seventh child and fifth son among the eight children of Alexander II of Russia and his first wife Maria Alexandrovna, née Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine. Until he was old enough to begin lessons, Sergei's earlier years were spent with his younger brother Paul, from whom he was inseparable, and their sister at Livadia, the family's Crimean retreat, at Tsarskoye Selo, and at the Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg. By the time Sergei was born, his mother was already in declining health. Although she was not a particularly affectionate mother, except to her daughter, her three youngest children, Marie, Sergei and Paul, were close to her and especially to one another. Marie adored him and called him "an exceptionally nice young man... and can be recommended one very possible way, not because he is my brother, but because he is an exception among princes." As time passed and the Empress's health made it necessary for her to avoid the harsh Russian climate, they spent long sojourns abroad in Jugenheim outside Darmstadt and winters in the South of France. A family tragedy hit them there. In April 1865, shortly before Sergei's eighth birthday, his eldest brother and godfather Nicholas, the heir to the crown, died in Nice. As a child, Sergei was shy, studious, and withdrawn. Under the influence of his mother, whose reserved character he resembled, he became very religious. From the 1870s, Sergei and his younger brother Paul were kept in Russia by their studies. They were destined to follow a military career, but their tutor, Admiral Arseniev, encouraged Sergei's linguistic, artistic, and musical abilities. He was fluent in several languages and learned Italian in order to read Dante in the original. His interest in Italian art and culture intensified as he grew older. He painted well and was musical, playing the flute in an amateur orchestra. He enjoyed acting and steeped himself in the early history, culture, and traditions of Russia. He liked to read and in time came to know many of Russia's great writers personally, among them Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, whose work the Grand Duke read and admired. He met Dostoevsky over dinner at the Winter Palace where he was invited by Sergei's professor. Military career Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich started a military career early in his life. He was from birth Colonel-in-Chief of the 38th Tobolsk Infantry Regiment, he also became Colonel-in-Chief of