Nikolay Aleksandrovich or Nicholas II was the last Tsar of Russia, whose murder at the hands of the Bolsheviks marked the end of 300 years of Romanov rule, and with it, the shift from tsarist rule into a communist regime. The story of the last tsar, his family and how an ill-advised association with a controversial holy man contributed to the downfall of the Romanov dynasty is a story well worth exploring – as successful autistic author Mickey Mayhew knows from his research.
Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna
Nicholas and Alexandra met in 1884, when she was only 12 and he was 16. The two had an instant attraction, but neither family was particularly keen on the match. However, after the health of Nicolas’ father, Tsar Alexander III, declined in 1894, he decided to give the pair his blessing in order to secure succession to the throne. The two married on 26 November 1894, only a few weeks after the death of the tsar.
Nicholas was officially crowned tsar on May 26, 1896, and while his marriage to Alexandra was a happy one, his reign would end up being the undoing of the Romanov family. Nicholas was not well-suited for responsibilities of an autocratic ruler, which left him open to outside influences, including his wife and the people she favoured.
Romanovs and Rasputin
During the early 1900s the Russian aristocracy had taken an interest in alternative religious practices, such as spiritualism, theosophy and the occult. This included the empress consort Alexandra, whose lack of popularity in the Russian courts had made her turn to mysticism for comfort.
The long-awaited male heir for the tsar, tsarevich Alexis, was born in 1904. Shortly after his birth, the doctors realised that he had been born with haemophilia, an almost always fatal disease in the early 20th century. Desperate to help her child, Alexandra sought the aid of wandering pilgrim Grigory Rasputin, whose healing powers seemed to ease Alexei’s condition.
By helping her child, Rasputin managed to gain the trust of Alexandra and was able to start influencing the imperial family. Even as his life and conduct in the court was a source of constant scandals, the empress consort would not heed warnings and continued to take advise from the self-proclaimed holy man.
In 1915, amidst World War One, Nicholas travelled to the troops on the Russian war front, leaving Alexandra in charge of Russia’s internal affairs, with Rasputin as her personal advisor. This unfavourable decision, together with other political factors, sealed the fates of Rasputin, the Romanov family and the tsarist rule of Russia.