Which Tsar Am I? Quiz | Royalty & Monarchs

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. I was the son of Peter III and Catherine II (the Great). I reigned for only five years before I was murdered in my bedroom when I refused to sign an abdication. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Paul I

Catherine had many lovers during her marriage and reign, and suggested in her memoirs that her son was the progeny of one such, Sergei Saltykov. She groomed not her son Paul, but her grandson, Alexander, to be Emperor. Catherine died of a stroke in 1796 before formalizing her plans.

After the death of Paul I, Alexander I succeeded his father, and there was never another Tsar named Paul.

2. I lost my legs in a bombing by the "People's Will". I was taken to the palace where I bled to death in the presence of my wife, son, and grandson. Shortly before my death, I had prepared a plan for a parliamentary government and an elected Duma. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Alexander II

Alexander II, who freed the serfs in 1861 and launched many social, legal and economic reforms, was known as the "Tsar Liberator." Alexander III was so angered by his father's assassination that he rescinded many of his reforms, including the plan for an elected parliamentary government.

In 1905, Alexander II's grandson, Nicholas II, was forced to permit an elected Duma but quickly dissolved it.

3. My father was Alexis I, and my mother his consort, Catherine. When I was 10 years old my half brother and I began a joint reign of Russia. I had both my wife and my sister sent to a convent. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Peter I (the Great)

Peter and his half brother Ivan V assummed the throne jointly when their older brother, Feodor III, died. Peter became sole Tsar in 1696. Peter the Great's many achievements included vast territorial gains, modernization, and the construction of his new capital and "Window to the West," St. Petersburg.

4. At the age of 17 I was elected Tsar of Russia by a national assembly. My reign marked the end of the "Time of Troubles" during which the King of Poland, Wladyslaw IV of the House of Rurik claimed Russia. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Michael I

The election of Michael Romanov began the three centuries of the Romanov dynasty. It ended in 1917 when Nicholas II abdicated to his younger brother, Michael, who immediately turned the country over to a Provisional Government. Thus, there was never a Tsar Michael II. The Provisional Government, headed by Alexander Kerensky, was overthrown by Lenin and the Bolsheviks.

5. I died unexpectedly at my Summer Palace in Taganrod. My Empress also died suddenly while my casket was still en route to St. Petersburg for internment. What Tsar am I?

Answer: Alexander I

Because of the mystery surrounding the sudden deaths of both Alexander I and his wife, it was rumored for many years that the Tsar was not dead. Many claim he lived out his life in anonymity and seclusion in Siberia under the name of Feodor Kozmich. In 1925, the government opened the tomb of Alexander I and found it empty.

6. I angered many of my countrymen by withdrawing from the Seven Years' War with Prussia. I reigned for only six months before being assassinated in a palace revolt, which some say was orchestrated by my spouse who was a descendent of the Rurikids. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Peter III

Peter III had married the German Princess Sophia, also a descendant of the House of Rurik. She took the name Catherine upon her marriage and ascended the throne as Catherine II upon her husband's death. Catherine the Great died of a stroke in 1796, and her son ascended the throne as Paul I. Her grandson ascended the throne as Alexander I.

7. My father was Vasilli III. He died when I was three years old, and I was crowned the Grand Prince of Moscow. At 16, I became the Tsar of All Russia. I opened up trading on the White Sea, and acquired Kazan, Astrakhan and Siberia. I also built St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Ivan IV

Ivan IV (the Terrible) was the first Rurikid to be crowned Tsar of Russia, although the Rurik Dynasty had governed Kievan Rus since 862. His son, Feodor I, did not produce a heir which thrust Russia into the "time of troubles" during which Wladyslaw IV of Poland claimed the Russian throne.

In 1613, Michael Romanov was elected Tsar and he settled the Polish dispute with the Truce of Deulino. Despite his reputation for being a butcher and a mad tyrant, Ivan IV accomplished some worthy goals for Russia.

8. Shortly after I assumed the throne, the military plotted to overthrow me, but I put down this Decembrist Revolution. While unpopular with the military and my countryman, I reigned for 30 years and died on the eve of Russia's defeat in the Crimean War. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Nicholas I

Nicholas I was the third son of Paul I, and therefore not trained to rule. The eldest son, Alexander I, died and the second son, Constantine, declined to rule. The reign of Nicholas I was based upon "autocracy, Orthodoxy and nationality" and marked by suppression of non-Russian ethnic and religious groups.

9. While I was leading my army in battle, the people revolted. I abdicated in favour of my brother, Michael, and my mother fled Russia. I was placed under house arrest, and subsequently executed. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Nicholas II

The reign of Nicholas II saw a convergence of the social and political upheavals of the past century. In 1905, his Navy suffered a crushing defeat in the Russo-Japanese War. He earned the nickname "Bloody Nicholas" for brutally crushing a peaceful march of his people, and he dissolved the elected Duma which he had reluctantly and briefly permitted.

In 1917, Russia's severe defeats in World War I, served as a catalyst and as the death knell to the Romanov dynasty.

10. Upon ascending the throne, I launched a regime based upon "Russification." The same revolutionary group who killed my father would also plot to assassinate me, but I had them hunted down and hung. One of the conspirators was Alexander Ulyanov, whose brother got even with me twenty years later. Which Tsar am I?

Answer: Alexander III

Both Alexander (III) and his young son, Nicholas (II), had been present as Alexander II died from the brutal wounds inflicted by the carriage bombing by the "Peoples' Will". Alexander III determined that the country should be "Russified" into a nation with one language, one religion and one culture. Nicholas II, became the last Romanov Tsar, and Alexander Ulyanov's brother, Vladimir, would take the name V. I. Lenin.

Source: Author drushalli

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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Which Tsar Am I? Trivia Quiz

Russian history is often full of deadly palace intrigue! But if you know your Tsars and follow the clues, you should do well.

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