The remains of the Danish-born mother of Russia's last Tsar have arrived in Petergof near St. Petersburg for an official ceremony. A gunboat escorted by the guardsmen of the Royal Court of Denmark and servicemen of the Presidential Regiment of Russia b

The coffin was led off the boat, with the family of the Empress marking the ceremony.

It was 26th September, 140 years ago, the Empress, then known as Denmark's Princess Dagmar first visited St. Petersburg.

On Thursday, Empress Maria Feodorovna will be buried alongside her husband, Tsar Aleksander III, in St. Petersburg's Peter and Paul Catherdral.

There were lengthy negotiations between Denmark and Russia on the transfer of the remains. The Empress fled Russia to her native Denmark after the February Revolution in 1917.  She had six children including Russia's last Tsar Nicholas II, who together with his family was later executed by the Bolsheviks.

Andrey Zolotov, editor-in-chief, at Russia Profile magazine says most Russians see this as an important event:

“It is a highly symbolic event for Russia. Many people see it as a form of justice for the Romanals. It is also part of the quest for legitimacy on the part of the modern Russia.”