Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia
Encyclopedia
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia (St. Petersburg 14 January 1850 (4 January O.S.) – Paris, 14 November 1908) was the sixth child and the fourth son of Alexander II of Russia
and his first wife Maria Alexandrovna (Marie of Hesse). Destined to a naval career, Alexei Alexandrovich started his military training at the age of 7. By the age of 20 he had been appointed lieutenant of the Russian Imperial Navy and had visited all European military ports of Russia. In 1871 he was sent as a goodwill ambassador to the United States and Japan.
In 1883 he was appointed general admiral
. He had a significant contribution in the equipment of the
Russian navy with new ships and in modernizing the naval ports. In 1905, after the defeat in the Battle of Tsushima
he was relieved of his command. He died in Paris in 1908.
The Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich Romanov
of Russia was born in Saint Petersburg
on 14 January 1850 (4 January O.S.). He was the son of emperor Alexander II
and empress Maria Alexandrovna. He was a younger brother of Grand Duchess Alexandra Alexandrovna
, Tsarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich, Alexander III of Russia
, Grand Duke Vladmir Alexandrovich
. He was an older brother of Duchess Maria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich
and Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich.
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was destined for a naval career since his childhood. At the age of 7 he received the rank of midshipman
. The next year Konstantin Nikolayevich Posyet
was appointed as his tutor. While the winters were dedicated to theoretical studies, during the summers he trained on Russian warships of the Baltic fleet stationed in Saint Petersburg
harbour. Training exposed him to various sailing ships:
On 18 September 1866 Grand Duke Alexei was promoted lieutenant
. He continued his navy career serving as officer aboard the frigate Alexander Nevski on a cruise in across the Mediterranean Sea
to Pireaus, where he attended the wedding of his cousin Olga Konstantinovna
.
In 1868 he went on a trip to southern Russia traveling by train from Saint Petersburg to , continuing by ship down the Volga
to Astrakhan
. He then boarded a military ship for a cruise on the Caspian Sea
to Baku
, [Petrovsk (now Makhachkala
) and then to Iran
. He then crossed the Caucasus
and reached Poti
where the Alexander Nevsky was moored. From there he sailed to Constantinople
, Athens
and the Azore Islands On the return voyage, on the frigate was wrecked off the coast of Jutland
during a storm on the North Sea
. Though the ship was lost, the crew including Alexei Alexandrovitch except five men was unhurt and could safely reach the shore.
In January 1870 Alexei Alexandrovich reached the age of majority
according to Russian legislation. The event was marked by taking two oaths : the military one and the oath of allegiance of the Grand Dukes of the Russian Imperial House. In June 1870 Alexei Alexandrovich started the last part of his training. This included inland navigation on a cutter with a steam engine
, on the route from Saint Petersburg to Arkhangelsk
through the Mariinsk Canal system
and the Northern Dvina River. After visiting the schools and industrial facilities of Arkhangelsk, he started his navigation training in arctic conditions, aboard the corvette
Variag. His cruise took him to the Solovetsky Islands
, continuing through the White Sea
and Barents Sea
to Novaya Zemlya
. The route continued to Kola Bay
and the city of Murmansk
, the ports of northern Norway and Iceland
. He returned to Cronstadt at the end of September.
In 1869/1870, Alexei had an affair with Alexandra Zhukovskaya
, daughter of poet Vasily Andreyevich Zhukovsky, who was eight years older than he was. They were parents to a son, Alexei, born on 26 November 1871. Tsar Alexander II was strongly opposed to this relationship.
Some historians claim that they were morganatically married and that the marriage was annulled by the Russian Orthodox Church
, because, according to the "Fundamental Laws of the Imperial House", this marriage was illegal. However, articles 183 and 188, which prohibited marriages without the consent of the emperor, were included in the Fundamental Laws only by the 1887 revision under Tsar Alexander III. The rules valid in 1870 did not prohibit mornaganatic marriages, but simply excluded their offspring from the succession to the throne. There is no evidence either to the marriage or to the divorce. There is also no evidence that the Grand Duke even requested the permission to marry. As Alexandra Zhukovskaya was not an aristocrat and, besides, the daughter of an illegitimate son of a Russian landowner and a Turkish slave, such a marriage would have been unthinkable.
Upset by his son's affair, Alexander II even refused to grant Alexandra Zhukovskaya a title, which would have officially recognized the Grand Duke's paternity, even if illegitimate. Other European courts also refused to grant her a title. As a solution of last resort, on 25 March 1875 Alexandra was able to secure the title of baroness Seggiano from the Republic of San Marino
, with the right to transmit the title to her son Alexei and his firstborn male descendants. It was only in 1883, that Alexander III, the Grand Duke's elder brother, granted the baron Seggiano the title of count Belevsky, and in 1893 approved his coat of arms
.
of an American squadron under the command of Admiral David Farragut
in 1867, a high level visit of the Russian Navy was envisaged by the Russian Government. After lengthy negotiations, it was decided that the Russian delegation would be headed by Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich. The official announcement of the visit was made on 29 June 1871 by Nikolay Karlovich Krabbe
, Minister of the Imperial Russian Navy.
The Russian squadron, under the command of admiral Konstantin Nikolayevich Posyet
on board the frigate Bogalye included the frigates Svetlana and The Admiral General, the corvette Ignatiev and the gunboat Abrek. The Grand Duke was serving as lieutenant aboard the Svetlana. Before reaching the United States, the Russian squadron was to be met by the frigate Vsadnik of the Russian Pacific Fleet. Though all ships were equipped with steam-engines, the squadron made the passage to America mainly under sail, so as to avoid making port on the route for coal supplies. Except for the Grand Duke’s personal staff, the crew included 200 officers and over 3000 sailors. The squadron set sail out of Kronstadt
on 20 August 1871.
The squadron first stopped in Copenhagen
, where the Grand Duke paid a visit to King Christian IX of Denmark
. In the English Channel
the Russians were met by a squadron of the Royal Navy
and escorted to Plymouth
, where the Grand Duke was met by the Duke of Edinburgh Alfred of Saxe-Coburg
. A visit to Balmoral Castle
had been scheduled, but had to be canceled because the Prince of Wales
was very sick and Queen Victoria
extremely concerned.
The Russian squadron set sail from Plymouth on 26 September. and, on route to New York, stopped for a few days in Funchal
, (Madeira Islands), leaving on 9 October.
The Russian squadron was met by an American squadron under the command of vice-admiral Stephen Clegg Rowan
Port Admiral
of New York hoisting his flag on the frigate USS Congress
. Admiral Samuel Phillips Lee
, commander of the North Atlantic Squadron
attended on his own flagship, the USS Severn
. The other ships of the squadron were the USS Iroquois and the USS Kansas
, attended by several tugs.
A welcoming committee had been formed in New York, chaired by William Henry Aspinwall
. Among the members of the committee were Moses H. Grinnell
, general Irwin McDowell, Theodore Roosevelt, Sr.
rear-admiral S. W. Godon, John Taylor Johnston
, Albert Bierstadt
, Lloyd Aspinwall and others.
After a short delay due to the weather, the Russian squadron anchored in New York harbor on 21 November 1871, where the Grand Duke was greeted by general John Adams Dix
. A military parade took place in the city. The Grand Duke then attended a thanksgiving service at the Russian chapel
.
by special train, placed at his disposal by the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company. The train had three cars: the "Commissariat" having all the modern improvements of a hotel, comprising store-rooms and pantry, the "Ruby", dining room car to accommodate 28 persons, with kitchen, ice boxes, and a sort of wine cellar, and "The Kearsarge" used as sitting, sleeping and reading room.
On 23 November, the Grand Duke was received by president Ulysses S. Grant
The president’s wife Julia Grant
and his daughter Nellie Grant
also attended. Most of the members of the cabinet were present at the meeting: Hamilton Fish
United States Secretary of State
, Columbus Delano
United States Secretary of the Interior
with his wife, Amos Tappan Akerman United States Attorney General
with his wife, George S. Boutwell
United States Secretary of the Treasury
, George Maxwell Robeson United States Secretary of the Navy
, general Frederick Tracy Dent
(the president’s brother-in-law and military secretary), John Creswell Postmaster General of the United States
as well as generals Horace Porter
and Orville E. Babcock
.
The Grand Duke arrived at 1 p.m. in company of minister Katakazi
, admiral Posyet
and other members of his suite. The president and the members of the cabinet received them in the Blue Room
where the presentations were made. The president then escorted the Grand Duke to the Red Room
where he was introduced to the ladies. The interview lasted only fifteen minutes, after which the Grand Duke left.
The visit to Washington was overshadowed by President Grant’s
discontent caused by the Russian government’s refusal to recall Konstantin Katacazi
, minister plenipotentiary of Russia to the United States. The entire visit in Washington lasted only one day. No formal entertainment was given in Washington to the Grand Duke, though for all other visits of members of royal families to the White House, formal dinners had been organized. Such dinners had taken place when President John Tyler
received François d'Orléans, prince de Joinville, when Abraham Lincoln
received Prince Napoleon Joseph Bonaparte
and even when Ulysses Grant received Kamehameha V
, king of the Sandwich Islands
. The evening of the visit to the White House, the Grand Duke and his suite dined at the minister Katakazi’s residence, the only American official attending being general Porter
. At his departure the Grand Duke was asked if he intended to return to Washington. Though he expressed his interest to return during a session of Congress
, the uneasy diplomatic relations due to Minister Katakazi prevented this from happening. There had also been expectations that a military alliance treaty between the United States and Russia would be signed during the meeting; however this was not the case.
The next day, the Grand Duke left by train for Annapolis
where he visited the Naval Academy
, thereafter returning to New York.
, Fort Wadsworth
and the fortifications on Governors Island
. He also reviewed the Fire Department at Tompkins Square. A highlight was the trip by steamer
on the Hudson
for the visit of the United States Military Academy
, West Point.
Several balls were organized in his honor, the most important being the grand balls at the Navy Yard and at the Academy of Music
. Alexei also attended opera performances of Faust
and Mignon
at the Academy of Music. He also went on a shopping spree, stopping at the A.T. Stewart
and Tiffany
stores where he bought some jewellery and bronze statues.
On 2 December 1871, a ceremony took place at the National Academy of Design
, where the Grand Duke was received by Samuel F. B. Morse
, William Stoddard
, William Page
, Albert Bierstadt
and several other artists. The painting Farragut in the shrouds of the Hartfort at the battle of Mobile Bay by William Page
was handed over to Grand Duke Alexei as a gift of the citizens of New York for Tsar Alexander II. General John Adams Dix
presented the picture and the accompanying scroll, with a brief address in which he expressed the hope that it would further cement the union that existed between the United States and Russia. The painting was placed on-board the Russian flag-ship for transportation to Russia.
On 3 December 1871, the Grand Duke Alexei left for Philadelphia where he was received by general George Meade
and Admiral Turner. He visited Girard College
, Baird Locomotive Works and the Navy Yard. He was particularly interested by the Methodist Fair at the Horticultural Hall, where the ladies presented him an Afghan Hound
.
From 7 December to 14 December, Grand Duke Alexei stopped in Boston, Massachusetts where he stayed at the Paul Revere House
. The landau
which president Lincoln
rode during his visit to Boston, was prepared for the Grand Duke. He was officially welcomed at the City Hall and the State House. During his stay, the Grand Duke visited Harvard University
and the suburb of Cambridge, Massachusetts
as well as different public schools in the Boston area, being extensively briefed on the American education system. Other highlights of were the battlefield of Bunker Hill
and the visit to the shipyards of Charlestown, Massachusetts
.
The Grand Duke also attended a Music Festival where 1,200 school children composed the great choir
. At the festival, a grand march of welcome, specially composed by Julius Eichberg
and dedicated to “His Imperial Highness”, was presented
A ball in honor of the Grand Duke took place at the Boston Theatre
. The audit of the expenses shows that the cost of ball was $14.678,58 (equivalent of $750.000 today), only $8.916,29 being covered by the sale of the tickets and other receipts
, where he had breakfast with the mayor
of the city, and then visited Lachine, Quebec
He then passed through Ottawa
and Toronto, finally reaching Clifton Hill (Niagara Falls)
on 22 December 1871 by the Great Western Railway
. On his way, the train stopped in Hamilton, Ontario
where he received a telegram from Queen Victoria, notifying him that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his illness. From Clifton Hill the party left by sleighs for a visit to the Niagara Falls
. After having dressed in oil-skinned suits for fishermen at sea, the party also went under the falls. The Grand Duke then crossed the Niagara River
over new suspension bridge
and then visited the United States part of the falls.
, where he spent Christmas. On Christmas Day, he went to the opera to see the British Parepa-Rosa Opera Company. After the performance he sent soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa
a bracelet studded with turquoise
and diamond
s. On 26 December, the Grand Duke arrived in Cleveland
where he visited the iron mills and other factories in Newburgh Heights, Ohio
. He then reviewed the Cleveland Fire Department and visited the National Inventors’ Exhibition. He then stopped in Detroit
on his way to Chicago, where he arrived on 30 December.
The city was recovering from the great fire. Joseph Medwill, mayor of Chicago, had written to the Grand Duke:
"We have but little to exihibit but the ruins and débris of a great and beautiful city and an undaunted people struggling with adversity to relieve their overwhelming misfortunes."
The Grand Duke visited the destroyed part of the city and was impressed by the rhythm of the reconstruction. He gave $5,000 USD (equivalent to $250,000 today) in gold to the homeless people of Chicago, Illinois. As an irony, the same day Grand Duke Alexei arrived in Chicago, a special Grand Jury
indicted thirteen members of the city’s on charges of bribery
. Grand Duke Alexei also visited the stockyards and a pork processing plant.
As the Tremont House
Hotel had been burnt to the ground, the Grand Duke was accommodated in the New Tremont House which had opened on Michigan Avenue, where he was awarded the "Freedom of the City
". On New Year’s Day General Philip Sheridan
initiated him into the American custom of making "New Year’s calls upon the ladies".
From 2 January to 4 January Grand Duke Alexei visited Milwaukee, Wisconsin
and on 5 January he arrived in St. Louis, Missouri
, where he stayed for over a week.
In St. Louis, Grand Duke Alexis attended a burlesque show Buebeard in which Lydia Thompson
, a 36-year-old actress was singing a tune "If Ever I Cease to Love". It is claimed that the Grand Duke was fascinated both by the actress and the song. Supposedly, she had also sung the number privately for the duke during a rendezvous. Lydia Thompson wasn't the only woman to catch the duke's eye; while in St. Louis, Alexei became particularly enamored of one of his dance partners, a lady called Sallie Shannon of Lawrence, Kansas
.
Finally on 12 January he arrived in Omaha, Nebraska
. Two companies of infantry in wagons, two companies of cavalry, the cavalry's regimental band, outriders, night herders, couriers, cooks had been mobilized for the event.
The Grand Duke in the company of General Philip Sheridan
, General Edward Ord
, and Lt. Colonel (Brevet Major General) George Armstrong Custer
, the latter having been selected to be Grand Marshall of the hunt, arrived at Fort McPherson
on 13 January 1872, by a special train provided by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. They were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd, headed by William Frederick Cody
(known as Buffalo Bill). After speeches, the Duke's party set out for the hunting grounds.
The Duke and General Sheridan rode in an open carriage, drawn by four horses. William Frederick Cody escorted the party with five ambulances, a light wagon for luggage, three wagons of "champagne and royal spirits" and fifteen to twenty extra saddle horses. A relay of horses was set up at Medicine Creek
, about half way to the camp, where the party stopped for lunch. The journey then continued to they called "Camp Alexis" on the Red Willow Creek
. The 2d Cavalry band was in place and in tune; "Hail to the Chief" was played when the Grand Duke arrived. The entire trip covered about 50 miles and took approximately eight hours.
The camp consisted of two hospital tents (used as dining tent), ten wall tents and tents for servants and soldiers. Three wall tents were floored and the Grand Duke’s was carpeted with oriental rugs. Box stoves and Sibley stoves were provided for the tents.
Cody had discussed the hunt with Spotted Tail
, chief of the Brulé
Lakota, who had agreed to meet the "great chief from across the water who was coming there to visit him." About 600 warriors of different Sioux
tribes, led by Spotted Tail, War Bonnet, Black Hat, Red Leaf, Whistler and Pawnee Killer, assembled to greet the grand duke at the hunting camp. They had been provided with ten thousand rations of flour, sugar, coffee, and 1,000 pounds of tobacco for their trouble - twenty-five wagon loads in all.
At the start of the party, Spotted Tail, dressed in a suit, which didn’t fit him, with an army belt upside down and an extremely awkward look was introduced to the Grand Duke. Then the Indian chief extended his hand, and greeted the Grand Duke with the customary "How
."
For the amusement of Alexei the Indians staged exercises of horsemanship, lance-throwing and bow-shooting. Then there was a sham fight, showing the Indian mode of warfare, closing up with a grand war dance. It was noticed that Grand Duke Alexei paid considerable attention to a good-looking Indian maiden. Concerned that his mother, Empress Maria Alexandrovna, might receive reports of his flirtations, he wrote her from St. Louis: "Regarding my success with American ladies about which so much is written in the newspapers, I can openly say, that this is complete nonsense. They looked on me from the beginning as they would look on a wild animal, as on a crocodile or other unusual beast." .
However, a dispute broke out when General Custer, probably having drunk too much champagne, made crude overtures to Spotted Tail's pretty 16-year-old daughter. Alexei was able to calm down the fight with gifts of red and green blankets, ivory-handled hunting knives and a large bag of silver dollars. A formal council took place in Sheridan’s tent and a peace pipe was passed around. Spotted Tail seized the chance to press his demand for the right to hunt freely south of the Platte River
and for more than one store in which to trade.
The next morning Spotted Tail requested him to hunt by the side of Two Lance, chief of the Nakota
Sioux tribe, so that he could see a demonstration of the Indian way of hunting. Coming up to a heard of buffalo, Two Lance demonstrated his skill by killing a large animal with one arrow which passed entirely through the body of the running buffalo. The arrow was preserved and given to Alexei. The Grand Duke killed two buffalo, one of them at 100 paces distance, with a pistol shot.
On the conclusion of the hunt, when returning to Fort McPherson, General Sheridan proposed that William Cody take the reins and show Alexei the old style of stage driving over the plains with the horses at full gallop. The heavy ambulance bounded over the rough prairie, while the occupants could hardly keep their seats. Grand Duke Alexei was pleased with his hunting trip. When he and Cody parted in Fort McPherson, he presented Cody with a fur coat and expensive cuff links.
From there the train continued to Denver where the Grand Duke arrived on 17 January. While in Denver, he attended an honorary ball sponsored by the Pioneer Club and visited some mines. Alexei apparently loved the new sport he had just learned and hunted buffalo again near Colorado Springs, on his return trip from Denver through Kansas
to St. Louis. However, the horses used to hunt in eastern Colorado were cavalry mounts and unaccustomed to buffalo; several hunters were injured during the resulting confusion. Alexei was unhurt and succeeded in killing as many as 25 buffalo. He even shot a few more from the train on its way across western Kansas toward Topeka
, which was reached on 22 January. It is claimed that, by the time they reached St. Louis, the party's supply of caviar and champagne had been exhausted.
General Custer became one of the Duke's best friends. He accompanied the Duke and his entourage through Kansas, to St. Louis, New Orleans, and finally to Florida. They continued to correspond with one another up until Custer’s death. In the United States, the hunt is remembered as "The Great Royal Buffalo Hunt". Starting from the year 2000, the Hayes Center, Nebraska
organizes each year the "Grand Duke Alexis Rendezvous" featuring a reenactment of the buffalo hunt.
Grand Duke Alexei received as a gift from chief Spotted Tail an Indian wigwam
and a bow and arrows. The Grand Duke took them back to St. Petersburg. At present they are kept at the museum in Tver
. In memory of his adventures in the America, the Grand Duke organized every year a special entertainment. The actors arrived to a village of tents in old carriages drawn by heavy horses. On the palaces lake there were "Indian" pirogue
s. Men with swords
and tomahawks
danced with women dressed in long old skirts. The performance was supposed to give the attendance an image of the American Old West
.
on 26 January On 28 January he left by train for Louisville, Kentucky
, where he visited the Mammoth Cave
He continued his trip by steamer, arriving on 2 February 1872 in Memphis Tennessee aboard the Great Republic. After visiting the city he left on 8 February aboard the James Howard and after a stop in Vicksburg
he finally arrived in New Orleans
, where he was guest of honor reviewing the inaugural Rex parade
.
There are many legends related to the Grand Duke’s visit to New Orleans. Though it has been claimed that local business leaders had planned the first daytime parade to honor the Grand Duke, but this was not true. New Orleans was struggling to recover from the lingering effects of the civil war. At the same time, many city leaders saw the need to bring some order to the chaotic street parades of Mardi Gras day. They had planned the parade all along and took the opportunity to capitalize on the Grand Duke’s visit. A new krewe
of prominent citizens was formed, calling itself the School of Design and its ruler was to be Rex (the organization is now known as the "Rex Organization"). The group of young men who founded the Rex Organization hoped not only to entertain the Grand Duke, but also to create a daytime parade that would be attractive and fun for the citizens of the city and their guests. They selected one of their members, Lewis J. Salomon, the organization’s fund-raiser to be the first Rex, King of Carnival. Before he could begin his reign, he had to borrow a crown, scepter, and costume from Lawrence Barrett
, a distinguished Shakespearean actor who was performing Richard III
at the Varieties Theater.
At the same time, Lydia Thompson’s tour had reached New Orleans and the Bluebeard burlesque was staged at the Academy of Music on St. Charles Avenue. Rumours of the courtship between the Grand Duke and the actress had reached New Orleans and were amplified mainly to ensure a full house. The Duke had already seen the performance and was a no-show, hanging out at the Jockey Club. Besides, the Grand Duke’s preferences had shifted and he was captivated by the diminutive actress Lotta Crabtree
who had one of the main roles in the play The Little Detective. Though the encounter was brief, Alexis sent her a bracelet of diamonds, opals and pearls in Memphis, her next stop after New Orleans.
The Duke however attended the Rex parade. According to legend, the song "If Ever I Cease to Love", was chosen as anthem of the Rex parade, because it was claimed to be the Duke’s favorite tune. Actually, the silly song had been written by George Leybourne
and published in London in 1871. The song was already popular in New Orleans before the first Rex parade in 1872. the local adaptation of the lyrics was likely done local journalist E.C. Hancock whose newspaper had already published a spoof of the song in 1871. The lyrics of the song were adapted to the occasion and changed to:
"May the Grand Duke Alexis
Ride a buffalo in Texas
If Ever I Cease to Love"
The Grand Duke never rode a buffalo in Texas, but Nebraska doesn’t rhyme with Alexis.
It is also claimed that the Grand Duke was also given the honour of selecting the official colours for Mardi Gras, and using the heraldic traditions, selected purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. The claim that these were the colors of the Romanov family is however incorrect. The Meaning and Origin of Purple, Green, and Gold in Mardi Gras Rex selected the official Mardi Gras colors in 1872. The 1892 Rex Parade theme Symbolism of Colors gave meaning to the colors: purple represents justice; green, faith; and gold, power. If any credence should be given for the colours being chosen by Duke Alexis Romanoff himself, then it may well be for the exotic citrus-based drink he introduced to New Orleans locals during that visit, which embodied lemons, limes and variant on the dark purple tonics of the day. (Lemon|Gold, Lime|Green, Tonic|Purple). This drink had been used as a cure for scurvy in the British Navy, In 1747, Lind, an officer and naval surgeon in the British Royal Navy, established the fact that oranges and lemons were effective in curing scurvy. He divided patients into 6 groups of 2 and gave each group a different remedy. Only the group given oranges and lemons recovered. The British used predominantly lime juice instead of lemon or orange juice to prevent the disease, and the sailors became known as limeys. The Grand Duke had lobbied, unsuccessfully, to have this drink adopted widely in the Russian Navy and although not officially adopted, the Grand Duke ordered the drink to be taken daily by his crews, and rates of scurvy among his men vanished. The drink was an instant hit among the attendees of Mardi Gras that year. The drink still survives today as a local recipe in New Orleans and various parts of the state of Louisiana as Citron, Chaux et Bitter.
The parade which the Grand Duke attended, bears little resemblance to present day parades. Rex rode a horse, not a float and the parade that followed was made up largely of the informal maskers and marchers. There were however bands who stopped and played the Russian national anthem in honor of the Grand Duke. But many traditions such as the selection of Rex, the King of the Parade, the Rex anthem, the parade’s colors date back to the Grand Duke’s visit.
The Russian fleet set sail from Pensacola, Florida
of 22 February 1872. It is claimed that hundreds of pounds of iced buffalo meat were carefully stowed aboard.
While Libbie Custer, general Custer's wife, believed the grand duke was more interested in "pretty girls and music" than the country he was passing through, Alexei did spend most of his time trying to get an understanding of the country.
, Cuba
, which it reached on 29 February. At that time, Cuba was still a Spanish colony and in the middle of the Ten Years' War
against the insurgents, who had attempted to declare the island’s independence. Though fighting was still going on the western part of the island against the rebels under the command of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes
, the hostilities did not prevent governor Blas Villate
, count of Valmaceda to receive the Grand Duke with full honors. During his stay in Havana, balls were organized every evening. Alexei also attended the operas Crispino e la Comare
and Martha
at the Great Theatre of Havana
where, at the beginning of the play, the opera choir sang the Russian national anthem. The Grand Duke also visited the works of the Canal de Vento (now called Acueducto de Albear
) for the water supply of the city, saw a cock fight in the city of Marianao
and a corrida in the "Plaza de Torros" of Havana. In the following days he also went to the Yumurí River valley and to the city of Matanzas
The Russian squadron then stopped in Rio de Janeiro
where it arrived on 3 June 1872. The Grand Duke entertained emperor Pedro II of Brazil
and the imperial court aboard the Svetlana. The Braziliam emperor awarded him the Imperial Order of Dom Pedro I
. The Grand Duke looked slightly disappointed and said that he had hoped for the Imperial Order of the Rose
, a lower order, because he had never seen a more beautiful order. Pedro II graciously awarded him both orders. Thereafter, he spent several days in Brazil, leaving on 9 June.
Sailing to the Far East, the squadron stopped in Cape Town
, Batavia
, Singapore
, Hong Kong, Canton
and Shanghai
where a Russian colony lived. The Russians delegation visited two hotels named "Kronstadt" and "Moscow" as well as the Russian cemetery.
The Russian squadron left Nagasaki on 24 October, the next port of call
being Kobe
, where the Grand Duke was again greeted by the provincial governor. The Russians were surprised by the jinrikshas which they saw for the first time. They used rickshaws for their trip to the Nunobeki water falls
in the proximity of the city. Grand Duke Alexei also attended a performance at the local theatre in Kobe.
On 1 November the Russian squadron set sail for Yokohama
. The Grand Duke was met by Prince Arisugawa Taruhito
, the Daijō daijin (Chancellor of the Realm) who escorted him to Edo Castle. At the castle Alexei met Soejima Taneomi
Head of the Gaimushō (Department of foreign affairs). who made the arrangements for the accommodation and the entertainment of the Russian delegation. On 5 November, the Grand Duke was officially received by Japanese Emperor Meiji
.
Emperor Meiji, presented his portrait a gift for the Tsar, the first time ever a Japanese emperor’s portrait was given to a foreigner, and asked for a portrait of Alexander II in return. The Great Prince Alexeis promised to send the portrait as soon as he got back to St.-Petersburg, and, as soon as he came on-board the Svetlana, sent his own portrait to thank the Mikado. The exchange continued and, the next day, the Emperor sent over the portraits of his spouse and mother.
On 9 November, Alexei and the Mikado viewed the parade of the Japanese armed forces, and upon his return to the palace, he was introduced to the Empress Masako. After a few days, the Mikado at the invitation of the Grand Duke, the Mikado went to Yokohama
to see the Russian squadron. Following the Grand Duke’s intervention, 34 Japanese Christians were pardoned by the Mikado
and released.
On 26 November the Russian squadron set sail for Vladivostok
reaching the base of the Russian Pacific Fleet on 5 December nearly a year and a half after it had left from Kronstadt. He then returned to St. Petersburg across Siberia
having a total surface of 9,200 sq.m. It is considered one of the most interesting examples of Saint Petersburg’s eclectic architecture. The architect used a different style for each façade. The wrought iron
and stone fence surrounding the palace and its gardens is also an interesting feature. The central gates are still ornamented with the Grand Duke’s monogram, the meaning of which was overlooked by the Soviet authorities. In 1910 part of the gardens were sold for the construction of a candy factory. Though the palace was declared a national landmark in 1968, it remained in disrepair for many years.
At present, the palace is undergoing major restoration. It will be open in December 2008 as the House of Music.
In 1873, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was appointed head of the Imperial Naval Guards. He was also appointed member of the section for shipbuilding
and naval artillery
of the Russian Naval Technical Committee.
During the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) he was promoted commander of the Russian Naval Forces on the Danube
. On 9 January 1878 he was distinguished with the Order of St. George
– Fourth Degree for "tireless and successful management of the naval forces and equipment on 14 June 1877 for the construction and maintenance of the pontoon bridges and crossings at Zimnicea
, Pietroşani
and Nikopol
and for the successful measures for protecting these crossing from destruction by enemy forces."
In 1880 he was promoted general adjutant. In 1882 after the accession of Tsar Alexander III
to the throne, Alexander III, Alexei was appointed head of the Naval Department, replacing Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaievich. In 1883 he was also appointed General Admiral
of the Russian Imperial Fleet.
Though his control over the day-to-day affairs of the military is limited, Alexei is involved in naval and military planning. His influence over the Tsar gives him a powerful say in strategic decision-making.
Besides being the head of Russia’s fleets, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was also in command of the naval cadet corps, the Moskow guard regiment, the 37-th Ekaterinburg infantry regiment, the 77-th Tenginsk infantry regiment, and the 17-th Eastern Siberian infantry regiment.
As commander in chief of the navy, the Grand Duke's main concern was the constant modernization of the fleet, taking into account the rapid technological progress. During his tenure he ensured a fivefold increase of the navy's budget. He was able to launch a series of pre-dreadnought battleships which were replacing the old ironclad ships. Thus he was instrumental in the equipment of the Russian navy with several battleships of various classes:
He also had older ironclads of the Imperator Aleksandr II class reconstructed by the Fench La Seyne yard. He also put new cruisers in service (among which the cruiser Aurora).
The Grand Duke was instrumental in the modernization of the Russian navy. reconstructed and developed of the military harbours of Sevastopol
, Alexander III
in Livada (now Liepāja
, Latvia
) and Port Arthur
, increased of the number of navy yards and extended the dry-docks in Kronstadt, Vladivostok and Sevastopol. He also reorganized the navy, defining the conditions for different naval qualifications, drafting of rules for rewarding long-time service of first and second rank ship captains, restructuring of the corps of mechanical engineers and naval engineers, increasing the number of officers and crew.
When tensions mounted in the Far East, Grand Duke Alexei ordered the transfer of additional ships to Port Arthur
, including the battleship Petropavlovsk
.
Russian academician
and naval engineer
Alexei Nikolaevich Krylov
shows that, despite these achievements, there were severe drawbacks in the Grand Duke’s activity. There was no strategic planning and ships were not built based on their intended role within the fleet. There were too many ships of different types. Ships were designed mainly by copying the ones of foreign navies, and were therefore technologically 6–7 year old when they were launched. Their armour and equipment was often inadequate.
The Grand Duke seems to have become aware of some the these deficiencies. He decided to have more battleships of a single type and to have them designed abroad to meet the needs of the Russian navy. However, though the Grand Duke was an admirer of the British navy, the new battleships were conceived in France and had a poor design. The new Borodino class battleship
s had tumblehome
hulls
and were unstable, having a high center of gravity
. The drawbacks proved to be fatal for the Russian navy.
At the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War
, in 1904 the Russian First Pacific Squadron was able to resist the Japanese attack during the Battle of the Yellow Sea
. However, the squadron was destroyed during the battle for Port Arthur, and the Baltic Fleet, sent for reinforcement was completely defeated in the Battle of Tsushima
. On 2 June 1905 O.S., Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovitch was relieved of his command and retired.
His critics talked of Alexei's life as consisting of "fast women and slow ships," referring to his womanizing and the defeat of the Russian navy by the Japanese. This statement is not justified, because, despite any drawbacks, his contribution to the modernization of the Russian Navy was outstanding. Away from his desk Alexei devoted his time to the good things of life. He entertained generously and collected fine silver and other works of art to adorn his palace. Sometimes he designed his own clothes. A womanizer, he spent his vacations in Paris or in Biarritz
, each time in the company of a different lady.
Around the late 1880s he started a celebrated affair with the Duchess of Leuchtenberg, the morganatic wife of one of his cousins. Born Zinaida Skobelyeva, "Zina" was a strikingly beautiful woman who had married Eugeni of Leuchtenberg as his second wife in 1870. Alexander II made her Countess de Beauharnais and Alexander III raised her to Serene Highness and Duchess of Leuchtenberg. Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was so besotted with her that he conducted an affair openly, under her husband's roof and in his full knowledge. Eugeni Leuchtenberg drank away most of his fortune, and for years he and Zinaida lived off his cousin's generosity. Even after his wife's death in 1899 the Duke continued to live under Alexei's roof.
Besides his military duties, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich also was chairman of the Imperial Commission for the Promotion of Ballet.
In 1904, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was one of the godparents of Tsarevich Alexei, the other godparents being the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, King Edward VII of the United Kingdom
, King Christian IX of Denmark
, Grand Duke Ernest Ludwig of Hesse
, Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna
, Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich, Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaievna
. Besides, all soldiers serving in the military during the Russo-Japanese War were declared godfathers to Alexei.
in February 1905 and his retirement in disgrace from the navy in June that same year, Alexei Alexandrovich spent most of his time in a Paris house which he had bought in 1897. At his house in Avenue Gabriel he kept open door for writers, painters, actors and especially actresses. He had always been less interested in the armed services than in art and fashion, and he had long since been recognized as a connoisseur of the social, artistic and literary life of Paris. His massive frame was a familiar sight at restaurants and theaters, particularly on first nights. His last public appearance, a week before his death, was at the dress rehearsal of a new play at the vaudeville. Decades of comfort and good living eventually took their toll on the Grand Duke's health. He died of pneumonia
in Paris on 27 November (14 November O.S.) 1908. His death was said to have devastated Tsar Nicholas II
, his nephew, who reportedly claimed Alexei as his favourite uncle. In 2006 the diary of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was found in the Russian National Library along with Yussupov funds. The journal, written in English, begins in 1862 and ends in 1907. It has not been published yet.
, starring Mel Gibson
. In the film, the Duke is hustled, after he has grown bored with hunting animals, into thinking he has killed a Native American
.
He is also described by Boris Akunin
in his novel "The coronation of the last Romanov" (Коронация, или Последний из Романовых) where he is presented as the character Georgi Aleksandrovich.
The 1973 Lucky Luke
comic book Le Grand Duc
features a Russian Grand Duke who visits the Wild West.
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
and his first wife Maria Alexandrovna (Marie of Hesse). Destined to a naval career, Alexei Alexandrovich started his military training at the age of 7. By the age of 20 he had been appointed lieutenant of the Russian Imperial Navy and had visited all European military ports of Russia. In 1871 he was sent as a goodwill ambassador to the United States and Japan.
In 1883 he was appointed general admiral
General Admiral
General admiral was a Danish, Dutch, German, Russian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish naval rank. Its historic origin is a title high military or naval dignitaries of early modern Europe sometimes held, for example the commander-in-chief of the Dutch Republic's navy .-Third Reich:In the German...
. He had a significant contribution in the equipment of the
Russian navy with new ships and in modernizing the naval ports. In 1905, after the defeat in the Battle of Tsushima
Battle of Tsushima
The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was the major naval battle fought between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War...
he was relieved of his command. He died in Paris in 1908.
Early life
Romanov
The House of Romanov was the second and last imperial dynasty to rule over Russia, reigning from 1613 until the February Revolution abolished the crown in 1917...
of Russia was born in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
on 14 January 1850 (4 January O.S.). He was the son of emperor Alexander II
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
and empress Maria Alexandrovna. He was a younger brother of Grand Duchess Alexandra Alexandrovna
Grand Duchess Alexandra Alexandrovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Alexandra Alexandrovna of Russia was the eldest child of Alexander II of Russia and Marie of Hesse and by Rhine. She died from infant meningitis at the age of six and a half.-Life and death:...
, Tsarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich, Alexander III of Russia
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
, Grand Duke Vladmir Alexandrovich
Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia ) was a son of Emperor Alexander II of Russia...
. He was an older brother of Duchess Maria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich
Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia was a son of Emperor Alexander II of Russia...
and Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich.
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was destined for a naval career since his childhood. At the age of 7 he received the rank of midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
. The next year Konstantin Nikolayevich Posyet
Konstantin Posyet
Constantine Possiet was a Russian statesman and admiral who served as Minister of Transport Communications between 1874 and 1888....
was appointed as his tutor. While the winters were dedicated to theoretical studies, during the summers he trained on Russian warships of the Baltic fleet stationed in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
harbour. Training exposed him to various sailing ships:
- in 1860 the yacht Shtandart on a cruise from Petergof to
- in 1861–1863 the yacht Zabava under the flag of counter-admiral Posyet in the Gulf of FinlandGulf of FinlandThe Gulf of Finland is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland and Estonia all the way to Saint Petersburg in Russia, where the river Neva drains into it. Other major cities around the gulf include Helsinki and Tallinn...
and Gulf of BothniaGulf of BothniaThe Gulf of Bothnia is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It is situated between Finland's west coast and Sweden's east coast. In the south of the gulf lie the Åland Islands, between the Sea of Åland and the Archipelago Sea.-Name:...
, - in 1864 the frigate Svetlana in the Gulf of FinlandGulf of FinlandThe Gulf of Finland is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland and Estonia all the way to Saint Petersburg in Russia, where the river Neva drains into it. Other major cities around the gulf include Helsinki and Tallinn...
and the Baltic SeaBaltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and... - in 1866 the frigate Oslyabya during an extensive training cruise to the Azore Islands.
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
. He continued his navy career serving as officer aboard the frigate Alexander Nevski on a cruise in across the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
to Pireaus, where he attended the wedding of his cousin Olga Konstantinovna
Olga Konstantinovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Olga Constantinovna of Russia , later Queen Olga of the Hellenes , was the queen consort of King George I of Greece and briefly in 1920, Queen Regent of Greece...
.
In 1868 he went on a trip to southern Russia traveling by train from Saint Petersburg to , continuing by ship down the Volga
Volga River
The Volga is the largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It flows through central Russia, and is widely viewed as the national river of Russia. Out of the twenty largest cities of Russia, eleven, including the capital Moscow, are situated in the Volga's drainage...
to Astrakhan
Astrakhan
Astrakhan is a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the left bank of the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea at an altitude of below the sea level. Population:...
. He then boarded a military ship for a cruise on the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
to Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
, [Petrovsk (now Makhachkala
Makhachkala
-Twin towns/sister cities:Makhachkala is twinned with: Sfax, Tunisia Siping, China Spokane, United States Vladikavkaz, Russia Yalova, Turkey Ndola, Zambia-See also:*...
) and then to Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. He then crossed the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
and reached Poti
Poti
Poti is a port city in Georgia, located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti in the west of the country. Built near the site of the ancient Greek colony of Phasis, the city has become a major port city and industrial center since the early 20th century. It is also...
where the Alexander Nevsky was moored. From there he sailed to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and the Azore Islands On the return voyage, on the frigate was wrecked off the coast of Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
during a storm on the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
. Though the ship was lost, the crew including Alexei Alexandrovitch except five men was unhurt and could safely reach the shore.
In January 1870 Alexei Alexandrovich reached the age of majority
Age of majority
The age of majority is the threshold of adulthood as it is conceptualized in law. It is the chronological moment when minors cease to legally be considered children and assume control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thereby terminating the legal control and legal responsibilities of...
according to Russian legislation. The event was marked by taking two oaths : the military one and the oath of allegiance of the Grand Dukes of the Russian Imperial House. In June 1870 Alexei Alexandrovich started the last part of his training. This included inland navigation on a cutter with a steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
, on the route from Saint Petersburg to Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk , formerly known as Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina River near its exit into the White Sea in the north of European Russia. The city spreads for over along the banks of the river...
through the Mariinsk Canal system
Volga-Baltic Waterway
The Volga–Baltic Waterway, formerly known as the Mariinsk Canal System , is a series of canals and rivers in Russia which link the Volga River with the Baltic Sea...
and the Northern Dvina River. After visiting the schools and industrial facilities of Arkhangelsk, he started his navigation training in arctic conditions, aboard the corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
Variag. His cruise took him to the Solovetsky Islands
Solovetsky Islands
The Solovetsky Islands , or Solovki , are an archipelago located in the Onega Bay of the White Sea, Russia. The islands are served by the Solovki Airport. Area: ....
, continuing through the White Sea
White Sea
The White Sea is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the northeast. The whole of the White Sea is under Russian sovereignty and considered to be part of...
and Barents Sea
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of Norway and Russia. Known in the Middle Ages as the Murman Sea, the sea takes its current name from the Dutch navigator Willem Barents...
to Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya , also known in Dutch as Nova Zembla and in Norwegian as , is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the northern island...
. The route continued to Kola Bay
Kola Bay
Kola Bay or Murmansk Fjord is a 57-km-long fjord of the Barents Sea that cuts into the northern part of the Kola Peninsula. It is up to 7 km wide and has a depth of 200 to 300 metres. The Tuloma and Kola Rivers discharge into the bay....
and the city of Murmansk
Murmansk
Murmansk is a city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It serves as a seaport and is located in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, from the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, not far from Russia's borders with Norway and Finland...
, the ports of northern Norway and Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
. He returned to Cronstadt at the end of September.
Love affair with Alexandra Zhukovskaya
Alexandra Zhukovskaya
Alexandra Vasilievna Zhukovskaya , was a Russian noble and lady in waiting, daughter of Vasily Zhukovsky and Elizabeth Reitern.-Marriage:...
, daughter of poet Vasily Andreyevich Zhukovsky, who was eight years older than he was. They were parents to a son, Alexei, born on 26 November 1871. Tsar Alexander II was strongly opposed to this relationship.
Some historians claim that they were morganatically married and that the marriage was annulled by the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
, because, according to the "Fundamental Laws of the Imperial House", this marriage was illegal. However, articles 183 and 188, which prohibited marriages without the consent of the emperor, were included in the Fundamental Laws only by the 1887 revision under Tsar Alexander III. The rules valid in 1870 did not prohibit mornaganatic marriages, but simply excluded their offspring from the succession to the throne. There is no evidence either to the marriage or to the divorce. There is also no evidence that the Grand Duke even requested the permission to marry. As Alexandra Zhukovskaya was not an aristocrat and, besides, the daughter of an illegitimate son of a Russian landowner and a Turkish slave, such a marriage would have been unthinkable.
Upset by his son's affair, Alexander II even refused to grant Alexandra Zhukovskaya a title, which would have officially recognized the Grand Duke's paternity, even if illegitimate. Other European courts also refused to grant her a title. As a solution of last resort, on 25 March 1875 Alexandra was able to secure the title of baroness Seggiano from the Republic of San Marino
San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino , is a state situated on the Italian Peninsula on the eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. It is an enclave surrounded by Italy. Its size is just over with an estimated population of over 30,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino...
, with the right to transmit the title to her son Alexei and his firstborn male descendants. It was only in 1883, that Alexander III, the Grand Duke's elder brother, granted the baron Seggiano the title of count Belevsky, and in 1893 approved his coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
.
Tour of the United States
Voyage to the United States
After the official visit to Saint PetersburgSaint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
of an American squadron under the command of Admiral David Farragut
David Farragut
David Glasgow Farragut was a flag officer of the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was the first rear admiral, vice admiral, and admiral in the United States Navy. He is remembered in popular culture for his order at the Battle of Mobile Bay, usually paraphrased: "Damn the...
in 1867, a high level visit of the Russian Navy was envisaged by the Russian Government. After lengthy negotiations, it was decided that the Russian delegation would be headed by Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich. The official announcement of the visit was made on 29 June 1871 by Nikolay Karlovich Krabbe
Nikolay Karlovich Krabbe
Nikolay Karlovich Krabbe was an admiral of the Russian Imperial Navy.After graduating from naval academy joined the corps of navy cadets and in 1832 was promoted midshipman in the Baltic Fleet serving on the frigates Belton, Kulm and Oranienbaum...
, Minister of the Imperial Russian Navy.
The Russian squadron, under the command of admiral Konstantin Nikolayevich Posyet
Konstantin Posyet
Constantine Possiet was a Russian statesman and admiral who served as Minister of Transport Communications between 1874 and 1888....
on board the frigate Bogalye included the frigates Svetlana and The Admiral General, the corvette Ignatiev and the gunboat Abrek. The Grand Duke was serving as lieutenant aboard the Svetlana. Before reaching the United States, the Russian squadron was to be met by the frigate Vsadnik of the Russian Pacific Fleet. Though all ships were equipped with steam-engines, the squadron made the passage to America mainly under sail, so as to avoid making port on the route for coal supplies. Except for the Grand Duke’s personal staff, the crew included 200 officers and over 3000 sailors. The squadron set sail out of Kronstadt
Kronstadt
Kronstadt , also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt |crown]]" and Stadt for "city"); is a municipal town in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg proper near the head of the Gulf of Finland. Population: It is also...
on 20 August 1871.
The squadron first stopped in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, where the Grand Duke paid a visit to King Christian IX of Denmark
Christian IX of Denmark
Christian IX was King of Denmark from 16 November 1863 to 29 January 1906.Growing up as a prince of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, a junior branch of the House of Oldenburg which had ruled Denmark since 1448, Christian was originally not in the immediate line of succession to the Danish...
. In the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
the Russians were met by a squadron of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
and escorted to Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, where the Grand Duke was met by the Duke of Edinburgh Alfred of Saxe-Coburg
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was the third Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and reigned from 1893 to 1900. He was also a member of the British Royal Family, the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
. A visit to Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle is a large estate house in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is located near the village of Crathie, west of Ballater and east of Braemar. Balmoral has been one of the residences of the British Royal Family since 1852, when it was purchased by Queen Victoria and her...
had been scheduled, but had to be canceled because the Prince of Wales
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
was very sick and Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
extremely concerned.
The Russian squadron set sail from Plymouth on 26 September. and, on route to New York, stopped for a few days in Funchal
Funchal
Funchal is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira. The city has a population of 112,015 and has been the capital of Madeira for more than five centuries.-Etymology:...
, (Madeira Islands), leaving on 9 October.
The Russian squadron was met by an American squadron under the command of vice-admiral Stephen Clegg Rowan
Stephen Clegg Rowan
Stephen Clegg Rowan was a Vice Admiral in the United States Navy, who served during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War.-Biography:...
Port Admiral
Port Admiral (United States Navy)
Port admiral is an honorific rank in the United States Navy, for the senior officer of the ships in a naval dockyard. Examples include Samuel Livingston Breese from 1869 to 1870 in Philadelphia. The port admiral usually has a flagship, examples of which include for the New York port admiral from...
of New York hoisting his flag on the frigate USS Congress
USS Congress (1868)
The fifth USS Congress was a screw sloop in the United States Navy.Congress was launched by the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 17 July 1868, sponsored by Miss P. Drake, daughter of Senator Charles D. Drake of Missouri; and commissioned 4 March 1870, Captain N. Harrison in command...
. Admiral Samuel Phillips Lee
Samuel Phillips Lee
Samuel Phillips Lee was a Rear Admiral of the United States Navy. He commanded the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron from 4 September 1862 to 12 October 1864. His flagship was Philadelphia.-Life and career:...
, commander of the North Atlantic Squadron
North Atlantic Squadron
The North Atlantic Squadron was a section of the United States Navy operating in the North Atlantic. It was renamed as the North Atlantic Fleet in 1902. In 1905 the European and South Atlantic Squadrons were abolished and absorbed into the North Atlantic Fleet. On Jan...
attended on his own flagship, the USS Severn
USS Severn (1867)
The first USS Severn was a wooden screw sloop of war in commission in the United States Navy from 1869 to 1871. She was named for Severn River in Maryland....
. The other ships of the squadron were the USS Iroquois and the USS Kansas
USS Kansas (1863)
USS Kansas was a gunboat constructed for the Union Navy during the middle of the American Civil War. She was outfitted with heavy guns and assigned to the Union blockade of the waterways of the Confederate States of America. She was the first U.S...
, attended by several tugs.
A welcoming committee had been formed in New York, chaired by William Henry Aspinwall
William Henry Aspinwall
William Henry Aspinwall was an American businessman.In 1832, he became president of the Howland & Aspinwall merchant firm, which had been founded by his cousin and expanded trade to South America, China, Europe, the Mediterranean, and the East and West Indies. Howland & Aspinwall owned some of the...
. Among the members of the committee were Moses H. Grinnell
Moses H. Grinnell
Moses Hicks Grinnell was a United States Navy officer, congressmanrepresenting New York, and Central Park Commissioner.-Biography:...
, general Irwin McDowell, Theodore Roosevelt, Sr.
Theodore Roosevelt, Sr.
Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. was the father of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt and the paternal grandfather of American first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. He was the son of Cornelius Van Schaak Roosevelt and Margaret Barnhill...
rear-admiral S. W. Godon, John Taylor Johnston
John Taylor Johnston
John Taylor Johnston was born on April 8, 1820, the son of John Johnston, a prominent merchant banker in New York City. Johnston was the founding president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1870, as well as the President of the Central Railroad of New Jersey from 1848 to 1877...
, Albert Bierstadt
Albert Bierstadt
Albert Bierstadt was a German-American painter best known for his lavish, sweeping landscapes of the American West. In obtaining the subject matter for these works, Bierstadt joined several journeys of the Westward Expansion...
, Lloyd Aspinwall and others.
After a short delay due to the weather, the Russian squadron anchored in New York harbor on 21 November 1871, where the Grand Duke was greeted by general John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix was an American politician from New York. He served as Secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Senator, and the 24th Governor of New York. He was also a Union major general during the Civil War.-Early life and career:...
. A military parade took place in the city. The Grand Duke then attended a thanksgiving service at the Russian chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
.
Reception by President Grant
On 22 November, the Grand Duke left for WashingtonWashington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
by special train, placed at his disposal by the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company. The train had three cars: the "Commissariat" having all the modern improvements of a hotel, comprising store-rooms and pantry, the "Ruby", dining room car to accommodate 28 persons, with kitchen, ice boxes, and a sort of wine cellar, and "The Kearsarge" used as sitting, sleeping and reading room.
On 23 November, the Grand Duke was received by president Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
The president’s wife Julia Grant
Julia Grant
Julia Boggs Dent-Grant , was the wife of the 18th President of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant, and was First Lady of the United States from 1869 to 1877.-Background:...
and his daughter Nellie Grant
Nellie Grant
Nellie Grant was the third child and only daughter of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant and First Lady Julia Grant.- Life :Born near St...
also attended. Most of the members of the cabinet were present at the meeting: Hamilton Fish
Hamilton Fish
Hamilton Fish was an American statesman and politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York, United States Senator and United States Secretary of State. Fish has been considered one of the best Secretary of States in the United States history; known for his judiciousness and reform efforts...
United States Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
, Columbus Delano
Columbus Delano
Columbus Delano, was a lawyer and a statesman and a member of the prominent Delano family.At the age of eight, Columbus Delano's family moved to Mount Vernon in Knox County, Ohio, a place he would call home for the rest of his life. After completing his primary education, he studied law and was...
United States Secretary of the Interior
United States Secretary of the Interior
The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
with his wife, Amos Tappan Akerman United States Attorney General
United States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
with his wife, George S. Boutwell
George S. Boutwell
George Sewall Boutwell was an American statesman who served as Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S...
United States Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
, George Maxwell Robeson United States Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
, general Frederick Tracy Dent
Frederick Tracy Dent
Frederick Tracy Dent was an American general, born in White Haven, St. Louis County, Missouri He graduated at West Point in 1843, was assigned as brevet second lieutenant to the 6th US Infantry, served in the Southern campaign during the Mexican War, and was brevetted first lieutenant and captain...
(the president’s brother-in-law and military secretary), John Creswell Postmaster General of the United States
United States Postmaster General
The United States Postmaster General is the Chief Executive Officer of the United States Postal Service. The office, in one form or another, is older than both the United States Constitution and the United States Declaration of Independence...
as well as generals Horace Porter
Horace Porter
Horace Porter, was an American soldier and diplomat who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War....
and Orville E. Babcock
Orville E. Babcock
Orville Elias Babcock was an American Civil War General in the Union Army. Immediately upon graduating third in his class as United States Military Academy in 1861, Babcock would go onto serve efficiently in the Corps of Engineers throughout the Civil War and was promoted to Brevet Brigadier...
.
The Grand Duke arrived at 1 p.m. in company of minister Katakazi
Konstantin Gavrilovich Catacazy
Konstantin Gavrilovich Catacazy or Katakazi was a Russian diplomat of the 19th century, minister plenipotentiary of the Russian Empire to the United States.-Family background:...
, admiral Posyet
Konstantin Posyet
Constantine Possiet was a Russian statesman and admiral who served as Minister of Transport Communications between 1874 and 1888....
and other members of his suite. The president and the members of the cabinet received them in the Blue Room
Blue Room (White House)
The Blue Room is one of three state parlors on the first floor in the White House, the residence of the president of the United States. It is distinct for its oval shape. The room is used for receptions, receiving lines, and is occasionally set for small dinners...
where the presentations were made. The president then escorted the Grand Duke to the Red Room
Red Room (White House)
The Red Room is one of three state parlors on the first floor in the White House, the home of the President of the United States. The room has served as a parlor and music room, and recent presidents have held small dinner parties in it. It has been traditionally decorated in shades of red.The...
where he was introduced to the ladies. The interview lasted only fifteen minutes, after which the Grand Duke left.
The visit to Washington was overshadowed by President Grant’s
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
discontent caused by the Russian government’s refusal to recall Konstantin Katacazi
Konstantin Gavrilovich Catacazy
Konstantin Gavrilovich Catacazy or Katakazi was a Russian diplomat of the 19th century, minister plenipotentiary of the Russian Empire to the United States.-Family background:...
, minister plenipotentiary of Russia to the United States. The entire visit in Washington lasted only one day. No formal entertainment was given in Washington to the Grand Duke, though for all other visits of members of royal families to the White House, formal dinners had been organized. Such dinners had taken place when President John Tyler
John Tyler
John Tyler was the tenth President of the United States . A native of Virginia, Tyler served as a state legislator, governor, U.S. representative, and U.S. senator before being elected Vice President . He was the first to succeed to the office of President following the death of a predecessor...
received François d'Orléans, prince de Joinville, when Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
received Prince Napoleon Joseph Bonaparte
Napoléon Joseph Charles Paul Bonaparte
Napoléon Joseph Charles Paul Bonaparte, Prince Français, Count of Meudon, Count of Moncalieri ad personam, titular 3rd Prince of Montfort was the second son of Jérôme Bonaparte, king of Westphalia, by his wife Catherine, princess of Württemberg...
and even when Ulysses Grant received Kamehameha V
Kamehameha V
aloghaKamehameha V , born as Lot Kapuāiwa, reigned as monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1863 to 1872. His motto was "Onipa`a": immovable, firm, steadfast or determined; he worked diligently for his people and kingdom and was described as the last great traditional chief...
, king of the Sandwich Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
. The evening of the visit to the White House, the Grand Duke and his suite dined at the minister Katakazi’s residence, the only American official attending being general Porter
Horace Porter
Horace Porter, was an American soldier and diplomat who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War....
. At his departure the Grand Duke was asked if he intended to return to Washington. Though he expressed his interest to return during a session of Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, the uneasy diplomatic relations due to Minister Katakazi prevented this from happening. There had also been expectations that a military alliance treaty between the United States and Russia would be signed during the meeting; however this was not the case.
The next day, the Grand Duke left by train for Annapolis
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
where he visited the Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
, thereafter returning to New York.
The East Coast
In New York, the Grand Duke visited the Brooklyn Navy YardBrooklyn Navy Yard
The United States Navy Yard, New York–better known as the Brooklyn Navy Yard or the New York Naval Shipyard –was an American shipyard located in Brooklyn, northeast of the Battery on the East River in Wallabout Basin, a semicircular bend of the river across from Corlear's Hook in Manhattan...
, Fort Wadsworth
Fort Wadsworth
Fort Wadsworth is a former United States military installation on Staten Island in New York City, situated on The Narrows which divide New York Bay into Upper and Lower halves, a natural point for defense of the Upper Bay and Manhattan beyond. Prior to closing in 1994 it claimed to be the longest...
and the fortifications on Governors Island
Governors Island
Governors Island is a island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City...
. He also reviewed the Fire Department at Tompkins Square. A highlight was the trip by steamer
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
on the Hudson
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
for the visit of the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
, West Point.
Several balls were organized in his honor, the most important being the grand balls at the Navy Yard and at the Academy of Music
Academy of Music (Manhattan)
The Academy of Music was a New York City opera house, located at East 14th Street and Irving Place in Manhattan. The 4,000-seat hall opened on October 2, 1854. The New York Times review declared it to be an acoustical "triumph", but "In every other aspect .....
. Alexei also attended opera performances of Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
and Mignon
Mignon
Mignon is an opéra comique in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre. The Italian version was translated by Giuseppe Zaffira. The opera is mentioned in James Joyce's The Dead,...
at the Academy of Music. He also went on a shopping spree, stopping at the A.T. Stewart
Alexander Turney Stewart
Alexander Turney Stewart was a successful Irish American entrepreneur who made his multi-million fortune in what was at the time the most extensive and lucrative dry goods business in the world....
and Tiffany
Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. is an American jewelry and silverware company. As part of its branding, the company is strongly associated with its Tiffany Blue , which is a registered trademark.- History :...
stores where he bought some jewellery and bronze statues.
On 2 December 1871, a ceremony took place at the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
, where the Grand Duke was received by Samuel F. B. Morse
Samuel F. B. Morse
Samuel Finley Breese Morse was an American contributor to the invention of a single-wire telegraph system based on European telegraphs, co-inventor of the Morse code, and an accomplished painter.-Birth and education:...
, William Stoddard
William Stoddard
William Osborn Stoddard was an author, inventor, and assistant secretary to Abraham Lincoln during his first term.Stoddard was born at Homer, Courtland Co., New York. His parents were Prentice S. and Sarah Stoddard. Stoddard attended the University of Rochester, where he graduated cum laude...
, William Page
William Page
William Page was an American painter and portrait artist.-Life and work:...
, Albert Bierstadt
Albert Bierstadt
Albert Bierstadt was a German-American painter best known for his lavish, sweeping landscapes of the American West. In obtaining the subject matter for these works, Bierstadt joined several journeys of the Westward Expansion...
and several other artists. The painting Farragut in the shrouds of the Hartfort at the battle of Mobile Bay by William Page
William Page
William Page was an American painter and portrait artist.-Life and work:...
was handed over to Grand Duke Alexei as a gift of the citizens of New York for Tsar Alexander II. General John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix was an American politician from New York. He served as Secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Senator, and the 24th Governor of New York. He was also a Union major general during the Civil War.-Early life and career:...
presented the picture and the accompanying scroll, with a brief address in which he expressed the hope that it would further cement the union that existed between the United States and Russia. The painting was placed on-board the Russian flag-ship for transportation to Russia.
On 3 December 1871, the Grand Duke Alexei left for Philadelphia where he was received by general George Meade
George Meade
George Gordon Meade was a career United States Army officer and civil engineer involved in coastal construction, including several lighthouses. He fought with distinction in the Second Seminole War and Mexican-American War. During the American Civil War he served as a Union general, rising from...
and Admiral Turner. He visited Girard College
Girard College
Girard College is an independent boarding school on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States.Girard is for academically capable students, grades one through 12, and awards a full scholarship with a yearly value of approximately $42,000 to every child admitted to the...
, Baird Locomotive Works and the Navy Yard. He was particularly interested by the Methodist Fair at the Horticultural Hall, where the ladies presented him an Afghan Hound
Afghan Hound
The Afghan Hound is one of the oldest sighthound dog breeds. Distinguished by its thick, fine, silky coat and its tail with a ring curl at the end, the breed acquired its unique features in the cold mountains of Afghanistan, where it was originally used to hunt hares and gazelles by coursing them....
.
From 7 December to 14 December, Grand Duke Alexei stopped in Boston, Massachusetts where he stayed at the Paul Revere House
Paul Revere House
The Paul Revere House is the colonial home of American patriot Paul Revere during the time of the American Revolution. It is located at 19 North Square, Boston, Massachusetts, in the city's North End, and is now operated as a nonprofit museum by the Paul Revere Memorial Association. A small...
. The landau
Landau (carriage)
A landau is a coachbuilding term for a type of four-wheeled, convertible carriage. See also Landau .It is lightweight and suspended on elliptical springs. It was invented in the 18th century and was named after the German city of Landau in the Rhenish Palatinate where they were first produced...
which president Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
rode during his visit to Boston, was prepared for the Grand Duke. He was officially welcomed at the City Hall and the State House. During his stay, the Grand Duke visited Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and the suburb of Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
as well as different public schools in the Boston area, being extensively briefed on the American education system. Other highlights of were the battlefield of Bunker Hill
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...
and the visit to the shipyards of Charlestown, Massachusetts
Charlestown, Massachusetts
Charlestown is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and is located on a peninsula north of downtown Boston. Charlestown was originally a separate town and the first capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony; it became a city in 1847 and was annexed by Boston on January 5, 1874...
.
The Grand Duke also attended a Music Festival where 1,200 school children composed the great choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
. At the festival, a grand march of welcome, specially composed by Julius Eichberg
Julius Eichberg
Julius Eichberg was a German-born composer, musical director and educator who worked mostly in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States.-Biography:...
and dedicated to “His Imperial Highness”, was presented
A ball in honor of the Grand Duke took place at the Boston Theatre
Boston Theatre
The Boston Theatre was a theatre in Boston, Massachusetts.-Further reading:* Eugene Tompkins. History of the Boston Theatre 1854-1901. Houghton Mifflin, 1908. -External links:...
. The audit of the expenses shows that the cost of ball was $14.678,58 (equivalent of $750.000 today), only $8.916,29 being covered by the sale of the tickets and other receipts
Detour to Canada
On 17 December, The Grand Duke left by train to Canada. He first stopped in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, where he had breakfast with the mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of the city, and then visited Lachine, Quebec
Lachine, Quebec
Lachine was a city on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is now a borough within the city of Montreal.-History:...
He then passed through Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and Toronto, finally reaching Clifton Hill (Niagara Falls)
Clifton Hill (Niagara Falls)
Clifton Hill is one of the major tourist promenades in Niagara Falls, Ontario. The street, close in proximity to Niagara Falls and the Niagara River, leads from River Road on the Niagara Parkway to intersect with Victoria Avenue. The street contains a number of gift shops, wax museums, haunted...
on 22 December 1871 by the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
. On his way, the train stopped in Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
where he received a telegram from Queen Victoria, notifying him that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his illness. From Clifton Hill the party left by sleighs for a visit to the Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls
The Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
. After having dressed in oil-skinned suits for fishermen at sea, the party also went under the falls. The Grand Duke then crossed the Niagara River
Niagara River
The Niagara River flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the Province of Ontario in Canada and New York State in the United States. There are differing theories as to the origin of the name of the river...
over new suspension bridge
Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
and then visited the United States part of the falls.
Visit to the Midwest
On 23 December, Grand Duke Alexei left by train for Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, where he spent Christmas. On Christmas Day, he went to the opera to see the British Parepa-Rosa Opera Company. After the performance he sent soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa
Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa
Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa was a British operatic soprano who established the Carl Rosa Opera Company together with second husband Carl Rosa...
a bracelet studded with turquoise
Turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl648·4. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gem and ornamental stone for thousands of years owing to its unique hue...
and diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
s. On 26 December, the Grand Duke arrived in Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
where he visited the iron mills and other factories in Newburgh Heights, Ohio
Newburgh Heights, Ohio
Newburgh Heights is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,167 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Newburgh Heights is located at ....
. He then reviewed the Cleveland Fire Department and visited the National Inventors’ Exhibition. He then stopped in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
on his way to Chicago, where he arrived on 30 December.
The city was recovering from the great fire. Joseph Medwill, mayor of Chicago, had written to the Grand Duke:
"We have but little to exihibit but the ruins and débris of a great and beautiful city and an undaunted people struggling with adversity to relieve their overwhelming misfortunes."
The Grand Duke visited the destroyed part of the city and was impressed by the rhythm of the reconstruction. He gave $5,000 USD (equivalent to $250,000 today) in gold to the homeless people of Chicago, Illinois. As an irony, the same day Grand Duke Alexei arrived in Chicago, a special Grand Jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
indicted thirteen members of the city’s on charges of bribery
Bribery
Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
. Grand Duke Alexei also visited the stockyards and a pork processing plant.
As the Tremont House
Tremont House (Chicago)
Tremont House was a leading hotel in Chicago, United States, that served as the Headquarters for the Illinois Republican Party during the 1860 Republican National Convention held at the nearby Wigwam as they lobbied for Abraham Lincoln's nomination. Both Lincoln and Stephen Douglas started...
Hotel had been burnt to the ground, the Grand Duke was accommodated in the New Tremont House which had opened on Michigan Avenue, where he was awarded the "Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
". On New Year’s Day General Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
initiated him into the American custom of making "New Year’s calls upon the ladies".
From 2 January to 4 January Grand Duke Alexei visited Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
and on 5 January he arrived in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, where he stayed for over a week.
In St. Louis, Grand Duke Alexis attended a burlesque show Buebeard in which Lydia Thompson
Lydia Thompson
Lydia Thompson, born Eliza Hodges Thompson , was an English dancer, actress and theatrical producer....
, a 36-year-old actress was singing a tune "If Ever I Cease to Love". It is claimed that the Grand Duke was fascinated both by the actress and the song. Supposedly, she had also sung the number privately for the duke during a rendezvous. Lydia Thompson wasn't the only woman to catch the duke's eye; while in St. Louis, Alexei became particularly enamored of one of his dance partners, a lady called Sallie Shannon of Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
.
Finally on 12 January he arrived in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
Trip to the hunting grounds
Preparations for the hunt were extensive and had been carried out under the command of General Joel PalmerJoel Palmer
General Joel Palmer was an American pioneer of the Oregon Territory in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. He was born in Canada, and spent his early years in New York and Pennsylvania before serving as a member of the Indiana House of Representatives.Palmer traveled to the Oregon...
. Two companies of infantry in wagons, two companies of cavalry, the cavalry's regimental band, outriders, night herders, couriers, cooks had been mobilized for the event.
The Grand Duke in the company of General Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
, General Edward Ord
Edward Ord
Edward Otho Cresap Ord was the designer of Fort Sam Houston, and a United States Army officer who saw action in the Seminole War, the Indian Wars, and the American Civil War. He commanded an army during the final days of the Civil War, and was instrumental in forcing the surrender of Confederate...
, and Lt. Colonel (Brevet Major General) George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
, the latter having been selected to be Grand Marshall of the hunt, arrived at Fort McPherson
Fort McPherson, Nebraska
Fort McPherson was originally called Cantonment McKean, and was popularly known as Fort Cottonwood. The Fort was an Indian Wars-era U.S...
on 13 January 1872, by a special train provided by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. They were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd, headed by William Frederick Cody
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a United States soldier, bison hunter and showman. He was born in the Iowa Territory , in LeClaire but lived several years in Canada before his family moved to the Kansas Territory. Buffalo Bill received the Medal of Honor in 1872 for service to the US...
(known as Buffalo Bill). After speeches, the Duke's party set out for the hunting grounds.
The Duke and General Sheridan rode in an open carriage, drawn by four horses. William Frederick Cody escorted the party with five ambulances, a light wagon for luggage, three wagons of "champagne and royal spirits" and fifteen to twenty extra saddle horses. A relay of horses was set up at Medicine Creek
Medicine Creek
The Medicine Creek is a tributary of the Republican River in Nebraska- References:* USGS - Water Resources of the United States...
, about half way to the camp, where the party stopped for lunch. The journey then continued to they called "Camp Alexis" on the Red Willow Creek
Red Willow Creek
The Red Willow Creek is a tributary of the Republican River in Nebraska...
. The 2d Cavalry band was in place and in tune; "Hail to the Chief" was played when the Grand Duke arrived. The entire trip covered about 50 miles and took approximately eight hours.
The camp consisted of two hospital tents (used as dining tent), ten wall tents and tents for servants and soldiers. Three wall tents were floored and the Grand Duke’s was carpeted with oriental rugs. Box stoves and Sibley stoves were provided for the tents.
Cody had discussed the hunt with Spotted Tail
Spotted Tail
Siŋté Glešká was a Brulé Lakota tribal chief. Although a great warrior in his youth, and having taken part in the Grattan massacre, he declined to participate in Red Cloud's War, having become convinced of the pointlessness of opposing the white incursions into his homeland; he became a...
, chief of the Brulé
Brulé
The Brulé are one of the seven branches or bands of the Teton Lakota Sioux American Indian nation. They are known as Sičháŋǧu Oyáte , or "Burnt Thighs Nation," and so, were called Brulé by the French...
Lakota, who had agreed to meet the "great chief from across the water who was coming there to visit him." About 600 warriors of different Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
tribes, led by Spotted Tail, War Bonnet, Black Hat, Red Leaf, Whistler and Pawnee Killer, assembled to greet the grand duke at the hunting camp. They had been provided with ten thousand rations of flour, sugar, coffee, and 1,000 pounds of tobacco for their trouble - twenty-five wagon loads in all.
At the start of the party, Spotted Tail, dressed in a suit, which didn’t fit him, with an army belt upside down and an extremely awkward look was introduced to the Grand Duke. Then the Indian chief extended his hand, and greeted the Grand Duke with the customary "How
How (greeting)
The word "How" is used frequently as a greeting in representations of Native American speech. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word was originally used by missionary Jean de Brébeuf to indicate an interjection of approval used by the Wyandot ; the OED gives the transcription haau. ...
."
For the amusement of Alexei the Indians staged exercises of horsemanship, lance-throwing and bow-shooting. Then there was a sham fight, showing the Indian mode of warfare, closing up with a grand war dance. It was noticed that Grand Duke Alexei paid considerable attention to a good-looking Indian maiden. Concerned that his mother, Empress Maria Alexandrovna, might receive reports of his flirtations, he wrote her from St. Louis: "Regarding my success with American ladies about which so much is written in the newspapers, I can openly say, that this is complete nonsense. They looked on me from the beginning as they would look on a wild animal, as on a crocodile or other unusual beast." .
However, a dispute broke out when General Custer, probably having drunk too much champagne, made crude overtures to Spotted Tail's pretty 16-year-old daughter. Alexei was able to calm down the fight with gifts of red and green blankets, ivory-handled hunting knives and a large bag of silver dollars. A formal council took place in Sheridan’s tent and a peace pipe was passed around. Spotted Tail seized the chance to press his demand for the right to hunt freely south of the Platte River
Platte River
The Platte River is a major river in the state of Nebraska and is about long. Measured to its farthest source via its tributary the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which in turn is a tributary of the Mississippi River which flows to...
and for more than one store in which to trade.
The buffalo hunt
The big hunt took place on the Grand Duke’s 22nd birthday, 14 January 1872. For the hunt the Duke wore a jacket and trousers of heavy gray cloth, trimmed with green, the buttons bearing the Imperial Russian coat-of-arms. He wore his boots outside his trousers in the European way, which was unusual for his American hosts. Alexei carried a Russian hunting knife, and an American revolver, bearing the coats-of-arms of the United States and Russia on the handle, which he had recently received as a present. The hunting party approached buffalo herd several miles up the Red Willow Creek. The Grand Duke rode William Cody’s celebrated buffalo horse "Buckskin Joe", which had been trained to ride at full gallop with a target so that the best shot could be made. As soon as a herd of buffalo was seen, some two miles away, Alexei wanted to make a charge but was restrained by William Cody. The party moved to the windward and gradually approached the herd. Within a hundred yards of the fleeing buffalo, the Grand Duke, not accustomed to shooting from a running horse, fired, but missed. Cody rode up close beside Alexei, handed him his own famed .48-caliber rifle, "Lucretia," the one with which he claimed to have killed 4,200 buffalo and advised him not to fire until he was on the flank of the buffalo. When Alexei tried again, he brought down his game. The hide of the dead buffalo was carefully removed and dressed; the Grand Duke took it home as a souvenir of his hunt on the western plains. Twenty to thirty animals were killed on the first day of the hunt. The party returned early to camp, where there was a liberal supply of champagne and other beverages provided, and the evening was spent in frontier style.The next morning Spotted Tail requested him to hunt by the side of Two Lance, chief of the Nakota
Nakota
The term Nakota is the endonym used by the native peoples of North America who usually go by the name of Assiniboine , in the United States, and of Stoney, in Canada....
Sioux tribe, so that he could see a demonstration of the Indian way of hunting. Coming up to a heard of buffalo, Two Lance demonstrated his skill by killing a large animal with one arrow which passed entirely through the body of the running buffalo. The arrow was preserved and given to Alexei. The Grand Duke killed two buffalo, one of them at 100 paces distance, with a pistol shot.
On the conclusion of the hunt, when returning to Fort McPherson, General Sheridan proposed that William Cody take the reins and show Alexei the old style of stage driving over the plains with the horses at full gallop. The heavy ambulance bounded over the rough prairie, while the occupants could hardly keep their seats. Grand Duke Alexei was pleased with his hunting trip. When he and Cody parted in Fort McPherson, he presented Cody with a fur coat and expensive cuff links.
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
to St. Louis. However, the horses used to hunt in eastern Colorado were cavalry mounts and unaccustomed to buffalo; several hunters were injured during the resulting confusion. Alexei was unhurt and succeeded in killing as many as 25 buffalo. He even shot a few more from the train on its way across western Kansas toward Topeka
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
, which was reached on 22 January. It is claimed that, by the time they reached St. Louis, the party's supply of caviar and champagne had been exhausted.
General Custer became one of the Duke's best friends. He accompanied the Duke and his entourage through Kansas, to St. Louis, New Orleans, and finally to Florida. They continued to correspond with one another up until Custer’s death. In the United States, the hunt is remembered as "The Great Royal Buffalo Hunt". Starting from the year 2000, the Hayes Center, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
organizes each year the "Grand Duke Alexis Rendezvous" featuring a reenactment of the buffalo hunt.
Grand Duke Alexei received as a gift from chief Spotted Tail an Indian wigwam
Tipi
A tipi is a Lakota name for a conical tent traditionally made of animal skins and wooden poles used by the nomadic tribes and sedentary tribal dwellers of the Great Plains...
and a bow and arrows. The Grand Duke took them back to St. Petersburg. At present they are kept at the museum in Tver
Tver
Tver is a city and the administrative center of Tver Oblast, Russia. Population: 403,726 ; 408,903 ;...
. In memory of his adventures in the America, the Grand Duke organized every year a special entertainment. The actors arrived to a village of tents in old carriages drawn by heavy horses. On the palaces lake there were "Indian" pirogue
Pirogue
A pirogue is a small, flat-bottomed boat of a design associated particularly with the Cajuns of the Louisiana marsh. In West Africa they were used as traditional fishing boats. These boats are not usually intended for overnight travel but are light and small enough to be easily taken onto land...
s. Men with swords
Swords
A sword is a cutting/thrusting weapon made of metal. Sword or swords may also refer to:* Swords, County Dublin, Ireland* Suit of swords, a suit in Latin-suited playing cards and Tarot decks* SWORDS, a ground-based military robot...
and tomahawks
Tomahawk (axe)
A tomahawk is a type of axe native to North America, traditionally resembling a hatchet with a straight shaft. The name came into the English language in the 17th century as a transliteration of the Powhatan word.Tomahawks were general purpose tools used by Native Americans and European Colonials...
danced with women dressed in long old skirts. The performance was supposed to give the attendance an image of the American Old West
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
.
The southern states
While in St. Louis, the Grand Duke made a short visit to Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
on 26 January On 28 January he left by train for Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, where he visited the Mammoth Cave
Mammoth Cave National Park
Mammoth Cave National Park is a U.S. National Park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave, the longest cave system known in the world. The official name of the system is the Mammoth-Flint Ridge Cave System for the ridge under which the cave has formed. The park was established...
He continued his trip by steamer, arriving on 2 February 1872 in Memphis Tennessee aboard the Great Republic. After visiting the city he left on 8 February aboard the James Howard and after a stop in Vicksburg
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the only city in Warren County. It is located northwest of New Orleans on the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, and due west of Jackson, the state capital. In 1900, 14,834 people lived in Vicksburg; in 1910, 20,814; in 1920,...
he finally arrived in New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
Visit to New Orleans
In New Orleans Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich attended the 1872 Mardi Gras celebrationsNew Orleans Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a Carnival celebration well-known throughout the world.The New Orleans Carnival season, with roots in preparing for the start of the Christian season of Lent, starts after Twelfth Night, on Epiphany . It is a season of parades, balls , and king cake parties...
, where he was guest of honor reviewing the inaugural Rex parade
Rex parade
Rex is a New Orleans Carnival Krewe which stages one of the city's most celebrated parades on Mardi Gras Day. Rex is Latin for "King", and Rex reigns as "The King of Carnival"....
.
There are many legends related to the Grand Duke’s visit to New Orleans. Though it has been claimed that local business leaders had planned the first daytime parade to honor the Grand Duke, but this was not true. New Orleans was struggling to recover from the lingering effects of the civil war. At the same time, many city leaders saw the need to bring some order to the chaotic street parades of Mardi Gras day. They had planned the parade all along and took the opportunity to capitalize on the Grand Duke’s visit. A new krewe
Krewe
A krewe is an organization that puts on a parade and or a ball for the Carnival season. The term is best known for its association with New Orleans Mardi Gras, but is also used in other Carnival celebrations around the Gulf of Mexico, such as the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa, Florida, and...
of prominent citizens was formed, calling itself the School of Design and its ruler was to be Rex (the organization is now known as the "Rex Organization"). The group of young men who founded the Rex Organization hoped not only to entertain the Grand Duke, but also to create a daytime parade that would be attractive and fun for the citizens of the city and their guests. They selected one of their members, Lewis J. Salomon, the organization’s fund-raiser to be the first Rex, King of Carnival. Before he could begin his reign, he had to borrow a crown, scepter, and costume from Lawrence Barrett
Lawrence Barrett
Lawrence Barrett was an American stage actor.-Biography:He was born Lawrence Brannigan to Irish emigrant parents in Paterson, New Jersey. He made his first stage appearance at Detroit as Murad in The French Spy in 1853...
, a distinguished Shakespearean actor who was performing Richard III
Richard III (play)
Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591. It depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of Richard III of England. The play is grouped among the histories in the First Folio and is most often classified...
at the Varieties Theater.
At the same time, Lydia Thompson’s tour had reached New Orleans and the Bluebeard burlesque was staged at the Academy of Music on St. Charles Avenue. Rumours of the courtship between the Grand Duke and the actress had reached New Orleans and were amplified mainly to ensure a full house. The Duke had already seen the performance and was a no-show, hanging out at the Jockey Club. Besides, the Grand Duke’s preferences had shifted and he was captivated by the diminutive actress Lotta Crabtree
Lotta Crabtree
Lotta Mignon Crabtree was an American actress, entertainer and comedian. She was also a significant philanthropist....
who had one of the main roles in the play The Little Detective. Though the encounter was brief, Alexis sent her a bracelet of diamonds, opals and pearls in Memphis, her next stop after New Orleans.
The Duke however attended the Rex parade. According to legend, the song "If Ever I Cease to Love", was chosen as anthem of the Rex parade, because it was claimed to be the Duke’s favorite tune. Actually, the silly song had been written by George Leybourne
George Leybourne
Joe Sanders , better known as George Leybourne, was an English music hall performer. Often nicknamed "Champagne Charlie", Leybourne is best-remembered as the lyricist for The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze....
and published in London in 1871. The song was already popular in New Orleans before the first Rex parade in 1872. the local adaptation of the lyrics was likely done local journalist E.C. Hancock whose newspaper had already published a spoof of the song in 1871. The lyrics of the song were adapted to the occasion and changed to:
Ride a buffalo in Texas
If Ever I Cease to Love"
The Grand Duke never rode a buffalo in Texas, but Nebraska doesn’t rhyme with Alexis.
It is also claimed that the Grand Duke was also given the honour of selecting the official colours for Mardi Gras, and using the heraldic traditions, selected purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. The claim that these were the colors of the Romanov family is however incorrect. The Meaning and Origin of Purple, Green, and Gold in Mardi Gras Rex selected the official Mardi Gras colors in 1872. The 1892 Rex Parade theme Symbolism of Colors gave meaning to the colors: purple represents justice; green, faith; and gold, power. If any credence should be given for the colours being chosen by Duke Alexis Romanoff himself, then it may well be for the exotic citrus-based drink he introduced to New Orleans locals during that visit, which embodied lemons, limes and variant on the dark purple tonics of the day. (Lemon|Gold, Lime|Green, Tonic|Purple). This drink had been used as a cure for scurvy in the British Navy, In 1747, Lind, an officer and naval surgeon in the British Royal Navy, established the fact that oranges and lemons were effective in curing scurvy. He divided patients into 6 groups of 2 and gave each group a different remedy. Only the group given oranges and lemons recovered. The British used predominantly lime juice instead of lemon or orange juice to prevent the disease, and the sailors became known as limeys. The Grand Duke had lobbied, unsuccessfully, to have this drink adopted widely in the Russian Navy and although not officially adopted, the Grand Duke ordered the drink to be taken daily by his crews, and rates of scurvy among his men vanished. The drink was an instant hit among the attendees of Mardi Gras that year. The drink still survives today as a local recipe in New Orleans and various parts of the state of Louisiana as Citron, Chaux et Bitter.
The parade which the Grand Duke attended, bears little resemblance to present day parades. Rex rode a horse, not a float and the parade that followed was made up largely of the informal maskers and marchers. There were however bands who stopped and played the Russian national anthem in honor of the Grand Duke. But many traditions such as the selection of Rex, the King of the Parade, the Rex anthem, the parade’s colors date back to the Grand Duke’s visit.
The Russian fleet set sail from Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
of 22 February 1872. It is claimed that hundreds of pounds of iced buffalo meat were carefully stowed aboard.
While Libbie Custer, general Custer's wife, believed the grand duke was more interested in "pretty girls and music" than the country he was passing through, Alexei did spend most of his time trying to get an understanding of the country.
The voyage to the Far East
On its way home the Russian squadron first stopped in HavanaHavana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, which it reached on 29 February. At that time, Cuba was still a Spanish colony and in the middle of the Ten Years' War
Ten Years' War
The Ten Years' War , also known as the Great War and the War of '68, began on October 10, 1868 when sugar mill owner Carlos Manuel de Céspedes and his followers proclaimed Cuba's independence from Spain...
against the insurgents, who had attempted to declare the island’s independence. Though fighting was still going on the western part of the island against the rebels under the command of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes
Carlos Manuel de Céspedes
Carlos Manuel de Céspedes del Castillo was a Cuban planter who freed his slaves and made the declaration of Cuban independence in 1868 which started the Ten Years' War...
, the hostilities did not prevent governor Blas Villate
Blas Villate
Blas Villate y de la Herra, count of Valmaceda was a Spanish general. He was several times governor of Cuba:* September 24, 1867 - December 21, 1867 * December 13, 1870 - July 11, 1872...
, count of Valmaceda to receive the Grand Duke with full honors. During his stay in Havana, balls were organized every evening. Alexei also attended the operas Crispino e la Comare
Crispino e la comare
Crispino e la comare is an opera by Luigi Ricci and Federico Ricci with an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave.-Performance history:The premiere took place on 28 February 1850 at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice....
and Martha
Martha
Martha of Bethany is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem...
at the Great Theatre of Havana
Great Theatre of Havana
The Great Theatre of Havana is located in the Paseo del Prado in Havana, Cuba. It is located in a building known as the Palace of the Galician Centre which served as a place of social reunion for the Galician immigrants in Havana...
where, at the beginning of the play, the opera choir sang the Russian national anthem. The Grand Duke also visited the works of the Canal de Vento (now called Acueducto de Albear
Acueducto de Albear
The Acueducto de Albear is the name of a water supply system of the city of Havana, Cuba built in the 19th century by Francisco de Albear.-Background:...
) for the water supply of the city, saw a cock fight in the city of Marianao
Marianao
Marianao is a town and municipality in the province of the city of Havana, Cuba, 6 miles southwest of the original city of Havana, with which it is connected by the Marianao railway. , the municipality had a population of 133,016. Marianao is on a range of hills about 1500 ft. above sea level,...
and a corrida in the "Plaza de Torros" of Havana. In the following days he also went to the Yumurí River valley and to the city of Matanzas
Matanzas
Matanzas is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas. It is famed for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore.It is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Matanzas , east of the capital Havana and west of the resort town of Varadero.Matanzas is called the...
The Russian squadron then stopped in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
where it arrived on 3 June 1872. The Grand Duke entertained emperor Pedro II of Brazil
Pedro II of Brazil
Dom Pedro II , nicknamed "the Magnanimous", was the second and last ruler of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he was the seventh child of Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil and Empress Dona Maria Leopoldina and thus a member of the Brazilian branch of...
and the imperial court aboard the Svetlana. The Braziliam emperor awarded him the Imperial Order of Dom Pedro I
Order of Pedro I
The Imperial Order of Dom Pedro I is an Brazilian order of chivalry instituted by Emperor Pedro I of Brazil on 16 April 1826.On 22 March 1890, the order was cancelled as national order by the interim government of United States of Brazil....
. The Grand Duke looked slightly disappointed and said that he had hoped for the Imperial Order of the Rose
Order of the Rose
The Imperial Order of the Rose is an Brazilian order of chivalry, instituted by Emperor Pedro I of Brazil on 17 October 1829 to commemorate his marriage to Amélie of Leuchtenberg....
, a lower order, because he had never seen a more beautiful order. Pedro II graciously awarded him both orders. Thereafter, he spent several days in Brazil, leaving on 9 June.
Sailing to the Far East, the squadron stopped in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, Batavia
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Hong Kong, Canton
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
and Shanghai
Tour of Japan
On 15 October 1872 the Russian squadron cast anchor in Nagasaki harbour, where he was greeted by the governor. The program of the Grand Duke included a ceremonial dinner in his honour, visits to the surrounding countryside and a tournament of 60 best wrestlers of Japan. On 22 October Alexei and his staff visited a little village InasaInasa, Shizuoka
was a town located in Inasa District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.Inasa became was town on May 1, 1955.On July 1, 2005 Inasa, along with the town of Haruno, from Shūchi District, the towns of Hosoe and Mikkabi, all from Inasa District, the towns of Sakuma and Misakubo, the village of Tatsuyama, all...
where a Russian colony lived. The Russians delegation visited two hotels named "Kronstadt" and "Moscow" as well as the Russian cemetery.
The Russian squadron left Nagasaki on 24 October, the next port of call
Port of Call
-Synopsis:Berit, a young woman living in a working-class port town begins a relationship with Gösta, a sailor newly returned from overseas and intent upon staying on land...
being Kobe
Kobe
, pronounced , is the fifth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture on the southern side of the main island of Honshū, approximately west of Osaka...
, where the Grand Duke was again greeted by the provincial governor. The Russians were surprised by the jinrikshas which they saw for the first time. They used rickshaws for their trip to the Nunobeki water falls
Nunobiki Falls
is a set of waterfalls near the downtown Kobe, Japan, with an important significance in Japanese literature and Japanese art. In Japan, Nunobiki is considered one of the greatest "divine falls" together with Kegon Falls and Nachi Falls....
in the proximity of the city. Grand Duke Alexei also attended a performance at the local theatre in Kobe.
On 1 November the Russian squadron set sail for Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
. The Grand Duke was met by Prince Arisugawa Taruhito
Prince Arisugawa Taruhito
became the 9th head of line of shinnōke cadet branches of the Imperial Family of Japan on September 9, 1871. He was a career officer in the Imperial Japanese Army.-Early life:...
, the Daijō daijin (Chancellor of the Realm) who escorted him to Edo Castle. At the castle Alexei met Soejima Taneomi
Soejima Taneomi
was a diplomat and statesman during early Meiji period Japan.-Biography:Soejima was born into a samurai family in Saga, in Hizen province . His father was a teacher in the domain's school and a scholar of National Learning . In 1866, Soejima was sent to Nagasaki by the domain leaders to study the...
Head of the Gaimushō (Department of foreign affairs). who made the arrangements for the accommodation and the entertainment of the Russian delegation. On 5 November, the Grand Duke was officially received by Japanese Emperor Meiji
Emperor Meiji
The or was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 3 February 1867 until his death...
.
Emperor Meiji, presented his portrait a gift for the Tsar, the first time ever a Japanese emperor’s portrait was given to a foreigner, and asked for a portrait of Alexander II in return. The Great Prince Alexeis promised to send the portrait as soon as he got back to St.-Petersburg, and, as soon as he came on-board the Svetlana, sent his own portrait to thank the Mikado. The exchange continued and, the next day, the Emperor sent over the portraits of his spouse and mother.
On 9 November, Alexei and the Mikado viewed the parade of the Japanese armed forces, and upon his return to the palace, he was introduced to the Empress Masako. After a few days, the Mikado at the invitation of the Grand Duke, the Mikado went to Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
to see the Russian squadron. Following the Grand Duke’s intervention, 34 Japanese Christians were pardoned by the Mikado
Emperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
and released.
On 26 November the Russian squadron set sail for Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
reaching the base of the Russian Pacific Fleet on 5 December nearly a year and a half after it had left from Kronstadt. He then returned to St. Petersburg across Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
Palace of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich
After his return from America, Grand Duke Alexei was concerned about an appropriate residence. He purchased an older building located at 122 Moika River Embankment in Saint Petersburg. The building was completely redesigned and rebuilt by architect Maximilian MessmacherMaximilian Messmacher
Maximilian Egorovich Messmacher was a Russian architect of German ancestry. He attended the School of Painting of St. Petersburg Society for the Encouragement of Arts and thereafter the Imperial Academy of Arts, graduating in 1866...
having a total surface of 9,200 sq.m. It is considered one of the most interesting examples of Saint Petersburg’s eclectic architecture. The architect used a different style for each façade. The wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
and stone fence surrounding the palace and its gardens is also an interesting feature. The central gates are still ornamented with the Grand Duke’s monogram, the meaning of which was overlooked by the Soviet authorities. In 1910 part of the gardens were sold for the construction of a candy factory. Though the palace was declared a national landmark in 1968, it remained in disrepair for many years.
At present, the palace is undergoing major restoration. It will be open in December 2008 as the House of Music.
Military career
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
and naval artillery
Naval artillery
Naval artillery, or naval riflery, is artillery mounted on a warship for use in naval warfare. Naval artillery has historically been used to engage either other ships, or targets on land; in the latter role it is currently termed naval gunfire fire support...
of the Russian Naval Technical Committee.
During the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) he was promoted commander of the Russian Naval Forces on the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. On 9 January 1878 he was distinguished with the Order of St. George
Order of St. George
The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George (also known as Order of St. George the Triumphant, Russian: Военный орден Св...
– Fourth Degree for "tireless and successful management of the naval forces and equipment on 14 June 1877 for the construction and maintenance of the pontoon bridges and crossings at Zimnicea
Zimnicea
Zimnicea is a town in Teleorman county, Romania , a port on the Danube opposite the Bulgarian city of Svishtov.-Geography:...
, Pietroşani
Pietrosani, Teleorman
Pietroşani is a commune in Teleorman County, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Pietroşani....
and Nikopol
Nikopol, Bulgaria
Nikopol is a town in northern Bulgaria, the administrative center of Nikopol municipality, part of Pleven Province, on the right bank of the Danube river, 4 km downstream from the mouth of the Osam river. It spreads at the foot of steep chalk cliffs along the Danube and up a narrow valley...
and for the successful measures for protecting these crossing from destruction by enemy forces."
In 1880 he was promoted general adjutant. In 1882 after the accession of Tsar Alexander III
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
to the throne, Alexander III, Alexei was appointed head of the Naval Department, replacing Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaievich. In 1883 he was also appointed General Admiral
General Admiral
General admiral was a Danish, Dutch, German, Russian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish naval rank. Its historic origin is a title high military or naval dignitaries of early modern Europe sometimes held, for example the commander-in-chief of the Dutch Republic's navy .-Third Reich:In the German...
of the Russian Imperial Fleet.
Though his control over the day-to-day affairs of the military is limited, Alexei is involved in naval and military planning. His influence over the Tsar gives him a powerful say in strategic decision-making.
Besides being the head of Russia’s fleets, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was also in command of the naval cadet corps, the Moskow guard regiment, the 37-th Ekaterinburg infantry regiment, the 77-th Tenginsk infantry regiment, and the 17-th Eastern Siberian infantry regiment.
As commander in chief of the navy, the Grand Duke's main concern was the constant modernization of the fleet, taking into account the rapid technological progress. During his tenure he ensured a fivefold increase of the navy's budget. He was able to launch a series of pre-dreadnought battleships which were replacing the old ironclad ships. Thus he was instrumental in the equipment of the Russian navy with several battleships of various classes:
- The Peresviet class, inspired by the British battleship .
- The Borodino classBorodino class battleshipThe five Borodino-class battleships were pre-dreadnoughts built between 1899 and 1905 for the Imperial Russian Navy...
, based on a French design by the shipyards in La Seyne-sur-MerLa Seyne-sur-MerLa Seyne-sur-Mer, or La Seyne is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is part of the agglomeration of Toulon, and is situated adjacent to the west of this city.-Economy:... - The Petropavlovsk classPetropavlovsk class battleship (1897)The Petropavlovsk-class were pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy. All three ships fought and were lost in the Russo-Japanese war. Two ships were destroyed and one was captured by the Japanese....
designed at Galerniy Yard, St. Petersburg, - The Navarin class, on the British Trafalgar class battleshipTrafalgar class battleshipThe two Trafalgar-class battleships of the British Royal Navy were late nineteenth century ironclad warships. Both were named after naval battles won by the British during the Napoleonic wars under the command of Admiral Nelson.-Design:...
He also had older ironclads of the Imperator Aleksandr II class reconstructed by the Fench La Seyne yard. He also put new cruisers in service (among which the cruiser Aurora).
The Grand Duke was instrumental in the modernization of the Russian navy. reconstructed and developed of the military harbours of Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
, Alexander III
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
in Livada (now Liepāja
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
) and Port Arthur
Lüshunkou
Lüshunkou is a district in the municipality of Dalian, Liaoning province, China. Also called Lüshun City or Lüshun Port, it was formerly known as both Port Arthur and Ryojun....
, increased of the number of navy yards and extended the dry-docks in Kronstadt, Vladivostok and Sevastopol. He also reorganized the navy, defining the conditions for different naval qualifications, drafting of rules for rewarding long-time service of first and second rank ship captains, restructuring of the corps of mechanical engineers and naval engineers, increasing the number of officers and crew.
When tensions mounted in the Far East, Grand Duke Alexei ordered the transfer of additional ships to Port Arthur
Lüshunkou
Lüshunkou is a district in the municipality of Dalian, Liaoning province, China. Also called Lüshun City or Lüshun Port, it was formerly known as both Port Arthur and Ryojun....
, including the battleship Petropavlovsk
Russian battleship Petropavlovsk (1897)
The Petropavlovsk was the lead ship of the Petropavlovsk class of battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy. During the Russo-Japanese War, Petropavlovsk was a flagship of the First Pacific Squadron, taking part in battles against the Imperial Japanese Navy. On March 31, 1904, the battleship...
.
Russian academician
Academician
The title Academician denotes a Full Member of an art, literary, or scientific academy.In many countries, it is an honorary title. There also exists a lower-rank title, variously translated Corresponding Member or Associate Member, .-Eastern Europe and China:"Academician" may also be a functional...
and naval engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
Alexei Nikolaevich Krylov
Alexei Krylov
Aleksey Nikolaevich Krylov was a Russian naval engineer, applied mathematician and memoirist.-Biography:Alexei Nikolaevich Krylov was born on August 3 O.S., 1863 to the family of an Army Artillery officer in a village Akhmatovo near town Alatyr of the Simbirsk Gubernia in Russia...
shows that, despite these achievements, there were severe drawbacks in the Grand Duke’s activity. There was no strategic planning and ships were not built based on their intended role within the fleet. There were too many ships of different types. Ships were designed mainly by copying the ones of foreign navies, and were therefore technologically 6–7 year old when they were launched. Their armour and equipment was often inadequate.
The Grand Duke seems to have become aware of some the these deficiencies. He decided to have more battleships of a single type and to have them designed abroad to meet the needs of the Russian navy. However, though the Grand Duke was an admirer of the British navy, the new battleships were conceived in France and had a poor design. The new Borodino class battleship
Borodino class battleship
The five Borodino-class battleships were pre-dreadnoughts built between 1899 and 1905 for the Imperial Russian Navy...
s had tumblehome
Tumblehome
In ship designing, the tumblehome is the narrowing of a ship's hull with greater distance above the water-line. Expressed more technically, it is present when the beam at the uppermost deck is less than the maximum beam of the vessel....
hulls
Hull (watercraft)
A hull is the watertight body of a ship or boat. Above the hull is the superstructure and/or deckhouse, where present. The line where the hull meets the water surface is called the waterline.The structure of the hull varies depending on the vessel type...
and were unstable, having a high center of gravity
Center of mass
In physics, the center of mass or barycenter of a system is the average location of all of its mass. In the case of a rigid body, the position of the center of mass is fixed in relation to the body...
. The drawbacks proved to be fatal for the Russian navy.
At the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
, in 1904 the Russian First Pacific Squadron was able to resist the Japanese attack during the Battle of the Yellow Sea
Battle of the Yellow Sea
The Battle of the Yellow Sea was a major naval engagement of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 10 August 1904. In the Russian Navy, it was referred to as the Battle of 10 August. The battle foiled an attempt by the Russian fleet at Port Arthur to break out and form up with counterparts from...
. However, the squadron was destroyed during the battle for Port Arthur, and the Baltic Fleet, sent for reinforcement was completely defeated in the Battle of Tsushima
Battle of Tsushima
The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was the major naval battle fought between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War...
. On 2 June 1905 O.S., Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovitch was relieved of his command and retired.
Life at the Russian court
Biarritz
Biarritz is a city which lies on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast, in south-western France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers....
, each time in the company of a different lady.
Around the late 1880s he started a celebrated affair with the Duchess of Leuchtenberg, the morganatic wife of one of his cousins. Born Zinaida Skobelyeva, "Zina" was a strikingly beautiful woman who had married Eugeni of Leuchtenberg as his second wife in 1870. Alexander II made her Countess de Beauharnais and Alexander III raised her to Serene Highness and Duchess of Leuchtenberg. Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was so besotted with her that he conducted an affair openly, under her husband's roof and in his full knowledge. Eugeni Leuchtenberg drank away most of his fortune, and for years he and Zinaida lived off his cousin's generosity. Even after his wife's death in 1899 the Duke continued to live under Alexei's roof.
Besides his military duties, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich also was chairman of the Imperial Commission for the Promotion of Ballet.
In 1904, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was one of the godparents of Tsarevich Alexei, the other godparents being the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, King Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, King Christian IX of Denmark
Christian IX of Denmark
Christian IX was King of Denmark from 16 November 1863 to 29 January 1906.Growing up as a prince of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, a junior branch of the House of Oldenburg which had ruled Denmark since 1448, Christian was originally not in the immediate line of succession to the Danish...
, Grand Duke Ernest Ludwig of Hesse
Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse
Ernest Louis Charles Albert William , was the last Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine from 1892 until 1918...
, Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna
Alexandra Iosifovna of Altenburg
Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna of Russia , born Princess Alexandra Friederike Henriette of Saxe-Altenburg was the fifth daughter of Joseph Georg Friedrich Ernst Karl, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg and Amelie Theresa Luise, Duchess of Württemberg.-Early life:Alexandra's parents were married on 24 April...
, Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich, Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaievna
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia ; , November 16 after 1900 – July 17, 1918) was the eldest daughter of the last autocratic ruler of the Russian Empire, Emperor Nicholas II, and of Empress Alexandra of Russia....
. Besides, all soldiers serving in the military during the Russo-Japanese War were declared godfathers to Alexei.
Death
After the assassination of his brother Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of RussiaGrand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia was a son of Emperor Alexander II of Russia...
in February 1905 and his retirement in disgrace from the navy in June that same year, Alexei Alexandrovich spent most of his time in a Paris house which he had bought in 1897. At his house in Avenue Gabriel he kept open door for writers, painters, actors and especially actresses. He had always been less interested in the armed services than in art and fashion, and he had long since been recognized as a connoisseur of the social, artistic and literary life of Paris. His massive frame was a familiar sight at restaurants and theaters, particularly on first nights. His last public appearance, a week before his death, was at the dress rehearsal of a new play at the vaudeville. Decades of comfort and good living eventually took their toll on the Grand Duke's health. He died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in Paris on 27 November (14 November O.S.) 1908. His death was said to have devastated Tsar Nicholas II
Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Prince of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until...
, his nephew, who reportedly claimed Alexei as his favourite uncle. In 2006 the diary of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich was found in the Russian National Library along with Yussupov funds. The journal, written in English, begins in 1862 and ends in 1907. It has not been published yet.
Popular culture
The Grand Duke's western hunt is alluded to in the film version of MaverickMaverick (film)
Maverick is a 1994 Western comedy film based on the 1950s television series of the same name, created by Roy Huggins. The film was directed by Richard Donner from a screenplay by William Goldman and features Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster and James Garner, as well as several cameo appearances...
, starring Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
. In the film, the Duke is hustled, after he has grown bored with hunting animals, into thinking he has killed a Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
.
He is also described by Boris Akunin
Boris Akunin
Boris Akunin is the pen name of Grigory Shalvovich Chkhartishvili , a Russian writer. He is an essayist, literary translator and writer of detective fiction.-Life and career:...
in his novel "The coronation of the last Romanov" (Коронация, или Последний из Романовых) where he is presented as the character Georgi Aleksandrovich.
The 1973 Lucky Luke
Lucky Luke
Lucky Luke is a Belgian comics series created by Belgian cartoonist, Maurice De Bevere better known as Morris, the original artist, and was for one period written by René Goscinny...
comic book Le Grand Duc
Le Grand Duc
Le Grand Duc is a Lucky Luke adventure written by Goscinny and illustrated by Morris. It is the fortieth book in the series and It was originally published in French in the year 1973 .-Plot:...
features a Russian Grand Duke who visits the Wild West.