The Rasputin File

by Edvard Radzinsky

  Serafim had much to say about the sanctity of royal power. And he often cited the words of King David’s commander Abishai: ‘If all of us should be killed, then at least you, lord, would live. But if you were no more, then what would become of Israel?’ The tsarina also learned of a prophecy written down by Serafim’s admirer Motovilov in 1879. In it Serafim foretold their future rule and their names, Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandra Fyodorovna. He also predicted his own canonization during their reign.

  Serafim was declared the royal family’s patron. And in spite of the Synod’s resistance, Alix forced Nicky to fulfil the prediction: Serafim of Sarov was canonized. And on 16 July 1903, the imperial train arrived at the Arzamas Station, and the entire Romanov family proceeded on foot to Sarov Pustyn and the Diveev Monastery where Serafim of Sarov had lived and prayed. On 18 July 1903, after a solemn mass, the tsar, the clergy, and the grand dukes took outside the coffin containing the holy relics of the Venerated Serafim and carried it around the church. Thus did the tsarina help bring to pass yet another of Serafim’s prophecies transcribed by Motovilov: ‘What joy there will be! The tsar and all his family will come to us.’

  True, there remained another of Serafim’s prophecies of which they were then unaware, the one ‘about terrible future insurrections that will exceed all imagination … about rivers of Russian blood’ that would flow during their reign.

  The unreal world of miracles and prophecies was increasingly becoming Alix’s real world. In Sarov they spent whole evenings by the spring and the rock where Serafim had lifted his voice in prayer. At night she and Nicky would bathe in the waters of the spring, putting their trust in the saint’s help and praying for an heir. Her wait had begun. Serafim, now in the golden chain next to the throne of God, would intercede on their behalf, and she would give birth to a son.

  She was becoming more and more a tsarina from a Kremlin eyrie of the times of the kingdom of Muscovy.

  Adieu To ‘Our First Friend’

  Soon afterwards Our Friend was required to return to Paris. Nikolai Nikolaevich had evidently found it difficult to tolerate the ostracism to which the Romanov family was subjecting him and the Montenegrin sisters. And he explained to Philippe the necessity of his departure.

  In the meantime, Alix’s faith had triumphed. All that she had asked for in her prayers to Saint Serafim had come to pass. From her journal: ‘The Heir Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich was born on Friday 30 July 1904 at 1.15 in the afternoon.’ He was named for their favourite tsar, Alexis Mikhailovich Romanov.

  So she could once again think that she had not believed in Philippe in vain. Everything was as Our Friend had prophesied. She had given life to a beautiful baby, a grey-eyed fairy-tale prince born to rule and arouse admiration.

  Thus ended the dress rehearsal for Rasputin’s appearance at the palace. And in the court and among the great Romanov family the conclusion was formulated: poor, kind Nicky lacked will, and Alix ruled in everything. He regarded the world through her eyes.

  Philippe did not return. As he had predicted, although rather sooner — in 1905, he departed this world. And once again Alix was convinced that she had been right to believe in him. That is why she never forgot him. Many, many years later, during the war, she would write to her husband, ‘our first Friend gave me that Image with the bell to warn me against those, that are not right & it will keep them fr. approaching’ (16 June 1915).

  And now all that remained was for Philippe to carry out his promise — ‘to return in form of another’. How much she needed him in that new form. For the most terrible thing had happened. The long-awaited prince was suffering from a fatal disease inherited from Alix’s family: haemophilia. His fragile blood vessels were unable to withstand the pressure of his blood. The same thing that was taking place outside the palace’s windows, in fact. The empire’s vessels were worn and fragile, too. The autocratic realm was haemorrhaging.

  A Bloody Prologue To His Coming

  First there was the shameful, bloody war with Japan. Nicholas was pushed into the war. The military explained that land could be quietly occupied in Manchuria, and that little Japan would not dare to retaliate. And if it did, then there would be a small war and a great victory. The war turned into a large war of great defeats. ‘It’s painful and distressing,’ Nicholas wrote in his diary. But that was only the beginning. The boy’s disease and next the terrible year of 1905. The defeats in the war. And then another trial was sent, something unprecedented in Russia in the entire three-hundred-year reign of the Romanov dynasty — a revolution.

  The terrible year began with bloodshed — with the massacre of a workers’ demonstration on its way to the Winter Palace. The tsar and his family were in Tsarskoe Selo, and in their absence, the frightened Vladimir Alexandrovich, Nicholas’s uncle, who was in command of the Petersburg garrison, gave the order to shoot. On 9 January, the tsar wrote in his diary, ‘A terrible day … Many were killed and wounded … My God, how painful it is …how dreadful.’ The revolutionaries answered with terror. In Moscow, less than a month later, Ella’s husband, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, was blown apart by a bomb. And Nicholas was haunted by this vision: the bare-headed Ella covered in blood and crawling on her hands and knees among her husband’s remains. And then terrifying days and chaos in the country. A rail strike that cut off Petersburg and Moscow from the interior, and rallies with calls for armed rebellion.

  How she waited for the new man of God to arrive. But they remained alone, with only their prayers and their faith in God. And instead of a man of God nearby, there were their constant guests: the new prime minister, Sergei Witte, and Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich.

  This was the Montenegrin princesses’ finest hour. The ‘dread uncle’ Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich — would become dictator. At the time, it seemed the only way to put down the revolution. The romance of Stana with Nikolai Nikolaevich was in full swing. And if he should become a dictator who triumphed over revolution … In the imaginings of the elated Montenegrins, there was even the possibility of a crown, which the short, weak Nicholas would himself pass on to the country’s saviour. But Nikolai Nikolaevich let them down. Becoming dictator was not something he was prepared to do. The army was far away fighting the Japanese. And to put down the rebellion by force — well, they didn’t have the force. And so he collaborated with Prime Minister Sergei Witte to persuade Nicholas to agree to a constitution.

  At the time the royal family was staying in Peterhof, cut off from the capital by the railway strike, and at court people were already saying that there was a ship lying offshore on which the royal family was going to flee to England.

  The Appearance Of A Miracle-Worker

  It was then that the Montenegrins feverishly sought a Russian miracle-worker. And Militsa brought Feofan to the palace.

  From Feofan’s testimony in the File: ‘The first time I was invited …to the former emperor’s home, it was for a discussion of church matters. Later on, I was invited both for theological discussions and for “communion” with the emperor’s wife, the frequently ill empress Alexandra Fyodorovna.’

  But the straightforward ascetic Feofan could not replace the cunning Philippe. And Ioann of Kronstadt was summoned to Militsa’s palace ever more frequently. Father Ioann, archpriest of Kronstadt Cathedral, was a the time famous throughout Russia. He had been highly esteemed by Nicholas’s father. He was at Alexander III’s bedside at the time of his death And Ioann of Kronstadt’s life had touched congregations both inside the church and beyond. He was endowed with a Christian’s greatest power the gift of healing prayer. People who had reached a point of suffering beyond which the power of science was of no avail came to him for help And he healed them, people of the most varied creeds: Orthodox Christians Jews, Moslems. The entire 20 December 1883 issue of the New Times, tha most respectable of Petersburg newspapers, was filled with expressions of gratitude from those he had helped. The grandmother of Father Alexander Mehn, a celebrated Orthodox cleric, was not only healed b
y him; Ioann predicted that in her Jewish family a grandson would be born who would become an Orthodox priest. He healed Rasputin’s future admirer, the young Vyrubova, as well as Zinaida Yusupova, the mother of Rasputin’ future murderer.

  The Coming Of The Redeemer

  But Ioann was too severe, too burdened by his responsibilities to hi congregation. And then Militsa decided to introduce to the tsarina and Nicky someone who could not fail to make an impression on them Someone she had long cultivated for that meeting. Father Grigory, the wanderer from Siberia. Although she apparently had a foreboding about it So, before introducing him, she made Rasputin swear not to meet with the ‘tsars’ (as he called Alix and Nicky) on his own. As before, he would have to remain under her auspices. He would become the new Philippe whom Alix and Nicky would meet at her home. ‘According to Militsa Nikolaevna Rasputin promised not to try to meet the royal family by himself,’ Feofan testified in the File.

  Militsa was sure of the peasant’s success. Ever since she had seen those hypnotic eyes! It was no accident that Ioann of Kronstadt had taken a liking to Father Grigory. And Feofan, whom the tsarina held in such regard revered him, too. And Metropolitan Sergius himself enjoyed talking to him That was the kind of recommendations he had! And how it had all come together — the prophet, the healer, the man of the people, and the mystical emissary from Holy Rus.

  It was the middle of October 1905, the most terrible time in that terrible year. Nicholas decided to sign the manifesto granting the first Russian constitution, thus bringing down the three-hundred-year autocracy of his ancestors. And close by him in those days were the Montenegrins and Nikolasha (Nikolai Nikolaevich).

  From the tsar’s diary: ‘17 October…We had breakfast with Nikolasha and Stana … We sat and talked, waiting for Witte … I signed the Proclamation at five. After such a day my head felt heavy, and my thoughts were starting to get muddled. Help us, O Lord. Save Russia and grant her peace.’

  ‘20 October. Nikolasha, Militsa, and Stana dined with us.’

  The 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th were all, according to Nicholas’s diary, days when the Montenegrin princesses were visiting. So it was in fact on one of those days that Militsa told Alix about the marvellous Siberian peasant. She was preparing the impressionable Alix, readying her for her gift — a meeting with the prophet of the people. And Militsa had much to talk about. For there were mystical correspondences of the sort the ‘black princess’ was so fond of. Like Serafim of Sarov, Father Grigory (as everyone now called him, avoiding his unpleasant-sounding last name) had left home and wandered widely. And like Serafim of Sarov, he had gone about his village surrounded by women followers. And as with Serafim, there had been calumniation, and his holiness and mystery had been the subject of an investigation. How Alix’s heart must have beat! It all fitted. Philippe had not left them! He had sent them a defender! Just as he had promised, he had come in ‘the form of another’! When all around they were being advised to think about the ship that would carry them out of chaos to England and safety.

  The first of November arrived. The terrible month of October had finally come to an end. It was their last day in Peterhof, and they were preparing to move back to their beloved Tsarskoe Selo. How Alix had waited for the old month to carry away their misfortunes with it. And how significant it was that on the first day of the new month they were going to see the remarkable peasant at Militsa’s.

  From Nicholas’s diary: ‘I November … We went to Sergeevka at four. We had tea with Militsa and Stana. We met the man of God Grigory from the province of Tobol … In the evening I packed and did a good bit of work, and then I spent the rest of the time with Alix.’

  ‘2 November. We drove … to Tsarskoe Selo, arriving at 5.20 … It was good to be back in the cosy old rooms.’

  5

  WITH THE TSARS

  The Seduction

  Rasputin himself recounted what happened that November evening.

  The File, from the testimony of Bishop Feofan: ‘I personally heard from Rasputin that he produced an impression on the former empress at their first meeting. The sovereign, however, fell under his influence only after Rasputin had given him something to ponder.’

  It had not been very difficult for that expert in human faces to see how much she needed him, how tormented she was by the misfortunes that had befallen them, and how much his words about simple peasants and their loyalty had moved her: the people would not let their tsar down. He later reported that first conversation to Iliodor, who, however primitively, set it forth in his book: ‘When revolution raised its head up high, they were very scared … and it was “Let us get our things together” … But I talked to them a long time, persuading them to spit on all their fears, and rule.’ And that made a very great impression on her. It was more complicated with the tsar. The tsar was preoccupied, too busy with the terrible things he had to deal with. And, apparently, he did not really listen to Rasputin. To ‘give him something to ponder’, it would be necessary for Rasputin to meet him again.

  But Militsa, appreciating the impression that he had made on Alix, once again warned the peasant that he must not try to meet with the ‘tsars’ by himself. Otherwise, it would be the end of him.

  ‘My explanation of her warning that it would be the end of Rasputin was that there were many temptations at court and much envy and intrigue, and that Rasputin, as a simple, undemanding wandering pilgrim, would perish spiritually under such circumstances,’ Feofan testified in the File.

  But Rasputin had entirely different plans. And living in the apartment of Feofan, who had such close ties to Militsa, no longer suited him. He needed freedom of action.

  The Charming General’s Wife

  Rasputin in fact already had a number of other places where he could find shelter besides the ascetic Feofan’s shabby apartment. His success in Petersburg had been swift. He had done a great deal since his arrival in the city.

  The witness E. Kazakova testified before the Extraordinary Commission that at that time she ‘saw many important ladies … who looked after him and considered him a man of great righteousness, and who cut his nails and sewed them up to attach to their bodices as mementos’. One such lady was the Petersburg lioness and fashionable salon hostess Olga Lokhtina. She was a little over forty but still very good-looking. At the time she had fallen ill. And Rasputin was invited to heal her. Thus they met for the first time just two days after his meeting with the royal family.

  Olga Lokhtina was interrogated by the Extraordinary Commission in 1917, and her testimony remains in the File:

  I saw Rasputin for the first time on 3 November 1905. By then I had grown disenchanted with society life, having undergone a spiritual change, and I was, besides, very sick with an intestinal neurasthenia, which tied me to my bed. The only way I could move around was by holding onto the wall … The priest Father Medved [at the time one of Rasputin’s loyal admirers] took pity on me and brought Rasputin … From the moment of Father Grigory’s appearance in my home I felt completely restored, and from then on was free of my illness.

  So it was into her apartment that Rasputin decided to move.

  The File, from the testimony of Feofan: ‘He only stayed with me a little while, since I would be off at the seminary for days on end. And it got boring for him … and he moved somewhere else, and then took up residence in Petrograd at the home of the government official Vladimir Lokhtin.’ Colonel Loman, a friend of the Lokhtins, testified in the File: ‘It was an excellent family home. Lokhtina herself was a beautiful woman of fashion and had a really charming little daughter.’

  Father Grigory had chosen their home with care. It was a convenient bridgehead for getting to the royal family. Olga Lokhtina’s husband was an engineer and actual state councillor (a civil rank corresponding to the military rank of general, which is why Lokhtina is often called ‘the general’s wife’). Lokhtin was in charge of paved roads in Tsarskoe Selo. And it was there, sequestered in the ‘cosy rooms’ of the Alexander Palac
e, that the royal family now spent the better part of their time. The heir’s illness, which they had made a state secret, required them to live as virtual recluses in order to protect that secret. But through the Lokhtin family, Rasputin was privy to all the court rumours.

  Several years later photographs of Lokhtina would be published in the largest Petersburg newspapers, and journalists would try to understand what had happened to that charming woman. How had it come to pass that a fashionable salon hostess, a Petersburg beauty, had ended up begging for alms in bare feet and outlandish clothing?

  The peasant impressed her at once. ‘He spoke very interestingly about his life as a wanderer, and during the conversation he hinted at the sins of his listeners and forced their consciences to speak,’ Lokhtina testified. He opened to her a realm of Love and Freedom, where the world of money did not exist and where the only life was that of the spirit. Just a few days after meeting him, the Petersburg matron abandoned her home and daughter and set out with the peasant to his house in Pokrovskoe. Lokhtin gladly let her go so that she could make a complete recovery from her illness in the company of the amazing healer. It did not enter his head to be suspicious of her interest in the uncouth, no longer young peasant.

  From Lokhtina’s testimony in the File: ‘At his invitation, I went to visit him in Pokrovskoe, where I stayed from 15 November to 8 December 1905. Travelling with Rasputin was a great pleasure, for he gave life to the spirit. Along the way he predicted the strike and kept saying, “If only we get there first.” And as soon as we arrived, it started.’ It was not hard to predict strikes in those days, of course. The whole country was in the grip of them. But she was eager for miracles and in Pokrovskoe everything was just as miraculous. She saw a submissive peasant family: