Skating, weaving bast and astrology: what other hobby was fond of Russian rulers

Despite the constant employment and state care, many Russian rulers were still different hobby. Some like to fish, someone was a collector of violins, and someone was playing toy soldiers. This once again confirms that kings and emperors are people too.

The main passion of Ivan the terrible was chess, but to instill in the yard love this particular pastime of the ruler did not work. Constant gaming opponent of the king was the chief Oprichnik Malyuta Skuratov, who is a good player and did not. At the end of life Ivan the terrible staged chess battle with Boris Godunov and Prince Ivan Glinski. According to legend, died the king of the chessboard.

The Death Of Ivan The Terrible

Second passion terrible, despite his piety, was astrology. At the Royal Palace was stargazers and astrologers that were personal horoscopes. Subsequently, they were executed for the Palace intrigue.

A favorite pastime of the second Tsar of the Romanov Alexei Mikhailovich quietest was falconry. Birds of prey brought to the court from Siberia, the Urals, the shores of the White sea.

The training of falcons engaged in the special people that the king lived in Moscow. Today, the area of the capital known as Sokolniki.

The king personally came up with the names for the birds, and his favorite Falcon name was Shirai. During one of the hunts the winged hunter did not calculate the height and died after hitting the ground. In memory of this Falcon in the area of Sokolniki appeared shiryaevskaya area and the street.

Tsar Peter I was a person of passionate and diverse that it was reflected in his hobby. The first Russian Emperor gathered a huge collection of coins and various strange curiosities that were stored in the Cabinet, known as the Kunstkamera. In addition to navigation and military Affairs, Peter studied drawing, engraving, paper-making, repair of hours, visited the anatomical theatre, where he learned the basics of surgery.

He has mastered the craft of carpenter, bricklayer, gardener. It is believed that the king designed the first Russian ice skating, which he loved to ride. His most unexpected passion was dentistry. The king loved to pull the courtiers teeth, including healthy. Peter tried to master the weaving of Lapti from bast, but never learned, but only said that the science of this complex.

Emperor Peter III was born in Germany and came to Russia when he was 14 years old. Growing up, the Emperor is addicted to alcohol, but his main passion became toy soldiers, which he had a few thousand.

On a special table Peter built shelves, cavalry squadrons and artillery, and then started the battle. To fun the monarch was in earnest, and the courtiers did not dare even to doubt the importance of such activities for the development of leadership talent.

Wax figure of Emperor Peter III

The Emperor's wife Ekaterina Alekseevna recalled that one night, a rat chewed through several of the figurines head. The humiliation of Peter to endure could not. He ordered to catch the rat and put it in front of the line toy soldiers.

In the childhood of Emperor Nicholas I used to spend hours playing with toy soldiers and was fond of drawing. Particular success he has achieved in the chart. In adult life, the fascination of army business and fine art expressed in modeling a military uniform. Nicholas understood in the sewing craft and was able to draw the details of his uniform.

Emperor Nicholas I

The Emperor was a gun collector and ordered to build the new Hermitage. His son Alexander II was an excellent swordsman, well-played musical instruments and painted. But his real passion was also a weapon.

Alexander III, who was nicknamed "the Peacemaker," was fond of old Russian Hobbies — fishing and hunting. For participating in hunting competitions Alexander had 9 33 domestic and foreign awards. To fish the monarch loved in the pond in the scenic Gatchina Park.

Royal hunt

When the Emperor ran the foreign Minister and asked Alexander to take urgent after the European powers, he replied:

Emperor Nicholas II on the hunt

The last Russian Emperor Nicholas II was fond of photography and cinema, was a good hunter and liked to personally control the car. The monarch was collecting violins, which he was 128, including those made by the hands of the great Antonio Stradivari. Every year together with his family he spent two weeks traveling across the Baltic sea on the yacht "Standart". The Romanovs in the summer vacationing in the Crimea, even the Emperor liked to travel around Russia, which had two trains.