Tsar Nicholas II (1868-1918) and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (Alix) (1872-1918)

[lexi4]

I think a lot of things would have been different for Russia had Nixa lived. I think Nixa would have carried on his father's reforms. Alexander III was pretty ruthless and abolished all changes made by his father.

[COUNTESS]

You are all correct. Everything was put into Nixa. Man plans and God laughs. So, they were then faced with the uneducated Alexander III. Yet, if you think about it Alexander was strong and decisive, not right many times, but forceful. Marie held her ground, too. Yet Nicky vacillated and had no real strength behind him. His mother was a better politician than he. Unfortunately, Alix drew him away from her counsel. They were sucked into the vortex of revolution, as they never allowed themselves to see the real unhappiness and inherent problems. The 1905 Revolution could have opened gates to excellent reform, but, of course, they didn't. Grand Duke Sergei's demise, certainly, put them on alert. But only to their own safety, not what caused the problems.

[lexi4]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

You are all correct. Everything was put into Nixa. Man plans and God laughs. So, they were then faced with the uneducated Alexander III. Yet, if you think about it Alexander was strong and decisive, not right many times, but forceful. Marie held her ground, too. Yet Nicky vacillated and had no real strength behind him. His mother was a better politician than he. Unfortunately, Alix drew him away from her counsel. They were sucked into the vortex of revolution, as they never allowed themselves to see the real unhappiness and inherent problems. The 1905 Revolution could have opened gates to excellent reform, but, of course, they didn't. Grand Duke Sergei's demise, certainly, put them on alert. But only to their own safety, not what caused the problems.

I don't think Nicholas had it in him to make the reforms necessary to stave the revolution. Unlike his grandfather, Alexander II, Nicholas was very short sighted. Alix''s counsel didn't help. She really knew nothing of the spirit of the Russian people or their culture.
Lexi

[Carminha Stalker]

I have read almost all the books written about this tragic family. None, has justified to me the massacre of a whole family, including their servants. If Nicholas II was a tyrant or monster, the Russian people surely didn´t gain by the atrocity commited in Ekaterinburg. For the real monsters and tyrants would come afterwards and certainly creating many more victims than the Tsar ever would. Or anybody thinks that those Bolsheviks were saints? Russia paid and paid dearly, for believing those lies.
Nicholas II was not a saint, nor was his wife, but he is a man I respect and love. His religious beliefs, as well as those of his family remained true to the end. He was much abused during his imprisonment, but never complained.
I am not of the Orthodox faith, but I was very happy when they were procclaimed martyrs.

[Russophile]

I don't think so either, Lex. Russia was so vast and he didn't trust his advisor's any. Pity, because he could have broken it down into sections and ruled it that way. But then again, hindsight IS 20/20. . .

[lexi4]

No he didn't Russo and that was part of his downfall.
Lexi

[ysbel]

One viewpoint was that Sasha put a Band-Aid on the problems of Russia which was like a gaping wound that was growing and festering even as he ruled. This viewpoint maintains that the effect of Sasha's rule was that the problems while growing ever larger were even hidden more than before and when Nicholas came to the throne, he didn't have the ability to make the Band-Aid stay.

If you take a look at some of the articles in the Mark Twain thread, you can see that in contemporary American literature of the time, several Americans were being exposed to some of the policies in Sasha's Russian including the treatment of prisoners in Siberia. Perhaps they overdramatised as literary figures often do, but the reception they received bespeaks to several perceived injustices of the Russian system that were noted during Alexander III's reign.

Given this, one may well doubt whether another czar of Sasha's character could have effectively kept a lid on things for another reign.

[lexi4]

Good points all Ysbel.
I do think had Nicholas II been more like his grandfather and willing to make some reforms it might have helped prevent/postpone the revolution. I think Bloody Sunday was one such missed opportunity. The Russian peasantry still thought of the Tsar as their "little father" and when they petitioned him, he bungled it badly. He waivered terribly on the issue of a constitutional government or Duma. Perhaps you are correct and nothing could have been done to turn the tide. But Nicholas sure didn't help the situation. When Nicholas, hoping to prevent revolution, issued the Imperial Manifest and Decree Kerensy wrote to his parents: The main aim of this Manifesto is to calm and silence the revolutionary movement that has just begun so that all the forces of the government can be consolidated for one purpose in the future: to prevent any of its promises from being delivered." (Figes, A People's Tragedy.)
The Manifest offered the people a way to direct grievances to Nicholas. And he received hundreds of petitions which Nicholas was unable to fulfill. I think Nicholas's problem was that he was unable to let go of belief that he was annoited by God to rule Russia. He believed deeply that he knew what was best for the Russian people and that they would stand by him. His calculations were terribly wrong and it cost him the his life and the lives of his family.

[GlitteringTiaras]

Speaking of books, articles, essays, and documents, the book Major Problems in the History of Imperial Russia edited by James Cracraft was a book that I was forced to read when I was an undergrad. I remember specifically two documents that were very interesting in regards to Nicholas II:

The October Manifesto of Nicholas II, 1905
Nicolas de Basily Recounts the Abdication of Nicholas II, 1917

If anyone has a chance to get their hands on this book and/or documents they are a fascinating read for all Russophiles.

[lexi4]

For anyone interested...
Here is a link to the October Manifesto
Manifesto of October 17

While the reforms promised in the manifest sound good, in reality it had very little effect because Nicholas used his veto power over the Duma. It was Count Sergei Witte who convinced Nicholas to issue the Manifesto. Witte also tried to convince Nicholas to stay our of WWI. His advice, of course, and no impact on Nicholas.

[Ithil]

It said somewhere that Alexandra was the favorite grandchild of Queen Victoria. I'm just wondering if this seems probable that she indeed was.

[COUNTESS]

She was very close to her grandmother, after her mother died. Victoria acted as her mother, so their was an intimacy that she did not share with some of her other grandchildren. Did he have an absolute favorite, who knows. Maybe, at certain times she favored some over others, but by and large she loved all her grandchildren, even Willy.

[Ithil]

I know that she was very close to her grandmother because her mother had died, when she was young, so her grandmother became a type of surrogate mother to her.

[Avicenna]

Originally Posted by Ithil

I know that she was very close to her grandmother because her mother had died, when she was young, so her grandmother became a type of surrogate mother to her.

6 years old in fact

[Picmajik]

Originally Posted by Marengo

what do they want then? Did anybody read 'Icon' by Frederick Forsyte. It is about russia in the middle 90-ties and in the end of the book the monarchy is restored under...Prince and Princess Michael of Kent!!!! Can you imagine HER being Tsarina?? When I read it I could not stop laughing out loud for several minutes.

I read on another thread where someone had suggested Prince Michael of Kent as the new Czar and the first thing that I though of was that's all the world needs as Czarina. Some people have posted that she is already convinced of her own self-importance. disclaimer-Of course, I am relying on second-hand reports as I do not know Princess Michael.

[Al_bina]

Apart from personality traits, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent have got a potential to become a glamourous royal couple. By the way, I am sure that Lady Gabriella will make a prefect princess...

[tan_berry]

In the movie The Lost Prince there is a scene that portrays Nicholas II as being unable to take any decission, even something so trivial like taking a photo of himself and George V, without the consent of his wife, who even did not answer back to his question, and then he interprets her silence like it was not an appropiate time for taking the photo: "yes, maybe it is that....." It seems she absolutely dominated him. She was the real tsar, then. And had she desired absolute power for her son, he would not been able to decide any reform even considering it necessary. I think that is why those deaths are so horrible, so many weak persons, such a good man as a person.

[Avicenna]

Quote "Russia from within" by Alexander Ular, published in 1905, William Heinemann, London

page 39 The chapter is on "The dynasty and the court"

"The influence of the empress

The serious consequences of such errors are sometimes so obvious that they cannot escape even the intermittent attention of the Sovereign. The bad effects of carelessness of this sort have engendered in the Tsar an indecision and a fear of voluntary action which have become engrafted on to his habitually vacillating character. Unfortunatly, Nicholas has no "Danish Partner" to furnish him with the needful degree of moral stability. ... etc"

Excellent book - from what I can judge. A scholar might come to another conclusion. The main value being that it reflect the mood of the time back then.

[Russophile]

Originally Posted by christowilson

I would be most grateful if anyone can recommend the best book or lengthy article which covers the life of the Russian royal family at their summer palace. Also if anyone knows of photographs of Tsar Nicholas II and his family holidaying there. Many thanks.

Its' hard to recommend just one book because they did move/travel from one palace to another, especially during the summer months.
Peter Kurth's: Tsar has a lot of lovely pictures in it from their travels.