It is known that the emergence of the so-called "Russian Nice" is linked to the visit of the Russian empress, after which all Russian nobility flocked to Nice. In 1856, a frigate with Alexandra Fyodorovna, the wife of Nicholas I, dropped anchor in the bay of Villefranche, which later became a Russian naval base in the Mediterranean.

Many guides mislead tourists by talking about the busts of Russian admirals and the empress on the boulevard named after Alexandra Fyodorovna. At that time, Nice and Villefranche were connected only by a path, and Alexandra Fyodorovna financed the construction of a road that is still considered one of the most picturesque on the Côte d'Azur.

In April 1857, during the inauguration, a triumphal arch decorated with mimosa was erected under which the empress cut the ribbon. Part of the road leading to Nice from the port was renamed from "Lazaret Path" to "Boulevard of the Empress," but changes began three years later.

Over time, the desire of the French authorities to immortalize the memory of the Russian empress, who did much for the Côte d'Azur, was replaced by a desire to forget her. In 1955, French communists renamed the street to "Boulevard Stalingrad."

Neither the Russian nobility living on the Côte d'Azur, nor the Russian government, nor the French intended to change anything, and the story could have ended there. However, a Frenchman, honorary academician of the Russian Academy of Arts René Guerra, decided in 1995 with his brother to restore the boulevard's name to the empress. This idea failed in Nice, and condemning articles appeared in the press.

But the Guerra brothers did not stop and achieved the renaming of one of the boulevards in Villefranche in honor of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna. In 1996, on the 140th anniversary of Alexandra Fyodorovna's first visit to Villefranche, the boulevard was named "Boulevard of the Empress of Russia." However, this boulevard is not connected to the road built by Alexandra, and part of the boulevard is still called "Stalingrad."

That same year, St. Petersburg gifted Villefranche a bust of Alexandra Fyodorovna, created by a famous Russian sculptor. Initially, the bust was made of plaster, but a year later it was replaced with a bronze version.

Interestingly, the sculptor depicted Alexandra at the age of 40, although she first visited the Côte d'Azur at 60. He also "dressed" her in a kokoshnik, inspired by a portrait from the Hermitage painted by Malyukov, and decided not to remove this headpiece.