Alexander II

Alexander II (1818-1881), also known as Alexander the Liberator, was tsar (emperor) of Russia who reigned during 1855-81. He was son and successor of Nicholas I, fell heir to the throne while the siege of Sebastopol was going on. On the conclusion of a peace, he applied himself to reforms, which included limited emancipation of the serfs, in the state and the consolidation and extension of the empire.

His reign is distinguished by a ukase decreeing in 1861 the emancipation of the serfs numbering 23 millions, by the extension of the empire in the Caucasus and Central Asia, and by the war with Turkey in the interest of the Slavs in 1877-78, which was ended by the peace of San Stephano, revised by the treaty of Berlin. His later years were clouded with great anxiety, owing to the spread of Nihilism, and he was killed by a bomb thrown at him by a Nihilist.

Nearby pages
Alexander III, Alexander III the emperor of Russia, Alexander III the king of Scotland, Alexander J Ellis, Alexander Jannaeus