Alexei, circa 1910 - 1915. Alexei Romanov (August 12, 1904 - July 17, 1918), the young heir, was afflicted with hemophilia B, a hereditary disease that prevents blood from clotting properly, which at that time was untreatable and usually led to an untimely death. As a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, Alexandra carried the same gene mutation that afflicted several of the major European royal houses, such as Prussia and Spain. Hemophilia therefore became known as "the royal disease". Alexandra had passed it on to her son.