page_title: Alexander Palace
section_title: Under Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna
hierarchical_section_title: Alexander Palace / Under Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna
caption_attribution_description: Automobil mit Schneeraupe und vorne SkiernDarin: Motorwagen DienstOriginal: Negativ; Glasplatte; Silberbromid; 13x18cmSignatur: CH-BAR#E27#1000/721#14095#5597*
context_page_description: The Alexander Palace is a former imperial residence near the town of Tsarskoye Selo, on a plateau about 30 miles south from the imperial capital city of St. Petersburg. It is known as the favourite residence of the last Russian Emperor, Nicholas II, and his imperial family, and served as their initial place of imprisonment after the first of two Russian Revolutions in February of 1917 that overthrew the Romanov during World War I. The Alexander Palace is situated in the Alexander Park, not far from the larger, more elaborate Catherine Palace, begun in 1717 by Empress/Tsarina Catherine I of Russia and significantly expanded by Catherine the Great. Today it is undergoing renovation as a state museum housing relics of the former imperial dynasty.
context_section_description: The palace is most famous though for the role it played in the reign of the last tsar, Nicholas II. He and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna always loved the palace and decided to make it their permanent residence after the events of Bloody Sunday, which made the Winter Palace dangerous for them. They remodeled the former two-story ballroom into the Maple Room and the New Study and added rooms for their children on the floor above. To the horror of the court, Alexandra, and her architect Meltzer, chose a then-modern style of decoration, Jugendstil or Art Nouveau, considered by the aristocracy to be "middle class" and less than "Imperial".  One of these most famous rooms is Alexandra's Mauve Room . 
  During the reign of Nicholas II, the palace was wired for electricity and equipped with a telephone system. In 1899, a hydraulic lift was installed connecting the Empress' suite with the children's rooms on the second floor. Furthermore, with the advent of motion pictures, a screening booth was built in the Semicircular Hall to show films.
  During the stormy years of war and revolution, the monumental walls of the Alexander Palace sheltered the Imperial Family from the outside world. Pierre Gilliard, tutor to Nicholas II's son, had free access to this inner sanctum. In his memoirs, the tutor later described that the family life at Tsarskoe Selo was less formal than at other residences. Apart from a few exceptions, the court did not reside at the palace. The Imperial Family would gather informally around the table at mealtimes without attendants, unless relatives were visiting.
caption: Members of the Imperial family in Kegresse track car at Alexander Palace, January 1917
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