Murder of the Imperial Family 17 July 1918

[Menarue]

Originally Posted by lucien

Horrifying & sickening,just imagine Michael.

It brings tears to my eyes.

[Anna was Franziska]

Originally Posted by bbb

Massacre of the Russian royals: Horrific last hours of a dynasty | Mail Online

Oh, I thought this must be Helen Rappaport's "Ekaterinburg: Last Days of the Romanovs." She spent lots of time in Russia doing research and has found out more than we've ever known before. Great book. Sad story.

[bbb]

http://cusack.norumbega.co.uk/2008/0...nts-of-russia/

nice photos, lots and lots of people

[Benjamin]

Ekaterinburg: Anniversary Commemoration

YouTube - Ekaterinburg: Anniversary Commemoration

[CarolinaLandgrave]

Tragic end - especially for the innocent young Grand Duchesses and the ill Heir.........
The "Comrades" must surely be, as of yet, proud (not) of thier actions.

[Russophile]

Pamela, I've found an interesting "error" in "Born to Rule". Where the Imperial Family was executed, the author's source was Wilton's "The Last Days of the Romanovs" and Wilton used Bulygin. When I get back home, I'll print out what was said, however! Yurovsky's last words to NII do not jive with what Massie said and King and Wilson. So! We have conflict.

(Warren,you may want to move this over to the proper thread. Sorry! )

[COUNTESS]

Ah, is it error, or supposition?

[Russophile]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

Ah, is it error, or supposition?

Countess, I do not know. King and Wilson used Yurovsky's Kudrin's and Nikulin's notes.
Page 271 of "Born to Rule" has (Wilton and Bulygin's notes) Yurovsky saying "Your relations have tried to save you; they have failed, and we must now shoot you." Then they say that Yurovsky shot Nicholas in the head.
King and Wilson from "Fate of the Romanovs" use Yurovsky's notes with Kudrin and Nikulin on page 306 say "In view of the fact that your relatives continue their offensive against Soviet Russia," he declared loudly. "The Presidium of the Ural Regional Soviet has decided to sentance you to death."
Here Yurovsky's bullet went to Nicholas's chest.
Of course the end result was still the same, though for this curious cat, these scenarios are quite different.
So. Who's got the straight scoop?

[pamela18335]

Russophile, if I remember correctly, Massie's "Nicholas and Alexandra" agrees with your first quote. The second one seems decidedly odd, although I have read somewhere just recently that it has been determined that Lenin did not authorize the execution of the Romanovs, but that the Ural Soviet took it upon themselves to do so. (Don't ask me to tell you where I read it; lately my brain resembles nothing so much as it does swiss cheese with all those holes!)

The first quote would seem to be unsupported due to a lack of a bullet hole in Nicky's skull in the remains found outside of Ekaterinburg. Here's the quote from Yurovsky's note, which is translated on the Alexander Palace website: " I announced: the Executive Committee of Soviet Workers, Peasants and Soldier Deputies of the Urals carried [a decision] to shoot them. Nikolai turned around and asked (sic). I repeated the order and commanded “Shoot”. I shot first and killed Nikolai to drop (sic)." A head shot would be more likely to cause instant death, a chest shot not necessarily, unless the heart was hit directly.

[Vasillisos Markos]

Erickson in her book, Alexandra, The Last Tsarina, recounts the family's final hour from Yurovsky's description of what happened in Nicholas and Alexandra: The Last Imperial Family, p. 381. Erickson does not describe Nicholas's death, but writes he said "What? What?" in response to Yurovsky saying, "in view of the fact that their relavites in Europe were continuing to attack Soviet Russia, the Ural Executive Committee had ordered them to be shot." The tragic account ends with Alix being struck by a bullet in her forehead as she begain saying the "Our Father"

[nascarlucy]

From the history books I've read in school, it sounds like the entire Royal Family of Russia was wiped out by execution in 1917, but they weren't. They are many people related to them that live throughout Europe. I'm assuming that these individuals were not in Russia when this took place, or they escaped before it got bad or before someone could get their hands on them to harm them.

[Vasillisos Markos]

The immediate Imperial Family were executed in 1918 and many Romanov relatives, as well as other members of the aristocracy, were also killed during the years 1917-1919 but some did escape as you point out. Here is a link which you might find interesting.

http://www.angelfire.com/pa/Imperial.../survivor.html

[nascarlucy]

Thank you for the information.

[Russophile]

Lucy, 2 books that you might find interesting are "Education of a Princess" by Marie Pavlova the Younger and "Once a Grand Duke" by Alexander Michaelovitch, Xenia's husband. They chronicle what happened to different branches of the Romanov family during the revolution.
Your library should have these.

[COUNTESS]

Russo's books are very good. Also, try Flight of the Romanov's and Michael and Natasha.

[Russophile]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

Russo's books are very good. Also, try Flight of the Romanov's and Michael and Natasha.

I own "Education of a Princess." Got it for $3 at a garage sale. Can you imagine! They did not know what they had!
I enjoyed Michael and Natasha very much.
I will look out for Flight of the Romanov's, Countess. Thank you for that.

[kell]

since yesterday was the anniversay heres a intersting link Royal family execution was ill conceived, brutal murder- historian - RT Top Stories

[Vasillisos Markos]

The historian certainly did not have anything to say which would certify Bolshevik efficiency, did she? It was an awful, horrible massacre and butchery.

[Furienna]

Yep, it was.

[Hereditary Thane]

It was not even judicial murder: it was a brutal and calculated slaughter. Let us not forget, however that tens of thousands of ordinary Russian families suffered atrociously under the autocracy, as well as the the direct orders of Romanov family members, equalled only by the rabid communists who followed on.