Dancing with the Tsars Trivia Quiz

Answer: Michael

Michael was an unlikely candidate for the position of Tsar of Russia as his only connection to the previous ruling family was that his grandfather was the brother of Tsarina Anastasia, the first wife of Ivan the Terrible. He wielded little political power as his government was largely influenced by his father and, after his father's death, by his mother's relatives.

The 'Time of Troubles' refers to the period of Russian history between the death of Tsar Feodor I without an heir, in 1598, and the election of Tsar Michael in 1613. During this period Russia was beset by civil unrest, Polish occupation, unstable leadership, and a famine that killed approximately one third of the population.

Boris, Ivan and Nikita were the given names of three of Tsar Michael's brothers. No Tsar of Russia had the name Nikita, although Nikita Khrushchev was Josef Stalin's successor as leader of the Soviet Union. Boris Godunov was Tsar of Russia from 1598 to 1605 and Ivan IV (otherwise known as Ivan the Terrible) was Tsar from 1547 to 1584.

Answer: Peter I

Tsar Peter I (or Peter the Great) was the only son of Tsar Alexis by his second wife, and was the grandson of the first Romanov Tsar. Alexis was initially succeeded by his eldest surviving son, Feodor III, who was only fifteen and suffered from severe disabilities. Feodor reigned for six years before his death and was succeeded jointly by his brother Ivan V and half-brother Peter the Great. The two brothers were named as co-rulers as Ivan V also suffered from disabilities that prevented him wielding any real power. Following the death of Ivan V in 1696, Peter went on to rule Russia independently for another 29 years.

Alexis' second son, Tsarevich Alexei (or Alexis), would likely have become Alexis II if he had survived childhood. Dmitri and Simeon were the names of other sons of Alexis who did not survive infancy.

Answer: Catherine

Catherine I ruled Russia for just over two years, from the death of her husband in 1725 to her own death in 1727 at the age of 43. Her origins are not recorded by history, but she is believed to have been the daughter of Samuel Skowronski, a poor Lithuanian of Polish descent. Following the early deaths of both her parents she was raised in Latvia; worked as a housemaid; and eventually met Peter the Great whilst she was living in the household of his friend Prince Menshikov. She converted to Russian Orthodoxy in 1705 when she took the name Catherine Alexeyevna and had five children by Peter before their official marriage in 1712. The couple went on to have a total of twelve children, although only two daughters (Elizabeth and Anna) survived to adulthood.

The Polka is a central European folk dance, popular in many countries, especially Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

Answer: Smallpox

Tsar Peter II inherited the throne in 1727 at the age of 11 and reigned for three years before his death from smallpox in 1730, which represented the end of the Romanovs' direct male line of descent. He was the grandson of Peter the Great by his eldest son Tsarevich Alexei. Alexei had been sentenced to death in 1718, for treason against his father, but actually died as result of being tortured for information on his potential co-conspirators.

Peter II had little interest in state affairs, preferring to concentrate on his favourite hobbies such as hunting, feasting and dancing. This resulted in many state matters being neglected during his short reign.

Cholera, leprosy (or Hansen's disease) and tuberculosis continue to cause deaths in the 21st century. World Health Statistics show that, worldwide, there were 590,000 reported cases of cholera, 224,000 reported cases of leprosy and 5.8 million reported cases of tuberculosis in 2011.

Answer: Winter Palace

The Winter Palace was the official residence of the Russian royal family from 1732 until the overthrow of the monarchy in 1917. In 1738 the palace was the residence of the Empress Anna, who reigned from 1730 to 1740. Although popularly referred to as Tsars, the Russian ruler had in fact been designated as 'Emperor (or Empress) of all the Russias' since Peter the Great first used the title in 1721.

The modern day Mariinsky Ballet (previously known as the Kirov Ballet and the Imperial Russian Ballet) was originally formed from dancers provided by the Imperial Theatre School. The school is now known as the Vaganova Academy and still maintains its links with the Mariinsky Ballet.

The Peterhof Grand Palace is part of a range of palaces and gardens in St Petersburg, built on the orders of Peter the Great. The site is often collectively referred to as the 'Russian Versailles' and is now a World Heritage Site. The Catherine Palace, located about 15 miles outside St Petersburg, was a summer residence of the Russian royal family and was originally built for Catherine I. The Kremlin, in Moscow, was the original residence of the Russian royals until Peter the Great moved the capital of Russia to St Petersburg in 1712.

Answer: Imprisoned in solitary confinement

The rule of succession to the Russian throne established by Peter the Great meant that each Tsar (or Tsarina) nominated their own successor. Ivan VI, an eight-week old baby, was the nominated heir of his great-aunt Anna at the time of her death in 1740. However, his reign only lasted for about a year before a coup resulted in Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine I being placed on the throne. Anna was the daughter of Tsar Ivan V (co-ruler with Peter the Great) and nominated her great-nephew as her successor as she wished to ensure that the throne remained with her father's descendants rather than those of his co-ruler.

Elizabeth separated her predecessor (who was still only an infant) from his remaining family and had him imprisoned. He spent almost his entire life in prison, mostly in solitary confinement. Elizabeth gave orders that Ivan should be executed if any attempt was made to free him. These orders were ultimately carried out in 1764, after Elizabeth's death, following a scheme by a prison guard to release Ivan and have him placed back on the throne.

Ivan VI was the son of the Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg but he was never exiled to Brunswick. His four younger siblings spent their lives under house arrest in Denmark.

Answer: Wife

Catherine the Great was born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst, a small German principality. Zerbst, the former capital of Anhalt-Zerbst, is approximately 70 miles south-west of Berlin. She married the future Tsar Peter III in 1745 after she converted to Orthodoxy and took the name Catherine.

Tsar Peter III was the grandson of Peter the Great and nephew of his predecessor, Elizabeth. His reign lasted for only six months before power swung away from him and he was deposed in favour of his wife. He died eight days later and, although the circumstances surrounding his death are unclear, it was believed that he was assassinated by Alexei Orlov, the brother of Catherine the Great's lover Grigory.

Catherine's reign marked a great period for the country with Russia making several significant territorial gains and fighting two successful wars against the Ottoman Empire. Catherine's personal collection of art also provided the basis for the Winter Palace's famous Hermitage Museum.

Answer: Alexander I

Tsar Alexander I reigned from 1801 until his death in 1825, when he was succeeded by his younger brother Nicholas I. Both of Alexander's daughters by his wife, Princess Louise of Baden, died in infancy.

Queen Victoria was christened Alexandrina Victoria as a tribute to her godfather, but chose to rule under the name Victoria. She became known as the 'grandmother of Europe' due to the marriages of her nine children and their many descendants to members of other European royal families. Through her daughter Princess Alice, Queen Victoria was the grandmother of the last Tsarina of Russia, the wife of Tsar Nicholas II.

Tsar Paul was the father of Alexander I and Nicholas I. Albert was the name of Queen Victoria's husband.

Answer: United States of America

In 1867, the US purchased Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million. The purchase was a strategic one for both countries; the Russians wanted to sell territory that would be difficult to defend in the event of another war with Britain, whilst the Americans wanted to secure friendly relations with Russia and try to improve their chances of annexing parts of British Columbia. The US also believed Alaska would provide an economic benefit to the country and the purchase ultimately proved successful with the Klondike Gold Rush of 1896 being closely followed by the discovery of gold at Nome in Alaska in 1899.

The reign of Tsar Alexander II was a time of great reform and liberation in Russia. Despite his achievement in securing the emancipation of the serfs in 1861, his overall plans for political reform were thwarted by his assassination in 1881.

Inhabitants of this new addition to US territory in the 1860s wouldn't actually have danced the Charleston following the change of ownership as the dance wasn't developed until the 1920s. It is named after the city of Charleston, South Carolina, not the city of the same name that is the state capital of West Virginia.

Answer: February Revolution

The February Revolution took place from the 23rd to the 27th of February 1917 (according to the Julian calendar which was still in use in Russia at the time) and resulted in the abdication of the Tsar and the establishment of a provisional government led by Prince Georgy Lvov. A second revolution, known as the October revolution, resulted in a Bolshevik government led by Vladimir Lenin replacing the provisional government.

Nicholas II initially abdicated in favour of his son, Tsarevich Alexei. He changed his mind when he was informed that he would be separated from his son, who suffered from ill-health as a result of haemophilia, and instead named his younger brother, Grand Duke Michael, as his successor. However, Michael declined the throne and the Romanov monarchy came to an end.

Nicholas II, his wife, four daughters and son Alexei were all executed at Yekaterinburg on 17 July 1918.