ALEXANDER II, Tsar of Russia. — B. in Moscow on 17/29 Apr. 1818, d. in St Petersburg on 1/13 Mar. 1881. A. began his reign in 1855 by ending the Crimean War with France and England and devoted himself to implementing reforms, among which the emancipation of the serfs (1861) stands out. When the revolution broke out in Poland in 1863 and radical currents spread within Russia itself (the first attempt on A.’s life occurred in 1866), the emperor hardened both in his foreign and domestic policy. The Polish question worsened relations with France while strengthening those with Russia, and the desire to preserve the status quo led to the Three Emperors’ Alliance (A. II, Francis Joseph, William I) in 1873. Meanwhile, Russia expanded in Central and East Asia. In 1877, the Balkan question prompted A. to wage war on Turkey, and the Treaty of San Stefano the following year placed South-Eastern Europe under Russian influence. When the great powers intervened at the Congress of Berlin (June–July 1878), A. was forced to renounce the gains secured at San Stefano. Meanwhile, the domestic situation saw a crescendo of terrorist acts until the Tsar himself fell victim to a bomb thrown at his carriage outside the Winter Palace.
As regards ecclesiastical policy, relations between A. and the Holy See were marked, during the early years of his reign, by correctness, if not cordiality. In response to Pius IX’s desire to see the Concordat of 1847 implemented in its outstanding articles, the Tsar gave assurances that he would do so. The Polish question, however, subsequently gave rise to violent friction: the persecution of Catholics, the secularisation of ecclesiastical property, and the suppression of dioceses provoked strong protests from the Pope. In his notable letter of 22 Apr. 1863 to A., Pius IX disclaimed any responsibility for the Polish revolt and observed that if matters had reached a crisis point, this was due to the anti-Catholic policy pursued in Poland. On the other hand, the stance of the revolutionaries, who identified their struggle for independence with the defence of Catholicism, served to distort the true nature of the disagreements between the Holy See and the Tsar to the point that Meyendorff, the Russian representative in Rome, went so far as to tell the Pope that Catholicism was tantamount to revolution. The outcome of this declaration was the rupture of diplomatic relations. A thaw followed, and relations were resumed, but in 1877 the presentation of a memorandum to the chargé d’affaires Urusov led to a fresh suspension of relations. After the death of Pius IX, Leo XIII succeeded in negotiating preliminary agreements with St Petersburg, signed on 31 Oct. 1880 in Vienna by the nuncio Jacobini and the ambassador Novikov. Overall, the new Pope’s actions led to a greater understanding on the part of A. and the Russian ruling circles, who were particularly impressed by the encyclical of 28 Dec. 1878 against socialism and nihilism.