Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1896
At the coronation of Nicholas II, a stampede by the massive crowd ends with more than a thousand
deaths and almost as many injuries.
1896
Anton Chekhov's classic play The Seagullopens to poor reviews at the Alexandrinsky Theatre in St
Petersburg. The author was apparently so unnerved by the audience's hostility that he left the
theatre.
1899
Vladimir Nabokov, the future author of Lolita, is born at his family's mansion on Bolshaya Morskaya
ul in St Petersburg. He immortalises the house in his autobiography Speak, Memory.
1900
By the turn of the 20th century, St Petersburg (population 1,440,000) is Russia's cultural centre. It's
also a centre of political unrest.
1902-04
Clashes in the Far East lead to the Russo-Japanese War, with unexpectedly disastrous results for the
Russians. The war diverts resources and stirs up dissent in the capital.
1905
Hundreds of people are killed when troops fire on peaceful protestors presenting a petition to the
tsar. Nicholas II is held responsible for the tragedy, dubbed 'Bloody Sunday.
1906
The first Duma election is held, a decision that is made, but greatly resented, by Nicholas II on the
urging of the prime minister. The Duma meets four times a year in the Tauride Palace until 1917.
1914
Russia enters WWI, simultaneously invading Austrian Galicia and German Prussia with minimal suc-
cess. St Petersburg changes its name to the less Germanic sounding Petrograd.
