Russian Czar Alexander II was assassinated in St

Petersburg on March 13, 1881. The reform-minded emperor – who had freed the serfs in 1861 – fell victim to a bomb thrown by members of the “People’s Will,” a revolutionary anarchist group. Alexander II’s violent death abruptly ended an era of significant reforms (including emancipation and modernization efforts) and ushered in a more reactionary reign under his son, Alexander III