Pyotr (Peter) II Alekseyevich

 

(October 23 1715 – January 30 1730)

 was Emperor of Russia from 1727 until his death in 1730. He was the only son of Alexei Petrovich, son of Peter I of Russia by his first wife Eudoxia Lopukhina.

 Peter was born on 23 October 1715. He was kept in seclusion for his entire childhood. His grandfather, Peter the Great, ignored his existence. Even during Catherine’s reign Peter was ignored. When she fell ill and a successor was to be named it became clear that Peter should claim his inheritance. On May 18, 1727 Peter II, according to the terms of Catherine’s (supposedly) forged will, Peter was proclaimed sovereign autocrat.

 Peter's coronation was celebrated on February 25 1728. He was subsequently betrothed to Princess Catherine Dolgorukova. The wedding date was selected, January 30, 1730 ironically the day Peter died of smallpox.

 The Romanov Dynasty’s male line died with Peter. He was succeeded by Peter the Great’s half-brother’s daughter, Anna Ivanovna, and co-ruler, Ivan V.

Catherine I

Catherine I (April 15 1684 – May 17 1727), the second wife of Peter the Great, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1725 until her death in 1727. Voltaire proclaimed that Catherine’s life was just as extraordinary as her husband Peter’s.

Originally named 'Marta Skowrońska', some speculate that she came from Lithuania, (there are no surviving documents to confirm) and was one of four children in a Catholic household. Her father died of the plague when she was three. Pastor Glück took in Marta. He was a Lutheran pastor who made no effort to educate her, instead treated her as a household servant. She remained illiterate throughout her life. Glück was able to rid himself of Marta by marrying her off. Her new husband was a Swede dragoon and only a few months later, the Swedes were compelled by the Russians to evacuate. She became a prisoner and sold eventually landing in the household of Prince Menshikov. It was through Menshikov that Marta met and fell in love with Peter the Great, his best friend.

Marta begot a daughter with Peter named Catherine, after which Peter no longer hid his affair with Marta. She was invited into the Orthodox Church, where she was rechristened Catherine Alekseyevna. Catherine and Peter married secretly in 1707 and they were publicly married in 1711. The tsar had to divorce his first wife, the tsarina Eudoxia, to allow a public marriage. Together they had nine children, two of which survived into adulthood, Yelizaveta (born 1709) and Anna (born 1708). During 1703 Peter and Catherine lived in a log cabin while he was moving his capital to St Petersburg acting as if they were a ‘normal’ family. Their relationship was very loving and affectionate. A great number of their love letters still exist.

Peter died on January 28, 1725 with no named heir to the throne. A coup was arranged in which Catherine was proclaimed the ruler of Russia. They gave her the title of Empress.

During Catherine's reign the Verkhovny Tainy Sovyet, or supreme privy council, was created. This strengthened the executive power by concentrating affairs into the hands of a select few.

Catherine was the first woman to rule Imperial Russia. She was the first of many in a century dominated by women, including her own daughter. Her tax relief policies on the peasantry led to the reputation of Catherine I as a just and fair ruler. Catherine died on the 16th of May 1727. It is not known what caused her early demise.

Peter I Alexeyevion Romanov of Russia (Peter the Great)

Born June 9, 1672 – Died February 8, 1725

Reign May 1682- February 1725

Peter was the co-tsar with his elder half brother Ivan until his power became seen as a threat to their regent Sofya. Their power struggle ultimately ended with Ivan choosing Peter and they taking full power of Russia without Sofya as the regent. With Ivan’s condition however, Peter took on the responceabilities along with his mother, Nataliya Naryshkina, and her advisors. They worked together quite well until his mother passed in 1694. Soon after Ivan died in 1696, and not until then did Peter truly become “The Great.”

Peter put into action many new modern ideas of expansion that eventually led to Russia becoming more than 3 billion acres and a country of ultimate power. He also made a decree on education in 1714, demanding that all children 10-15 of nobles and those in power or money positions have at least a mathematical formal education that they be tested over. In 1722 he also created an order of precedence known as the Table of Ranks. This allowed people of merit and those who helped led to success of the emperor to become the boyers, not just those of noble birth. This action stayed in place until much later in Russian government.

Peter had a total of 14 children from two wives and one mistress. His eldest son, Alexi was tried and convicted of trying to overthrow his father, he later died in prison in 1718. Peter him self died of a urinary problem caused by gangrene, but before he did he was able to leave everything to his daughter Anna.

Feodor III

Feodor was the eldest surviving son of tsar Alexi Mikhailovich. In 1676 he succeeded his father on the throne. He was highly intelligent, but horribly disfigured and half paralyzed by a mysterious disease, supposed to be scurvy. He ruled for the most part from his bed-chamber. In 1680 he married a Ukrainian noblewoman named Agatha Gruszewska. He was a known for his reforms. He abolished the system of Mestnichestvo, in 1682 which had paralyzed the whole civil and military administration of Muscovy for generations. He founded the academy of Sciences in the Zaikonospassky monastery, where everything not expressly forbidden by the Orthodox Church was taught. In 1681 Agatha gave birth to their son Tsarevich IIya Fyodorovich. Agatha died as a result of childbirth three days later, and six days later the son died. Feodor went on to marry a second time to Martha Apraksina. Feodor died three months after his second marriage without an heir to the throne causing the Moscow uprising of 1682.

Ivan V Alekseyevich Romanov of Russia

Born September 6, 1666 – died February 8, 1696

Eldest son of Alexis I and Maria Miloslavskaya, after his father’s death there was great turmoiol within the country and a struggle of power that eventually led to a new idea for tsars. The people chose for Ivan to be the senior tsar ruling with a co-tsar with his younger half brother Peter I, their older sister Sofya then became regent. Ivan suffered from many different physical and mental health issues that led him to not want the tsar position at all, this allowed Sofya to completely rule Russia. She even placed her self on many coins and metals throughout Russia and found a wife for Ivan.

This set up was easy to work with at first, or at least until Sofya and Peter became to both want ruling control. In 1689, Sofya led a revolt against her half brother for control, unfortunately for her she had been in the public’s eye too much, and with Ivan choosing Peter’s side, she was forced out and the brothers took control.

Ivan was not involved in the ruling of Russia, for most of his term he divulged power to Peter and resigned to a quite life with his wife Praskovia Saltykova. They eventually had six children, but only four survived. Ivan lived this way until his death in 1696.

Alexei Mikailovich

Alexei Mikhailovich was born in 1629. He was the son of Michael Romanov the first dynasty which was to rule Russia until 1917. He became Tsar of Russia in 1645 at the age of 16 when his father died. Alexei’s reign was plagued by many popular revolts, including the one in southeastern Russia under the Cossack leader Stenka Razin. He dealt with civil revolts in the cities of Pskov, Novgorod, and Moscow. Even though Alexei suppressed the uprisings, he took steps to advance administration and justice in order to silence the general discontent. He introduced a new legal code in 1649, which tied the peasants even more closely to the land and their landlords. He presided over renewed Russian expansion, but in a non violent manner. Alexei’s ecclesiastical reforms led to the great schism within the Russian church. Alexei was married twice, first to Maria Miloslavskii and after her death to Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina. Alexei died suddenly in 1676 in Moscow at the age of 47. Six daughters and three sons survived him.

Michael Romanov

Michael Romanov I (1613 – 1645)

Michael Romanov (Mikhail I  Fyodorovich Romanov) took the throne as Tsar of Russia after being unanimously elected by the Russian Grand National Assembly at the age of 16. Because of the recent destruction of Moscow, he did not officially take the crown until June 22, 1613. The first thing that the Tsar did was rid Russia of any foreigners, probably to prevent what happened from happening again. Peace treaties were signed with Sweden and Poland in 1617 and 1618 respectively. Part of the peace treaty with Poland was an agreement that Russia would not seek to gain land off the Baltic Sea. Michael was a very pious ruler was known through mostly his counselors.

Michael prepared Russia for a possible war with Poland and had to increase taxes in order to do so. After the Time of Troubles, Poland still had control of Smolensk. Global trade under Michael's reign increased in Russian, bringing some improvements to the economic situation of some citizens.

In 1632, the King of Poland, King Sigismund died leaving behind a very unstable Poland. Russia and Poland went to war between 1632 and 1634, however, not much progress was made on either side. Russian wasn't even able to regain Smolensk.

Under Tsar Michael, Russia gained control of the Ural Mountain region as well as other regions further south, expanding the size of Russia. It was also under Michael's reign that Russian pioneers reached the Pacific Ocean. This occurred in 1638. Michael did have a son named named Alexis I. (Aleksey Mikhailovich Romanov). When Michael died in 1645, Alexis took the throne and continued the stable Romanov Dynasty in Russia.