2-587-615 - © Fine Art Images/Heritage Images

'Portrait of Emperor Alexander I', 1800s. Alexander (1777-1825) ascended to the throne in 1801 after the murder of his father, Paul I. He was initially a liberal and a reformer, but as his reign progressed Alexander became increasingly autocratic in both his domestic and foreign policies. The defeat of Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812 left Alexander one of the most powerful leaders in Europe. He was also King of Poland from 1815, as well as the first Grand Duke of Finland. After his death in 1825, rumours persisted that he was in fact not dead at all but had fled to Siberia to become a hermit. In 1926 the Soviet authorities opened his tomb in an attempt to solve the mystery, only to find it empty. Found in the collection of the State A Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow.