Grand Duke Of Russia Nikolai Alexandrovich

Diagnoses

Personal

Notable

Family

Russian Grand Duke who was Tsesarevich—the heir apparent—of Imperial Russia from 2 March 1855 until his death in 1865. Nicknamed "Nixa", he was the eldest son of the Tsesarevich Alexander Nikolaevich, eldest son of Emperor Nikolai I, and the Tsarevna Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. In 1855, his paternal grandfather died, and his father succeeded to the throne as Emperor Alexander II. In the summer of 1864, Nicholas became engaged to Princess Dagmar of Denmark. Early in 1865, during a tour in southern Europe, he contracted an ailment that was initially incorrectly diagnosed as rheumatism. His health rapidly worsened, and he was sent to Southern France, but this move brought him no improvement. It was eventually determined that he was suffering from cerebro-spinal meningitis, and it was speculated that this illness of his was caused by a previous accident in a wrestling match, in which Nikolai participated and was thrown down. In the spring of 1865, Nikolai's health continued to decline, and he died on 24 April 1865, aged 21, at the Villa Bermont in Nice, France. Link to Wikipedia biography