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Thursday, May 02, 2019


Just Finished Reading: Four Sisters – The Lost Lives of the Romanov Grand Duchesses by Helen Rappaport (FP: 2014)

It was all for love. Princess Alix of Hesse, grand-daughter of Queen Victoria, was besotted with her third cousin, Nicholas Alexandrovich heir to the Russian throne. Luckily for Alix the young future emperor had already fallen for the ethereal beauty and would let nothing stand in his way – the fact that she was German, the fact that she was Lutheran rather than Orthodox and the fear that she carried the taint associated with Victoria’s children. Against all of the odds they finally married and, despite many misgivings, determined the rule the vast Russian Empire and bring it within the modernised European fold. But first the young bride must perform her most sacred duty – she must produce an heir to the Romanov throne. Soon the announcement was made – the Empress was with child. Hopes were raised and then dashed when a girl was born – Olga. After a troubled birth and a short recovery a second pregnancy was announced. Hopes raised again and were again dashed with the birth of a second girl – Tatiana. Rumours began to fly. The family were cursed. Russia had been abandoned by God. The Empress was deliberately producing girls to undermine the Empire at the behest of Germany. With pressure for a male heir grew Alix became pregnant again and produced a third girl – Maria. The country was convulsed in an existential panic. Without a male heir the line of succession was blurred and subsidiary houses began jostling for position. As the political climate darkened and rumours intensified a fourth pregnancy was announced. The tension built until the birth of a fourth child – yet another girl: Anastasia. With the Empresses health declining and everything riding on her ability to produce an heir her fifth pregnancy had the fate of the Empire riding on it. Could the birth of a fifth girl be the end of her reign if not her husbands? To everyone’s relief the fifth child was the long awaited male heir – Alexey. The country rejoiced. At long last the Romanov dynasty was saved. But what few knew was that when the umbilical cord has been cut it bled, and bled, and bled. It was an outcome scarcely imagined and a word that was only spoken in whispers behind closed doors – haemophilia. As the political situation in Russia slowly spiralled out of control and the war against Germany going badly the Romanov’s drew in on themselves and became exiles in their own country. Increasingly isolated and out of touch with the prevailed mood of the people and their aristocratic ruling elite their championing of the radical monk Rasputin, apparently the only one who could stop Alexey’s bleeding did nothing to reassure them that the country was in good hands. With revolution in the air the Empress decided to stay in place, wait for her husband’s return and look after her sick children struck down with measles. Too late she learnt the error of her choice as the palace was surrounded and later occupied by rough Bolshevik forces. Now the fate of the Romanovs and that of the Revolution were entwined for good or ill.

Although I knew the rough details of the end of the Romanov imperial family I had no real idea of the detail of their slow demise and sudden end in a dank cellar in Ekaterinburg. I certainly know a LOT more now – maybe too much. The author’s attention was on the family and their life away from the public eye. What I would’ve liked is more about what was going on in the wider Russian world and how that impacted on the Romanov’s existence. There was some of that but, I thought, not enough to ground things fully in the historical and political context. The only real point of view presented was from the Romanov family and their immediate retainers with the occasional insight from visitors who left records of their impressions. I can certainly see why it won an award. As a family history it’s very good. I guess that I was expecting much more from the revolutionary side of things. Interesting for anyone looking for a more rounded view of the Russian revolution.           

5 comments:

mudpuddle said...

i looked into this business once: depressing and sad... Rasputin was quite a character, tho... back when i read about him they didn't know whether he died from poison, being shot, or drowning, since he experienced all three at the same time...

CyberKitten said...

Yes, 'unfortunately' he appeared to be immune to cyanide so they had to shoot him... and then throw him in the river just to be sure.

Brian Joseph said...

Sounds interesting. I also would have longed for a wider political context. Muddpuddle is correct, Rasputin was one heck of a character.

Judy Krueger said...

I have always felt sorry for the Empress.

CyberKitten said...

@ Brian: More about the political side of the Russian Revolution to come.... The author made an interesting statement regarding Rasputin early on in her book in that there's so much myth and misrepresentation of him that we'll *never* know the real person.

@ Judy: As far as I can tell she only had two ambitions - to be a good wife to Nicholas and a good mother to her 5 children. She could care less about being Empress of Russia. That I think was the real tragedy of her life.