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Nicholas Alexandrovich (
Russian: Николай Александрович; 20 September [
O.S. 8 September] 1843 – 24 April [
O.S. 12 April] 1865) was
tsesarevich—the
heir apparent—of
Imperial Russia from 2 March 1855 until his death in 1865.
Early life
Grand Duke Nicholas was born on 20 September [
O.S. 8 September] 1843, in the
Alexander Palace in
Tsarskoye Selo south of central
Saint Petersburg, during the reign of his grandfather, Emperor
Nicholas I. Nicknamed "Nixa", he was the eldest son of the Tsesarevich
Alexander Nikolaevich, eldest son of Emperor Nicholas I, and the Tsesarevna
Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. In 1855, his paternal grandfather died, and his father succeeded to the throne as Emperor Alexander II.
Nicholas was extremely well-educated and intelligent. His paternal uncle Grand Duke
Konstantin called him "the crown of perfection."[1] His history teacher said, “If I succeeded in forming a student equal to Nikolai Alexandrovich once in ten years, I’d think I’d have fulfilled my duties."[2]
Nicholas had a close relationship with his younger brother,
Grand Duke Alexander. He called Alexander "Pug." On his deathbed, he told his father, “Papa, take care of Sasha, he is such an honest, good man."[3]
Nicholas was besotted with Dagmar after he saw a photograph of her. On 3 August 1863, he wrote to his mother: "I haven’t fallen in love with anyone for a long time. . . You may laugh but the main reason for this is Dagmar whom I fell in love with long ago without even seeing her. I think only about her.”[4] He was tremendously happy after he proposed to Dagmar in her native Denmark: “How can I not be happy when my heart tells me I love her, love her dearly?. . . How can I describe her? Pretty, direct, intelligent, lively yet shy.”[5] As he continued on his European tour, he wrote love letters to Dagmar every day.
Death
Until 1865, Nicholas was thought to have a strong constitution. During a tour in southern Europe, he contracted an ailment that was initially incorrectly diagnosed as
rheumatism. Nicholas's symptoms at that time included back pain and a stiff neck, as well as sensitivity to noise and light. He thought little of his ailments, however, and continued his tour in Italy.
His health rapidly worsened, and he was sent to Southern France. This move brought him no improvement. It was eventually determined that he was suffering from cerebro-spinal
meningitis, and it was speculated that this illness of his was caused by a previous accident in a wrestling match, in which Nicholas participated and was thrown down.[6] In the spring of 1865, Nicholas continued to decline, and he died on 24 April 1865, at the
Villa Bermond in
Nice,
France.
On his deathbed, Nicholas expressed the wish that his fiancée become the bride of his younger brother and future Tsarevich,
Alexander. He "raised his right hand and took Sasha's [Alexander's] hand... and seemed to be reaching for Princess Dagmar's with his left."[7] In 1866, Alexander and Dagmar married.[8]
Nicholas's death at the early age of 21 thoroughly devastated his mother, who was said to have pored obsessively over all aspects of Nicholas's life. Empress Maria never recovered from his death.
In 1867, construction was begun on a chapel named in his honor (
fr:Chapelle du tsarévitch Nicolas Alexandrovitch) in Nice, on the exact place where Nicholas was said to have died, and in 1868, the chapel was inaugurated, with his brother Alexander and his wife, the re-christened Maria Feodorovna, in attendance.
^Bille-Hansen, A. C.; Holck, Harald, eds. (1864) [1st pub.:1801].
Statshaandbog for Kongeriget Danmark for Aaret 1864 [State Manual of the Kingdom of Denmark for the Year 1864] (PDF). Kongelig Dansk Hof- og Statskalender (in Danish). Copenhagen: J.H. Schultz A.-S. Universitetsbogtrykkeri. p. 4. Retrieved 16 September 2019 – via
da:DIS Danmark.
^M. & B. Wattel. (2009). Les Grand'Croix de la Légion d'honneur de 1805 à nos jours. Titulaires français et étrangers. Paris: Archives & Culture. p. 515.
ISBN978-2-35077-135-9.