Romanov's Royal Russia

I think that all Royals are very interesting to write about especially the dead ones with dark pasts. I think that the great advantage of learning and studying history is to make sure that we do not to repeat our ancestors' mistakes. This I take with a pinch of salt, as I definitely do not want to make the same mistake that the Romanov's made; underestimate the normal people of their country.

When one starts studying Russia, as I did for Russian A-level, one has to start with acknowledging the size of Russia. Also, how cold it can become in winter.

The Romanov history is a very rich history indeed. They were descended from Vikings. These Vikings decided to settle in Russia and make themselves the local rulers by force.

My Favourite Romanov is Emperor Peter I who ruled from 1672 to 1725, and I believe that the weakest Romanov ruler was Emperor Paul I (1754 -1801). This post will compare these two rulers, from their mistakes to their strengths.

Emperor Paul I, reigned from 1754 to 1801 and was an unfortunate and unlucky monarch. In all of the portraits you see of Emperor Paul he looks rather sad or depressed. He was raised for the first seven years of his life by his great aunt, Empress Elizabeth. Paul was an intelligent and sensitive child. His father's abdication and murder left a lasting impression on his mind. It meant that he trusted no one, not even his close nobles, this led to his untimely death.

His mother, The Empress Catherine, wanted a warrior and gave birth to a sensitive human instead. This led to her rejecting him emotionally when he was young but equally being very controlling over his life. She was a dominant and a very powerful figure in Russian history. I think that it must have destroyed some of Emperor Paul's spirit having such a strong mother and also that he relied too much on her great name.

I feel deep sympathy for Emperor Paul as I would not have wanted to be in his shoes. He had a tough time of it, doing the same job where his own father got murdered for doing it wrong. That would definitely play on my mind.

Emperor Paul I died a horrible death by his own nobles in his own bedroom in St Michael's castle in 1801. This shows us that this Emperor could not even keep the support of his own court. The nobles became annoyed at his arrogance and his entitled manner.

Emperor Paul did have a rough start in life with having Empress Catherine as his mother, however I also think it made his character spoilt as he too expected great things from his position.

This is why I find the contrast between the spoilt Emperor Paul I, who was murdered by his own nobles, and the contrast between the tall warrior of Peter the Great, so interesting.

With Emperor Peter I (1672 to 1725) we shall be looking at his ties with England and the Stuart Kingdom. We shall also look at how he restored the Russian Navy. I think that that he was such a successful leader that he should be studied in more detail. I like and admire Peter the Great as he travelled a lot. He saw Lambeth Palace library which amazed him. He even stayed and visited London for three months in 1698 during his Grand tour of Europe. He had a special interest in Naval warfare.

I admire Peter I I hugely for being very clever and resourceful, for example how he conducted his tour of Europe. In the year of 1685 he went to Western Europe as an Officer so that he could witness how these Western countries did there shipbuilding for himself. The Emperor sailed from Holland, incognito as an officer called Peter Mikhailov, having spent three months learning about boat building from the Dutch East India Company.

I like to use the odd perspective when it comes to Emperor Peter I. When the Stuarts were in power in Britain they wanted to be allies with Peter the Great. There is a letter dating from 1724 that clearly states that the Stuarts wanted to be allies with the powerful Peter the Great. It is a letter signed by James Edward Stuart (James II) 1688 to 1766. This amazing letter was one of the greatest treasures and gems of the court of the Stuarts, and it still exists to this day What I like about this letter is what it symbolised was how friendly these two nations were back then.

I think that overall, I am pleased that I am not Emperor Paul I as he had no chance in his life from the beginning. Instead I would rather be Peter the Great who did not want to be Tsar when he was young, but wanted to be a soldier instead. In the next few posts I shall be comparing various Tsars who we know so little about and are maybe misinformed about their history. I want to bring these great humans to life.