The Livadia Palace Museum houses a unique black-and-white photo of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. It was taken by the German artist Friedrich Kaulbach who photographed a painting depicting the Empress.

The photo is a full-length portrait of the Empress. She wears a shimmering dress and a diamond diadem. Her graceful, light-colored figure is contrasted against a dark and gloomy forest.

Alix of Hesse was the daughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse. After converting to Russian Orthodoxy, she took the name of Alexandra Feodorovna. In November 1894, she married Emperor Nicholas II. This joyous event was preceded by a sorrowful farewell to Emperor Alexander III in Livadia.

On October 10, 1894, Princess Alix of Hesse, the bride of Tsesarevich Nicholas, arrived in Crimea. The heir apparent described this event in his diary,

Emperor Alexander III died in Livadia on October 20. He was buried on Monday, November 7, 1894, in the Peter and Paul Cathedral. The next time Alexandra Feodorovna came to Livadia she was already the Empress and a mother of five. In the fall of 1911, she visited the newly built snow-white Livadia Palace presented by the architect Nikolay Krasnov. The Empress’s daughters shared the rooms: Olga with Tatiana, and Maria with Anastasia. Tsesarevich Alexei occupied a separate room. Alexandra Feodorovna had a cozy light-colored living room that was furnished according to her taste. It must have been a place of attraction for the entire friendly family where its members could gather to chat, read aloud to each other, listen to the piano, and perhaps even to the Empress’s singing. It was only among her close ones that Alexandra Feodorovna could stop being shy and reserved. In 1914, the imperial family visited the Livadia Palace for the last time.