Romanov dynasty (1613 - 1917)

The wise man avoids all extremes.

Lao Tzu

The Romanov dynasty ruled Russia for 304 years, from 1613 to 1917. She replaced the Rurik dynasty on the throne, which ended after the death of Ivan the Terrible (the tsar did not leave an heir). During the reign of the Romanovs, 17 rulers changed on the Russian throne (the average duration of the reign of 1 tsar is 17.8 years), and the state itself changed its form with the light hand of Peter 1. In 1771 Russia changed from a Tsardom to an Empire.

Table - Romanov Dynasty

In the table, people who ruled (with the date of reign) are highlighted in color, and people who were not in power are marked with a white background. Double line - marital ties.

All rulers of the dynasty (who accounted for each other):

• Mikhail 1613-1645. Ancestor of the Romanov dynasty. Received power largely thanks to his father - Filaret.
• Alexei 1645-1676. Son and heir of Michael.
• Sophia (regent under Ivan 5 and Peter 1) 1682-1696. Daughter of Alexei and Maria Miloslavskaya. Sister of Fyodor and Ivan 5.
• Peter 1 (independent rule from 1696 to 1725). A man who is for the majority a symbol of the dynasty and the personification of the power of Russia.
• Catherine 1 1725-1727. Real name - Marta Skavronska. Wife of Peter 1
• Peter 2 1727-1730. Grandson of Peter 1, son of the murdered Tsarevich Alexei.
• Anna Ioannovna 1730-1740. Daughter of Ivan 5.
• Ivan 6 Antonovich 1740-1741. The baby ruled under the regent - his mother Anna Leopoldovna. Grandson of Anna Ioannovna.
• Elizabeth 1741-1762. Daughter of Peter I.
• Peter 3 1762. Grandson of Peter 1, son of Anna Petrovna.
• Catherine II 1762-1796. Wife of Peter 3.
• Pavel 1 1796-1801. Son of Catherine 2 and Peter 3.
• Alexander 1 1801-1825. Son of Paul 1.
• Nicholas 1 1825-1855. Son of Paul 1, brother of Alexander 1.
• Alexander 2 1855-1881. Son of Nicholas 1.
• Alexander 3 1881-1896. Son of Alexander II.
• Nicholas 2 1896-1917. Son of Alexander 3.

Diagram - rulers of dynasties by years

The amazing thing is that if you look at the diagram of the duration of the reign of each king from the Romanov dynasty, then 3 things become clear:

1. The greatest role in the history of Russia was played by those rulers who have been in power for more than 15 years.
2. The number of years in power is directly proportional to the importance of the ruler in the history of Russia. The greatest number of years in power were Peter 1 and Catherine 2. It is these rulers that most historians associate as the best rulers who laid the foundation for modern statehood.
3. All those who ruled for less than 4 years are outright traitors, and people unworthy of power: Ivan 6, Catherine 1, Peter 2 and Peter 3.

Also an interesting fact is that each ruler from the Romanovs left his successor a territory larger than he received. Thanks to this, the territory of Russia expanded significantly, because Mikhail Romanov took control of a territory slightly larger than the Muscovite kingdom, and in the hands of Nicholas 2, the last emperor, was the entire territory of modern Russia, other former republics of the USSR, Finland and Poland. The only serious territorial loss is the sale of Alaska. This is a rather dark story with many ambiguities.

The fact of close connection between the ruling house of Russia and Prussia (Germany) attracts attention. Practically all generations had family ties with this country, and some of the rulers associated themselves not with Russia, but with Prussia (the clearest example is Peter 3).

vicissitudes of fate

Today it is customary to say that the Romanov dynasty was interrupted after the Bolsheviks shot the children of Nicholas 2. This is indeed a fact that cannot be disputed. But something else is interesting - the dynasty also began with the murder of a child. We are talking about the murder of Tsarevich Dmitry, the so-called Uglich case. Therefore, it is quite symbolic that the dynasty began on the blood of a child and ended on the blood of a child.