Russia to mark Romanov rule

MOSCOW, March 5 (UPI) -- The bells of Moscow's Ivan the Great tower will be rung Wednesday to mark the 400th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty's ascent to power, an official said.

Igor Konovalov, the artistic director of the Kremlin's bells, said a 19.6 ton bell called the Reut will peal 400 times, one for each year since the Romanovs first came to power, The Moscow Times reported.

The bell was cast in 1622 to mark the end of 15 chaotic years in Russia known as the Times of Troubles.

The Romanovs ruled for three centuries until the Russian Revolution in 1917.

Czar Nicholas II and all members of his immediate family were executed by Soviet agents in Yekaterinburg in July of 1918.