Rasputin's Importance to History, Conclusion

Edited and updated with a Word History October 20, 2014

With Rasputin dead, the public and the members of the Duma (Russian parliament) rejoiced. The problem was, Rasputin was only one of the symptoms of the inadequacy of the Tsar to deal with the problems facing Russia. Most times the Tsar was hundreds of miles away at the military headquarters, known as Stavka, which left the "German Tsarina" in charge of the day-to-day affairs of government. The railway system was by then so inadequate, that it could not deliver food, ammunition, equipment, and other supplies to the troops at the front, and simultaneously deliver even the basics to the cities where food shortages had become extremely serious.

Not long before Rasputin's death, he told some associates that he had a "premonition" of death. Of course, to his supporters, his "supernatural powers" were never in question, and the fact that Rasputin spoke about dying was an ominous sign to them. In reality, Rasputin was hated by many Russians, especially those in the nobility and aristocracy, and it didn't take someone with the brain of Einstein to figure out that many of those same Russians wanted him dead, especially after less drastic means had failed. Further, the conspirators couldn't keep their mouths shut and it seems that the general nature of their plot was hardly a well kept secret in the capitol. A number of historians speculate that with his many contacts, Rasputin undoubtedly got wind that something was afoot involving people close to or even related to the Tsar. Rasputin wrote a letter to the Tsarina that was given to the grieving Alexandra after Rasputin's body was discovered in the river. Essentially the letter told her that he felt that he would be murdered and it made a prediction: if his murderers were from the common people, the Tsar and his family would be safe and Russia would overcome any difficulties, and the monarchy would continue for many years to come. If, on the other hand, the murderers were from the Tsar's family (Grand Duke Dimitri was the Tsar's cousin and Prince Yusupov was married to the Tsar's niece), then, within two years, the Tsar would lose his throne and he and his family would be "killed by the Russian people." The Tsarina, a "true believer," was terrified.

Rasputin's supporters and other people who believe in supernatural nonsense have pointed to this letter as confirmation about Rasputin's ability to see the future. First and foremost, Rasputin WAS very perceptive. Unlike the out-of-touch Tsar and Tsarina, Rasputin saw how the country was spiraling out of control and how the situation had created fear in the public and out and out contempt for the Tsarist government. He certainly was well aware that the nobility absolutely detested him, if for no other reason than that he had access to the palace, but more likely, because he had the Tsarina's ear, and she had the ear of the Tsar. He, a common peasant, had the "seeming" power that they coveted. (I say "seeming," because it is difficult to say how much Rasputin DEFINITELY influenced decisions at the top, but certainly at least somewhat.) It hardly took a genius to figure out that the nobility wanted him dead, especially when the Tsar could not be brought to send Rasputin into exile in Siberia. Further, Rasputin and the nobility saw how the country was tilting more and more toward revolution. Many in the upper classes feared and openly talked about revolution being inevitable, barring major changes by the Tsar, such as exiling Rasputin, keeping the Tsarina out of governmental matters, and the Tsar taking firm control of governing, even ruthlessly,* to right the listing ship of state. I just want to make clear that while it was Alexandra's doing that kept Rasputin in public view, not all blame belongs on her, as it was the Tsar's failure to take the necessary step to keep Rasputin from even appearing to influence governmental decisions by sending him back to his home in Siberia, and that would have meant also keeping his wife out of governmental affairs.

So much is just not documented about Rasputin's life, even his life in the capitol and around the palace, as what certainly would have been the best source about his relationship with the imperial family, the Tsarina Alexandra's diary, was destroyed by her as the revolution broke out.** The Tsar's diary survived, but Nicholas really didn't cover much of his governance in detail in his entries.***

If you have followed this series here, I hope it encourages you to check out more about this historical subject. There was a VERY good movie made about the subject, "Nicholas and Alexandra," released in the early 1970s. It didn't do especially well in America, as unfortunately, many Americans aren't much interested in the history of other countries (maybe not even our own???), and you do need a little knowledge about that era of Russian history to really appreciate the movie. Hey, now that you have a little background, the movie is available on DVD. It is really pretty accurate, too. Naturally it has some historical events compressed to fit the time element of the movie, but those scenes do a good job of making the point. There is a great scene that really captures the essence of the Tsar's inability to use his power to rule the country. In real life, this scene never actually happened, but it still makes the point. It has the Tsar's mother visiting him at the military headquarters as the country was coming apart. The writers have combined a number of visits by other historical persons, who tried to get the Tsar to act, into this one great scene. This is a bit of paraphrasing of the scene: His mother tells Nicholas that she has come to congratulate him. As the situation is a mess, Nicholas asks what she wants to congratulate him for. She gives a very sarcastic answer about how he's succeeded in finding people, seemingly from Russia's lunatic asylums, to fill top positions in his government, and how they are the least qualified people in the country. The real crux of the matter is when she tells "Nicky," as his mother called him, that she wishes his father were still alive. Nicholas was always a bit sensitive in real life about comparison to his huge, bear-like father, who was NEVER afraid to wield power. When he tells his mother not to bring up his father, she retorts that his father knew how to be a Tsar; that he would have defeated the Germans, burned Vienna down (Vienna was the capitol of Austria-Hungary, another Russian enemy in World War I), shot the strikers (the war and food shortages had caused many strikes across the country), and that he would certainly have known how to deal with Rasputin. OUCH!!! Nicholas immediately says that Rasputin is a man of God who keeps his son alive, but his mother quickly asks him if he really believes that. Nicholas sheepishly says that "Sunny" believes it ("Sunny" was Alexandra's nickname since childhood). His mother immediately tells Nicholas, "Hang him!" She tells him that if he doesn't hang Rasputin that he will destroy the country and that millions of Russians will die and all because Nicholas can't say "no" to his wife. There's more to the scene, but it does such a great job of condensing the whole matter of the Tsar's inability to deal with reality.

Rasputin is important to history because, even if he didn't have as much power and influence in actual fact, the public thought he did. His scandalous behavior, even if some of it was exaggerated by the press, was also believed by the general public, and it cast much doubt upon the Tsar's judgment and on the public's confidence in his ability to rule. Further, the public perception that Alexandra was having an affair with this peasant (and she hadn't been all that popular to start with), further undermined the monarchy, especially when the Tsarina was left to run the day to day government during much of World War One. The public then assumed, with at least some justification, that Rasputin was making many of the decisions, as Rasputin did brag in public about his special relationship with the imperial couple, and especially with the Tsarina, although he never really indicated a physical relationship with her. Perhaps more importantly, Rasputin reinforced in the Tsarina Alexandra her own notion of retaining as much of the Tsar's governing powers as possible, even though this went contrary to the views of many elected representatives and of some, likely a substantial, and growing, element of the public. He reassured her already preconceived idea of how loved she and the Tsar were by what she considered the real Russian people, as exemplified by Rasputin, a Siberian peasant. Now, Rasputin did not bring down the Romanovs all by himself, but he certainly gave the 300 year old dynasty a big push toward the cliff, as his own actions and reputation tarnished public respect for the Tsar and the tsarist system

If the monarchy had fallen and Russia had become some shining example of democracy and social fairness, history probably wouldn't care as much about him, but that didn't happen. Instead, the Bolsheviks ended up overthrowing the original revolutionary government in their own revolution, and there were ruthless and vengeful people among the Bolsheviks, willing to do anything to firmly establish their power. The tsarist system had filled many with bitterness and hatred, and it came roaring to the forefront when they took over. Much blood was spilled, including that of the entire imperial family, and many other Romanovs, nobles and aristocrats, as well as that of anyone suspected of opposing Bolshevik rule. Plus, there was really a Russian civil war for a couple of years, between the Bolsheviks and pro-monarchists, before the Bolsheviks finally gained total control, as well as a war with Poland for a couple of years beginning in 1919. Bolshevik/Communist rule may have brought down the rule of the wealthy, but it came at a severe price in freedom, as many a Soviet citizen paid with his or her life, or spent periods in Soviet prisons or labor camps. All subsequent events of Soviet rule, including the domination of eastern Europe after World War Two until circa 1990, trace back to the fall of the Tsar. That's why Rasputin is important to history.

There are many books about Rasputin, and even more books on the Russia of that time period, including about Nicholas and Alexandra. Books about Rasputin range from what I feel are serious historical works, by authors who presented their cases based on their own interpretations and perspectives of the information they researched on Rasputin, as many things about the man are really opinions, with some actual documentation upon which to base those opinions. There are also books that present lots of "claims" about Rasputin, and lots of scandal stories, but in my opinion, they rely too much on questionable sources. I've read so many books about this subject, that I did much of this series from memory, but I did check certain details and reread some passages to refresh my memory on some events (hey, I'm not Einstein!). It's difficult to credit certain books or articles (there was also a television documentary or two in the 1990s, as the fall of Communism had reinvigorated a desire to study that period in Russian history), except to list the actual books I've read, even though I may not have consulted each of these when I did the series. (I consulted this book) "The Rasputin File," by Edvard Radzinsky, published by Nan A. Talese/Doubleday, a division of Random House Inc., New York, 2000; "The Man Who Killed Rasputin-Prince Youssoupov and The Murder That Helped Bring Down The Russian Empire, by Greg King, published by Carol Publishing Group, Secaucus, N.J., 1995; "Rasputin-A Life" by Joseph T. Fuhrmann, published by Praeger, New York, 1990; (I consulted this book) "Rasputin-Rascal Master," by Jane Oakley, published by St. Martins Press, New York, 1989; "Rasputin-The Saint Who Sinned," by Brian Moynahan, published by Random House, New York, 1997; (I consulted this book) "The Life And Times of Grigorii Rasputin," by Alex De Jonge," published by Coward, McCann and Geoghegan, New York, 1982, (I consulted this book) "The Last Empress-The Life and Times of Alexandra Feodorovna, Tsarina of Russia," by Greg King, published by Birch Lane Press/Carol Publishing Group, New York/Secaucus, N.J., 1994.
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* Keep in mind, Russia was NOT a real democracy, although the manifesto signed in 1905 by Nicholas had granted some basic rights. The Tsar had almost all power and the Russian people expected him to use it, even ruthlessly, to save the country. In some of the post-Communist period interviews of Russians still alive from the Tsarist era, it was interesting that a few people even mentioned how Nicholas was just too weak, and that he had power, but refused to use it. And a couple of these people had been Bolsheviks!!!

** Many Americans think only of the Russian Revolution as the revolution that brought the Bolsheviks (later called Communists) to power. This is not completely true. There was a revolution in March of 1917 that actually deposed the Tsar. He abdicated when his train was stopped by revolutionaries while heading back to the capitol. At first he wanted to abdicate in favor of his son, Alexei, but after consulting with the boy's physician, he abdicated for both he and his son, with the hope that his brother, Michael, would take the throne, but Michael did not; thus ending the monarchy. When I say brother, I mean the Tsar's brother, to make that clear, as again, Alexei was the Tsar's only son. The revolutionaries had planned to keep the monarchy at that time, and the government, that was called the "Provisional Government," and headed by Alexander Kerensky, hoped to hold elections to establish a democratic government. The Provisional Government's support of the unpopular war caused it to lose the confidence of many Russians and gave the Bolsheviks an opening later in the year to overthrow the government and establish a Bolshevik government in a second revolution, and it is that revolution that is known to many Americans, at least vaguely.

*** The Tsarina began keeping another diary and that diary survived her execution. It includes much about the family's captivity, first as prisoners of the Provisional Government and then as prisoners of the Bolsheviks.

WORD HISTORY:
Beard-This word, most commonly used for rather extensive facial hair, goes back to Indo European "bhard-ha," which meant "beard." This gave Old Germanic "bardaz," with the same meaning. ^ This then gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "beard" (likely pronounced back then like, "bee-ard"). Relatives in the other Germanic languages: German "Bart," Low German Saxon "Boort," Dutch "baard," West Frisian "burd."

^ I'm a bit curious as to why none of the languages from the North Germanic branch (primarily Icelandic, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish) of Germanic have forms of the word. Did it die out so long ago, there is no record of any such word? East Germanic (Gothic, Vandalic, Burgundian) had a form, but the East Germanic languages have all died out.