Empress Alexandra Feodorovna: “a sunbeam that broke the empire. Alice of Hesse, Grand Duchess: biography, life and love story
On November 14, 1894, Nikolai Alexandrovich married the daughter of the Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine Ludwig IV, the granddaughter of the English Queen Victoria Alike Victoria Elena Brigitte Louise Beatrice, who converted to Orthodoxy with the name Alexandra Feodorovna. His father at one time opposed this marriage, since the Hessian princesses, among whom were the wives of the murdered emperors Paul I and Alexander II, enjoyed a bad reputation at the Russian court. They were believed to bring bad luck. In addition, the family of the Hessian dukes through the female line transmitted a hereditary disease - hemophilia. However, Nikolai, who was in love with Alik, insisted on his own.
Nikolai Alexandrovich was an exemplary family man, he spent all his free time with his family. He enjoyed working with children, sawing and chopping firewood, removing snow, driving a car, going on a yacht, riding a train, walking a lot, and the emperor also liked to shoot crows with a rifle. The sovereign did not like only to engage in state affairs. But his wife constantly interfered in these matters, and her intervention had disastrous consequences. The Russian Empress was brought up by her grandmother in England. She graduated from Heidelberg University with a Bachelor of Philosophy. At the same time, Alexandra Fedorovna was subject to religious mysticism, or rather, she was superstitious and had a penchant for charlatans. She repeatedly turned for advice and help to dubious personalities. At first it was Mitka the holy fool, who could only mumble. However, with him was someone named Elpidifor, who explained the meaning of Mitka's cries during the seizures that happened to Mitka. Mitka was replaced by the hysterical Darya Osipovna, and many others followed her. In addition to domestic "wonderworkers", their foreign "colleagues" were also invited to the royal palace - Papus from Paris, Schenk from Vienna, Philippe from Lyon. What motives forced the queen to communicate with these people? The fact is that the dynasty certainly needed an heir to the throne, and daughters were born. The obsessive idea of a male child so captured Alexandra Feodorovna that, under the influence of one of the "miracle workers", she imagined herself pregnant, despite the fact that she felt all the symptoms due to the case, and even gained weight. They were waiting for the birth of a boy, but all the deadlines had passed, and ... the pregnancy turned out to be the fruit of her imagination. Embarrassed by this turn of events, the subjects irreverently quoted Pushkin: “The queen gave birth in the night / Not a son, not a daughter; / Not a mouse, not a frog, / But an unknown little animal. But finally, the heir Alexei Nikolaevich was born. The joy on this occasion did not last long, as it turned out that Alexei was ill with hemophilia, which was considered incurable at that time.
The wedding of Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich and Grand Duchess Alexandra Feodorovna.
1894. Artist I.E. Repin
Speech of Nicholas II to the volost foremen and representatives of the rural population of the outskirts of Russia in the courtyard
Petrovsky Palace in 1896. Artist I.E. Repin
Alexandra Feodorovna in court dress.
Artist I.S. Galkin
Nicholas II is an ambiguous personality, historians speak very negatively about his rule of Russia, most people who know and analyze history are inclined to the version that the last All-Russian Emperor had little interest in politics, did not keep up with the times, slowed down the development of the country, was not a far-sighted ruler, did not he was able to catch the jet in time, did not keep his nose in the wind, and even when everything practically flew into hell, discontent was already whipped up not only from the bottom, but also from the top were indignant, even then Nicholas II could not draw any correct conclusions. He did not believe that his removal from government was real; in fact, he was doomed to become the last autocrat in Rus'. But Nicholas II was a great family man. He would like to be, for example, the Grand Duke, and not the emperor, not to delve into politics. Five children are no joke, their upbringing requires a lot of attention and effort. Nicholas II loved his wife for many years, missed her in separation, did not lose his physical and mental attraction to her even after many years of marriage.
I have collected many photographs of Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra Feodorovna (nee Princess Victoria Alice Elena Louise Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt, daughter of Ludwig IV), their children: daughters Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, son Alexei.
This family was very fond of being photographed, and the shots turned out to be very beautiful, spiritual, bright. Look at the attractive faces of the children of the last Russian emperor. These girls did not know marriage, never kissed lovers and could not know the joys and sorrows of love. And they died a martyr's death. Even though they weren't at fault. In those days, many died. But this family was the most famous, the most high-ranking, and its death still does not give anyone peace, a black page in the history of Russia, the brutal murder of the royal family. The fate was prepared for these beauties as follows: girls were born in turbulent times. Many people dream of being born in a palace, with a golden spoon in their mouth: to be princesses, princes, kings, queens, kings and queens. But how often did the life of blue-blooded people turn out to be difficult? They were incited, killed, hounded, strangled, and very often their own people, close to the monarchs, destroyed and occupied the vacated throne, alluring with its limitless possibilities.
Alexander II was blown up by a Narodnaya Volya, Paul II was killed by conspirators, Peter III died under mysterious circumstances, Ivan VI was also destroyed, the list of these unfortunates can be continued for a very long time. Yes, and those who were not killed did not live long by today's standards, either they get sick, or they undermine their health while ruling the country. And after all, it was not only in Russia that such a high mortality rate of monarchs was, there are countries where the reigning personalities were even more dangerous. But all the same, everyone always rushed so zealously to the throne, and pushed their children there at any cost. Though not for long, I wanted to live well, beautifully, go down in history, take advantage of all the benefits, visit luxury, be able to order slaves, decide the fate of people and rule the country.
But Nicholas II never longed to be emperor, but he understood that being the ruler of the Russian Empire was his duty, his destiny, especially since he was a fatalist in everything.
Today we will not talk about politics, we will just look at the photos.
In this photo you see Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna, so the couple dressed up for a costume ball.
In this photo, Nicholas II is still very young, his mustache is just breaking through.
Nicholas II in childhood.
In this photo, Nicholas II with the long-awaited heir Alexei.
Nicholas II with his mother Maria Feodorovna.
In this photo, Nicholas II with his parents, sisters and brothers.
The future wife of Nicholas II, then Princess Victoria Alice Helena Louise Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas IIThe last Russian empress... the closest to us in time, but perhaps the least known in its original form, untouched by the pen of interpreters. Even during her lifetime, not to mention the decades that followed the tragic 1918, speculation and slander began to cling to her name, and often outright slander. Nobody knows the truth now.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (nee Princess Alice Victoria Elena Louise Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt; May 25 (June 6), 1872-July 17, 1918) - wife of Nicholas II (since 1894). The fourth daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and Rhine, and Duchess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of England. She was born in Germany, in Darmstadt. The fourth daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and Rhine, and Duchess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of England.
When little Alex was six years old, In 1878, a diphtheria epidemic spread in Hesse. Alice's mother and her younger sister May died from her.
Ludwig IV of Hesse and Duchess Alice (second daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) - Alex's parents
And then the English grandmother takes the girl to her. Alice was considered the favorite granddaughter of Queen Victoria, who called her Sunny (“Sunny”). So Alix spent most of her childhood and adolescence in England, where she was raised. Queen Victoria, by the way, did not like the Germans and had a special dislike for Emperor Wilhelm II, which was passed on to her granddaughter. All her life later, Alexandra Fedorovna felt more drawn to her motherland from her mother's side, to relatives and friends there. Maurice Palaiologos, the French ambassador to Russia, wrote about her: "Alexandra Fedorovna is not a German either in mind or in heart, and she never was. Of course, she is such by birth. Her upbringing, education, the formation of consciousness and morality became completely English. And now she is still English in her appearance, manner of bearing herself, a certain stiffness and puritanical character, intransigence and militant severity of conscience. Finally, in many of her habits.
In June 1884, at the age of 12, Alice visited Russia for the first time, when her older sister Ella (in Orthodoxy - Elizaveta Feodorovna) was married to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. In 1886, she came to visit her sister, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (Ella), wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. Then she met the heir, Nikolai Alexandrovich. The young people, who are also in a fairly close relationship (by the father of the princess, they are second cousins brother and sister), immediately imbued with mutual sympathy.
Sergei Alexandrovich and Elizaveta Fedorovna (Ella)
While visiting her sister Ella in St. Petersburg, Alix was invited to social events. The verdict handed down by the high society was cruel: “Uncharismatic. Holds, as if swallowed an arshin. What does high society care about little princess Alix's problems? Who cares that she grows up without a mother, suffers greatly from loneliness, shyness, and terrible pains of the facial nerve? And only the blue-eyed heir was absorbed and delighted with the guest without a trace - he fell in love! Not knowing what they do in such cases, Nikolai asked his mother for an elegant brooch with diamonds and quietly put it into the hand of his twelve-year-old lover. Out of confusion, she didn't answer. The next day, the guests were leaving, a farewell ball was given, and Alix, seizing a moment, quickly approached the Heir and just as silently returned the brooch to his hand. Nobody noticed. Only now there was a secret between them: why did she return it?
The childish naive flirtation of the heir to the throne and Princess Alice on the girl’s next visit to Russia three years later began to acquire the serious character of a strong feeling.
However, the visiting princess did not please the parents of the Tsarevich: Empress Maria Feodorovna, like a true Dane, hated the Germans and was against marriage with the daughter of Ludwig Hesse of Darmstadt. His parents hoped to the last for his marriage to Helena Louise Henriette, daughter of Louis Philippe, Count of Paris.
Alice herself had reason to believe that the romance that had begun with the heir to the Russian throne could have favorable consequences for her. Returning to England, the princess begins to study Russian, gets acquainted with Russian literature, and even has lengthy conversations with the priest of the Russian embassy church in London. Fervently loving her Queen Victoria, of course, wants to help her granddaughter and writes a letter to the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna. Grandmother asks to find out more about the intentions of the Russian imperial house in order to decide whether Alice should be confirmed according to the rules of the Anglican Church, because, according to tradition, members of the royal family in Russia had the right to marry only women of the Orthodox faith.
Another four years passed, and blind chance helped decide the fate of two lovers. As if the evil fate that hovered over Russia, unfortunately, united young people of royal blood. Truly, this union was tragic for the fatherland. But who thought about it then ...
In 1893, Alexander III became seriously ill. Here a dangerous question for the succession to the throne arose - the future sovereign is not married. Nikolai Alexandrovich categorically stated that he would choose a bride for himself only for love, and not for dynastic reasons. Through the mediation of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich, the emperor's consent to the marriage of his son with Princess Alice was obtained. However, Maria Fedorovna did not hide her dissatisfaction with the unsuccessful, in her opinion, choice of an heir. The fact that the princess of Hesse joined the Russian imperial family during the mournful days of the suffering of the dying Alexander III, probably even more set Maria Feodorovna against the new empress.
April 1894, Coburg, Alex agreed to become the wife of Nikolai
(in the center - Queen Victoria, grandmother Alex)
And why, having received the long-awaited parental blessing, Nikolai could not persuade Alix to become his wife? After all, she loved him - he saw it, felt it. What did it cost him to persuade his powerful and authoritarian parents to this marriage! He fought for his love and now, the long-awaited permission has been received!
Nikolay is going to the wedding of his brother Alix in Coburg Castle, where everything is already prepared for the fact that the Heir to the Russian Throne will propose to Alix of Hesse. The wedding went on as usual, only Alix ... was crying.
“They left us alone, and then that conversation began between us, which I had long and strongly desired and, together, was very afraid of. They talked until 12 o'clock, but to no avail, she still opposes the change of religion. She, poor thing, cried a lot.” But is it just one religion? In general, if you look at the portraits of Alix of any period of her life, it is impossible not to notice the stamp of the tragic pain that this face bears. She seemed to always KNOW... She had a premonition. Cruel fate, the basement of the Ipatiev House, a terrible death ... She was afraid and rushed about. But the love was too strong! And she agreed.
In April 1894, Nikolai Alexandrovich, accompanied by a brilliant retinue, went to Germany. Betrothed in Darmstadt, the young spend some time at the English court. From that moment on, the crown prince's diary, which he kept all his life, became available to Alex.
Already at that time, even before accession to the throne, Alex had a special influence on Nicholas. Her entry appears in his diary: "Be persistent ... do not let others be the first and bypass you ... Reveal your personal will and do not let others forget who you are."
In the future, the influence on the emperor often took on Alexandra Feodorovna more and more decisive, sometimes too much, forms. This can be judged from the published letters of the Empress Nicholas to the front. Not without her pressure, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich, popular among the troops, was resigned. Alexandra Fedorovna was always worried about her husband's reputation. And she repeatedly pointed out to him the need for firmness in relations with the courtiers.
Alix the bride was present at the agony of the groom's father, Alexander III. Through the whole country, together with her family, she accompanied his coffin from Livadia. On a sad November day, the emperor's body was transferred from the Nikolaevsky railway station to the Peter and Paul Cathedral. A huge crowd crowded on the path of the funeral procession, moving along the pavements dirty from wet snow. The commoners whispered, pointing to the young princess: "She came to us behind the coffin, she brings misfortune with her."
Tsarevich Alexander and Princess Alice of Hesse
On November 14 (26), 1894 (on the birthday of Empress Maria Feodorovna, which allowed retreat from mourning), the wedding of Alexandra and Nicholas II took place in the Great Church of the Winter Palace. After the marriage, a thanksgiving service was served by members of the Holy Synod, headed by Metropolitan Pallady (Raev) of St. Petersburg; while singing "To you, God, we praise" a cannon salute was given in 301 shots. Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich wrote in his emigrant memoirs about their first days of marriage: “The marriage of the young Tsar took place less than a week after the funeral of Alexander III. Their honeymoon proceeded in the atmosphere of requiems and mourning visits. The most deliberate dramatization could not have invented a more suitable prologue for the historical tragedy of the last Russian Tsar.
Usually the wives of the Russian heirs to the throne were on the sidelines for a long time. Thus, they managed to carefully study the mores of the society that they would have to manage, managed to navigate their likes and dislikes, and most importantly, managed to acquire the necessary friends and helpers. Alexandra Feodorovna was unlucky in this sense. She ascended the throne, as they say, having got from the ship to the ball: not understanding someone else's life, not being able to understand the complex intrigues of the imperial court.
In truth, even her inner nature was not adapted for the vain royal craft. Painfully closed, Alexandra Fedorovna seemed to be the opposite example of a friendly dowager empress - our heroine, on the contrary, gave the impression of an arrogant, cold German woman, with disdain for her subjects. The embarrassment that invariably gripped the queen when communicating with strangers prevented the establishment of simple, easy relations with representatives of high society, which were vital to her.
Alexandra Fedorovna was completely unable to win the hearts of her subjects, even those who were ready to bow before members of the imperial family did not receive food for this. So, for example, in women's institutes, Alexandra Fedorovna could not squeeze out a single friendly word from herself. This was all the more striking, since the former Empress Maria Feodorovna knew how to evoke an unconstrained attitude towards herself in institute girls, turning into enthusiastic love for the bearers of royal power. The consequences of the mutual estrangement that grew over the years between society and the queen, sometimes taking on the character of antipathy, were very diverse and even tragic. The excessive pride of Alexandra Feodorovna played a fatal role in this.
The first years of married life turned out to be tense: the unexpected death of Alexander III made Nike emperor, although he was completely unprepared for this. The advice of his mother, five respectable uncles, who taught him to rule the state, fell upon him. Being a very delicate, self-possessed and educated young man, Nikolai at first obeyed everyone. Nothing good came of it: on the advice of their uncles, after the tragedy on the Khodynka field, Nicky and Alix attended a ball at the French ambassador's - the world called them insensitive and cruel. Uncle Vladimir decided to pacify the crowd in front of the Winter Palace on his own, while the Sovereign's family lived in Tsarskoye - Bloody Sunday came out ... Only with time will Nicky learn to say a firm "no" to both uncles and brothers, but ... never to HER.
Immediately after the wedding, he returned her diamond brooch - a gift from an inexperienced sixteen-year-old boy. And throughout their life together, the Empress will not part with her - after all, this is a symbol of their love. They always celebrated the day of their engagement - April 8th. In 1915, the forty-two-year-old empress wrote a short letter to her beloved to the front: “For the first time in 21 years, we are not spending this day together, but how vividly I remember everything! My dear boy, what happiness and what love you have given me for all these years ... How time flies - 21 years have already passed! You know, I saved that “princess dress” that I was wearing that morning, and I will put on your favorite brooch ... "
The intervention of the queen in the affairs of state government did not manifest itself immediately after her wedding. Alexandra Fedorovna was quite satisfied with the traditional role of the keeper of the hearth, the role of a woman next to a man engaged in difficult, serious business. First of all, she is a mother, busy with her four daughters: she takes care of their upbringing, checks their tasks, protects them. She is the center, as always later, of her closely knit family, and for the emperor - the only one for life, a beloved wife.
Her daughters adored her. From the initial letters of their names, they made a common name: "OTMA" (Olga, Tatyana, Maria, Anastasia) - and under this signature they sometimes made gifts to their mothers, sent letters. There was an unspoken rule among the Grand Duchesses: every day one of them, as it were, was on duty with her mother, not leaving her a single step. It is curious that Alexandra Feodorovna spoke English to the children, while Nicholas II spoke only Russian. The empress communicated with those around her mostly in French. She also mastered Russian quite well, but spoke it only with those who did not know other languages. And only German speech was not in their everyday life. By the way, the Tsarevich was not taught to him.
Alexandra Feodorovna with her daughters
Nicholas II, a domestic man by nature, for whom power seemed more like a burden than a way of self-realization, rejoiced at any opportunity to forget about his state concerns in a family setting and with pleasure indulged in those petty domestic interests to which he generally had a natural inclination. Perhaps if this couple had not been so highly exalted by fate above mere mortals, she would have calmly and happily lived until her death, raising beautiful children and resting in a bose surrounded by numerous grandchildren. But the mission of the monarchs is too restless, the lot is too heavy to allow them to hide behind the walls of their own well-being.
Anxiety and confusion gripped the reigning couple even when the empress, with some fatal sequence, began to give birth to girls. Nothing could be done against this obsession, but Alexandra Fedorovna, who had learned her destiny as a woman's queen with her mother's milk, perceived the absence of an heir as a kind of punishment from heaven. On this basis, she, an extremely impressionable and nervous person, developed pathological mysticism. Gradually, the whole rhythm of the palace obeyed the throwing of the unfortunate woman. Now any step of Nikolai Alexandrovich himself was checked against one or another heavenly sign, and state policy was imperceptibly intertwined with childbearing. The influence of the queen on her husband intensified and the more significant it became, the further the term for the appearance of the heir was pushed back.
The French charlatan Philippe was invited to the court, who managed to convince Alexandra Feodorovna that he was able to provide her, by suggestion, with male offspring, and she imagined herself pregnant and felt all the physical symptoms of this condition. Only after several months of the so-called false pregnancy, which is very rarely observed, did the empress agree to be examined by a doctor, who established the truth. But the most important misfortune was not in the false pregnancy and not in the hysterical nature of Alexandra Feodorovna, but in the fact that the charlatan received through the queen the opportunity to influence state affairs. One of the closest assistants of Nicholas II wrote in his diary in 1902: “Philip inspires the sovereign that he does not need other advisers, except for representatives of higher spiritual, heavenly powers, with whom he, Philip, puts him in intercourse. Hence the intolerance of any contradiction and complete absolutism, sometimes expressed as absurdity. If at the report the minister defends his opinion and does not agree with the opinion of the sovereign, then after a few days he receives a note with a categorical order to fulfill what he was told.
Philip still managed to be expelled from the palace, because the Police Department, through its agent in Paris, found indisputable evidence of the fraud of a French citizen.
With the outbreak of war, the couple were forced to part. And then they wrote letters to each other ... “Oh, my love! It's so hard to say goodbye to you and see your lonely pale face with big sad eyes in the train window - my heart breaks, take me with you ... I kiss your pillow at night and longingly wish that you were next to me ... We have experienced so much for these 20 years we understand each other without words…” “I have to thank you for your arrival with the girls, for bringing me life and sun, despite the rainy weather. Of course, as always, I did not have time to tell you half of what I was going to, because when I meet with you after a long separation, I always become shy. I just sit and look at you - this in itself is a great joy for me ... "
And soon the long-awaited miracle followed - the heir Alexei was born.
The four daughters of Nikolai and Alexandra were born beautiful, healthy, real princesses: daddy's favorite romantic Olga, serious beyond her years Tatyana, generous Maria and funny little Anastasia. It seemed that their love could conquer everything. But love cannot defeat Fate. Their only son turned out to be sick with hemophilia, in which the walls of blood vessels burst from weakness and lead to intractable bleeding.
The heir's illness played a fatal role - they had to keep it a secret, they painfully searched for a way out and could not find it. Hemophilia at the beginning of the last century remained incurable and patients could only hope for 20-25 years of life. Alexei, who was born a surprisingly handsome and intelligent boy, was ill for almost his entire life. And his parents suffered with him. Sometimes, when the pains were very strong, the boy asked for death. "When I die, will it hurt no more?" he asked his mother during indescribable attacks of pain. Only morphine could save them from them, but the Sovereign did not dare to have the heir to the throne not just a sick young man, but also addicted to morphine. Aleksey's salvation was loss of consciousness. From pain. He survived several serious crises, when no one believed in his recovery, when he tossed about in delirium repeating one single word: "Mom."
Tsesarevich Alexei
Gray-haired and aged for several decades at once, my mother was there. She stroked his head, kissed his forehead, as if this could help the unfortunate boy ... The only, inexplicable thing that saved Alexei was Rasputin's prayers. But Rasputin brought the end of their power.
Thousands of pages have been written about this major adventurer of the 20th century, so it is difficult to add anything to multi-volume studies in a small essay. Let's just say: of course, possessing the secrets of non-traditional methods of treatment, being an outstanding personality, Rasputin was able to inspire the empress with the idea that he, God sent to the family, has a special mission to save and preserve the heir to the Russian throne. And the friend of Alexandra Feodorovna, Anna Vyrubova, brought the elder into the palace. This gray, unremarkable woman had such a huge influence on the queen that she deserves special mention.
She was the daughter of the outstanding musician Alexander Sergeevich Taneyev, an intelligent and dexterous person who held the position of chief manager of His Majesty's office at court. He then recommended Anna to the queen as a partner for playing the piano in four hands. Taneeva pretended to be an extraordinary simpleton to such an extent that she was initially recognized as unfit for court service. But this prompted the tsarina to actively promote her wedding with the naval officer Vyrubov. But Anna's marriage turned out to be very unsuccessful, and Alexandra Feodorovna, as an extremely decent woman, considered herself to some extent guilty. In view of this, Vyrubova was often invited to the court, and the empress tried to console her. It can be seen that nothing strengthens female friendship so much as trusting compassion in amorous affairs.
Soon, Alexandra Fedorovna already called Vyrubova her “personal friend”, emphasizing that the latter did not have an official position at court, which means that her loyalty and devotion to the royal family were allegedly completely disinterested. The empress was far from thinking that the position of a friend of the queen is more enviable than the position of a person who belongs by position to her entourage. In general, it is difficult to fully appreciate the enormous role that A. Vyrubova played in the last period of the reign of Nicholas II. Without her active participation, Rasputin, despite the full power of his personality, could not have achieved anything, since direct relations between the notorious old man and the queen were extremely rare.
Apparently, he did not seek to see her often, realizing that this could only weaken his authority. On the contrary, Vyrubova entered the tsarina's chambers every day, and did not part with her on trips. Having fallen entirely under the influence of Rasputin, Anna became the best conductor of the ideas of the elder in the imperial palace. In fact, in the amazing drama that the country went through two years before the collapse of the monarchy, the roles of Rasputin and Vyrubova are so closely intertwined that it is impossible to find out the degree of significance of each of them separately.
Anna Vyrubova for a walk in a wheelchair with Grand Duke Olga Nikolaevna, 1915-1916
The last years of the reign of Alexandra Feodorovna are full of bitterness and despair. The public at first transparently hinted at the pro-German interests of the empress, and soon began to openly vilify the "hated German woman." Meanwhile, Alexandra Feodorovna sincerely tried to help her husband, was sincerely devoted to the country, which became her only home, the home of her closest people. She turned out to be an exemplary mother and raised four daughters in modesty and decency. The girls, despite their high origin, were distinguished by diligence, many skills, did not know luxury, and even assisted in operations in military hospitals. This, oddly enough, was also blamed on the empress, they say, she allows her young ladies too much.
Tsarevich Alexei and Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. Livadia, 1914
When a rebellious revolutionary crowd filled Petrograd, and the tsar's train was stopped at the Dno station to draw up an abdication, Alix was left alone. The children had measles and had a high fever. The courtiers fled, leaving a handful of loyal people. The electricity was turned off, there was no water - you had to go to the pond, break off the ice and melt it on the stove. The palace with defenseless children remained under the protection of the Empress.
She alone did not lose heart and did not believe in renunciation to the last. Alix supported a handful of loyal soldiers who remained to guard around the palace - now it was her entire Army. On the day when the ex-Sovereign, who had abdicated the Throne, returned to the palace, her friend, Anna Vyrubova, wrote in her diary: “Like a fifteen-year-old girl, she ran along the endless stairs and corridors of the palace to meet him. When they met, they embraced, and left alone, burst into tears…” While in exile, anticipating an imminent execution, the Empress summed up her life in a letter to Anna Vyrubova: “My dear, my dear… Yes, the past is over. I thank God for everything that was, that I received - and I will live with memories that no one will take away from me ... How old I have become, but I feel like the mother of the country, and I suffer as if for my child and love my Motherland, despite all the horrors now ... You know that LOVE CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM MY HEART, and Russia too ... Despite the black ingratitude to the Sovereign, which breaks my heart ... Lord, have mercy and save Russia.
The abdication of Nicholas II from the throne led the royal family to Tobolsk, where she, along with the remnants of her former servants, lived under house arrest. With his selfless deed, the former king wanted only one thing - to save his beloved wife and children. However, the miracle did not happen, life turned out to be worse: in July 1918, the married couple went down to the basement of the Ipatiev mansion. Nikolay carried his sick son in his arms... Next, walking heavily and raising her head high, followed Alexandra Fedorovna...
On that last day of their lives, which is now celebrated by the church as the Day of Remembrance of the Holy Royal Martyrs, Alix did not forget to put on “his favorite brooch.” Having become material evidence No. 52 for the investigation, for us this brooch remains one of the many testimonies of that Great Love. The execution in Yekaterinburg put an end to 300 years of Romanov rule in Russia.
On the night of July 16-17, 1918, after the execution, the remains of Emperor Nicholas II, his family and close associates were taken to this place and thrown into the mine. Now on Ganina Yama there is a monastery in honor of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers.
In the marriage of Nikolai Alexandrovich with Alexandra Fedorovna, five children were born:
Olga (1895-1918);
Tatiana (1897-1918);
Maria (1899-1918);
Anastasia (1901-1918);
Alexey (1904-1918).
WIFE OF NICHOLAS II
ALEXANDRA Fedorovna (wife of Nicholas II)
ALEXA; NDRA Fedorovna (May 25 (June 6), 1872 - July 16 (29), 1918, Yekaterinburg), Russian Empress, wife of Nicholas II Alexandrovich (see NIKOLAI II Alexandrovich) (since November 14, 1894); daughter of the Grand Duke of Hesse-Darmstadt Louis IV, granddaughter of the English Queen Victoria (see VICTORIA (queen)).
Before marriage, she was named Alice Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice. The imperious and hysterical Alexandra Feodorovna had a great influence on Nicholas II, was an ardent supporter of unlimited autocracy, and the head of the Germanophile group at court. She was distinguished by extreme superstition, boundlessly believed G.E. Rasputin (see RASPUTIN Grigory Efimovich), who used the location of the queen in solving political issues. During the First World War, Alexandra Fedorovna was a supporter of a separate peace with Germany. After the February Revolution, in March 1917, she was arrested along with the entire royal family, exiled to Tobolsk, and then to Yekaterinburg, where, by order of the Ural Regional Council, she was shot with her family in July 1918.
Biography
Relations with society
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In culture
Maria Fedorovna
Children
Alexander I
Konstantin Pavlovich
Alexandra Pavlovna
Ekaterina Pavlovna
Elena Pavlovna
Maria Pavlovna
Olga Pavlovna
Anna Pavlovna
Nicholas I
Mikhail Pavlovich
Alexander I
Elizaveta Alekseevna
Nicholas I
Alexandra Fedorovna
Children
Alexander II
Maria Nikolaevna
Olga Nikolaevna
Alexandra Nikolaevna
Konstantin Nikolaevich
Nikolai Nikolaevich
Mikhail Nikolaevich
Alexander II
Maria Alexandrovna
Children
Alexandra Alexandrovna
Nikolai Alexandrovich
Alexander III
Maria Alexandrovna (Grand Duchess)
Vladimir Alexandrovich
Aleksey Aleksandrovich
Sergey Aleksandrovich
Pavel Alexandrovich
Alexander III
Maria Fedorovna
Children
Nicholas II
Alexander Alexandrovich
Georgy Alexandrovich
Xenia Alexandrovna
Mikhail Alexandrovich
Olga Alexandrovna
Nicholas II
Alexandra Fedorovna
Children
Olga Nikolaevna
Tatyana Nikolaevna
Maria Nikolaevna
Anastasia Nikolaevna
Alexey Nikolaevich
Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna with her family, Livadia, Crimea, 1913
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna with her sister Tsarina Alexandra and son-in-law Tsar Nicholas II
Interesting Facts
According to the diplomat M.V. Mayorov, Alexandra Fedorovna not only did not seek, out of pro-German sympathies, to persuade her husband to a separate peace with Germany, as is usually attributed to her, but, on the contrary, played "a detrimental role in Nicholas II's intention to wage a" war to a victorious end " ", while even" not paying attention to the colossal human losses of the Russian army.
Biography
The fourth daughter (and sixth child) of the Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine Ludwig IV and Duchess Alice, granddaughter of the English Queen Victoria.
She was born in Darmstadt (Hesse), on the day of the third acquisition of the head of the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord John.
In 1884 she came to visit her sister, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. Here she met the heir to the Russian throne, Nikolai Alexandrovich.
On November 2, 1894 (the day after the death of Emperor Alexander III), she converted from Lutheranism to Orthodoxy, taking a Russian name, and on November 26 she married the new Emperor of Russia, Nicholas II.
She considered the Siberian peasant G. E. Rasputin-New to be an old man and friend of her family.
She was killed along with her entire family in 1918 in Yekaterinburg. In 1981 she was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, and in 2000 by the Moscow Patriarchate.
When she was canonized, she became Tsarina Alexandra the New, since Tsarina Alexandra was already among the saints.
Relations with society
Alexandra Feodorovna during her lifetime failed to become popular in her new homeland, especially in high society. Empress-mother Maria Feodorovna was fundamentally against the marriage of her son to a German princess, and this, along with a number of other external circumstances, combined with the painful shyness of the young empress, immediately affected the attitude of the entire Russian court towards her.
According to A. A. Mosolov, who was the head of the office of the Minister of the Court in 1916, Maria Fedorovna, being a devout Dane, hated the Germans, not forgiving them the annexation of Schleswig and Holstein in 1864.
The French ambassador M. Palaiologos, however, noted in 1915:
For several times now I have heard the empress reproached for having preserved on the throne sympathy, preference, deep tenderness for Germany. The unfortunate woman does not in any way deserve this accusation, which she knows and which drives her to despair.
Alexandra Fedorovna, who was born a German, never was her mind or heart.<…>Her upbringing, her training, her mental and moral education were also quite English. And now she is also an Englishwoman in her appearance, in her posture, in a certain inflexibility and puritanism, in the implacable and militant severity of her conscience, and, finally, in many of her intimate habits. This, however, limits everything that stems from its Western origin.
The basis of her nature became completely Russian. First of all, and despite the hostile legend that I see springing up around her, I have no doubt about her patriotism. She loves Russia with a passionate love. And how can she not be tied to this motherland that adopted her, which for her summarizes and personifies all her interests of a woman, wife, empress, mother?
When she came to the throne in 1894, it was already known that she did not like Germany and especially Prussia.
According to the testimony of the daughter of the life physician E. S. Botkin, after the emperor read the manifesto on the war with Germany, Alexandra Fedorovna wept with joy. And during the second Anglo-Boer War, Empress Alexandra, like Russian society, was on the side of the Boers (although she was horrified at the losses among the officers of the British).
In addition to the Empress Mother, the young Empress and other relatives of Nicholas II did not like it. If you believe the testimony of her maid of honor A. A. Vyrubova, then the reason for this was, in particular, the following:
... In recent years, little cadets have come to play with the Heir. All of them were told to handle Aleksey Nikolayevich carefully. The Empress was afraid for him and rarely invited his cousins, frisky and rude boys, to him. Of course, the family was angry about it.
In a difficult time for Russia, when the world war was going on, high society had fun with a new and very interesting activity - dissolving all kinds of gossip about Alexandra Fedorovna. According to A. A. Vyrubova, around the winter of 1915/1916, an excited Mrs. Marianne von Derfelden (her sister-in-law) somehow ran to her sister Alexandra Pistohlkors, the wife of the chamber junker of the Imperial Court, with the words:
Today we are spreading rumors in the factories that the Empress is making the Sovereign drunk, and everyone believes it.
Other enemies of Alexandra Feodorovna did not hesitate later to express their innermost thoughts on paper. So, her "namesake" A.F. Kerensky wrote in his memoirs:
... who could have predicted that the princess, sparkling with joy, "the ray of sunshine of Windsor", as Nicholas II affectionately called her, was destined to become a gloomy Russian tsarina, a fanatical adherent of the Orthodox Church.
The reason for the enmity towards the Empress was not a mystery to N. N. Tikhanovich-Savitsky (the leader of the Astrakhan People's Monarchist Party), who wrote to Nicholas II:
Sovereign! The plan of the intrigue is clear: by defaming the Queen and pointing out that everything bad comes from her, they inspire these people that You are weak, which means that it is necessary to take control of the country from You and transfer it to the Duma.
“If we allow our Friend to be persecuted, then we and our country will suffer for this” (about G. Rasputin and Russia, from a letter to her husband dated June 22, 1915)
“I want to beat off almost all the ministers ...” (from a letter to my spouse dated August 29, 1915)
“Big cattle, I can’t call them otherwise” (about the Holy Synod, from a letter to her husband dated September 12, 1915)
“... a country where a man of God helps the sovereign will never perish. This is true ”(about G. Rasputin and Russia, from a letter to his spouse dated December 5, 1915)
“Yes, I am more Russian than many others, and I will not sit still” (from a letter to my spouse dated September 20, 1916)
"Why do they hate me? Because they know that I have a strong will and that when I am convinced that something is right (and if Gregory blessed me), then I do not change my mind, and this is unbearable for them ”(about my enemies and about G. Rasputin, from a letter to his spouse dated December 4, 1916)
“Why do the generals not allow to send to the army“ R. banner” (a small patriotic newspaper)? Dubrovin thinks it's a disgrace (I agree), but are they allowed to read all sorts of leaflets? Our bosses, right, idiots ”(about the newspaper“ Russian Banner ”and its Black Hundred publisher, from a letter to her husband dated December 15, 1916)
“I can’t understand people who are afraid to die. I have always looked at death as deliverance from earthly suffering ”(from a conversation with a friend Yulia Den on December 18, 1916)
“I would rather die in Russia than be saved by the Germans” (from a conversation in custody, March 1918)
In culture
The singer Zhanna Bichevskaya on the album "We are Russians" (2002) has the song "Tsaritsa Alexandra":
She lived with love simply, prayerfully and modestly -
I'm not afraid to say in front of the whole world -
Queen Alexandra is like archangels,
That Rus' is begging for the last times ...
The last Russian empress... the closest to us in terms of time, but perhaps the least known in her original appearance, untouched by the pen of interpreters. Even during her lifetime, not to mention the decades that followed the tragic 1918, speculation and slander began to cling to her name, and often outright slander. Nobody knows the truth now.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (nee Princess Alice Victoria Elena Louise Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt; May 25 (June 6), 1872-July 17, 1918) - wife of Nicholas II (since 1894). The fourth daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and Rhine, and Duchess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of England. She was born in Germany, in Darmstadt. The fourth daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and Rhine, and Duchess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria of England.
When little Alex was six years old, In 1878, a diphtheria epidemic spread in Hesse. Alice's mother and her younger sister May died from her.
father alex (280x403, 32Kb) mother alex (280x401, 26Kb)
Ludwig IV of Hesse and Duchess Alice (second daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) - Alex's parents
And then the English grandmother takes the girl to her. Alice was considered the favorite granddaughter of Queen Victoria, who called her Sunny (“Sunny”). So Alix spent most of her childhood and adolescence in England, where she was raised. Queen Victoria, by the way, did not like the Germans and had a special dislike for Emperor Wilhelm II, which was passed on to her granddaughter. All her life later, Alexandra Fedorovna felt more drawn to her motherland from her mother's side, to relatives and friends there. Maurice Palaiologos, the French ambassador to Russia, wrote about her: "Alexandra Fedorovna is not a German either in mind or in heart, and she never was. Of course, she is such by birth. Her upbringing, education, the formation of consciousness and morality became completely English. And now she is still English in her appearance, manner of bearing herself, a certain stiffness and puritanical character, intransigence and militant severity of conscience. Finally, in many of her habits.
2Alexander. Fedorovna (374x600, 102Kb)
In June 1884, at the age of 12, Alice visited Russia for the first time, when her older sister Ella (in Orthodoxy - Elizaveta Feodorovna) was married to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. In 1886, she came to visit her sister, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (Ella), wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. Then she met the heir, Nikolai Alexandrovich. The young people, who are also in a fairly close relationship (by the father of the princess, they are second cousins brother and sister), immediately imbued with mutual sympathy.
Sergey Alexander., brother Nick 11 (200x263, 52Kb) Eliz. Fedor.-sister (200x261, 43Kb)
Sergei Alexandrovich and Elizaveta Fedorovna (Ella)
While visiting her sister Ella in St. Petersburg, Alix was invited to social events. The verdict handed down by the high society was cruel: “Uncharismatic. Holds, as if swallowed an arshin. What does high society care about little princess Alix's problems? Who cares that she grows up without a mother, suffers greatly from loneliness, shyness, and terrible pains of the facial nerve? And only the blue-eyed heir was absorbed and delighted with the guest without a trace - he fell in love! Not knowing what they do in such cases, Nikolai asked his mother for an elegant brooch with diamonds and quietly put it into the hand of his twelve-year-old lover. Out of confusion, she didn't answer. The next day, the guests were leaving, a farewell ball was given, and Alix, seizing a moment, quickly approached the Heir and just as silently returned the brooch to his hand. Nobody noticed. Only now there was a secret between them: why did she return it?
The childish naive flirtation of the heir to the throne and Princess Alice on the girl’s next visit to Russia three years later began to acquire the serious character of a strong feeling.
However, the visiting princess did not please the parents of the Tsarevich: Empress Maria Feodorovna, like a true Dane, hated the Germans and was against marriage with the daughter of Ludwig Hesse of Darmstadt. His parents hoped to the last for his marriage to Helena Louise Henriette, daughter of Louis Philippe, Count of Paris.
Alice herself had reason to believe that the romance that had begun with the heir to the Russian throne could have favorable consequences for her. Returning to England, the princess begins to study Russian, gets acquainted with Russian literature, and even has lengthy conversations with the priest of the Russian embassy church in London. Fervently loving her Queen Victoria, of course, wants to help her granddaughter and writes a letter to the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna. Grandmother asks to find out more about the intentions of the Russian imperial house in order to decide whether Alice should be confirmed according to the rules of the Anglican Church, because, according to tradition, members of the royal family in Russia had the right to marry only women of the Orthodox faith.
Another four years passed, and blind chance helped decide the fate of two lovers. As if the evil fate that hovered over Russia, unfortunately, united young people of royal blood. Truly, this union was tragic for the fatherland. But who thought about it then ...
In 1893, Alexander III became seriously ill. Here a dangerous question for the succession to the throne arose - the future sovereign is not married. Nikolai Alexandrovich categorically stated that he would choose a bride for himself only for love, and not for dynastic reasons. Through the mediation of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich, the emperor's consent to the marriage of his son with Princess Alice was obtained. However, Maria Fedorovna did not hide her dissatisfaction with the unsuccessful, in her opinion, choice of an heir. The fact that the princess of Hesse joined the Russian imperial family during the mournful days of the suffering of the dying Alexander III, probably even more set Maria Feodorovna against the new empress.
April 3, 1894, Coburg-Alex agreed to become Nikolai's wife (486x581, 92Kb)
April 1894, Coburg, Alex agreed to become the wife of Nikolai
(in the center - Queen Victoria, grandmother Alex)
And why, having received the long-awaited parental blessing, Nikolai could not persuade Alix to become his wife? After all, she loved him - he saw it, felt it. What did it cost him to persuade his powerful and authoritarian parents to this marriage! He fought for his love and now, the long-awaited permission has been received!
Nikolay is going to the wedding of his brother Alix in Coburg Castle, where everything is already prepared for the fact that the Heir to the Russian Throne will propose to Alix of Hesse. The wedding went on as usual, only Alix ... was crying.
“They left us alone, and then that conversation began between us, which I had long and strongly desired and, together, was very afraid of. They talked until 12 o'clock, but to no avail, she still opposes the change of religion. She, poor thing, cried a lot.” But is it just one religion? In general, if you look at the portraits of Alix of any period of her life, it is impossible not to notice the stamp of the tragic pain that this face bears. She seemed to always KNOW... She had a premonition. Cruel fate, the basement of the Ipatiev House, a terrible death ... She was afraid and rushed about. But the love was too strong! And she agreed.
In April 1894, Nikolai Alexandrovich, accompanied by a brilliant retinue, went to Germany. Betrothed in Darmstadt, the young spend some time at the English court. From that moment on, the crown prince's diary, which he kept all his life, became available to Alex.
Already at that time, even before accession to the throne, Alex had a special influence on Nicholas. Her entry appears in his diary: "Be persistent ... do not let others be the first and bypass you ... Reveal your personal will and do not let others forget who you are."
In the future, the influence on the emperor often took on Alexandra Feodorovna more and more decisive, sometimes too much, forms. This can be judged from the published letters of the Empress Nicholas to the front. Not without her pressure, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich, popular among the troops, was resigned. Alexandra Fedorovna was always worried about her husband's reputation. And she repeatedly pointed out to him the need for firmness in relations with the courtiers.
Alix the bride was present at the agony of the groom's father, Alexander III. Through the whole country, together with her family, she accompanied his coffin from Livadia. On a sad November day, the emperor's body was transferred from the Nikolaevsky railway station to the Peter and Paul Cathedral. A huge crowd crowded on the path of the funeral procession, moving along the pavements dirty from wet snow. The commoners whispered, pointing to the young princess: "She came to us behind the coffin, she brings misfortune with her."
Tsarevich Alexander and Princess Alice of Hesse
On November 14 (26), 1894 (on the birthday of Empress Maria Feodorovna, which allowed retreat from mourning), the wedding of Alexandra and Nicholas II took place in the Great Church of the Winter Palace. After the marriage, a thanksgiving service was served by members of the Holy Synod, headed by Metropolitan Pallady (Raev) of St. Petersburg; while singing "To you, God, we praise" a cannon salute was given in 301 shots. Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich wrote in his emigrant memoirs about their first days of marriage: “The marriage of the young Tsar took place less than a week after the funeral of Alexander III. Their honeymoon proceeded in the atmosphere of requiems and mourning visits. The most deliberate dramatization could not have invented a more suitable prologue for the historical tragedy of the last Russian Tsar.
5crowning (528x700, 73Kb)
Usually the wives of the Russian heirs to the throne were on the sidelines for a long time. Thus, they managed to carefully study the mores of the society that they would have to manage, managed to navigate their likes and dislikes, and most importantly, managed to acquire the necessary friends and helpers. Alexandra Feodorovna was unlucky in this sense. She ascended the throne, as they say, having got from the ship to the ball: not understanding someone else's life, not being able to understand the complex intrigues of the imperial court.
9-Wedding of Nick 11 and Grand Duchess Alex. Fedor. (700x554, 142Kb)
In truth, even her inner nature was not adapted for the vain royal craft. Painfully closed, Alexandra Fedorovna seemed to be the opposite example of a friendly dowager empress - our heroine, on the contrary, gave the impression of an arrogant, cold German woman, with disdain for her subjects. The embarrassment that invariably gripped the queen when communicating with strangers prevented the establishment of simple, easy relations with representatives of high society, which were vital to her.
19-aleks.fedor-tsaritsa (320x461, 74Kb)
Alexandra Fedorovna was completely unable to win the hearts of her subjects, even those who were ready to bow before members of the imperial family did not receive food for this. So, for example, in women's institutes, Alexandra Fedorovna could not squeeze out a single friendly word from herself. This was all the more striking, since the former Empress Maria Feodorovna knew how to evoke an unconstrained attitude towards herself in institute girls, turning into enthusiastic love for the bearers of royal power. The consequences of the mutual estrangement that grew over the years between society and the queen, sometimes taking on the character of antipathy, were very diverse and even tragic. The excessive pride of Alexandra Feodorovna played a fatal role in this.
6 queen-al.fed. (525x700, 83Kb)
The first years of married life turned out to be tense: the unexpected death of Alexander III made Nike emperor, although he was completely unprepared for this. The advice of his mother, five respectable uncles, who taught him to rule the state, fell upon him. Being a very delicate, self-possessed and educated young man, Nikolai at first obeyed everyone. Nothing good came of it: on the advice of their uncles, after the tragedy on the Khodynka field, Nicky and Alix attended a ball at the French ambassador's - the world called them insensitive and cruel. Uncle Vladimir decided to pacify the crowd in front of the Winter Palace on his own, while the Sovereign's family lived in Tsarskoye - Bloody Sunday came out ... Only with time will Nicky learn to say a firm "no" to both uncles and brothers, but ... never to HER.
7Nikolai 11 with his wife photo (560x700, 63Kb)
Immediately after the wedding, he returned her diamond brooch - a gift from an inexperienced sixteen-year-old boy. And throughout their life together, the Empress will not part with her - after all, this is a symbol of their love. They always celebrated the day of their engagement - April 8th. In 1915, the forty-two-year-old empress wrote a short letter to her beloved to the front: “For the first time in 21 years, we are not spending this day together, but how vividly I remember everything! My dear boy, what happiness and what love you have given me for all these years ... How time flies - 21 years have already passed! You know, I saved that “princess dress” that I was wearing that morning, and I will put on your favorite brooch ... "
The intervention of the queen in the affairs of state government did not manifest itself immediately after her wedding. Alexandra Fedorovna was quite satisfied with the traditional role of the keeper of the hearth, the role of a woman next to a man engaged in difficult, serious business. First of all, she is a mother, busy with her four daughters: she takes care of their upbringing, checks their tasks, protects them. She is the center, as always later, of her closely knit family, and for the emperor - the only one for life, a beloved wife.
Her daughters adored her. From the initial letters of their names, they made a common name: "OTMA" (Olga, Tatyana, Maria, Anastasia) - and under this signature they sometimes made gifts to their mothers, sent letters. There was an unspoken rule among the Grand Duchesses: every day one of them, as it were, was on duty with her mother, not leaving her a single step. It is curious that Alexandra Feodorovna spoke English to the children, while Nicholas II spoke only Russian. The empress communicated with those around her mostly in French. She also mastered Russian quite well, but spoke it only with those who did not know other languages. And only German speech was not in their everyday life. By the way, the Tsarevich was not taught to him.
8 al.fed. with daughters (700x432, 171Kb)
Alexandra Feodorovna with her daughters
Nicholas II, a domestic man by nature, for whom power seemed more like a burden than a way of self-realization, rejoiced at any opportunity to forget about his state concerns in a family setting and with pleasure indulged in those petty domestic interests to which he generally had a natural inclination. Perhaps if this couple had not been so highly exalted by fate above mere mortals, she would have calmly and happily lived until her death, raising beautiful children and resting in a bose surrounded by numerous grandchildren. But the mission of the monarchs is too restless, the lot is too heavy to allow them to hide behind the walls of their own well-being.
Anxiety and confusion gripped the reigning couple even when the empress, with some fatal sequence, began to give birth to girls. Nothing could be done against this obsession, but Alexandra Fedorovna, who had learned her destiny as a woman's queen with her mother's milk, perceived the absence of an heir as a kind of punishment from heaven. On this basis, she, an extremely impressionable and nervous person, developed pathological mysticism. Gradually, the whole rhythm of the palace obeyed the throwing of the unfortunate woman. Now any step of Nikolai Alexandrovich himself was checked against one or another heavenly sign, and state policy was imperceptibly intertwined with childbearing. The influence of the queen on her husband intensified and the more significant it became, the further the term for the appearance of the heir was pushed back.
10Alex.Fedoroo (361x700, 95Kb)
The French charlatan Philippe was invited to the court, who managed to convince Alexandra Feodorovna that he was able to provide her, by suggestion, with male offspring, and she imagined herself pregnant and felt all the physical symptoms of this condition. Only after several months of the so-called false pregnancy, which is very rarely observed, did the empress agree to be examined by a doctor, who established the truth. But the most important misfortune was not in the false pregnancy and not in the hysterical nature of Alexandra Feodorovna, but in the fact that the charlatan received through the queen the opportunity to influence state affairs. One of the closest assistants of Nicholas II wrote in his diary in 1902: “Philip inspires the sovereign that he does not need other advisers, except for representatives of higher spiritual, heavenly powers, with whom he, Philip, puts him in intercourse. Hence the intolerance of any contradiction and complete absolutism, sometimes expressed as absurdity. If at the report the minister defends his opinion and does not agree with the opinion of the sovereign, then after a few days he receives a note with a categorical order to fulfill what he was told.
Philip still managed to be expelled from the palace, because the Police Department, through its agent in Paris, found indisputable evidence of the fraud of a French citizen.
Aleeks.fedor (527x700, 63Kb)
With the outbreak of war, the couple were forced to part. And then they wrote letters to each other ... “Oh, my love! It's so hard to say goodbye to you and see your lonely pale face with big sad eyes in the train window - my heart breaks, take me with you ... I kiss your pillow at night and longingly wish that you were next to me ... We have experienced so much for these 20 years we understand each other without words…” “I have to thank you for your arrival with the girls, for bringing me life and sun, despite the rainy weather. Of course, as always, I did not have time to tell you half of what I was going to, because when I meet with you after a long separation, I always become shy. I just sit and look at you - this in itself is a great joy for me ... "
And soon the long-awaited miracle followed - the heir Alexei was born.
The four daughters of Nikolai and Alexandra were born beautiful, healthy, real princesses: daddy's favorite romantic Olga, serious beyond her years Tatyana, generous Maria and funny little Anastasia. It seemed that their love could conquer everything. But love cannot defeat Fate. Their only son turned out to be sick with hemophilia, in which the walls of blood vessels burst from weakness and lead to intractable bleeding.
12-king and family (237x300, 18Kb) The heir's illness played a fatal role - they had to keep it a secret, they painfully searched for a way out and could not find it. Hemophilia at the beginning of the last century remained incurable and patients could only hope for 20-25 years of life. Alexei, who was born a surprisingly handsome and intelligent boy, was ill for almost his entire life. And his parents suffered with him. Sometimes, when the pains were very strong, the boy asked for death. "When I die, will it hurt no more?" he asked his mother during indescribable attacks of pain. Only morphine could save them from them, but the Sovereign did not dare to have the heir to the throne not just a sick young man, but also addicted to morphine. Aleksey's salvation was loss of consciousness. From pain. He survived several serious crises, when no one believed in his recovery, when he tossed about in delirium repeating one single word: "Mom."
Alexei Nicholas-tsesarevich (379x600, 145Kb)
Tsesarevich Alexei
Gray-haired and aged for several decades at once, my mother was there. She stroked his head, kissed his forehead, as if this could help the unfortunate boy ... The only, inexplicable thing that saved Alexei was Rasputin's prayers. But Rasputin brought the end of their power.
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Thousands of pages have been written about this major adventurer of the 20th century, so it is difficult to add anything to multi-volume studies in a small essay. Let's just say: of course, possessing the secrets of non-traditional methods of treatment, being an outstanding personality, Rasputin was able to inspire the empress with the idea that he, God sent to the family, has a special mission to save and preserve the heir to the Russian throne. And the friend of Alexandra Feodorovna, Anna Vyrubova, brought the elder into the palace. This gray, unremarkable woman had such a huge influence on the queen that she deserves special mention.
14-Taneeva-Vyrubova (225x500, 70Kb) She was the daughter of the outstanding musician Alexander Sergeevich Taneev, an intelligent and dexterous person who held the position of chief manager of His Majesty's office at court. He then recommended Anna to the queen as a partner for playing the piano in four hands. Taneeva pretended to be an extraordinary simpleton to such an extent that she was initially recognized as unfit for court service. But this prompted the tsarina to actively promote her wedding with the naval officer Vyrubov. But Anna's marriage turned out to be very unsuccessful, and Alexandra Feodorovna, as an extremely decent woman, considered herself to some extent guilty. In view of this, Vyrubova was often invited to the court, and the empress tried to console her. It can be seen that nothing strengthens female friendship so much as trusting compassion in amorous affairs.
Soon, Alexandra Fedorovna already called Vyrubova her “personal friend”, emphasizing that the latter did not have an official position at court, which means that her loyalty and devotion to the royal family were allegedly completely disinterested. The empress was far from thinking that the position of a friend of the queen is more enviable than the position of a person who belongs by position to her entourage. In general, it is difficult to fully appreciate the enormous role that A. Vyrubova played in the last period of the reign of Nicholas II. Without her active participation, Rasputin, despite the full power of his personality, could not have achieved anything, since direct relations between the notorious old man and the queen were extremely rare.
Apparently, he did not seek to see her often, realizing that this could only weaken his authority. On the contrary, Vyrubova entered the tsarina's chambers every day, and did not part with her on trips. Having fallen entirely under the influence of Rasputin, Anna became the best conductor of the ideas of the elder in the imperial palace. In fact, in the amazing drama that the country went through two years before the collapse of the monarchy, the roles of Rasputin and Vyrubova are so closely intertwined that it is impossible to find out the degree of significance of each of them separately.
Anna Vyrubova for a walk in a wheelchair with Grand Duke Olga Nikolaevna, 1915-1916
The last years of the reign of Alexandra Feodorovna are full of bitterness and despair. The public at first transparently hinted at the pro-German interests of the empress, and soon began to openly vilify the "hated German woman." Meanwhile, Alexandra Feodorovna sincerely tried to help her husband, was sincerely devoted to the country, which became her only home, the home of her closest people. She turned out to be an exemplary mother and raised four daughters in modesty and decency. The girls, despite their high origin, were distinguished by diligence, many skills, did not know luxury, and even assisted in operations in military hospitals. This, oddly enough, was also blamed on the empress, they say, she allows her young ladies too much.
Tsarevich Alexei and Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. Livadia, 1914
When a rebellious revolutionary crowd filled Petrograd, and the tsar's train was stopped at the Dno station to draw up an abdication, Alix was left alone. The children had measles and had a high fever. The courtiers fled, leaving a handful of loyal people. The electricity was turned off, there was no water - you had to go to the pond, break off the ice and melt it on the stove. The palace with defenseless children remained under the protection of the Empress.
18-aleks (280x385, 23Kb) She alone did not lose heart and did not believe in renunciation to the last. Alix supported a handful of loyal soldiers who remained to guard around the palace - now it was her entire Army. On the day when the ex-Sovereign, who had abdicated the Throne, returned to the palace, her friend, Anna Vyrubova, wrote in her diary: “Like a fifteen-year-old girl, she ran along the endless stairs and corridors of the palace to meet him. When they met, they embraced, and left alone, burst into tears…” While in exile, anticipating an imminent execution, the Empress summed up her life in a letter to Anna Vyrubova: “My dear, my dear… Yes, the past is over. I thank God for everything that was, that I received - and I will live with memories that no one will take away from me ... How old I have become, but I feel like the mother of the country, and I suffer as if for my child and love my Motherland, despite all the horrors now ... You know that LOVE CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM MY HEART, and Russia too ... Despite the black ingratitude to the Sovereign, which breaks my heart ... Lord, have mercy and save Russia.
The abdication of Nicholas II from the throne led the royal family to Tobolsk, where she, along with the remnants of her former servants, lived under house arrest. With his selfless deed, the former king wanted only one thing - to save his beloved wife and children. However, the miracle did not happen, life turned out to be worse: in July 1918, the married couple went down to the basement of the Ipatiev mansion. Nikolay carried his sick son in his arms... Next, walking heavily and raising her head high, followed Alexandra Fedorovna...
On that last day of their lives, which is now celebrated by the church as the Day of Remembrance of the Holy Royal Martyrs, Alix did not forget to put on “his favorite brooch.” Having become material evidence No. 52 for the investigation, for us this brooch remains one of the many testimonies of that Great Love. The execution in Yekaterinburg put an end to 300 years of Romanov rule in Russia.
On the night of July 16-17, 1918, after the execution, the remains of Emperor Nicholas II, his family and close associates were taken to this place and thrown into the mine. Now on Ganina Yama there is a monastery in honor of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers.
male monastery (700x365, 115Kb)
In the marriage of Nikolai Alexandrovich with Alexandra Fedorovna, five children were born:
Olga (1895-1918);
Tatiana (1897-1918);
Maria (1899-1918);
Anastasia (1901-1918);
Alexey (1904-1918).
On November 4 (27), 1894, the wedding of the Russian Emperor Nicholas II and the future Empress Alexandra Feodorovna took place in the Great Church of the Winter Palace.
This marriage was not a formality; for the spouses, it became an important component of the meaning of their lives. This can be asserted with certainty when reading Alexandra Feodorovna's reflections on marriage and family, which reflected her deep experience of love and suffering.
A rare family has as many trials as the Romanov family had. The slander of enemies, the betrayal of loved ones, the serious illness of their child - not all families can withstand such an onslaught of fate. But the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna bravely met all these difficulties, which more than fell to their lot, and remained faithful to each other until the very end.
Why their marriage was called unique
In 1884, twelve-year-old Alix was brought to Russia: her sister Ella was marrying Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. The heir to the Russian throne, sixteen-year-old Nikolai, fell in love with her at first sight. But only five years later, seventeen-year-old Alix, who came to her sister Ella, reappeared at the Russian court.
In 1889, when the heir to the Tsarevich was twenty-one years old, he turned to his parents with a request to bless him for marriage with Princess Alice. The answer of Emperor Alexander III was short:
“You are very young, there is still time for marriage, and, in addition, remember the following: you are the heir to the Russian throne, you are engaged to Russia, and we will still have time to find a wife.”
Alexander III and his family. Left Nicholas II
Alix's grandmother, Queen Victoria of England, also opposed this marriage. However, when the wise Victoria later met Tsarevich Nicholas, he made a very good impression on her, and the opinion of the English ruler changed.
The bride and groom experienced tender and sincere feelings for each other. This was a rarity in the families of royal and imperial dynasties - their marriages, as a rule, were arranged. Therefore, the young couple made a special impression, which reassured even the opponents of their wedding. “God grant that Nikolai and Alice live happily,” the relatives thought when the newlyweds solemnly swore eternal fidelity to each other.
After the wedding with Alexandra - this name was given to Alice after baptism in the Orthodox Church - Nicholas' trials did not end. Alexander III before his death bequeathed to his son:
"Strengthen the family, because it is the foundation of any state."
The wedding of Nicholas II and Grand Duchess Alexandra Feodorovna by Ilya Repin
Nicholas fulfilled this covenant, and the first years of marriage passed quietly and happily. The couple had four daughters. But the king needed an heir. When Alexandra finally gave birth to a boy, Nikolai was in seventh heaven. However, his joy soon overshadowed - the doctors discovered that little Alexei had hemophilia.
This disease makes the lining of the arteries so fragile that any bruise or cut causes rupture of the vessels and can lead to the most unfortunate outcome.
Alexandra was the carrier of the hemophilia gene, but Nikolai never accused her of anything. It never crossed his mind to choose another woman to bear him a healthy heir. To violate the sanctity of marriage, to betray a loved one - it seemed incredible to both Nikolai and Alexandra.
The beginning of the twentieth century swept Russia with wars, and Nikolai often and for a long time left the house. Alexandra sent letters to her husband every day so that he would not be sad away from his family. In total, about six hundred letters survived. Looking into any of them, you can feel the unearthly warmth and love that warmed Nikolai and Alexandra. “Praying for you is my comfort when we are separated. I can’t get used to even the shortest time to be without you in the house, although I have our five treasures with me, ”Alexandra wrote to her husband. Even twenty years after the wedding, she affectionately called him "My boy, my sunshine," and her diary entries amaze with the depth of understanding of marriage.
When Nicholas signed the abdication of the throne and went into exile, his faithful wife went with him. Their union has been tested by years of marriage, slander by courtiers, betrayal by army generals, and has endured everything. The Romanovs knew what was ahead of them, and even had the opportunity to go abroad, but did not.
During their exile, they were mocked by the Bolsheviks, but they remained calm and dignified, which amazed their jailers. The children were close to their parents, sharing with them all the hardships of imprisonment, and every day expecting death. They didn't complain. In their diaries of that period, one can find such entries: “Lord, help us!” Later, in the papers of the eldest daughter of the Romanovs, Grand Duchess Olga, they found a poem that ended with the following lines:
And at the threshold of the grave
Breathe into the mouth of your servants
Inhuman forces
Pray humbly for your enemies.
Hand in hand, Nikolai and Alexandra with their children met their death in Yekaterinburg. In 2000 they were glorified as saints of the Orthodox Church. On the icons of the Romanovs, they are most often depicted together, with the whole family. Many years ago, on her wedding day, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna wrote in her diary: “When this life ends, we will meet again in another world and stay together forever…”. And her dream came true.
Interesting facts about the marriage of Nicholas II with Alexandra Feodorovna
1. simplicity of habits
Despite the height of the position, above which it cannot be, the emperor and empress led a completely simple life, trying not to indulge in excesses and raising children in severity. They were convinced that everything superfluous only corrupts, that it is "from the evil one." It is known that Nikolai preferred cabbage soup and porridge to gourmet French dishes, and instead of expensive wine he could drink ordinary Russian vodka. The emperor easily bathed in the lake along with other men, without making something secret out of his person and his body.
And the behavior of Alexandra Feodorovna during the war is known to many - she graduated from the courses of sisters of mercy and, together with her daughters, worked as a nurse in a hospital. Evil tongues discussed this every now and then: either they said that such simplicity would lower the authority of the royal family, then that the empress hated the Russians and helped the German soldiers. Not a single queen in Rus' has yet been a nurse. And the activities of Alexandra and her daughters in the hospital did not stop from early morning until late at night.
A lot of evidence has been preserved that the king and queen were unusually easy to deal with soldiers, peasants, orphans - in a word, with any person. The queen inspired her children that everyone is equal before God and should not be proud of their position.
2. charity
Workshops, schools, hospitals, prisons - Empress Alexandra was engaged in all this from the very first years of her marriage. Her own wealth was small, and she had to cut personal expenses in order to carry out charity events. During the famine of 1898, Alexandra gave 50 thousand rubles from her personal funds to fight him - this is an eighth of the family's annual income.
While in the Crimea, the Empress took an ardent part in the fate of tuberculosis patients who came to Crimea for treatment. She rebuilt the sanatoriums, providing them with all the improvements - with her own money.
It is said that Empress Alexandra was a born nurse, and the wounded were happy when she visited them. Soldiers and officers often asked her to be with them during difficult dressings and operations, saying that “it’s not so scary” when the Empress is nearby.
Charity houses for fallen girls, houses of industriousness, a school of folk art… “The August Family was not limited to financial assistance, but also sacrificed Their personal labors,” Monk Seraphim (Kuznetsov) testifies in his book. - How many church airs, covers and other things were embroidered by the hands of the Queen and Daughters, sent to the military, monastic and poor churches. I personally had to see these royal gifts and even have them in my distant desert monastery.
Medical personnel and the wounded in the Tsarskoye Selo palace infirmary. In the second row they sit from left to right: led. Princesses Anastasia Nikolaevna, Maria Nikolaevna, Olga Nikolaevna, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, grand. Princess Tatyana Nikolaevna Tsarskoye Selo. 1915
3. laws of family understanding
The diaries and letters of the royal family are becoming increasingly popular in Russia and abroad. Young couples are looking for recipes for maintaining a strong and happy family. And, I must say, they find it. Here are some quotes:
“The purpose of marriage is to bring joy. Marriage is a divine rite. It is the closest and holiest bond on earth. After marriage, the main duties of husband and wife are to live for each other, to give their lives for each other. Marriage is the union of two halves into a single whole. Each is responsible until the end of his life for the happiness and the highest good of the other.”
"The crown of love is silence."
“It is a great art to live together, loving each other tenderly. It has to start with the parents themselves. Each house is similar to its creators. A refined nature makes a house refined, a rude person makes a house rough.”
4. 23 year honeymoon
All families remember their wedding day, but Alix and Nikolai even celebrated their engagement day every year. This day, April 8, they always spent together, and for the first time parted when they were already over forty. In April 1915, the emperor was at the front, but even there he received a warm letter from his beloved:
“For the first time in 21 years we spend this day not together, but how vividly I remember everything! My dear boy, what happiness and what love you have given me over the years… You know, I kept that “princess dress” that I was wearing that morning, and I will put on your favorite brooch…”
After so many years of living together, the Empress admitted in letters that she kissed Nikolai's pillow when he was not around, and Nikolai still became shy, like a young man, if they met after a long separation.
No wonder other contemporaries said with some envy: "Their honeymoon lasted 23 years ..."
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