The Great Trek of the Russian Mennonites to Central Asia, 1880-1884, Fred Richard Belk, 1976

the fact remains that a serious blow had been dealt the movement by this terrible epidemic. '* Czar Alexander II Assassinated Another decisively important blow was the assassination of the friendly reformer czar, Alexander II. Alexander had honored Men- nonites for their faithful nonmilitary service in the Crimean War (1854-56) and the Turkish War (1877-78); to the Mennonites of Chortitza colony he had given a handwritten document of his thanks; to the Mennonites of Molotschna he had expressed his gratitude for feeding and quartering some 600 Bulgar immigrants. Personally, he had sent his adjutant, Count Todtleben, to dissuade them from their mass exodus to America and had granted them permission to perform forestry service in lieu of military service. The Turkestan Mennonites had more appreciation for this czar than perhaps any other Mennonites in Russia because he had given his permission to migrate for social and religious reasons."” Because of the repercussions on the Mennonites of Turkestan, the circumstances of the czars death should be noted. On March 1, 1881, despite a warning from a close adviser, Alexander went to inspect the troops at Mikhailovsky Palace in St. Petersburg. While riding in his sleigh, a political terrorist threw a bomb at him. This first bomb did no injury to the czar, but as he stopped to inspect the damage, another shattered both of his legs and disfigured his face. His legs were amputated at the palace, but he died shortly after the operation without regaining consciousness." The Mennonites of Turkestan received notification by way of a telegram sent all over Russia the day following the assassination. They received the news with profound shock. Promptly they held a memorial service in his honor and a sympathy message was drawn up and presented to Kaufmann, who received it graciously.'* Most of the Mennonites wondered what would happen now; with his pass- ing, Russia lost a czar who had not only indirectly helped the Men- nonites, but showed the most promise of flexibility.” Harsher Policies of Government Since Alexander's eldest son had died of tuberculosis, his second son, Alexander III, who had previously been destined for a military career, became czar. He took the oath of office the day after the 110 The Great Trek of the Russian Mennonites assassination and in his coronation speech expressed the wish to con- tinue his father's policies. Some interpreted these emotional words to be a promise of continued liberal policies, but they soon discovered that the new czar was too conscious of his father’s murder at the hands of radicals to be tolerant of dissent. With his accession to the throne, the Russian Orthodox Church, which had played a relatively minor role during his father’s reign, encouraged a program of anti- liberalism, and instituted a revival of monasticism. Education, long a stronghold of liberal thought, was subjected to closer scrutiny by the