Paul the First, poor Paul

In 1754, the Empress Catherine Alekseevna was born an heir. In 1796 he became king and went down in history as Paul.

Biography

His first teacher was a friend of the Bekhteev family, who was very strict with Pavel. He even started a special newspaper, in which he printed information about all the actions of his pupil.

The next mentor was Nikita Ivanovich Panin, a middle-aged man who shared the ideas of the Enlightenment. It was he who determined the list of numerous subjects, which, in his opinion, the future emperor had to study. Among them - the Law of God, natural history, dance, music and many others. This study began back in the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna and continued under Peter the Third and Catherine II.

In the circle of his communication there were mostly highly educated people, for example, Grigory Teplov. Among the peers were present only natives of the well-known genera. One of the closest friends was Alexander Kurakin.

Catherine, the mother of the heir, bought a collection of books for Academician Korf for his son. Pavel the First studied geography, history, astronomy, arithmetic, the Law of God, various languages - German, French, Italian, Latin; In addition, the training program included Russian language, drawing, dancing, fencing. But all the items related to military affairs were excluded, although this did not stop the young Pavel from getting carried away.

Youth

In 1773 Paul the First married Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt. This marriage did not last long - she betrayed him, and only two years later she died during childbirth. Then the young man married a second time, on Sofia-Dorothea of Württemberg (after baptism - Maria Feodorovna). One of the European traditions of that time was a trip abroad, which took place after the wedding. Paul and his wife traveled incognito under the names of the spouses of the North.

Policy

On November 6, 1796, at the age of forty-two, Emperor Paul ascended to the throne, and on April 5 of the following year his coronation took place. Immediately after that, he began to abolish most of the customs and customs instituted by Catherine. For example, he freed Radishchev and Kosciuszko from the confinement. In general, all of his reign took place under the sign of "anti-Catherine" reforms.

On the day of the coronation the newly-emperor introduced a new law - now women could not inherit the Russian throne, and the rights of the regency were established. Other reforms include administrative, national and military.

The main direction of the foreign policy of the emperor is the struggle with the First French Republic. Almost all efforts were directed towards this, among others, an alliance with Prussia, Denmark and Sweden. After Napoleon Bonaparte came to power in France, the countries had common interests, and Pavel the First began attempts to conclude a military-strategic alliance with France, but this was not to be held.

Pavel the First produced impressions of an unpredictable tyrant with grotesque manners and irritating habits. He wanted to conduct many reforms, but their direction and content were constantly changing, subject to the mood of an unpredictable autocrat. As a result, Paul had neither the support of the courtiers, nor the people's love.

The death of the king

During the entire period of the reign of the emperor, several conspiracies were opened, the purpose of which was the murder of Paul. In 1800 there was a conspiracy of high dignitaries, and Pavel the First was treacherously killed by officers in his bedchamber on the night of March 12, 1801. His reign lasted only five years.

The news of death was caused by the barely restrained glee of both the people and the nobility. The official cause was called apoplexy.

Paul's son, Alexander, was well aware of the conspiracy, but was frightened and did not stop him, so indirectly became the culprit of his father's death. This event tormented the Emperor Alexander I all his life.