description Sofia Perovskaya Overview
Sofia Perovskaya (1854-1881) was a Russian revolutionary and member of Narodnaya Volya (The People's Will). Born into nobility as the daughter of a former governor of Saint Petersburg, she abandoned her privileged background to join the revolutionary movement against the Tsarist autocracy. Perovskaya played a key role in planning the assassination of Tsar Alexander II on March 13, 1881, personally giving the signal to the bomb throwers. She was arrested afterward, became the first woman in Russia executed for political crimes, and was hanged on April 15, 1881.
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Who was Sofia Perovskaya?
She was a Russian noblewoman — her father had served as governor of Saint Petersburg — who abandoned her privileged life to join Narodnaya Volya (The People's Will). She became a central organizer of the plot to assassinate Tsar Alexander II.
What was Perovskaya's role in Alexander II's assassination?
On March 1, 1881 (Julian calendar), she stood near the Catherine Canal in Saint Petersburg and gave the hand signal for the bombers to attack the tsar's carriage. Alexander II was killed by the second bomber's explosion that day.
What happened to Sofia Perovskaya afterward?
She was arrested and hanged in April 1881 together with Andrei Zhelyabov and the other conspirators. She is commonly remembered as one of the first women in Russia executed specifically for a political crime.
Why is Sofia Perovskaya still remembered?
Her aristocrat-turned-revolutionary story made her an enduring radical icon, celebrated in Soviet-era monuments and biographies. Later generations of Russian revolutionaries, including the assassins of the early 1900s, invoked her and Narodnaya Volya as their model.
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