1881

Alexander III comes to the throne after his father, Alexander II, is assassinated - Russification becomes the official policy, requiring school to be taught in Russian and business to be conducted in Russian. All of the rights of self-government once enjoyed by German colonists were lost.

• St. Gotthard Tunnel opens in Switzerland.
• First electrical tram car in Berlin.
• Vatican opens its archives to scholars.
• Pablo Picasso is born in Spain.

Alexander III (1845-1894)
Emperor of Russia (1881-1894)

The second son of Alexander II was born February 26, 1845. Alexander III became heir to the throne when his older brother Nicholas died in 1865. He became Emperor in 1881, at the age of 36, after his father's assassination.

Alexander III's reign coincided with an industrial revolution in Russia. His domestic policy was very harsh, directed not only against revolutionaries but other liberal movements. His paranoia prompted him to live in Gatchina, the palace of Paul I, which was designed like a medieval fortress.

Alexander III died October 20, 1894.