Empress Consort of Russia. Born Alix Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice vonHesse in Darmstadt, she was the daughter of Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of Great Britain. Alix met Tsarevitch Nicholas Romanov at the wedding of her sister Ella to Nicholas' uncle Grand Duke Sergei in 1884. Nicholas was immediately smitten. They began a correspondance, and became engaged in 1894, the same year Nicholas became Tsar. They were married on November 26, 1894 at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, two weeks after the funeral of Tsar Alexander. Theirs was very much a love match, though neither family approved. Alix converted to the Russian Orthodox church, and took the name Alexandra Feodorovna. The country's economic problems were heavy, and the extremely lavish wedding and coronation were resented by the Russian people. Thus the new Tsarina's popularity started off low. The couple's first child, Olga was born in 1895. Three more daughters, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia followed before the birth of the long-awaited son and heir, Tsarevitch Alexei in 1904. Alexandra always had somewhat of a nervous disposition, and when her son was diagnosed with hemophilia, all her nervous energy was channeled to him. Her increasing dependence on self-proclaimed healer and holy man Rasputin earned her many enemies in the highest ranks of society and compounded her already tattered reputation among the Russian people. This scandal helped plant the seeds of the revolution. Tsar Nicholas abdicated his throne in 1917, and the Imperial family was kept on the move and under guard by the Bolshevik revolutionaries. The problem of what to do with the family was solved when they were executed by the Bolsheviks in a basement room of the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg. The remains of Alexandra, her husband, three of her children, and four servants were discovered in 1991 and finally given a Christian burial in 1998. In 2001, the Tsarina and her family were canonized by the Russian Orthodox church. The royal family has since been sainted by The Russian Synod Abroad as well as The Moscow Patriarchate.

Empress Consort of Russia. Born Alix Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice vonHesse in Darmstadt, she was the daughter of Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of Great Britain. Alix met Tsarevitch Nicholas Romanov at the wedding of her sister Ella to Nicholas' uncle Grand Duke Sergei in 1884. Nicholas was immediately smitten. They began a correspondance, and became engaged in 1894, the same year Nicholas became Tsar. They were married on November 26, 1894 at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, two weeks after the funeral of Tsar Alexander. Theirs was very much a love match, though neither family approved. Alix converted to the Russian Orthodox church, and took the name Alexandra Feodorovna. The country's economic problems were heavy, and the extremely lavish wedding and coronation were resented by the Russian people. Thus the new Tsarina's popularity started off low. The couple's first child, Olga was born in 1895. Three more daughters, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia followed before the birth of the long-awaited son and heir, Tsarevitch Alexei in 1904. Alexandra always had somewhat of a nervous disposition, and when her son was diagnosed with hemophilia, all her nervous energy was channeled to him. Her increasing dependence on self-proclaimed healer and holy man Rasputin earned her many enemies in the highest ranks of society and compounded her already tattered reputation among the Russian people. This scandal helped plant the seeds of the revolution. Tsar Nicholas abdicated his throne in 1917, and the Imperial family was kept on the move and under guard by the Bolshevik revolutionaries. The problem of what to do with the family was solved when they were executed by the Bolsheviks in a basement room of the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg. The remains of Alexandra, her husband, three of her children, and four servants were discovered in 1991 and finally given a Christian burial in 1998. In 2001, the Tsarina and her family were canonized by the Russian Orthodox church. The royal family has since been sainted by The Russian Synod Abroad as well as The Moscow Patriarchate.

Bio by: Kristen Conrad