The Patriotic War of Emperor Alexander I

About exhibition

Exhibition content 'The Patriotic War of Emperor Alexander I' covers a fairly broad historical period, beginning with the account of the Sovereign's accession to the throne, the political life of Russia during his reign, and continuing up to the emperor's death. The exhibition presents the iconography of Alexander I vividly and expressively. These are painted and graphic portraits of the Russian monarch, among which an oval portrait of Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich by an unknown artist from the circle of D.G. Levitsky — 'the most beloved portraitist of the era' — should be noted. The Grand Duke is depicted at a tender age, likely sixteen, around the time of his marriage to the Baden princess Louise, who took the name Elizabeth Alexeievna upon entering Orthodoxy. Another painted portrait of the sovereign is by the artist George Dawe, in which he appears full-length against a Tsarskoye Selo landscape. Raised by his royal grandmother Catherine II 'according to a carefully thought-out method', he, upon ascending the throne after the death of his father Paul I in 1801, was greatly beloved by his subjects, who called him 'the angel of meekness and peace'. The first half of Alexander I's reign was overshadowed by wars with Napoleonic France. Special attention in the exhibition is paid to the Patriotic War of 1812, the central event of which was the Battle of Borodino. The narrative continues with the fire of ancient Moscow, which became an expiatory sacrifice offered by the Russian people on the altar of the Fatherland, the collapse of the French emperor's ambitious designs and, finally, the liberation of old Europe, torn by the bloody wars imposed by Napoleon the tyrant. Undoubtedly, this was a time of the flowering of Alexander I's abilities, a ruler able to adapt to circumstances and draw close to his people. It was destined that the Russian autocrat would play one of the most important roles in history, a role that proved lofty and noble. Having fulfilled the mission of peacemaker beyond Russia's borders, at home Alexander I earned the title 'the Blessed' for the victory over Napoleon, thus entering Russian history under that name. The death of Emperor Alexander I in 1825 brought a severe trial for the Russian autocracy. From that moment, the reigning House of Romanov found a special spiritual intercessor in the person of the elder Feodor of Tomsk. The exhibition displays examples of uniforms and equipment of the Imperial Russian Army from the first quarter of the 19th century, archaeological finds from the field of the Battle of Borodino, items from the rare books collection, documents, numismatics, and decorative and applied arts.