Maria Feodorovna ( Мария Фёдоровна | translit = Mariya Fyodorovna; 26 November 1847 – 13 October 1928), known before her marriage as Princess Dagmar of Denmark, was a Danish princess who became Empress of Russia as spouse of Emperor Alexander III (reigned 1881–1894).
She was known within her family as "Minnie". In 1852 Dagmar's father became heir-presumptive to the throne of Denmark, largely due to the succession rights of his wife Louise as niece of King Christian VIII.
In 1853, he was given the title Prince of Denmark and he and his family were given an official summer residence, Bernstorff Palace.
Petersburg in the 1860s, and when police were beating students, the students cheered on Maria Feodorovna to which she replied, "They were quite loyal, they cheered me.
Dagmar's father became King of Denmark in 1863 upon the death of King Frederick VII. Due to the brilliant marital alliances of his children, he became known as the "Father-in-law of Europe." Dagmar's eldest brother would succeed his father as King Frederick VIII of Denmark (one of whose sons would be elected as King of Norway).
Her elder, and favourite, sister, Alexandra married Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) in March 1863.
In 1864, Nicholas, or "Nixa" as he was known in his family, went to Denmark and proposed to Dagmar.
Why do you allow the police to treat them so brutally?" Her one exception to official politics was her militant anti-German sentiment because of the annexation of Danish territories by Prussia in 1864, a sentiment also expressed by her sister, Alexandra.
Pray for us and come if you can." On 22 April 1865, Nicholas died in the presence of his parents, brothers, and Dagmar.
Most of her life, she was known as Maria Feodorovna, the name which she took when she converted to Orthodoxy immediately before her 1866 marriage to the future Emperor Alexander III.
[and] avoid emotional upsets." In June 1866, Tsarevich Alexander visited Copenhagen with his brothers Grand Duke Vladimir and Grand Duke Alexei.
[and] I told her that my dear Nixa helped us much in this situation and that now of course he prays about our happiness." Dagmar left Copenhagen on 1 September 1866.
Maria Feodorovna suffered a miscarriage in 1866 in Denmark while she was horseback riding. Maria arranged the marriage between her brother George I of Greece and her cousin-in-law Olga Constantinovna of Russia.
Petersburg in 1867, she contrived to have George spend time with Olga.
In a letter, her father Christian IX of Denmark praised her for her shrewd arranging of the marriage: "Where in the world have you, little rogue, ever learned to intrigue so well, since you have worked hard on your uncle and aunt, who were previously decidedly against a match of this kind." On 18 May 1868, Maria gave birth to her eldest son, Nicholas.
Her next son, Alexander Alexandrovich, born in 1869, died from meningitis in infancy.
During a cholera epidemic in the late 1870s, she visited the sick in hospitals. Maria was the head of the social scene.
Alexander II was furious and chastised his daughter-in-law: “Sasha is a good son, but you – you have no heart". In 1873, Maria, Alexander, and their two eldest sons made a journey to the United Kingdom.
The following year, a change in political circumstances allowed Maria Feodorovna to be welcomed to England by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, Maria's first visit to England since 1873.
Baroness Rahden wrote that "the Czarevna is forming a real, warm sympathy for that country which is receiving her with so much enthusiasm." In 1876, she and her husband visited Helsinki and were greeted by cheers, most of which were "directed to the wife of the heir apparent." Maria rarely interfered with politics, preferring to devote her time and energies to her family, charities, and the more social side of her position.
Maria Feodorovna ( Мария Фёдоровна | translit = Mariya Fyodorovna; 26 November 1847 – 13 October 1928), known before her marriage as Princess Dagmar of Denmark, was a Danish princess who became Empress of Russia as spouse of Emperor Alexander III (reigned 1881–1894).
She confided in Sophia Tolstaya that "there were grave scenes between me and the Sovereign, caused by my refusal to let my children to him." At a Winter Palace reception in February 1881, she refused to kiss Catherine and only gave Catherine her hand to kiss.
Petersburg; they had come for the wedding of the Prince's younger brother, Alfred, to Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, daughter of Tsar Alexander II and the sister of the tsarevich. ==Empress of Russia== On the morning of 13 March 1881, Maria's father-in-law Alexander II of Russia was killed by a bomb on the way back to the Winter Palace from a military parade.
In 1882, she founded many establishments called Marie schools to give young girls an elementary education.
My peace and calm are gone, for now I will only ever be able to worry about Sasha." Her favorite sister, the Princess of Wales, and brother-in-law Prince of Wales, stayed in Russia for several weeks after the funeral. Alexander and Maria were crowned at the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin in Moscow on 27 May 1883.
Five students were hanged in 1887; amongst them was Aleksandr Ulyanov, older brother of Vladimir Lenin. The biggest threat to the lives of the tsar and his family, however, came not from terrorists, but from a derailment of the imperial train in the fall of 1888.
Five students were hanged in 1887; amongst them was Aleksandr Ulyanov, older brother of Vladimir Lenin. The biggest threat to the lives of the tsar and his family, however, came not from terrorists, but from a derailment of the imperial train in the fall of 1888.
During the funeral, she kept her composure, but at the end of the service, she ran from the church clutching her son's top hat that been atop the coffin and collapsed in her carriage sobbing. In 1892, Maria arranged Olga's disastrous marriage to Peter, Duke of Oldenburg.
Maria and her family had been at lunch in the dining car when the train jumped the tracks and slid down an embankment, causing the roof of the dining car to nearly cave in on them. When Maria's eldest sister Alexandra visited Gatchina in July 1894, she was surprised to see how weak her brother-in-law Alexander III had become.
It was only when Alexander III's health was beginning to fail that they reluctantly gave permission for Nicholas to propose. ==Empress Dowager== On 1 November 1894, Alexander III died aged just 49 at Livadia.
In May 1896, she travelled to Moscow for the coronation of Nicholas and Alexandra. As a new Imperial Train was constructed for Nicholas II in time for his coronation, Alexander III's "Temporary Imperial Train" (composed of the cars that had survived the Borki disaster and a few converted standard passenger cars) was transferred to the Empress Dowager's personal use. During the first years of her son's reign, Maria often acted as the political adviser to the Tsar.
In 1906, following the death of their father, King Christian IX, she and her sister, Alexandra, who had become queen-consort of the United Kingdom in 1901, purchased the villa of Hvidøre.
In 1906, following the death of their father, King Christian IX, she and her sister, Alexandra, who had become queen-consort of the United Kingdom in 1901, purchased the villa of Hvidøre.
Following a visit in early 1908, Maria Feodorovna was present at her brother-in-law and sister's visit to Russia that summer.
A little under two years later, Maria Feodorovna travelled to England yet again, this time for the funeral of her brother-in-law, King Edward VII, in May 1910.
During her nearly three-month visit to England in 1910, Maria Feodorovna attempted, unsuccessfully, to get her sister, now Queen Dowager Alexandra, to claim a position of precedence over her daughter-in-law, Queen Mary. Empress Maria Feodorovna, the mistress of Langinkoski retreat, was also otherwise a known friend of Finland.
Indeed, Maria Feodorovna was one of the few people who attended the wedding in November 1916. In 1912, Maria faced trouble with her youngest son, when he secretly married his mistress, much to the outrage and scandal of both Maria Feodorovna and Nicholas. Maria Feodorovna disliked Rasputin and unsuccessfully tried to convince Nicholas and Alexandra to send him away.
She sincerely believes in the holiness of an adventurer, and we are powerless to ward off the misfortune, which is sure to come." When the Tsar dismissed minister Vladimir Kokovtsov in February 1914 on the advice of Alexandra, Maria again reproached her son, who answered in such a way that she became even more convinced that Alexandra was the real ruler of Russia, and she called upon Kokovtsov and said to him: "My daughter-in-law does not like me; she thinks that I am jealous of her power.
Yet I see we are nearing some kind of catastrophe and the Tsar listens to no one but flatterers… Why do you not tell the Tsar everything that you think and know… if it is not already too late". === World War I=== In May 1914 Maria Feodorovna travelled to England to visit her sister.
While she was in London, World War I broke out (July 1914), forcing her to hurry home to Russia.
Petersburg (renamed Petrograd in August 1914) than Gatchina.
For years Nicholas refused to grant his unhappy sister a divorce, only relenting in 1916 in the midst of the War.
Indeed, Maria Feodorovna was one of the few people who attended the wedding in November 1916. In 1912, Maria faced trouble with her youngest son, when he secretly married his mistress, much to the outrage and scandal of both Maria Feodorovna and Nicholas. Maria Feodorovna disliked Rasputin and unsuccessfully tried to convince Nicholas and Alexandra to send him away.
Let her enter a convent or just disappear". ==Revolution and exile== Revolution came to Russia in 1917, first with the February Revolution, then with Nicholas II's abdication on 15 March.
He will give us strength for this terrible ordeal." Maria's daughter Olga Alexandrovna commented further on the matter, "Yet I am sure that deep in her heart my mother had steeled herself to accept the truth some years before her death." Despite the overthrow of the monarchy in 1917, the former Empress Dowager Maria at first refused to leave Russia.
Her eldest son became the last Russian monarch, Emperor Nicholas II of Russia - she lived for ten years after Bolshevik functionaries killed him and his immediate family in 1918. ==Appearance and personality== Dagmar was known for her beauty.
Only in 1919, at the urging of her sister, Queen Dowager Alexandra, did she begrudgingly depart, fleeing Crimea over the Black Sea to London.
The All-Russian Monarchical Assembly held in 1921 offered her the locum tenens of the Russian throne but she declined with the evasive answer "Nobody saw Nicky killed" and therefore there was a chance her son was still alive.
The Grand Duchess Olga sent a telegram to Paris cancelling an appointment because it would have been too difficult for the old and sick woman to hear the terrible story of her son and his family. ==Death and burial== In November 1925, Maria's favourite sister, Queen Alexandra, died.
Maria Feodorovna ( Мария Фёдоровна | translit = Mariya Fyodorovna; 26 November 1847 – 13 October 1928), known before her marriage as Princess Dagmar of Denmark, was a Danish princess who became Empress of Russia as spouse of Emperor Alexander III (reigned 1881–1894).
On 13 October 1928 at Hvidøre near Copenhagen, in a house she had once shared with her sister Queen Alexandra, Maria died at the age of 80, having outlived four of her six children.
Following services in Copenhagen's Russian Orthodox Alexander Nevsky Church, the Empress was interred at Roskilde Cathedral. In 2005, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and President Vladimir Putin of Russia and their respective governments agreed that the Empress's remains should be returned to St.
A number of ceremonies took place from 23 to 28 September 2006.
On 26 September 2006, a statue of Maria Feodorovna was unveiled near her favourite Cottage Palace in Peterhof.
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