Alexander II of Russia

It is better to abolish serfdom from above than to wait for it to abolish itself from below.

Alexander II (Russian: Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, tr. Aleksandr II Nikolaevich; IPA: [ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ]; 29 April [O.S. 17 April] 1818 - 13 March [O.S. 1 March] 1881) was the Emperor of Russia from 2 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881, and also the King of Poland and the Grand Prince of Finland.

Quotes

• It is better to abolish serfdom from above than to wait for it to abolish itself from below.
  • Speech (30 March 1856), as quoted in A Concise History of Russia (1972) by Ronald Hingley\. p. 122.

Quotes about Alexander II

• The loneliness of despotism, or the fear of violent death.
  • The interpretation of Benjamin Disraeli of Alexander II's sad face in a letter written in 1880 to Lady Chesterfield, as quoted in Stanley Weintraub, ''Victoria. Biography of a queen'' (1987), p. 413.

• Ah! that was a fine Emperor.
  • William Ewart Gladstone, remarks to Edward Russell (28 March 1896), quoted in Edward Russell, That Reminds Me— (1900), p. 119

External links

• "The Assassination of Tsar Alexander II" episode of In Our Time (BBC Radio 4)