-author - Pierre Payne).

His wife is Janet (Anna Mikhailovna - in Orthodoxy) Shonvald. Son Fedor committed suicide in 2007.

He repeatedly visited Russia, visited the estate of his business Ai-Todor in the Crimea. For the last forty years he lived in New York until he died in May 2007.

Brothers Dmitry Pavlovich and Mikhail Pavlovich Romanov-Ilyinsky (sometimes under the surname Romanovsky-Ilyinsky)

Dmitry Pavlovich, born in 1954, and Mikhail Pavlovich, born in 1960

Dmitry Pavlovich is married to Martha Mary McDowell, born in 1952, has 3 daughters: Katrina, Victoria, Lela.

Mikhail Pavlovich was married three times. First marriage to Marsha Mary Lowe, second to Paula Gay Mair and third to Lisa Mary Schiesler. In the third marriage, a daughter, Alexis, was born.

Currently, the descendants of the Romanov dynasty live in the United States, they recognize the legitimacy of the rights of members of the Imperial House to the Russian throne. Princess Maria Vladimirovna recognized their right to be called princes. Dmitry Romanovsky-Ilyinsky is recognized by her as the senior representative of the male gender of all the descendants of the Romanovs, regardless of what marriages they have.

Finally

For about a hundred years there has been no monarchy in Russia. But to this day, someone breaks spears, arguing about which of the living descendants of the royal family has the legal right to the Russian throne. Some still strongly demand the return of the monarchy. And although this issue is not easy, since laws and decrees relating to issues of succession to the throne are interpreted in different ways, disputes will continue. But they can be described by one Russian saying: the descendants of the Romanovs, whose photos are presented in the article, "share the skin of an unkilled bear."

The roots of the genus

The Romanov clan is of ancient origin and descended from the Moscow boyar of the time of Ivan Kalita, Andrei Kobyla. The sons of Andrei Kobyla became the founders of many boyar and noble families, including the Sheremetevs, Konovnitsyns, Kolychevs, Ladygins, Yakovlevs, Boborykins, and others.
The Romanovs came from the son of Kobyla Fyodor Koshka. His descendants were first called Koshkins, then Koshkins-Zakharyins, and then Zakharyins.

Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina was the first wife of Ivan IV the Terrible. She alone knew how to pacify the temper of Ivan the Terrible, and after she was poisoned and she died at the age of 30, Grozny compared each of his next wives with Anastasia.

Anastasia's brother, boyar Nikita Romanovich Zakharyin, began to be called Romanov after his father Roman Yuryevich Zakharyin-Koshkin.

So, the first Russian tsar from the Romanov family, Mikhail Romanov, was the son of the boyar Fyodor Nikitich Romanov and the boyar Xenia Ivanovna Romanova.

Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov (1596-1645) - the first Russian tsar from the Romanov dynasty.

Accession of the Romanovs: versions

Since the Romanovs, thanks to the marriage of Anastasia, were related to the Rurik dynasty, during the reign of Boris Godunov they fell into disgrace. Mikhail's father and mother were forcibly tonsured monks. He himself and all his relatives were exiled to Siberia, but were subsequently returned.

After the end of the Time of Troubles in 1613, the Zemsky Sobor elected Mikhail Fedorovich as the new sovereign. Then he was only 16 years old. In addition to him, the Polish prince Vladislav (future Vladislav IV), the Swedish prince Carl Philip, as well as representatives of many noble boyar families claimed the throne.

At the same time, the Mstislavskys and Kurakins collaborated with the Poles during the Time of Troubles, the Godunovs and Shuiskys were relatives of the recently overthrown rulers. According to the official version, the representative of the Vorotynsky family, a member of the Seven Boyars, Ivan Vorotynsky, recused himself.

According to one version, the candidacy of Mikhail Romanov was considered a compromise, in addition, the Romanov family did not stain itself in the Time of Troubles like other noble families. However, not all historians adhere to this version - they believe that the candidacy of Mikhail Romanov was imposed on the Zemsky Sobor, and the cathedral did not represent all Russian lands at that time, and the Cossack troops had a great influence on the course of the meetings.

Nevertheless, Mikhail Romanov was elected to the kingdom and became Mikhail I Fedorovich. He lived for 49 years, during the years of his reign (1613 - 1645) the king managed to overcome the consequences of the Time of Troubles, restore centralized power in the country. New territories were annexed in the east, and peace was concluded with Poland, as a result of which the Polish king ceased to claim the Russian throne.

Figures and facts

Most of the Russian tsars and emperors from the Romanov dynasty lived a fairly short life. Only Peter I, Elizabeth I Petrovna, Nicholas I and Nicholas II lived for more than 50 years, and Catherine II and Alexander II lived for more than 60 years. Nobody lived to 70

Peter I the Great.

Catherine II lived the longest life and died at the age of 67. At the same time, she did not belong to the Romanov dynasty by birth, but was German. Peter II lived the least - he died at the age of 14.

The direct line of succession to the throne of the Romanovs stopped in the 18th century, all Russian emperors, starting with Peter III, belonged to the Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov dynasty. The Holstein-Gottorps were a German ducal dynasty and at some point in history became related to the Romanovs.

Catherine II ruled the country the longest (34 years) for 34 years. Least of all the rules of Peter III - 6 months.

Ivan VI (John Antonovich) was a baby on the throne. He became emperor when he was only 2 months and 5 days old, his regents ruled in his stead.

Most of the impostors pretended to be Peter III. After he was overthrown, he died under unclear circumstances. The most famous impostor is Emelyan Pugachev, who led the peasant war in 1773-1775.

Of all the rulers, Alexander II carried out the most liberal reforms, and at the same time, he was the most assassinated. After a series of unsuccessful assassination attempts, the terrorists still managed to kill the tsar - he died from a bomb explosion, which the People's Will threw at his feet on the embankment of the Catherine Canal in St. Petersburg.

The last Emperor Nicholas II, who was shot by the Bolsheviks, as well as his wife and children, were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as martyrs.

The Romanov dynasty in faces

Mikhail I Fedorovich
The first Russian tsar from the Romanov dynasty
Years of life: 1596 - 1645 (49 years old)
Years of government: 1613 - 1645

overcoming the consequences of the Time of Troubles; restoration of centralized
authorities in the country; annexation of new territories in the east; peace with Poland
as a result of which the Polish king ceased to claim the Russian throne.

Alexei I Mikhailovich
Son of Fyodor Mikhailovich. For the absence of major upheavals in the country during the years of his
board was named the Quietest
Years of life: 1629 - 1676 (46 years)
Years of government: 1645 - 1676
Achievements and government initiatives:
military reform; a new set of laws - the Cathedral Code of 1649; church
the reform of Patriarch Nikon, which caused a split in the church.

Fedor III Alekseevich
Son of Alexei Mikhailovich. He had poor health, which is why he died early
Years of life: 1661 - 1682 (20 years)
Years of government: 1676 - 1682

Achievements and government initiatives:
census of the population of the country in 1678; abolition of parochialism - distributions
official places, taking into account the origin and official position of the ancestors; introduction
house-to-house imposition of direct taxes; fight against schismatics.

Sofia Alekseevna
Regent over Ivan V and Peter I, both of whom were recognized as tsars. After
bias cut hair in a nun
Years of life: 1657 - 1704 (46 years old)
Years of government: 1682 - 1689

Achievements and government initiatives:
the signing of the "Eternal Peace" with Poland, according to which Kyiv was recognized as part of
Russian kingdom; - fight against schismatics.

Ivan V
The son of Alexei Mikhailovich and the elder brother of Peter I. He had poor health and did not
interested in government affairs
Years of life: 1666 - 1696 (29 years old)
Years of reign: 1682 - 1696 (co-ruler Peter I)

Peter I
The last Russian tsar and the first emperor of the Russian Empire (since 1721).
One of the most famous rulers of Russia, who radically changed
the historical fate of the country
Years of life: 1672 - 1725 (52 years old)
Years of government: 1682 - 1725

Achievements and government initiatives:
large-scale reforms to radically reorganize the state and public
way of life; creation of the Russian Empire; creation of the Senate - the highest body
state power, subordinate to the emperor; victory in the Northern War
Sweden; the creation of a navy and a regular army; construction
Petersburg and the transfer of the capital to St. Petersburg from Moscow; Spread
education, the creation of secular schools; publication of the first newspaper in Russia;
accession to Russia of new territories.

Catherine I
The wife of Peter I. Took little part in public affairs
Years of life: 1684 - 1727 (43 years)
Years of government: 1725 - 1727

Achievements and government initiatives:
creation of the Supreme Privy Council, with the help of which close
empresses actually ruled the state; opening of the Academy of Sciences, creation
which was conceived under Peter I.

Peter II
Grandson of Peter I, the last direct descendant of the Romanov dynasty in the male line. AT
did not take part in public affairs due to his young age and indulged
entertainment, his entourage ruled instead
Years of life: 1715 - 1730 (14 years old)
Years of government: 1727 - 1730

Anna Ivanovna
Daughter of Ivan V. Favoritism flourished during her reign.
Years of life: 1693 - 1740 (47 years old)
Years of government: 1730 - 1740

Achievements and government initiatives:
the dissolution of the Supreme Privy Council and the creation of a cabinet of ministers; institution
Secret Investigation Offices; conversions in the army: service restriction for
nobles for 25 years, the creation of new guards regiments, the establishment of the gentry cadet corps.

Ivan VI (John Antonovich)
Great-grandson of Ivan V. Was emperor in infancy under the regency of Anna's favorite
Ioannovna Ernst Biron and his mother Anna Leopoldovna, was overthrown, his
childhood and the rest of his life spent in prisons
Years of life: 1740 - 1764 (23 years old)
Years of government: 1740 - 1741

Elizabeth I Petrovna
Daughter of Peter I, the last heir to the throne from the Romanov dynasty
straight female line.
Years of life: 1709 - 1761 (52 years old)
Years of government: 1741 - 1761

Achievements and government initiatives:
the abolition of the cabinet of ministers and the restoration of the role of the Senate; reform
taxation, the destruction of internal customs duties and fees; expansion of the rights of the nobility; creation of the first Russian banks; accession of new territories in Central Asia to Russia.

Peter III
Grandson of Peter I and son of his eldest daughter Anna Petrovna. Due to unpopular measures
in foreign policy and in the army lost the support of the ruling circles and soon after
accession to the throne was overthrown by his own wife Catherine, who also
was his second cousin
Years of life: 1728 - 1762 (34 years old)
Years of government: 1761 - 1762

Achievements and government initiatives:
the abolition of the Secret Chancellery; the beginning of the secularization of church lands; the publication of the Manifesto on the Liberty of the Nobility, which expanded the privileges of this class; an end to the persecution of the Old Believers.

Catherine II
Sophia Augusta Frederica of Anhalt-Zerbst, daughter
Prussian general field marshal and wife of Peter III. Toppled her husband after 6
months after he ascended the throne
Years of life: 1729 - 1796 (67 years)
Years of government: 1762 - 1796

Achievements and government initiatives:
provincial reform, which determined the territorial structure of the country to
revolutions of 1917; the maximum enslavement of the peasantry and the deterioration of its
provisions; further expansion of the privileges of the nobles ("Charter of
nobility"); accession to Russia of new lands - the Crimea, the Black Sea,
parts of the Commonwealth; the introduction of paper money - banknotes; development
education and science, including the creation of the Russian Academy; renewal
persecution of the Old Believers; secularization of church lands.

Pavel I
Son of Peter III and Catherine II. He was killed by officers as a result of a conspiracy, about which
was not known to the general public until the beginning of the 20th century.
Years of life: 1754 - 1801 (46 years old)
Years of government: 1796 - 1801

Achievements and government initiatives:
improving the position of the peasantry; creation of the State Treasury;
the abolition of part of the privileges of the nobility granted by Catherine II of the military
reform.

Alexander I
Son of Paul I and beloved grandson of Catherine II. It was during his reign that Russia
won the Patriotic War of 1812 with Napoleon
Years of life: 1777 - 1825 (47 years)
Years of government: 1801 - 1825

Achievements and government initiatives:
restoration of the "Charter to the nobility"; institution
ministries instead of colleges; "Decree on free cultivators", thanks to which
the landlords received the right to free the peasants; establishment of military settlements for
recruiting the army; annexation of new territories, including Georgia,
Finland, Poland, etc.

Nicholas I
Brother of Alexander I. Ascended the throne after the abdication of his second elder
brother Konstantin, at the same time there was an uprising of the Decembrists
Years of life: 1796 - 1855 (58 years old)
Years of government: 1825 - 1855

Achievements and government initiatives:
suppression of the Decembrist uprising; increased censorship; creation of the Third
departments of the office for political investigation; war in the Caucasus; improvement
the situation of the peasants - it was forbidden to exile them to hard labor and sell them one by one
and without land; annexation to Russia of the mouth of the Danube, the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus
and Transcaucasia; unsuccessful Crimean War.

Alexander II
Son of Nicholas I, actively pursued political reforms and was killed as a result
Narodnaya Volya terrorist attack
Years of life: 1818 - 1881 (62 years)
Years of government: 1855 - 1881

Achievements and government initiatives:
the abolition of serfdom in 1861; zemstvo reform - management issues
local zemstvos began to deal; creation of a unified system of courts; creation
city ​​councils in cities; military reform and the emergence of new types of weapons; accession to the empire of Central Asia, the North Caucasus, the Far East; sale of Alaska to the USA.

Alexander III
Son of Alexander II. After the murder of his father, brought to naught many of his
liberal reforms
Years of life: 1845 - 1894 (49 years old)
Years of government: 1881 - 1894

Achievements and government initiatives:
curtailment of many reforms in the field of local self-government, judicial
systems, education; increased supervision of the peasants; explosive growth
industry; restriction of factory work of minors and night work
teenagers and women.

Nicholas II
The last Russian emperor, son of Alexander III. During his reign
all three Russian revolutions occurred, after the revolution of 1917 he renounced
throne and was killed by the Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg along with his family
Years of life: 1868 - 1918 (50 years)
Years of government: 1894 - 1917

Achievements and government initiatives:
the 1897 general census; monetary reform that established gold
ruble standard; the unsuccessful Russo-Japanese War; limitation of working hours
enterprises; publication of the Manifesto on October 17, 1905, granting the entire population
the country's basic civil rights and freedoms; creation of the State Duma;
entry into the First World War.

Facts and myths

The most terrible secret of the Romanovs was the "Russian iron mask" - the failed Russian emperor Ivan Antonovich. According to the will of the childless Anna Ioannovna (died in 1740), her niece's son was to become her heir. At the age of one, the boy was overthrown from the throne by the daughter of Peter I, Elizabeth. Ivan spent his whole life in captivity and was killed by guards in 1764 while trying to be freed by conspirators.

Princess Tarakanova - an impostor who pretended to be the daughter of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. While in Europe, she declared claims to the throne in 1774. She was kidnapped by order of Catherine II and brought to Russia. During the investigation, she pleaded not guilty and did not disclose her origin. She died in custody in the Peter and Paul Fortress.

Strictly speaking, the direct branch of the Romanov family was cut short after the death of Elizaveta Petrovna in 1761. Since then, it is more correct to call the dynasty Holstein-Gottorp-Romanovskaya. There was practically no Slavic blood in its representatives, which did not prevent some of them from being deeply Russian people.

The most counterfeited "brand" in the history of the Romanovs is Emperor Peter III, who was overthrown in 1762. More than 40 impostors are known to hide behind his name. The most famous false Peter is Emelyan Pugachev.

According to legend, Alexander I did not die in Taganrog in 1825, but staged his own death and lived in Siberia for another half a century under the name of Elder Fyodor Kuzmich. Whether this is true or not is unknown.

By the way…

After the revolution of 1917, the Russian Imperial House lost its political power, but retained the role of a historical institution.

“The status of the current Russian Imperial House is recognized by all modern royal houses. Its head is the Empress Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna (b. 1953), great-great-granddaughter of Emperor Alexander II.

Her grandfather Kirill was a cousin of Nicholas II and headed the dynasty after the death of the tsar, his son Alexei and brother Mikhail, - said Kirill Nemirovich-Danchenko, adviser to the Office of E.I.V. on interaction with public organizations and state authorities of the Russian Federation. - The second member of the House is the heir Tsarevich and Grand Duke Georgy Mikhailovich (b. 1981), her son.

All other descendants of members of the dynasty, in accordance with dynastic laws, do not have rights to the throne and do not belong to the Imperial House (the supremacy of Maria Vladimirovna is disputed by Nikolai Romanov, the son of Prince Roman Petrovich of imperial blood. He is the president of the organization "Association of the Romanov Family." - Ed.) . The total number of people in whose veins the blood of the Romanovs flows is more than 100 all over the world. Those who rightfully bear this surname are about 15.

Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna and Grand Duke George Mikhailovich

Maria Vladimirovna lives in Spain. Since 2003, the dynasty has been represented in the homeland by the Office of the Russian Imperial House, the purpose of which is to promote the integration of the House into the public life of Russia. Maria Vladimirovna has repeatedly visited Russia, since 1992 she has known Vladimir Putin personally. After his election to the presidency, brief meetings took place, but no detailed conversation has yet taken place.

The Grand Duchess and her son are citizens of the Russian Federation, declare their complete loyalty to the Constitution and the existing government, firmly oppose restitution and believe that the development of cooperation between the Imperial House and the modern state has a future.