Why were the daughters of Nicholas II bald? Failed sons-in-law of Nicholas II
As you know, in 1918 all royal family was shot in Ipatiev's house in Yekaterinburg. There is still debate about whether the emperor himself, his wife and their children could have avoided a terrible fate. But special attention researchers are attracted to the eldest daughters of Nicholas II, who at the time of the massacre were already old enough, and marriage might have saved their lives. Why didn’t any of the great duchesses go down the aisle?
Olga
The eldest daughter of Nicholas II was already 22 years old at the time of the execution. Of course, even if for so much short life, Olga fell in love more than once. Surely, all her hobbies are unknown to this day. But the fact that in 1912 the Grand Duchess’s engagement to Nicholas II’s cousin Dmitry Pavlovich was supposed to take place is a fact. However, the mother of the future bride was categorically against this marriage, and not at all because of the close relationship of the spouses. Alexandra Fedorovna did not tolerate Dmitry Pavlovich for his hatred of Rasputin. Later, the prince actually took part in the murder of the royal elder.
Four years later, in 1916, Olga almost got married again. By the will of his own mother, another candidate became a contender for the hand and heart of the king’s eldest daughter. Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich. But Alexandra Feodorovna rejected this proposal too. According to the empress, Boris was not worthy of Olga. He was famous for his love affairs, and Alexandra Feodorovna was sure that her daughter would still not agree to connect her life with such a rake.
Tatiana
The second imperial daughter Tatiana turned 21 in 1918. At first they wanted to marry Tatiana to the son of the Serbian King Alexander. The families even met on this occasion, but the First World War began, and negotiations about the engagement became irrelevant. And Tatyana herself, together with her mother and sisters, began to care for the wounded in the hospital. It seemed that the girl had no time for amorous affairs.
But it was within the hospital walls that the Grand Duchess met a cornet named Dmitry Malama. Tatyana became so attached to Malama that others began to notice her feelings. Moreover, the cornet also showed signs of attention to Tatyana. In particular, knowing about the love of the imperial daughter for animals, he gave her a dog, french bulldog. It is noteworthy that Alexandra Fedorovna also treated Malama with warmth, but, of course, this relationship had no future. [C-BLOCK]
Maria
Maria Nikolaevna was 19 when she died. Maria dreamed of marriage and children and often fell in love. The future king of Romania, Carol II, wanted to marry the Grand Duchess at one time. But Nikolai believed that at that time Maria was still very young for marriage.
In general, until her death, everyone considered Maria a child. Even when the girl met officer Nikolai Demenkov, who commanded the ships guarding members of the royal family, the sisters only laughed at Maria and even at Demenkov himself, calling him “fat.” Maria corresponded with her lover, talked to him on the phone, and even sewed a shirt for him herself. But that's where it all ended.
Anastasia
Anastasia, the youngest of the Romanov sisters, was killed at the age of 17. She was no longer a little girl. But the surviving memories of Anastasia indicate the opposite. The girl was already a little embarrassed by her thick figure, and her sisters often called her “little egg.” Nevertheless, she remained childishly cheerful, perky and could easily make anyone laugh.
On the night of July 17, 1918, Anastasia, as well as Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Tsarevich Alexei and their parents passed away.
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A book by historian Helen Rappaport, “Four Sisters,” about the short lives of the daughters of the last Russian Emperor Nicholas, has been published in the UK. II, killed by the Bolsheviks in July 1918 in the basement of Ipatiev’s house in Yekaterinburg. Helen Rappaport- author of many works on the history of Russia, in particular, biographies of Lenin and Stalin and the monograph "Ekaterinburg", dedicated to last days Nikolai's family II.
The subtitle of Helen Rappaport's book, The Lost Lives of the Grand Duchesses of the House of Romanov, has a double meaning: on the one hand, it says that the lives of four Grand Duchesses - Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia - were cut short when they were brutally murdered in July 1918 by the Bolsheviks , on the other hand, that after that they were forgotten for a long time. For almost a hundred years since the murder of the royal family about her tragic fate A huge number of books have been written and films have been made, but the four Grand Duchesses are mentioned only briefly in them. Helen Rappaport's book is the first historical study to focus on the lives and fates of these young girls. It is clear that the title of the book refers the reader to the title of Chekhov’s play, and the author undoubtedly does this intentionally, contrasting four sisters living in the “golden cage” of the imperial court with three of their contemporaries languishing in the Russian wilderness. "Four Sisters" recreates living picture childhood, adolescence and youth of four pure, innocent and noble creatures with their touching romantic hopes and dreams, which were cut short on the night of July 17, 1918, when they descended 23 steps into the basement of the Ipatiev house in Yekaterinburg. There they were brutally killed without trial; their only fault was that they were born into the family of the Russian Tsar. At the time of the death, the eldest of the sisters, Olga, was 22 years old, the youngest, Anastasia, was 17 years old. At the same time, their younger brother, 13-year-old Tsarevich Alexei, was killed, along with their parents, servants and Doctor Botkin - 11 people in total.
One of the chapters of Helen Rappaport's book is called "Lord! What a disappointment... The fourth girl!" This is how Grand Duchess Ksenia, the sister of Nicholas II, greeted the news of Anastasia’s birth. Were the parents really disappointed by the birth of four daughters? In an interview with Radio Liberty, Helen Rappaport explains:
- Of course, they were disappointed, but this in no way cancels their love for their daughters. Yes, they passionately wanted an heir. Moreover, in this regard, Nikolai and Alexandra were under extreme pressure Russian society. Alexandra was especially criticized, whom the public considered to be the culprit of the “feminization” of the dynasty. The birth of the prince was a triumph not only for the Romanovs, the whole country rejoiced. Of course, to Tsarevich Alexei it was special treatment– both as the heir to the throne and as a terminally ill child. But the daughters always enjoyed the unfailing love of their parents, who were heavily involved in their upbringing and education. I do not have the slightest doubt about the sincerity of the love of the king and queen for their daughters. And this is understandable: for Nikolai and Alexandra the most important value there was always family. The sisters were an important part of her; her parents couldn’t imagine without them. family life.
– You write that “the sisters were trapped in an artificial and closed world.” How did this happen?
The sisters practically did not appear in society, they had no acquaintances among the aristocracy, they simply did not know it. But Russia didn’t know the sisters either
– They found themselves in this trap due to circumstances Russian life, which arose after the revolution of 1905, when the lives of the Tsar and his family were threatened by extremist revolutionary groups. The revolutionary terror that began in the 19th century did not stop at all. Alexandra was very afraid for the lives of the children, especially for the life of Tsarevich Alexei. Opportunity for the royal children to communicate with outside world was very limited and strict security measures were taken. Another reason closed image life of the royal family was explained by her attempt to hide the fact that the heir to the throne had hemophilia. It was necessary to prevent the possibility of falls, bruises or wounds of the prince and to hide their consequences from strangers. Paradoxically, Alexandra did not want to believe that her son was sick. In addition, the sisters were not allowed to have close contact with the Russian aristocracy, which their mother despised, considering them decadent and immoral. She didn't want children to become a part of her. In St. Petersburg, the sisters practically did not appear in society, they had no acquaintances among the aristocracy, they simply did not know it. But Russia did not know the sisters either.
–Did the four Romanov sisters have any kind of personal life: romantic interests, love?
– The problem was that the sisters’ entourage consisted mainly of court ladies, guards, Cossacks on horseback, and the crew of the yacht “Standard”. Summer months they usually spent in Livadia. The only objects of their possible romantic interests could only be guards and naval officers. The sad irony of their fate was that their first contacts outside their circle were men who stood immeasurably below them on the social ladder. This happened when the older sisters Olga and Tatyana began working as nurses in a military hospital during the First World War. It was there that they developed infatuations with some of the wounded officers, perhaps even flashes of love. But the wounded constantly changed, the relationship remained platonic, and there was no talk of marriage. The sisters knew that they were destined for dynastic marriages, which involved leaving Russia. I think that they would be happy to marry a Russian officer and stay in Russia.
– It is known that NikolaiIIwas an Anglophile. Did this affect the upbringing of your daughters?
– They were strongly influenced by English culture. This influence did not come only from the father. Their mother, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, was the daughter Grand Duchess Hessian Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria. Thus, Alexandra was the granddaughter british queen, and her daughters are her great-granddaughters. Alexandra's mother died very early, and Victoria provided strong influence on her and her family. The daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra had English nannies, governesses and teachers. The family followed many English customs. The sisters constantly spoke to their mother in English. They communicated in Russian among themselves and with their father, who also spoke fluent English. So English culture and English values played a very important role in their lives. Both of their parents were close relatives of the British royal family. All this did not prevent the sisters from feeling deeply Russian people. And when at times it came to the inevitability of their marriage with foreign crowned heads, the sisters always said that they would like to stay in Russia. They always felt a deep connection with her. They loved Russia.
– Like Nicholas's daughtersIIbehaved after the revolution and deportation to Yekaterinburg?
– In Yekaterinburg, the royal family was kept in harsh conditions. Upon arrival there, they were told that they were prisoners and that from now on they would have a regime like prisoners. The house in which they lived was surrounded by a high fence, and they were assigned 24-hour security. What admires me about the behavior of the four sisters after their deportation from St. Petersburg, first to Tobolsk, then to Yekaterinburg, is how courageously they behaved; During all this time, no one heard a single complaint from them. They consoled their parents when they lost heart, and looked after their brother when he started bleeding. I would call their behavior stoic. These were loving children upon whom all the cruelty and all the mercilessness of the Bolshevik revolution fell and Civil War. And in this situation, the sisters did not completely lose their strength of spirit.
– What is known about last minutes the lives of four sisters in the basement of Ipatiev's house?
– Information about what happened in the basement of Ipatiev’s house is contradictory. All witnesses describe chaos and despair at the moment of the brutal murder of eleven people. None of the killers could remember the details of the behavior of the members of the royal family at the time of the murder; everything was chaotic and disorderly. This was not an execution by a firing squad, it was precisely a brutal, indiscriminate murder. Nikolai was luckier than others; he died instantly and without suffering, since Yurovsky, who led the murder, shot at him, and his henchmen also aimed at the tsar. The sisters at that moment could not experience anything but incredible horror.
– Why did Great Britain deny asylum to the royal family? After all, GeorgVhow the closest relative wanted to receive her...
I want to talk about privacy four charming creatures who became innocent victims of a bloody and merciless era
“I don’t think King George alone should be blamed for this.” Other crowned relatives of the Romanovs did not want to accept her: in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany. Nobody wanted to help. The reason, in my opinion, lay in the reputation of Nicholas II that arose in left-wing circles. It is known that after the shooting of demonstrations in Bloody Sunday in January 1905, in these circles, the tsar became known as Nicholas the Bloody; he was also accused of organizing pogroms. We must not forget that at that time world war was still going on. Germany was an enemy of Great Britain, and Alexandra Fedorovna was not liked very much in England, she was considered German, and it was very difficult for the government and the king to accept her at the height of the war. It was difficult for everyone to provide shelter to the royal family; In many countries, social democratic and leftist governments were in power at that time. King George changed his original intention under intense political pressure.
– Your previous books were devoted to large historical figures. What made you want to write a book about young girls who are hardly historical figures?
– The four daughters of Nicholas II were too young to be considered as historical figures. I had the feeling that after their death they were forgotten for a long time. When I began to collect material about their lives - and I did this very carefully and for a long time - I realized that I wanted to talk about the family life of the royal family, about the private life of four charming creatures who became innocent victims of a bloody and merciless era . Actually, these girls had no other life other than a private one. In the process of working, I even felt some kind of inner kinship with them, I fell in love with them. I am writing about Nicholas and Alexander not as emperor and empress, not as autocratic rulers, but exclusively as loving and beloved parents. The center of my book is family, family relationships And family values. It seemed to me no less important and interesting than historical achievements, misconceptions and intrigues.
The last Russian Emperor had 4 daughters, at the time of the overthrow of Nicholas II, all of them, except herself younger Anastasia, were adults.
Why did the Tsar and his wife Alexandra Fedorovna never arrange the fate of their beloved eldest daughters? after all, the girls were very beautiful, well educated, modest and had an impeccable pedigree. Weren't there any suitable suitors?
Olga
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, eldest daughter The last Russian Emperor was born in 1895.
Nicholas II named his older girls after the heroines of Pushkin's "Eugene Onegin": Olga and Tatyana.
Olga loved to read and began writing poetry in her youth: a typical romantic young lady of her time. Well-mannered, chaste and thoughtful. The girl, the only one from the royal family, had a cat named Vaska, whom Olga adored and spoiled very much.
Like all girls of her age, Olga dreamed of love, family and children. Around 1911, Olga began to set her sights on her father's cousin, Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich, who was 4 years older than her.
He was a brilliant young man. Officer, athlete, he took part in Olympic Games 1912 in equestrian sport.
The feelings between the young people were mutual. On June 6, 1912, their engagement was scheduled. The groom’s candidacy was quite satisfactory to the father, who wished Olga happiness, but Alexandra Feodorovna thought differently.
Dmitry had one, but very significant drawback: he could not stand Grigory Rasputin. The Empress could not forgive him for this, and it was she who insisted on a break between the lovers.
Olga suffered greatly, her happiness was destroyed, but she could not resist her mother’s will, as she had been brought up in the traditions of honoring her parents. The marriage did not take place.
Dmitry Pavlovich subsequently took a direct part in the murder of Rasputin. After the revolution, he, a participant in the First World War and a Knight of St. George, emigrated to London and later moved to the USA. He was married in a morganatic marriage, but did not find happiness. Soon after the birth of his son, he separated from his wife.
Olga Nikolaevna’s failed husband died at the age of 49 from tuberculosis, having outlived his love for many 23 years, lonely and completely disillusioned with life.
Tatiana
Tatyana was most friendly with her older sister Olga. But her interests and character were different.
The girl, born in 1897, loved outdoor games, pony and bicycle riding. Like her mother and sisters, Tatyana was very attached to the holy elder, as Grigory Rasputin was called, because only he could ease the suffering of his brother Alexei, who had hemophilia.
But there were unkind rumors about him. One of the maids claimed that Rasputin could enter the room where Olga and Tatyana lived without knocking when they were only in their nightgowns.
Another maid said that Tatyana was raped by Rasputin in 1910, when she was only 13 years old. The Empress refused to believe it, a secret investigation was carried out, but no evidence was found, and Rasputin’s guilt was not established.
Tatyana, like Pushkin's heroine, in whose honor she received her name, was very romantic. It was this daughter of Nicholas II that Serbian King Peter dreamed of marrying his son to.
The prince's name was Alexander, he came to St. Petersburg in 1914 and met his bride. But the marriage plans were interrupted by the First World War.
Tatiana and Alexander wrote tender letters to each other until the end of her life, and when Prince Alexander learned that Tatiana had been shot by the Bolsheviks, he was so dejected that he almost committed suicide.
But young girl, despite the almost completed engagement and affection for the groom, in the same 1914 she managed to fall in love with the cornet Dmitry Malama. She met him in the hospital, where the royal daughters worked as nurses.
He was wounded and helpless, but very beautiful. Tatyana lingered at his bedside for a long time. Oddly enough, the empress’s mother also sympathized with the young man; she wrote to her husband:
... lovely boy. I must admit that he would be an excellent son-in-law - why are foreign princes not like him...
But duty was stronger than sympathy. This marriage was unacceptable. And it didn’t take place.
Maria
The third daughter of Nicholas II was born in 1899 and received the name Maria. She had a cheerful and easy-going character, was funny and very active.
The family jokingly referred to his new blue eyes as “machine saucers.” Maria was distinguished by her blond hair and special charm.
The girl was compared to the old Russian hawthorn. She was distinguished by her simple manners and loved to talk even with ordinary servants. The girl loved to play tennis and dance to loud music.
Maria was kind and even gave in to the persuasion of her older sisters to ask her parents for them if they wanted something.
Your younger brother Maria often carried Alexei in her arms because she was physically a very strong girl.
Those around her said that by nature she was a “typical mother”: caring, kind. The girl herself dreamed of marrying simple soldier and have at least 20 children.
First love overtook Masha at the age of 11, but the name of the crown princess's chosen one remained unknown.
Romanian Prince Carol asked for her hand when his engagement to his sister Olga broke down. But the prince was told that Maria was still just a child and was refused.
During the First World War, Maria Nikolaevna seriously fell in love with naval officer Nikolai Demenkov. With all straightforwardness, the 14-year-old girl went to her father and asked his permission for this relationship. Maria began to sign her letters “Mrs. Demenkova.”
When her Kolya Demenkov went to the front, Maria gave him a shirt she had sewn with her own hands. They spoke on the phone several more times, corresponded, but never saw each other again.
Nikolai Demenkov died in exile in Paris, and Maria died in Yekaterinburg. Of course, this marriage was also unacceptable, even if the young people had more time.
Neither mother nor father would have allowed this misalliance.
And who knows what the fate of three of the four daughters of Nicholas II would have been if not for their mother’s attachment to Grigory Rasputin, because of whom Olga became unhappy, and the class prejudices of the throne, because of which the marriage of Tatiana and Maria did not take place. Maybe the girls could survive?
Illustrations from the public Internet.
If the cards had fallen on the table of fate a little differently, then this blue-eyed, smart girl with a fiery temper could have become the Russian empress. Theoretically it could, for the most part, of course. The situation at the beginning of the 20th century with the appearance of only daughters for Nicholas II forced him to consider, among others, the possibility of changing the law on succession to the throne to allow a woman to ascend the throne.
However, the matter did not progress further than talk: the king had an heir. Meanwhile, the girl Olga grew up and turned into interesting girl who should have become the wife of a king or prince of some kind European country, give birth to children, do charity work and die peacefully in his declining years in his own bed, remaining in the memory exclusively of historians and inquisitive individuals...
...If those same mythical cards had not led her to the basement of the Ipatiev House, early in July morning, exchanging the life of the family of the last Russian emperor for immortality.
Olga Nikolaevna was born on November 3, 1895, almost a year after the wedding of Nicholas II and Alexandra, and became the first of their four daughters. Modern psychologists would say that in character and abilities she was a typical eldest child in the family. " Characteristics she had strong will and incorruptible honesty and directness... She had these wonderful qualities since childhood, but as a child Olga Nikolaevna was often stubborn, disobedient and very hot-tempered,” Anna Vyrubova wrote in her memoirs.
Because of these traits, Olga received the most moralizing from her mother. “Yes, try to be more obedient and don’t be too impatient, don’t get angry because of this. This upsets me very much, you’re very big now,” Alix wrote to her daughter. “My child. Don’t think that I angrily said goodbye to you on the night. This didn’t happen. Mom has the right to tell the children what she thinks, and you left with such a gloomy face.” “My girl, you must remember that one of the main things is to be polite and not rude both in manners and in words. Rude words in the mouths of children are more than ugly. Always think about your behavior, be honest, listen to your elders. ..” “Try to be an example of what a good, little, obedient girl should be. You are our eldest and should show others how to behave. Learn to make others happy, think about yourself. last resort. Be gentle, kind, never act rude or harsh. Be a true lady in manners and speech. Be patient and polite, help the sisters in every possible way."
“Olga, dear, whether I’m in the room or not, you should always behave the same. It’s not I who is looking after you, but God sees everything and hears everything everywhere, and it is Him who we must, first of all, try to please by doing everything that we need to obey our parents and those who care about us, and overcome our shortcomings. Let's say there are things that you like to do, but you know that I forbade them - try not to do them, even if my prohibition seems strange to you. You don’t understand his reason, but I know it and I know that it’s for your benefit. Follow my orders quickly, and don’t waste time to see if others are doing it.”
Gilliard recalled: “The mother, whom they adored, was, in their eyes, as if infallible; Olga Nikolaevna alone sometimes had a desire for independence.” In one of her letters already during the war, Alexandra complained to Nikolai: “O. is always very unsympathetic to every instruction, although she often ends up doing according to my wishes. And when I am strict, she sulks at me.”
In general, the princess (like all her sisters, with the exception of Tatiana) “loved her father more than her mother” (Kobylinsky’s words). Gibbs claimed that “she loved her father more than anyone in the world.”
And she was more like her father, including the impression she made. “Of the four, Olga and Maria Nikolaevna were similar to their father’s family and had a purely Russian type... She had wonderful blond hair, large Blue eyes and a marvelous complexion, a slightly upturned nose, resembling the Tsar,” recalled Vyrubova. “The Emperor, as always, in such cases, looked kindly and smiled... Olga Nikolaevna smiled as well as the Emperor,” wrote Spiridovich.
The range of interests and inclinations of the most intelligent and prone to intellectual pursuits (according to Gilliard, “the other sisters ... were rather gifted practical qualities") Olga was typical of an intellectual. “She played the piano, loved poetry and literature... She couldn’t stomach housekeeping and women’s interests in general and was not practical in life,” said Ersberg.
Semyon Pavlov recalled: “Concerts were often held in the infirmary. They invited either artists from the Imperial Theaters or students of the Petrograd Conservatory. ...But very often we organized home concerts ourselves... The accompaniment was usually Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, who had a wonderful ear for music. For example, it was easy for Her to find an accompaniment to a melody that was completely unfamiliar to Her. Her playing was subtle and noble, the touch was soft and velvety. I still remember one waltz, my grandfather’s old waltz - soft, graceful and fragile, like an expensive porcelain toy - the favorite waltz of Grand Duchess Olga. We often asked Grand Duchess Olga to play this waltz for us, and for some reason it always made me very sad.”
However, the princess also loved to have fun. “In the evenings, Olga, me and sometimes Maria fly on bicycles around our rooms at full speed. Olga catches me or I catch her, it’s very nice. We fall sometimes, but we’re still alive,” Anastasia wrote to her father. “Olga was naughty, sitting on a small table, until she successfully broke it,” Alexandra recounted to him the events of the day.
Sometimes it's hard to know where the line is good mood and some hysteria: “We walked to Caprice and climbed the stairs. You know (drawing). And so, when we got up there, Olga took her umbrella and fiercely rushed at one window and broke 3 panes...”
Despite the widespread opinion that “only Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna was at the real ball, and then only once, on the day of the tercentenary of the House of Romanov,” Olga attended balls (albeit not as luxurious as it used to be before) more than once and with I danced with pleasure. The father often took his older daughters to the theaters, and one such visit took place after the murder of Stolypin.
The princess also liked the duties of the honorary chief of the 3rd Elisavetgrad Hussar Regiment, but the public events - meetings of the committee to help the families of soldiers, which she was obliged to attend during the war, bored the girl.
Together with Tatyana and Alexandra, in 1914, Olga completed a training course for nurses and began working at the Tsarskoye Selo infirmary, but she could not stand being present at operations for long and soon switched to “administrative” work. “Grand Duchess Olga took upon herself the morning distribution of medicines to the wards and She performed this duty carefully to the point of pedantry. He used to bring medicine, smile affectionately, say hello, ask how you are feeling, and leave quietly. ... Sometimes Princess Olga changed the water in vases of flowers. They told me that she used to work in a dressing room. But the terrible sight of crippled people greatly shook Her fragile nervous system, and She completely refused to work in the dressing room,” recalled one of the patients.
As the eldest daughter of the emperor of a great power, Olga was a tempting bride. The fact that she could be a carrier of a defective gene and pass hemophilia to her sons worried European royal families few. Firstly, the question of marriage was in this case a question international politics, secondly, families usually had many children, so the chances of a healthy heir somehow increased.
Some suggested that the four princesses "would marry four Balkan heirs. Moreover, this project seemed to us in the best possible way resolution of all Balkan conflicts..."; Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna Sr. dreamed of marrying Olga to her son Boris, who was 18 years older than the intended bride and had a reputation as an inveterate womanizer and waster of life, and the foreign ministers of Romania and Russia planned to unite the princess with her second cousin, crown prince Karol. There were rumors that Olga might receive the English crown, complete with the hand of the same Prince of Wales Edward, who would later become the husband of Wallis Simpson, and also that he was not indifferent to the girl future king Yugoslavia Alexander I Karagiorgievich. TO the last one is warm She herself felt the same way, writing in her diary that she loved his sister, Grand Duchess Elena, as “a piece of Alexander.”
IN adolescence The princess, apparently, was not indifferent to one of the officers of the Standard: good article(albeit with an erroneously stated year of morganatic marriage Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna) posted.
Olga with officers, including Pavel Voronov
With the beginning of the war, the peaceful fun on the Shtandart was a thing of the past, but now next door there was an infirmary full of brave military men with serious and not very wounded. Many of the patients ended up in the hospital, after treatment they went to the front and ended up back again. In Olga’s diary of that period, the same name is often found: Mitya, Dmitry, Shakh-Bagov (“he is very sweet”, “terrible darling”). They handle tools together, talk, and call on the phone.
In the notes of Valentina Chebotareva, who worked in the infirmary at the same time, you can read: “Shah Bagov has a fever and is lying down. Olga Nikolaevna sits by his bed all the time... Isn’t all this closeness and touching harmful? I feel terrible. After all, the rest are jealous, angry, and I imagine that they are weaving and spreading throughout the city, and then beyond. ... Vera Ignatievna told me that Shakh Bagov, drunk, showed Olga Nikolaevna’s letters to someone. Only this was still missing! Poor kids!
“And then a letter arrived from Shah Bagov - Olga Nikolaevna, in delight, scattered all her things and threw a pillow on the top shelf. She was hot and jumping: “Is it possible to have a stroke at 20 years old? In my opinion, I’m in danger of having a stroke.”
“Olga Nikolaevna has become seriously attached to Shakh Bagov, and it’s so pure, naive and hopeless. A strange, peculiar girl. He never reveals his feelings. It was reflected only in the special gentle note of the voice with which she gave instructions: “Hold your pillow higher. Aren’t you tired? Aren’t you tired?” When he left, the poor thing sat alone for an hour, with her nose buried in the machine, and sewed stubbornly, persistently. The mother's nature must have rubbed off on her. The empress said that “from the age of twelve she fell in love with the sovereign... and did everything to prevent this marriage from taking place. There is no happiness on earth, or you will pay dearly for it.” Yes, she paid dearly for hers. Is Olgina really having the same fate? She searched diligently for the penknife that Shah Bagov sharpened on the evening of departure - and tied up her beard, she searched all morning and was happy when she found it. He also keeps a piece of paper from the calendar, June 6th, the day of his departure.”
The hobby remained a hobby when the revolution came. At first house arrest in Tsarskoe, then - Tobolsk and Yekaterinburg.
The natural tendency to think played a bitter joke on Olga. "She was a born thinker, and as it turned out later, she understood general situation better than any of her family members, including even her parents. Finally, I got the impression that she had no illusions about what kind of future was in store for them, and, as a result of this, she was often sad and worried,” recalled Gleb Botkin. He was echoed by Claudia Bitner, who communicated much more with the princess: “ It seems to me that she understood their situation much more than anyone else in the family and recognized the danger of it. She cried terribly when her father and mother left Tobolsk.”
When leaving Tobolsk for the unknown, Nikolai and Alexandra take with them one of younger daughters- Maria, while Tatyana remains in charge. Olga, who has never insisted on her authority as the eldest child, is apparently simply in a state of extreme anxiety. The result is described by Sophie Buxhoeveden: “Olga Nikolaevna has also changed a lot. Anxiety and anxiety due to the absence of her parents, and the responsibility that fell on her when she remained the head of the house to look after her sick brother, produced a change in the tender, beautiful twenty-two-year-old girl, turning her into a faded and sad woman of middle age. She was the only princess who was acutely aware of the danger her parents were in.”
From “the most talkative” (S. Pavlov), “very charming and the most cheerful” (S. Buxhoeveden) Grand Duchess Olga turned into her own shadow and, having moved to Ipatiev’s house, behaved aloof and sad. The guards recalled that “she was thin, pale and looked sick. She rarely went for walks in the garden and spent most of time with my brother."
Last known photograph
And then the night came from July 16 to 17 and instead of the crown Russian Empire Olga received the halo of the passion-bearer.
Honestly, I personally wonder what she herself would prefer if she had the opportunity to choose?
On December 12, “Channel One” will show an 8-episode series dedicated to the last days of the reign of Emperor Nicholas II, as well as one of the most mysterious close associates of the royal family - the elder. Nicholas II and his family (wife and children) are the last representatives of the House of Romanov and last rulers Russian Empire, shot by the Bolsheviks in July 1918.
In Soviet textbooks, the autocrat was presented as not interested state affairs“strangler of freedoms”, and Russian Orthodox Church(though already in our days) canonized the king as a martyr and passion-bearer. Let's figure out how modern historians evaluate life and government.
Life and reign of Nicholas II
TraditionNicholas, the eldest son of Emperor Alexander III, was born in Tsarskoe Selo on May 6 (18), 1868. The heir to the throne got deep home education: he knew several languages, world history, understood economics and military affairs. Together with his father, Nikolai made many trips to the provinces of Russia.
TraditionAlexander III did not make concessions: he wanted his offspring to behave like ordinary children - they played, fought, sometimes played pranks, but most importantly, they studied well and “didn’t think about any thrones.”
Contemporaries described Nicholas II as very easy to communicate with, full of true dignity as a person. He never interrupted his interlocutor or raised his voice, even to those of lower rank. The emperor was lenient towards human weaknesses and had a good-natured attitude towards ordinary people- to the peasants, however, he never forgave what he called “dark money matters.”
In 1894, after the death of his father, Nicholas II ascended the throne. The years of his reign came during a turbulent period in history. Revolutionary movements arose all over the world, and the First World War began in 1914. However, even in such difficult times he managed to significantly improve economic situation states.
Arguments and Facts
Here are just some facts about the reign of Nicholas II:
- During his reign, the population of the empire increased by 50 million people.
- 4 million rubles left Alexander III as inheritance to children and kept in a London bank, were spent on charity.
- The emperor approved all petitions for pardon that were sent to him.
- The grain harvest has doubled.
- Nicholas II carried out a military reform: he shortened the terms of service, improved living conditions for soldiers and sailors, and also contributed to the rejuvenation of the officer corps.
- During the First World War, he did not sit in the palace, but took command of the Russian army, finally managing to repel Germany.
Kommersant
However, the emerging revolutionary sentiments increasingly captured people's thoughts. On March 2, 1917, under pressure from the high command, he handed over the Manifesto of Abdication, in which he bequeathed the army to obey the Provisional Government.
Modern historians believe that the Manifesto was a fake. In the original draft, Nicholas II only called for listening to your superiors, maintaining discipline and “defending Russia with all your might.” Later Alekseev only added a couple of sentences (“In last time I appeal to you...”) to change the meaning of the autocrat’s words.
Wife of Nicholas II - Alexandra Feodorovna
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The Empress (nee Princess Alice of Hesse-Darmstadt) was born on May 25 (June 6), 1872. She received a new name after baptism and marriage to Nicholas II. She was involved in raising the future empress queen of england Victoria, who adored her granddaughter.
Alice graduated from the University of Heidelberg with a Bachelor of Philosophy.
In May 1884, at the wedding of her sister Elizaveta Fedorovna, she met Nikolai Alexandrovich. The wedding took place on November 14 (26), 1894, just 3 weeks after the death of Emperor Alexander.
During the war, Empress Alexandra and the Grand Duchesses personally assisted in operations in hospitals, accepted amputated limbs from surgeons and washed purulent wounds.
Arguments and Facts
Despite the fact that the empress was not popular in her new fatherland, she herself fell in love with Russia with all her soul. Doctor Botkin’s daughter wrote in her diary that after Nicholas II read out the manifesto on the war with Germany (her historical homeland), Alexandra cried with joy.
However, liberals considered her the head of the court Germanophile group and accused Nicholas II of being too dependent on his wife’s opinion. Because of the negative attitude, the once sparkling princess, “Windsor” ray of sunshine” (as Nicholas II called Alexandra in his time) gradually became isolated in a narrow circle of family and 2-3 close associates.
Her friendship with the elder, Siberian peasant Grigory Rasputin, caused a lot of controversy.
Children of Nicholas II
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The family of Nicholas II Romanov raised five children: four daughters(Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia) and son - heir to the throne Alexei Nikolaevich.
Olga Nikolaevna Romanova
Wikipedia
Olga, the eldest daughter of Nicholas II, gave the impression of a gentle and fragile girl. WITH early years She had a passion for books and was a very erudite child. However, at times the Grand Duchess was hot-tempered and stubborn. Teachers noted that the girl had an almost perfect ear for music - she could play almost any melody heard somewhere.
Princess Olga did not like luxury and was distinguished by modesty. She didn’t like housework, but she enjoyed reading, playing the piano and drawing.
Tatyana Nikolaevna Romanova
Wikipedia
Tatyana Nikolaevna was born on May 29, 1897. As a child, what she loved most was riding a pony and a tandem bicycle with her sister Olga; she could spend hours wandering around the garden, picking flowers and berries.
Tatyana's character was similar to her mother: she laughed less often than the other sisters, and was often thoughtful and strict.
Unlike older sister, the girl loved to be in charge, and she was great at it. When her mother was away, Tatyana embroidered, ironed clothes and managed to look after the younger children.
Maria Nikolaevna Romanova
Wikipedia
The third daughter in the family of Nicholas II - Maria - was born on the night of June 14, 1899 at the summer residence in Peterhof. Very large and strong for her age, she later carried her brother Alexei in her arms when it was difficult for him to walk. Because of her simplicity and cheerful disposition, the sisters called her Masha. The girl loved to talk with the guard soldiers and always remembered the names of their wives and how many children they had.
At the age of 14 she became a colonel of the 9th Kazan Dragoon Regiment. At the same time, her affair with officer Demenkov broke out. When her lover went to the front, Maria personally sewed a shirt for him. In telephone conversations, he assured that the shirt was just right. Unfortunately, it's the end love story was tragic: Nikolai Demenkov was killed during the civil war.
Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanova
Wikipedia
Princess Anastasia was born when the family of Nicholas II and Alexandra already had three daughters. Outwardly she looked like her father, she often laughed and laughed loudly. From the diaries of those close to the royal family, you can find out that Anastasia had a very cheerful and even mischievous character. The girl loved to play lapta and forfeits, could tirelessly run around the palace, play hide and seek, and climb trees. But she was never particularly diligent in her studies and even tried to bribe teachers with bouquets of flowers.
Alexey Nikolaevich Romanov
WikipediaLong-awaited son Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna was the youngest of the children of the royal couple. The boy was born on July 30 (August 12), 1904. At first, the Tsarevich grew up cheerful a cheerful child, however, later a terrible genetic disease- hemophilia. This complicated the upbringing and training of the future emperor. Only Rasputin managed to find a way to alleviate the boy’s suffering.
Alexei Nikolaevich himself wrote in his diary: “When I am king, there will be no poor and unhappy people, I want everyone to be happy.”
Execution of Nicholas II and his family
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After signing the manifesto, from March 9 to August 14, 1917, the royal family of Nicholas II lived under arrest in Tsarskoe Selo. In the summer they were transported to Tobolsk, where the regime was a little softer: the Romanovs were allowed to go across the street to the Church of the Annunciation and lead a quiet home life.
While imprisoned, the family of Tsar Nicholas II did not sit idle: the former monarch personally chopped wood and looked after the garden.
In the spring of 1918, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee decided to transfer the Romanov family to Moscow for trial. However, it never took place. July 12 Ural Council workers' deputies decided to execute the former emperor. Nicholas II, Alexandra Feodorovna, their children, as well as Doctor Botkin and the servants were shot in Yekaterinburg in the “House special purpose” on the night of July 17, 1918.