Grigori Efimovich Rasputin (1869-1916)

[Anne83]

I'll post a link when it's ready Still writing it
To those of you that are laughing now Please don't judge before you see the result

[Vasillisos Markos]

I wasn't laughing at you; instead, I thought your comment about reading your book and becoming wiser was a little smug. But I will keep an open mind and look forward to reading your account and discovering who your sources are.

[pamela18335]

Anne, do you have a publisher and an anticipated completion date?

[Anne83]

You have to trust me My book is worth the anticipation
I have had many discussions with publishers I can't say more
The right time will come
I'm writing another one about the last Romanovs I want to publish it in 2018
100 years after their assassination

[pamela18335]

Anne, forgive me, but all this cloak and dagger stuff seems a bit over the top. If your book is predicated on your family's oral history and traditions, it's hardly likely that some other author will be able to steal your work, unless it's someone within your own family.

May I ask if you've published anything previously about the Imperial family or any of their retainers, so that we might read it whilst awaiting the Rasputin book? As to your proposed book on the Imperial family that you plan to publish in 2018, all I can say is that is eight years from now, and much can occur between now and then.

[Anne83]

No the Rasputin book will be my first
Enough with the questions and indiscretion I told you I can't say more right now
Please be discreet and polite
And patient

[Vasillisos Markos]

Are you saying your book on Rasputin will be published soon, but the proposed book on the Romanovs will not be released until 2018? Forgive me, but your lack of any confirmatory details (such as family members worked for the royal family, were members of the royal family, I am descended from Rasputin, etc) lead me to believe you are dissembling. I hope I am being polite, there is no need for me to be discreet but I will admit to being impatient.

[Anne83]

And who are you? Do you know me? How come you demand answers?
Learn some good manners first How rude of you to talk like that to a total stranger

I won't accept any further questions or snide remarks
I will never come back here to discuss with you

[Al_bina]

I do apologise for meddling, but a promotion of a supposedly sensational book is not exactly polite. Rasputin was an odiously controversial man, who might have possessed a healing power to alleviate Tsarevich Alexei's sufferings and who did contribute to the Romanovs' demise. It might be fair to presume that some people took a liking to Rasputin for whatever good qualities he might have had. At the same time, I am not sure what new can be revealed about him. Furthermore, Pikul and Radzinski did a wonderful job analysing factual materials about the aforementioned individual.

[pamela18335]

Originally Posted by Anne83

And who are you? Do you know me? How come you demand answers?
Learn some good manners first How rude of you to talk like that to a total stranger

I'm sorry, Anne, but no one is or has been rude to you. You simply cannot expect to make such provocative and cryptic statements without being asked questions about them. This is true, especially as you say your book is based on family oral history or traditions, both of which are subject to misunderstanding, mutations and error.

You must understand that most of us interested in Russia's Imperial family are accustomed to books that clearly cite source material and/or have been written by authors close to the Imperial family (e.g., Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich, Lili Dehn, Sidney Gibbes), or those known to thoroughly research their material (e.g., Greg King, Peter Kurth, Penny Wilson). An unpublished, unnamed author carries few credentials.

[Russophile]

However! Back to the topic of the ever fascinating and physically repugnant (to Russo!) Rasputin. I am currently re-reading GDMarie Pavlovna's bio. on the cretin and she is just getting into the Rasputin phase. The view point of Marie is very interesting as she posts things that others have not in their bios so it will be interesting to re-read her take on the situation. Currently she is saying that those who were political climbers in the realm were using Rasputin to secure better positions within the cabinet. Details to follow. . . .

[pamela18335]

Originally Posted by Al_bina

I do apologise for meddling,...

Al bina, you are hardly "meddling". This is an open discussion and your comments are well-taken.

[lucien]

Originally Posted by pamela18335

Those of you discussing the new Rasputin book might find the referenced forum from Alexander Palace Time Machine of interest. I must say, I'm awfully tempted to order the book....

A New Rasputin Biography by Margarita Nelipa

Good buy I'd say Pamela.Best researched book till now on the subject.

[delincolon]

Read "Rasputin and The Jews - A Reversal of History", by Delin Colon.
Amazon.com: Rasputin and The Jews: A Reversal of History (9781461027751): Delin Colón: Books
This book is an account of Rasputin as a healer, equal rights activist and man of God, and why he was so vilified by the aristocracy that their libelous and slanderous rumors became accepted as history. For nearly a century, Grigory Rasputin, spiritual advisor to Russia's last Tsar and Tsarina, has been unjustly maligned simply because history is written by the politically powerful and not by the common man. A wealth of evidence shows that Rasputin was discredited by a fanatically anti-Semitic Russian society, for advocating equal rights for the severely oppressed Jewish population, as well as for promoting peace in a pro-war era. Testimony by his friends and enemies, from all social strata, provides a picture of a spiritual man who hated bigotry, inequity and violence. The author is the great-great niece of Aron Simanovitch, Rasputin's Jewish secretary.

[AristoCat]

What do you guys think of Rasputin and his influence over the Romanovs? There isn't a single thread on Rasputin in this section and I find that bewildering to say the least.

[Vasillisos Markos]

Rasputin was a scoundrel who may have had a calming effect on the Tsarina. This in turn may have resulted in Alexei becoming calm when he would see that his mother was more relaxed during his many crises. Rasputin knew that he had sway over the Tsarina and used this to his advantage. His influence was not the only cause of the revolution but contributed to the general hatred felt by the people against many of the Romanovs.

[AristoCat]

I wonder, if in fact, Rasputin was empowered by the Devil to 'heal' Alexei, which could have resulted in the Romanov family becoming dependent on him, instead of the Orthodox Church proper and cut them off from the aristocracy that could have supported them as well. Alexei healed, yes, but I have to wonder if other factors were at work here. Considering where their dependence on Rasputin led, it would make a lot of sense really. Rasputin did have power, I just wonder, what was the source?

Genuine holy men didn't run around sleeping with everything that walked and Rasputin was certainly doing that. Plus, he was incredibly two faced about his dealings with the Empress and I would think that a holy man would encourage the Empress to go public and at the least tell the Church so she can rely on them, not just one person. Rasputin was doing things differently and he was a starets, not part of any religious order. All I know is that he certainly had some power that was part of him if he was able to do what he did for Alexei.

Put frankly, his religion of sex for forgiveness is sickening enough and last time I checked, Christ didn't state that sex was requried for His love or fogiveness.

[XeniaCasaraghi]

Rasputin apparently was influenced by a sect of Russian Orthodoxy that promotes sin brings you closer to God, this is an explanation of why he slept with so many women. Also 100s of Holy Men have also been manwhores sleeping with anything that moves.
I highly doubt Rasputin was influenced by the devil in his healing of Alexei; I think blaming it on the devil is like pointing to witch craft to explain why Henry VIII loved Anne Boleyn.

[Daria_S]

Rasputin scares the living daylights out of me. I don't know, but there's something about his eyes that has me cringing (even on pictures). To this day I cannot look at the cover of the biography written by Edward Radzinskii. The man, in my opinion, was a serious quack, but I can completely understand the reasoning that when he calmed Aleksandra, Aleksey would calm down as well, most likely because he saw that his mother was no longer frantic.

I've never given a thought to Rasputin being influenced by the Devil (or some other not-so-good power), but anything is possible. The man was just.....I don't know...'creepy' may be a good word. He certainly knew how to use his 'powers' for his own benefit and promotion. He lived in a pretty decent apartment, from what I have read.

[AristoCat]

I didn't say he was just influence, I would say he was empowered; he was two-faced in every possible way to the Empress and encouraged her to isolate herself from the rest of the people who could have supported her. He was part of a sect that promoted sin as a way to redemption, but it was never officially recognized and accepted and I don't trust that he wasn't getting help from somewhere less than holy.

Anyone who manages to drink and eat food and wine laced heavily with arsenic and still dance and have fun around is obviously not normal or human. Someone who manages to get shot eleven times, stabbed, and then even then tries to get out from under icy water is not normal in any respect. I mean, it took so much just to kill him and then keep him dead. How is that human? He deliberately deceived Alexandra and deliberately deceived the rest of the aristocracy/Russia.

He was telling Alexandra and Nicholas one thing while doing something entirely else. He lied to them and taught Alexandra that he was the only thing standing between her and the death of her son.