Romanov << ROH muh `NAWF` >> was the name of a dynasty (series of rulers) that ruled in Russia from 1613 to 1917. The first Romanov ruler was Michael Romanov. He was the grandnephew of Anastasia Romanov, the first wife of Ivan IV of Russia. Michael was elected czar, the title used by Russian emperors, in 1613. He was elected because there was nobody of royal birth to take the throne at the time. Michael’s son Alexis established Russian rule over Ukraine and sponsored the introduction of Western education, military methods, and technology in Russia. See Russia (The early Romanovs).
Alexis was succeeded by his oldest son, Fedor III, in 1676. Fedor died in 1682, and his two living brothers inherited the throne as Ivan V and Peter I. In 1696, Peter became the sole ruler of Russia. He led Russia in wars of conquest against the Ottoman Empire and Persia (Iran). He also seized control of territory around the Baltic Sea from Sweden. Peter’s victories transformed Russia into a leading political power in Europe. He became known as Peter the Great. 
Peter the Great’s son died before Peter did. Peter changed the laws regarding inheritance of the Russian throne so that rulers could choose their successors. Peter’s wife succeeded him and ruled as Catherine I from 1725 to 1727. The throne then passed to Peter’s grandson Peter II. Peter II was the last male Romanov ruler with a direct claim to the family name. Most of the rulers who used the Romanov name after Peter were more distantly related to the family.
Anne, a daughter of Ivan V, succeeded Peter II. Following Anne’s death in 1740, the throne passed to her grandnephew Ivan VI, who was crowned as an infant. Elizabeth, a daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine I, seized power in 1741 in a coup (sudden take-over of government). As empress, Elizabeth brought Russia into the global conflict known as the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763). She chose her nephew Peter III as her successor.
Catherine, the wife of Peter III, deposed her husband six months into his reign. She succeeded him as Catherine II and became known as Catherine the Great. Catherine ruled from 1762 to 1796. She was an influential sponsor in the fields of art, science, and philosophy. She also acquired Crimea and other lands through wars with the Ottoman Empire. Many Romanov rulers who reigned after 1796 were considered either weak or too conservative.
Following Catherine’s death, her son Paul became czar. Paul reinstated the traditional laws by which the Russian throne passed to the ruler’s oldest son. The throne then passed to Alexander I in 1801, and to Nicholas I in 1825. Alexander II, who ruled Russia from 1855 to 1881, freed the country’s serfs but was later assassinated by revolutionaries. Alexander III, who inherited the throne in 1881, opposed many of his father’s progressive reforms. Nicholas II succeeded Alexander III in 1894. He was the last Romanov ruler and the last czar of Russia.
Nicholas II’s unpopular military and political decisions sparked protests that came to a head during the February Revolution of 1917. Pressured by revolts within the Russian army, Nicholas gave up his throne in March 1917. In 1918, he and his wife and five children were executed by revolutionaries called Bolsheviks (later known as Communists). For years, many people believed that Nicholas’s youngest daughter, Anastasia, had survived. However, DNA testing eventually proved that all seven members of the royal family had been killed in 1918. Other members of the Romanov family survived and escaped from Russia. 
