Line of succession to the Russian Throne

The Monarchy of Russia was abolished in 1917 following the February Revolution, which forced Emperor Nicholas II to abdicate. Claims made on behalf of different persons to be the rightful current pretender continue to be debated.

Since 1992, the most widely acknowledged pretender is Maria Vladimirovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, a great-great-granddaughter in the male-line of Emperor Alexander II of Russia, having proclaimed herself the head of the imperial house upon her father's death She also declared her son George Mikhailovich to be the heir-apparent.

In the succession chart below, the number preceding each name indicates that individual's position in the order of succession to the throne at the time of the abdication of Nicholas II. For instance, Alexei Nikolaevich was the first in line, as the Emperor's only son. The numbers following each name indicates the line of descent and genealogical seniority from Nicholas I of Russia. For instance, Alexei Nikolaevich, 1.2.1.1, as follows from Nicholas I:

Many of the individuals on this list died childless; some were killed during the Russian Revolution.

Brother of Nicholas II, who abdicated in his favour in 1917.

At first, many members of the Imperial House either did not believe or were wary of acting on news of the demise of the immediate imperial family. However, camps started to be formed in the monarchist movement, where Paris was a focal location. Several monarchists grouped around Grand Duke Cyril Vladimirovich, who was first in the line of succession by male primogeniture after the execution of Alexei Nikolaevich and Michael Alexandrovich. Many of Cyril's opponents grouped around a young grand duke, Dmitri Pavlovich, who was next in the line of succession if Cyril and his brothers, the Vladimirovichi, were ineligible (Paul Alexandrovich, who had been ahead of Dmitri, had been killed in 1919), though Dimitri himself refused these advances, supporting instead Grand Duke Cyril as emperor. Several grouped around the old Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich, appreciating his career as general and former commander-in-chief, or his position as the oldest member of the imperial dynasty. On August 8, 1922, Nicholas was proclaimed as the emperor of all Russia by the Zemsky Sobor of the Priamursk region, convened in Vladivostok by General Mikhail Diterikhs. At the time, Grand Duke Nicholas was already living abroad and consequently was not present at the Sobor. Two months later the Priamursk region fell to the Bolsheviks.

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