Nicholas II of Russia
On 1 March 1881, following the assassination of his grandfather, Tsar Alexander II, Nicholas became heir apparent upon his father's ascension as Alexander III. Nicholas and his other family members bore witness to Alexander II's death, having been present at the Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, where he was brought after the attack. For security reasons, the new tsar and his family relocated their primary residence to the Gatchina Palace outside the city, only entering the capital for various ceremonial functions. On such occasions, Alexander III and his family occupied the nearby Anichkov Palace.
Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia
Alexander II had started a new family with his mistress and Sergei sided with his neglected mother in the breaking of the family's harmony. Empress Maria died in June 1880, and in March 1881 AlexanderII, who had married his mistress, Princess Catherine Dolgoruki, was assassinated by terrorists. Sergei was then in Italy with his brother Paul and Admiral Arseniev. Three months later, in June 1881, the Grand Duke went to Palestine accompanied by Paul and his cousin Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovich. They visited Jerusalem and the sacred sites. He helped to found a society dedicated to the upkeep of Orthodox shrines in the Holy Land and the provision of services to Russian pilgrims. He became chairman of this society, and his status as patron of the Russian presence in Jerusalem is believed to have given him more pleasure than any of his other duties.