During the reign of Emperor Alexander II, many important reforms were implemented, including the reform of the abolition of serfdom, thanks to him the monarch was nicknamed the Liberator. In addition, he established himself as a delicate diplomat who not only achieved agreements important for the Russian Empire, but also won the Russian-Turkish war.
The birth of the future emperor was marked by salute. The guns gave 201 volley. He was the only Russian ruler born in Moscow since 1725. Some testimonies claim that in his youth Alexander II was in love with Queen Victoria of England. One of the disciples of the future monarch was the poet V. Zhukovsky, a friend of A.S. Pushkin. When the future Alexander II turned 16 years old, his father, Nicholas I, made him a member of the Senate and the Holy Synod.
It was Alexander II who sold the Aleutian Islands and Alaska to the United States, since Russia did not have the resources to develop such remote lands. The emperor had 12 children, eight from the first spouse, and four more from the second. Alexander II loved painting, and he owned many paintings. Some, by the way, were very frivolous content.
The mineral alexandrite discovered on the 16th birthday of the future ruler was named in his honor. After the death of his first wife, Alexander II donated a million rubles (huge money by the standards of those years!) For the construction of a hospital named after his late wife. Among other reforms, he allowed Jews to settle anywhere in the territory of the Russian Empire. Also, when it came into force a decree prohibiting the publication of literature in the Ukrainian language.
Alexander II tried to kill seven times. The last attempt was fatal for him. After the Bolshevik Revolution, most of the monuments to this emperor were destroyed. More than a century ago, a monument to Alexander II was erected in Finland, in the city of Helsinki.
