- published: 14 May 2015
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Paul I (Russian: Па́вел I Петро́вич; Pavel Petrovich) (1 October [O.S. 20 September] 1754 – 23 March [O.S. 11 March] 1801) was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. He also was the 71st Grand Master of the Order of Malta (de facto).
Paul was born in the Palace of Empress Elisabeth in St Petersburg. He was the son of Elizabeth's heir, her nephew, the Grand Duke Peter, later Emperor Peter III, and his wife, the Grand Duchess Catherine, later Empress Catherine II. In her memoirs, Catherine strongly implies that Paul's father was not Peter, but her favorite at the time, Sergei Saltykov. Peter's behavior was infantile and immature and he chose other favorites among Catherine's ladies in waiting but he was not sterile as many believed; he later sired an illegitimate child with one lover. However, it was no secret that Peter and Catherine were estranged through much of their marriage. Paul does in fact seem to have physically resembled the Grand Duke (Peter III) so one might doubt any claims of illegitimacy.
Russia i/ˈrʌʃə/ or /ˈrʊʃə/ (Russian: Россия, tr. Rossiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijə] ( listen)), also officially known as the Russian Federation (Russian: Российская Федерация, tr. Rossiyskaya Federatsiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijskəjə fʲɪdʲɪˈratsɨjə] ( listen)), is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (both via Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It also has maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, and the US state of Alaska by the Bering Strait. At 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi), Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than one eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area. Russia is also the eighth most populous nation with 143 million people. It extends across the whole of northern Asia and 40% of Europe, spanning nine time zones and incorporating a wide range of environments and landforms. Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources and is the largest producer of oil and natural gas globally. Russia has the world's largest forest reserves and its lakes contain approximately one-quarter of the world's fresh water.
Alexander I of Russia (Russian: Александр I Павлович, Aleksandr I Pavlovich) (23 December [O.S. 12 December] 1777 – 1 December [O.S. 19 November] 1825), (Russian: Александр Благословенный, Aleksandr Blagoslovennyi, meaning Alexander the Blessed) served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania.
He was born in Saint Petersburg to Grand Duke Paul Petrovich, later Emperor Paul I, and Maria Feodorovna, daughter of the Duke of Württemberg. Alexander was the eldest of four brothers. He succeeded to the throne after his father was murdered, and ruled Russia during the chaotic period of the Napoleonic Wars. In the first half of his reign Alexander tried to introduce liberal reforms, while in the second half his conduct became much more arbitrary, which led to the revocation of many earlier reforms. In foreign policy Alexander gained some successes, mainly by his diplomatic skills and by winning several military campaigns. In particular, Russia acquired Finland and part of Poland under his rule. His sudden death in Taganrog, under allegedly suspicious circumstances, gave rise to rumors that Alexander in fact did not die in 1825, but instead chose to "disappear", living the rest of his life in anonymity.