2-588-187 - The Art Collector/Heritage-Images

'Portrait of Peter the Great', mid 19th century. Peter I (1672-1725) succeeded his father Alexis I as Tsar in 1682, initially ruling jointly with his half-brother, Ivan V. He embarked on a campaign to modernise and Europeanise Russia, socially, economically and militarily, and develop her into a maritime power. Found in the collection of The Hermitage, St Petersburg.