June 1872, Moika River Embankment, Saint Petersburg, Russia.
That evening at 122 Moika River Embankment, in Saint Petersburg, twenty-two-year old Alexei Alexandrovich Romanov invited a few dozen of his closest friends to a small intimate garden party. This was an opportunity for Alexei, his wife Alexandra, and one-year-old baby Alexei, affectionately called Sasha, to celebrate the construction of their new palace. Enjoying the coolness of early evening and reprieve from an untypically hot day, the ladies, resplendent in bright, gaily coloured summer dresses, strolled arm in arm with their male consorts through the grounds and gardens of the Romanovs' soon-to-be new home.
Blanketed by lush green grass, the slightly elevated property offered a splendid unobstructed view of the waterway k
