Assassination of Alexander II
March 1, 1881 · 19th Century
Tsar Alexander II was assassinated on March 13, 1881, in St. Petersburg when members of the revolutionary organization Narodnaya Volya detonated two bombs as his carriage passed along the Catherine Canal. The first bomb damaged the carriage; when Alexander exited to inspect the scene, a second bomber threw a device at his feet, inflicting fatal injuries. Alexander had signed the Emancipation Manifesto of 1861, freeing approximately 23 million serfs, and had implemented judicial and military reforms. His assassination prompted his successor, Alexander III, to reverse liberalizing policies.
Key Figures
Alexander II of RussiaIgnacy HryniewieckiNikolai RysakovSophia PerovskayaAndrei Zhelyabov
Locations
Catherine CanalWinter PalaceSaint Petersburg
Topics
Narodnaya VolyaWinter PalaceRussiaZaporizhzhiaSaint PetersburgPeople's WillMikhailovsky Manège
Connected Events — 2 Connections
Ended the era of liberal reforms and initiated decades of repressive policies under Alexander III and Nicholas II, creating the revolutionary underground culture that produced Lenin and the Bolsheviks The Bolshevik Revolution
The sale of Alaska removed Russia's most vulnerable and expensive territorial liability, inadvertently allowing Alexander II to focus resources on domestic reforms that ultimately provoked the revolutionary movements leading to his assassination Alaska Purchase
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