Grigori Rasputin was one of the most mysterious and infamous figures in Russian history. Born a poor peasant in Siberia in 1869, he gained a reputation as a mystic and a wandering "holy man." In 1905, he arrived in the capital, St. Petersburg, where he captivated many in high society.
His life changed forever when he was introduced to Russia's last royal family, Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra. Their young son, Alexei, suffered from hemophilia, a dangerous condition where a simple bump or bruise could cause life-threatening bleeding. Amazingly, Rasputin seemed able to calm the boy and stop his bleeding episodes when doctors could not. The desperate Tsarina came to believe Rasputin was a man of God, sent to save her son and guide Russia.
This deep trust gave Rasputin enormous, unpopular influence at the royal court. As World War I went badly for Russia, many nobles and citizens grew to hate him. They saw him as a scandalous, corrupt peasant who was controlling the empire through superstition. Fearful of his power, a group of nobles assassinated him in December 1916. They poisoned him, shot him, and finally drowned him in an icy river. His dramatic death foreshadowed the revolution that would destroy the Romanov dynasty just months later. Rasputin's strange story remains a symbol of the confusion and decline of imperial Russia.
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Grigori Rasputin was one of the most mysterious and infamous figures in Russian history. Born a poor peasant in Siberia in 1869, he gained a reputation as a mystic and a wandering "holy man." In 1905, he arrived in the capital, St. Petersburg, where he captivated many in high society.
His life changed forever when he was introduced to Russia's last royal family, Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra. Their young son, Alexei, suffered from hemophilia, a dangerous condition where a simple bump or bruise could cause life-threatening bleeding. Amazingly, Rasputin seemed able to calm the boy and stop his bleeding episodes when doctors could not. The desperate Tsarina came to believe Rasputin was a man of God, sent to save her son and guide Russia.
