'''Yakov Sverdlov''' was born in 1885 in Nizhny Novgorod to [[Jew]]ish parents. He joined the [[Bolshevik]] party and took part in the Revolution of 1905 which was crushed by [[Tsar]]ist troops. He was imprisoned or exiled until the [[February Revolution]] of 1917. After the [[October Revolution]], he became an important [[Soviet]] government official. In July, 1918, Sverdlov ordered the murder of [[Tsar]] [[Nicholas II]] and his family. The Russian Royal family are now regarded as [[Martyr]]s by the [[Russian Orthodox Church]].
Sverdlov died of [[influenza]] during the Spanish flu epidemic in March, 1919. The city of [[Yekaterinburg]] was renamed to Sverdlovsk in his honor.