posed, in 1911, far-reaching changes in the banking laws of the United States with a view to the creation of central reserves, a system afterwards adopted in the Federal Reserve banks. He retired from the U.S. Senate in 1911, after 30 years' service.
ALEXANDER, King of the Hellenes (1893–1920), second son of King Constantine and Queen Sophia, was born Aug. i 1893, and ascended the throne of Greece, June 12 1917, on the dethronement of his father by the Anglo-French forces during the
World War (see Constantine). He, not unnaturally, looked upon his position at first as a mere temporary arrangement. The Government itself was meanwhile in the responsible hands of Venizelos, who had the confidence of the Allies. But the defeat of Germany, and Venizelos's diplomatic triumphs at the Peace Conference, seemed to breathe a new spirit into the young King. From the day of his triumphal entry into Adrianople, he evidently took a more active personal interest in the prospect of being the ruler of Greater Greece. This change in his attitude was indeed so marked that his royal parents in exile in Switzerland were said to be greatly disconcerted; but it gave him an entirely new popularity among the people. His sudden death on Oct. 27 1920, by blood-poisoning from the bite of a pet monkey, put a sudden end to all such expectations, and it seriously disarranged Venizelos's plans. King Alexander was buried amid widespread demonstrations of popular grief; but a fortnight later, in the general election, the Venizelist party was defeated. It is practically certain that, could this election have been postponed for a few months and a suitable successor to the throne found, King Constantine would never have been able to return, as he did, to Greece. But postponement was impossible after Venizelos's pledges to the Greek people; and, in the absence of any other serious candidate for the Greek throne, the old sympathies for Constantine won the day.
In Nov. 1919 King Alexander had insisted, against the advice of Venizelos, on making a morganatic marriage with a beautiful young Athenian lady, Aspasia Mano; and after his death a daughter was born to her in Paris on March 25 1921.
ALEXANDER I., King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (1888–), was born at Cettinje on Dec. 4 1888, the second son of Prince Peter Karagjorgjevic (later King of Serbia), and of Zorka, third daughter of Prince Nicholas of Montenegro. His mother died in 1890, and during his early years he of course shared the exile of his father, who lived at Geneva. In 1899 he was sent to be educated at St. Petersburg, and in 1904 entered the corps des pages at the Tsar's court. It was not till 1909 (nearly six years after his father's election to the Serbian throne, in succession to the murdered King Alexander Obrenovic) that the young prince came to reside permanently in Serbia. Soon after his return his elder brother, Prince George, was obliged to renounce the succession (March 1909), owing to his unbalanced temperament and various incidents that occurred during the Bosnian crisis; and Alexander was thereupon formally recognized as crown prince. On the outbreak of the Balkan War he assumed nominal command of the First Army, and won his spurs at the battle of Kumanovo, subsequently serving with distinction throughout the campaigns against Turkey and Bulgaria. On June 24 1914 King Peter, whose health had completely broken
down, appointed him as prince regent, and he thus held the position of commander-in-chief when the World War broke out. He remained permanently at army headquarters, and shared with his soldiers all the privations of the retreat through Albania. On reaching the coast he fell ill and underwent a serious operation, but when already convalescent resolutely declined the proffered assistance of an Italian destroyer which had been sent to convey him across the Adriatic; he remained till all the refugees had been transported into safety, and eventually found his way on foot to Durazzo. After the exiled Serbian Government had established itself at Corfu, Prince Alexander and Mr. Pasic paid visits to Paris and London, where the Prince was received
with warm ovations. On April 5 1916, in receiving an important deputation of British sympathizers (led by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lord Mayor, Lord Milner and Sir E. Carson), he publicly identified the dynasty with the cause of unity, expressing his conviction that in the final victory "our Yugoslav people, united in a single state, will also have their part." During the rest of the war he remained at Serbian headquarters, and shared his army's victorious advance in Oct. 1918. On Dec. 1 delegates of the Yugo-Slav National Council in Zagreb formally recognized him as regent in all the Yugo-Slav provinces of the former dual monarchy, and he assumed the title of "Prince-Regent of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes." The attempt made upon his life on June 28 1921, after he had taken oath to the new Yugo-Slav constitution, was the outcome not of any personal unpopularity, but of the subversive aims of the Communists and other revolutionary groups, who hoped to create confusion in the new state, owing to the lack of a direct heir to the throne. On Aug. 1 6 1921 Prince Alexander succeeded his father as King of Yugoslavia.
ALEXANDER, BOYD (1873–1910), British soldier and explorer, was born at Cranbrook, Kent, Jan. 16 1873. He was educated at Radley, and afterwards entered the army, joining the Rifle Brigade in 1893. In 1897 he led a scientific expedition to the Cape Verde Is., and in 1898 went on his first African journey to the Zambezi and Kafuk rivers. He was appointed to the Gold Coast constabulary in 1900, and took part in the relief of Kumasi. In 1904 he led a scientific expedition to Fernando Po, where he ascended Mt. St. Isabel and discovered various new species of birds. The same year saw the commencement of his most important work—the Alexander-Gosling expedition across Africa from the Niger to the Nile, which occupied three years. During this period he surveyed the shores of Lake Chad and explored a considerable part of eastern Nigeria, returning to England by way of the rivers Ubangi, Shari and Nile. For his various discoveries he received gold medals from the Royal Geographical Societies of London and Antwerp, besides honours from other learned societies. He returned to Africa in 1908, and was killed by natives at Nyeri, in Wadai, April 2 1910. Alexander published From the Niger to the Nile (1907), besides many articles and papers in scientific and geographical periodicals.
See Herbert Alexander, Boyd Alexander's Last Journey, with a memoir (1912).
ALEXANDER, SIR GEORGE (1858–1918), English actor (see 1.564), died at Chorleywood, Herts., March 16 1918. He was knighted in 1911. Among his later productions at the St. James's theatre were R. S. Hichens's and J. B. Pagan's Bella Donna; Pinero's The Big Drum and Louis N. Parker's The Aristocrat; in this he made his last appearance together with the veteran actress Genevieve Ward.
ALEXANDER, JOHN WHITE (1856–1915), American painter (see 1.564), died in New York June 1 1915. He received a first-class medal from the Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, in 1911, and a medal of honour at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in 1915. He had been president of the National Academy of Design since 1909.
ALEXANDER, WILLIAM (1824–1911), Protestant Archbishop of Armagh and primate of All Ireland (see 1.565), who resigned his see Jan. 30 1911, and was created G.C.V.O., died at Torquay Sept. 12 1911.
ALEXEYEV, MIKAIL (1857–1918), Russian general, was born in 1857, and entered the army in 1876. He completed his studies at the General Staff College in 1890, and joined the Russian General Staff. In 1904 he became a general. He took part in the war with Turkey in 1877–8. During the Russo-Japanese War he was the director of the operations on the staff of the II. Army. After further staff service he became in 1912 commander of the XIII. Army Corps. At the outbreak of the World War he was nominated chief of the staff of the south-western front. The first operations were skilfully carried on by him, and the great Russian victory in Galicia in 1914 was his work. In March 1915 he was called to command the group of armies of the north-western front. A stupendous task awaited him here; eight armies were confided to him, but these masses were destitute of all means of combat. The events in Galicia in April 1915 had their repercussion further north, where the position became desperate, and the army seemed lost. But by the end of Aug. the armies
