5 times terrorists FAILED to kill the Russian Emperor Getty Images Before Emperor Alexander II of Russia was killed on March 1, 1881, five attempts on his life were made: his home and train were blown up, he was shot at, and even chased down the street by a fierce militant... 1st attempt: A shot turned away Karakozov shooting at Alexander II. A Soviet postcard Public domain On April 4th, 1866, Emperor Alexander II was exiting the northern gate of the Summer Garden in St. Petersburg, while on a walk. A small crowd of passers-by spontaneously gathered at a respectful distance to see the Emperor walk towards his carriage. And from this crowd, a shot was fired by a 26-year-old Dmitry Karakozov. Luckily, Osip Komissarov, a 28-year-old peasant who worked as a hatmaker's apprentice, was also at the scene, and ended up saving the Emperor.