100 лет без Царя: Почему Царственные Страстотерпцы нужны миру сегодня

Колоризация выполнена россйской художницей Ольгой Ширниной

2018 – знаменует собой 150 годовщину рождения царя Николая Второго. Это также сотая годовщина со дня расстрела царской семьи со слугами в подвале Ипатьевского дома в Екатеринбрге комиссарами в ночь с 16 на 17 июля 1918 года. Обе эти даты вызывают многочисленные дискуссии в СМИ, книгах, конференциях, фильмах. Можно задать себе вопрос, почему имеет смысл вспоминать и размышлять об этих датах и об их героях, ведь с тех пор прошло столько лет! Что те события и люди могут значить для нас сегодняшних?

Царственные Страстотерпцы означают очень многое сегодня для России, мира и каждого из нас. Этих связей такое количество, что невозможно их все обсудить в короткой статье, и поэтому я коснусь лишь трех, которые касаются всех. Подробное изучение реального наследия, которое оставил после себя Николай Второй и его семья на самом деле только начинается сегодня, спустя сто лет со дня их кончины. Правда только сейчас начинает появляться на поверхности, и ее осмысление приведет к новым дискуссиям и публикации многих новых томов. В пример можно привести конференцию «Николай Второй: император, царь, святой», которую организует в Лондоне в октябре 2018 года энтузиаст наследия Романовых американец Пол Гилберт, или книгу «История России, которую приказали забыть» российского исследователя А. Борисюка, в которой опровергается много укоренившихся мифов, связанных с Россией времен Николая Второго.

Прежде всего Царственные Страстотерпцы важны сегодня и всегда потому, что они святые, и как святые они ежедневно ведут множество людей к Христу через поклонение их иконам и их памяти. Сами Царственные Страстотерпцы молятся за нас на Небесах и тем самым помогают нам выживать в нашем неспокойном и зыбком мире. Они являют собой пример жизни во Христе, которую каждый верующий человек должен пытаться достичь. Они были такими же людьми как все, много падали, но поднимались и продолжали свой путь в раскаянии и смирении, которое они приобрели осознав свои человеческие слабости. Будучи сами влиятельными людьми они научились верить в Бога, в Его добрую волю по отношению к ним несмотря ни на что. Эта вера есть ценнейшее духовное качество. Веря и борясь со страстями они стали духовными источниками для тех, кто хочет постичь святую мудрость православного христианства.

Во-вторых, история царя Николая Второго напоминает нам о достоинствах монархического устройства государства, особенно, когда им управляет миропомазанный благодетельный царь. Все мы с детства слышали истории о том, какие плохие бывают цари и короли. Однако редко говорится о том, что в истории человечества было множество хороших монархов. На самом деле, если вдуматься, то становится ясно, что какой бы ни был монарх, он должен поддерживать порядок в своей стране, должен если не поощрять, то хотя бы защищать религию, науку и культуру, должен представлять независимое третье лицо в судах, должен иметь монополию на применение насилия, и т.д. Именно монархия привела этот мир в то состояние процветания и безопасности, в котором мы находимся сейчас, хотя бы и в разной мере. Ведь еще двести лет назад кроме монархии не было ничего; распространение демократии относится к новейшим временам. Без монархии в истории человечества жизнь человека была бы ровно по Гоббсу, беспростветной, звериной и короткой, и возможно человечество не дожило бы до настоящего момента. Так что монархия – это одна из причин выживания человечества. Насильственный отказ от монархии всегда сопровождается гражданскими войнами, экономической отсталостью, голодом, моральным упадком, массовой миграцией населения.

Споры вокруг роли монархии часто касаются не собственно современных монархий: в них все как раз в относительном порядке и благополучии. Достаточно перечислить европейские монархии (Великобритания, Бельгия, Нидерланды, Люксембург, Испания и др.), азиатские монархии (Япония, Саудовская Аравия, Бруней, Кувейт, Катар, Иордания, Бахрейн, Оман и др.), африканские и полинезийские монархии. Главными антимонархическими аргументами в таких спорах являются судьбы бывших монархий, которые сменили способ управления на демократический и достигли при этом новом способе управления серьезных экономических и культурных успехов: США, Франция, Германия, Италия и т.д.

Напомню, что все эти страны прошли через свое «чистилище» войн, отсталости, упадка после отказа от монархий. Они могут думать, что тяжелые времена для них позади, но это не так. Время от времени демократические выборы в этих странах производят лидеров, так сказать, сомнительного качества. Проблема такого выбора состоит в том, что он меняет систему координат для всей нации со значительным ущербом для ее стабильности, преемственности и самоидентификации. На самом деле демократия может просто уничтожить саму себя своим выбором, добовольно отдав узды правления в руки авторитарного режима, который в интересах сохранения власти может демократию отменить.

Современные монархии это не просто маяки благотворительности, традиции, старого и доброго качества. Королевская власть, передаваемая по наследству, в принципе стоит над четырехгодичным избирательным циклом и поэтому она может принимать важную и активную роль в ситуациях типа «Соломонов Суд», конечно же по имени древнеиудейского царя Соломона. С деталями этой истории можно ознакомиться в Ветхом Завете (3 Цар. 3:16-28). Здесь же важно упомянуть, что в этой истории Царь Соломон проявил независимость и мудрость стороннего судьи, а сами спорящие не могли бы принять мудрого решения своей проблемы, потому что были слишком разгорячены своим спором. Подобную стороннюю мудрость и эффективность проявила Королева Великобритании посетив Ирландию в 2011 году и таким образом признав ее независимость. Такую же мудрость в 2016 году проявила представитель Британской Короны в канадской Британской Колумбии Джудит Гушон когда она приняла историческое решение, отдав власть одному из политических лидеров в споре между лидерами двух оппозиционных партий, набравших примерно одинаковое количество голосов на выборах и требовавших дорогих перевыборов.

Монарх это душа нации, он (или она) может представлять собой благодетельную или не очень благодетельную душу. И как у человека, чем благодетельнее душа нации, тем лучше живется этой нации. Николай Второй был очень благодетельным царем и в результате при нем Россия процветала. Сейчас опубликовано много исследований его настоящей роли в печальных событиях, произошедших в его правление: Ходынская Давка, Кровавое Воскресенье, отречение от престола. Все эти новые исследования свидетельствуют о невиновности Николая Второго в этих трагедиях, о его исключительно доброй воле в принятии тех или иных решений. Кроме того, нельзя забывать, что его правление не было изолированным, оно собрало многие сомнительные плоды, заложенные политикой предыдущих Романовых (закон о «кухаркиных детях», «черта оседлости» и т.д.). В любом случае, при Николае Втором Россия развивалась стремительно, и если бы не падение монархии, Россия вполне могла бы лидировать на современной политической арене как пример для подражания (а не как всеобщий изгой).

Наконец, особенно сегодня царская семья напоминает нам о важной роли традиционных ценностей в личной жизни людей. Традиционные ценности подвергаются массивной атаке, им практически нет места в литературе, кино, и даже законах. Их высмеивают или очерняют вместо того чтобы защищать или продвигать их. То что раньше считалось проявлением крайности, болезненности или даже нарушением закона, сегодня становится нормой: «гаржданские» браки, облегчение процедуры развода, выбор пола и сексуальной ориентации, легализация использования наркотиков и т.д. Все эти «свободы» вносят значительную сумятицу в сознание людей, заставляют их совершать необдуманные поступки, которые потом меняют всю их жизнь и часто – не в лушую сторону. Сконфуженные легально открывающимися «возможностями», мы забываем о том, что традиционные отношения между людьми это то, что делает нас по-настоящему счастливыми. Царская семья напоминает нам об этом. Они прошли вместе множество серьезнейших испытаний: огромное политическое давление, необходимость главе семьи проводить много времени вдали от семьи, неизвлечимая и страшная болезнь царевича Алексея, трудности в воспитании пятерых детей в скромности, а не в роскоши, и т.д. Но их любовь, поддержка друг друга, вера в Бога и в благодетельность Его порядка были настолько сильны, что все негативное в их жизни исчезало, а семья становилась все крепче с каждым новым испытанием. Силу традиционных семейных отношений, их способность наполнять счастьем и благодарностью жизнь всех ее членов необходимо ценить, а соответствующие религиозные законы – уважать. Семья Романовых является сегодня живым примером, который нам напоминает: счастье в традиционных отношениях существует и оно вполне достижимо. Да, над ним необходимо работать всем участникам этих отношений, но результаты принесут прекрасные плоды семейного и личного счастья.

Стоит размышлять о Царственных Страстотерпцах и об их подвиге, потому что своей судьбой они шлют послание практически каждому из нас в диапазоне от личных до общественных отношений. К счастью, сегодня открывается много ценных ресурсов об их судьбе и об их роли в истории России. Только сейчас, через сто лет после их мученической кончины истинный смысл их истории начинает осознаваться миром, который запутался в «ложных» новостях, «дополненной» реальности и размытых ориентирах. Если есть возможность, стоит посетить места, связанные с их судьбой, и с тем, что было важным для Романовых внутри и вне России. Есть большой смысл в том, чтобы изучать их судьбы подробно, потому что их уроки очень важны для современного мира.

On the Iconography of the Royal Passion-Bearers

The main reference point of any true Orthodox Christian icon should be eternity. An icon is a witness to the Heavenly Kingdom which cannot be a subject for personal interpretation. The saints are the people who became Christ’s vessels and each icon must demonstrate this spiritual truth. As the Second Council of Nicaea determined: “The honour paid to an image traverses it, reaching the Model, and he who venerates the image, venerates the person represented in that image”. Thus, by venerating the saints depicted in icons we actually venerate Him Who made their sainthood possible. Therefore, veneration of saints and icons has nothing to do with idolatry.

Creating a new icon is not an easy task. It requires not only knowing iconography, artistic mastery and diligently following the canon, but also a deep religious feeling on the part of the author, their ability to reject their sinful subjective “take on it” for the purpose of creating dogmatic, objective, historically-correct and eternal content.

Canonization of thousands of Russian Martyrs and Confessors of the 20th century has brought about the task of creating numerous icons of these saints. That task is difficult in itself but to add to its complexity there have been differences in which Churches canonized this or that saint. To illustrate this point it can be mentioned that canonization of the Royal Passion-Bearers by the Russian Orthodox Church took place in 2000, while the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia canonized them in 1981, and the Russian Orthodox Catacomb (True) Church canonized them in 1928. Obviously there were some differences in understanding their sainthood and that might be reflected in the icons.

The discussion of the iconography of the Royal Passion-Bearers should also touch upon the definition of who passion-bearers are. The idea of passion-bearing has its root in the New Testament, as in “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Tim. 2:3). Being a good soldier of Jesus Christ means conquering evil with love, not with evil; not fighting back but acting in a Christian-like manner. Passion-bearers usually belong to noble families and they go through martyrdom for their faith and at the hands of their own people, not external enemy. They hold to their faith with piety and true love of God, and they perish because of wrath, greed, cunning, or treachery. They demonstrate with their own example that true Christian “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth” (1 Cor. 13:6). For all these reasons passion-bearers are particularly revered in their own lands. Such saints as Russian princes Boris and Gleb (†1015), Prince Igor II of Kiev (†1147) were among the first passion-bearers in the Russian land. Passion-bearers are often depicted with a cross in their hands as a symbol of their martyrdom.

The entire Imperial Family of Russia executed by the Bolsheviks in July 1918 were canonized as passion-bearers. This is reflected in their icons. In them we can see the Romanov family each holding a cross of their own as a symbol of their martyrdom. We usually see them together: Nicholas, Alexandra, their son and heir to the Russian throne Alexei are in the middle; the Royal Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia are around them.

Their attire can be different: from humble military uniforms on Nicholas and Alexei to the full royal costume including the Monomakh’s Cap ornamented with gold, precious stones and fur. We can see such symbols of royal power as a scepter with an orb and cross, as well as rich red ornamented cloaks, sometimes with white spotted ermine neckpiece on Nicholas and Alexandra. The Grand Duchesses might wear white cloaks.

Their attire is not viewed similarly by icon-painters. There has been an argument that Nicholas II did abdicate from the Russian throne and therefore he cannot be depicted with symbols of royal power as he was not technically a Tsar at his martyrdom. While it is true – technically – it goes without saying that Nicholas was murdered by Bolsheviks because he remained a Tsar in their eyes and in the eyes of the Russian people. This heinous act was not just a petty murder of a prominent person. This murder was supposed to produce a mystical effect because the commissars wanted to destroy the monarchy, thus in effect destroying the God-pleasing order in Russia to start building there a satanic dominion instead.

Our Lady "Derzhavnaya" icon

The composition of the icon can be completed with the image of Jesus Christ, Who is blessing the Passion-Bearers, or two angels with the icon Our Lady Derzhavnaya (“The Sovereign”) above. There should be an inscription “Royal Passion-Bearers” with the name of each member of the family. The royal family must be featured in any icon of the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia, preferably in the centre.

As in any icon it is very important to understand the symbolic meaning of the colors used to create an icon. For the Royal Passion-Bearers it is often red, white, green, and gold. Red being the color of blood stands for their flaming faith, self-sacrifice and Paschal joy at once. The Byzantine tradition attaches red to royalty (think of Byzantine emperors being Porphyrogenitus, or born in the Purple Chamber of the Great Palace of Constantinople). The Our Lady Derzhavnaya (“The Sovereign”), the most favourite monarchist icon, is done in red-purple, for example. White is the color of eternity and the Pre-eternal Power. It is the color of sainthood, piety and purity of souls, of physical virginity. Gold is the color of God’s Grace. Golden are usually halos of the saints. Green is the color of life and restoration of Great Russia for which cause the Royal Passion-Bearers shed their blood.

With a lot of various icons today believers sometimes ask which icons they should choose to revere. Good advice would be to choose such an icon that is close to them. There has been some discussion around icons of separate members of the royal family. It can be argued that while being a step away from the canon requiring the canonized family to be always depicted together (and thus being a patron of a traditional Christian family, as well as the symbol of Great Imperial Russia), it is not a violation of the canon if each member of the family is depicted separately, as each of them represents some particular quality believers would seek: be it religious consolation and protection for nurses (Tsarina Alexandra), protection for Christian children and people with issues of blood (Prince Alexei), protection for Christian girls (Duchesses Romanov), or the royal and pious father figure of Nicholas II.

(Translated from Russian-language sources)

"Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life”

Dr. Botkin's icon

This quote from the Book of Revelation (Rev. 2:10) applies perfectly to the faithful servants who stayed with the Royal Passion-Bearers Tsar Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra Fyodorovna, their children Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, and Grand Prince Alexei until their martyrdom in the basement of the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg during the night of July 16-17, 1918. Those servants chose to accompany their masters into imprisonment – and together with the Romanovs they were either shot, bayoneted or clubbed to death by commissars. Their bodies then were stripped, mutilated, burned and allegedly disposed of in a field called Porosenkov Log in the Koptyaki forest near Ekaterinburg. Those faithful servants were the court physician Dr. Yevgeny Botkin (depicted in the icon), the cook Ivan Kharitonov, Tsarina’s maid Anna Demidova, lady in waiting Anastasia Hendrikova. The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia canonized them as new martyrs. Some of the servants were not Russian Orthodox (although Christian), like the Roman Catholic footman Alexei Trupp and Lutheran tutor of Russian Catherine Schneider, yet they were canonized as new martyrs too. All these people were literally faithful to the Tsar and his family unto death, and each of them duly received their crown of life in the Heavens.

It is hard to give a full account of their lives in one short article; however it is possible to tell the story of one of them – as it is a story of how faith led these people through their lives determining their life choices, and brought them to serve the Romanov family with whom they received their saintly crowns. The life story of the royal family physician Yevgeny (Eugene) Botkin illustrates just that.

Yevgeny Botkin was born in 1865 to the family of Sergey Botkin who had been a court physician under Russian Tsars Alexander II (1818-1881) and Alexander III (1845-1894). Yevgeny studied medicine at Universities of St. Petersburg, Berlin and Heidelberg. His PhD thesis (1893) was devoted to the immunology of blood. It received glowing endorsement from his academic opponent, the famous Russian physician and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Ivan Pavlov.

Being a brilliant physician himself Botkin could easily choose to become a highly paid practitioner for the rich in the best and safest cities of the world and to live a life of luxury and comfort. Yet he chose to work in a hospital for the poor in St. Petersburg and then to join the Russian army in Manchuria (now China). “Medicine was his true calling” – wrote his brother Peter, - “he was born to help those in dire straits, to succor, to soothe, to heal without end – even at the expense of his own well-being”.

To understand those choices it must be mentioned that from his early childhood Yevgeny Botkin was deeply religious Orthodox Christian. It was not earthly comforts but the integrity of his eternal soul that interested him, and the soul of any human being wants to be closer to God, whether we realize it or not. Botkin knew it quite well. As a physician he was seeing the human body as God’s unique creation and deep mystery. This sight inspired him with religious awe and humility. He wrote: “Let us approach the sick people with Christian love, let us see how we can be helpful both for their body and soul… The medical profession gives us a unique perspective and understanding of the workings of the human body. And the more we find out about how our bodies work, the more admiration one cannot help but feel for the wisdom of God who created us. It is striking how everything within us is purposeful and harmonious”. One does not have to work for the rich to understand this. Helping the poor in St. Petersburg and the wounded in Manchuria gave him lots of opportunities to become an experienced Christian physician. God took care of the rest leading Botkin safely on his path from St. Petersburg to front lines in China and then – to the Russian Royal Court!

As the Russian-Japanese war broke out in 1904 Dr. Botkin joined the army to head the Medical branch of the Russian Red Cross in Manchuria. His friends wrote that Dr. Botkin was very busy as an administrator, yet he managed to secure a lot of time at the front line. He received many distinctions for his military service including military orders for heroic deeds. There, by the front line, he wrote one of the best accounts of that war. His book was published under the title “Light and shadows of the Russian-Japanese war of 1904-1905”. Tsarina Alexandra Fyodorovna read it. When the position of the court physician became vacant in 1908 she requested that Dr. Yevgeny Botkin be offered it. As they say, the rest is history.

Since that moment the lives of Dr. Botkin and the Romanov family became intertwined. He was accompanying the royal family wherever they went, especially demanded was his superb knowledge of blood diseases as he was often tending to the young Prince Alexei who had the blood condition of hemophilia. Botkin was so dedicated to the Romanovs that he did not leave them when his own eldest son was killed in action during the First World War, or when the Romanovs were exiled to Ekaterinburg. There in exile the commissars offered to him, as well as to other servants, the choice to leave Ekaterinburg and to go home as they were not related to the Romanovs. In other words this offer meant an imminent death verdict to the royal family while providing a safe escape for the rest. Dr. Botkin together with others chose to stay with the Romanovs, although he did have a family of his own.

Dr. Botkin’s letters from the exile are filled with truly Christian spirit: no complaints or resentment but quiet confidence in the path chosen and even joy. He wrote to his family: “What we have here is prayer and trust in God’s mercy, and that’s enough for us as only they do help”. He also set up a clinic to treat Ekaterinburg locals making no distinction between supporters or enemies of the royal family.

His brother Peter recalled later: "He was never like other children. Always sensitive, of a delicate, inner sweetness of extraordinary soul, he had a horror of any kind of struggle or fight. We, other boys, would fight with a fury. He would not take part in our combats, but when our pugilism took on a dangerous character he would stop the combatants at risk of injuring himself”. The boy’s peacefulness grew into a power that cannot be overcome. Botkin’s and other faithful servants’ lives reveal to us once again that in this world only good can conquer evil, and that death can trample death.

Pray to God for us, righteous Passion-Bearer Yevgeny the Physician!

The Lost Lives of Grand Duchesses Romanov

Grand Duchesses and the Romanov daughters – Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia (†1918) – so little had been written about them, aside from passing comments in a handful of contemporary memoirs and things said about them in family letters and diaries. They led very protected lives, attendance at Russian court functions and the occasional ball was a rare treat, as too were trips to opera and ballet in St. Petersburg with their Father, Emperor of Russia Nicholas II. In their childhood the four sisters lived a quiet family life at home at the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoe Selo, where the family had close ranks to protect Prince Alexei from harm. Their summers were spent sailing on the imperial yacht, the Shtandart, round the Finnish skerries, or at the Lower Dacha at Peterhof by the Gulf of Finland, or at their beloved White Palace in Livadia, Crimea.

They signed some of their letters as OTMA, short for their names. Yet behind the scenes they were four very different personalities. Their letters and diaries reveal their lovely voices full of hope, of love, and of undying optimism – a belief in the basic goodness of people no matter how difficult and frightening their circumstances.

As the girls grew older speculation inevitably mounted about whom they might eventually marry, and all kinds of dynastic pairings were suggested. But all talk of marriage evaporated when the Great War broke out in 1914. Their personal lives aside forever, the war years revealed a different, sober, and suddenly grown-up side to the girls.

Next day the Great War broke out Tsarina Alexandra signed up the three elder daughters to be nurses in a military hospital. There the Romanov daughters were not spared any of the shock of their first confrontation with the suffering of the wounded and the terrible damage done to their bodies by bombs, sabres and bullets. They were thrown in at the deep end, dealing with men who arrived “dirty, bloodstained and suffering... Our hands scrubbed in antiseptic solutions, we began the work of washing, cleaning and bandaging maimed bodies, mangled faces, blinded eyes, all the indescribable mutilations of what is called civilized warfare” – they wrote in their diaries. Family tutor Pierre Gilliard observed that the Grand Duchesses “with their usual natural simplicity and good humour… accepted the increasing austerity of life at Court during the War... They were not playing at being nurses – which I observed in other aristocratic ladies – but were true sisters of mercy”.

The brisk and efficient Tatiana (b. 1897) was the absolute linchpin of the royal family: “She had inherited her mother's nature: strength of character, a tendency to keeping life in order, and an awareness of her duty. She took charge of organizing things in the house. She watched over Alexei. She always walked with the Emperor in the yard. She was the closest person to the Empress. They were two friends... If the family had lost Alexandra Feodorovna, then its protector would have been Tatiana Nikolaevna”.

Olga (b. 1895) was gentle and soft-hearted. In many ways she was Tatiana's opposite, so much easier to love, for she had inherited her father's warm, disarming charm. Unlike Tatiana, Olga hated being organized and loathed housework. With her love of books and preference for solitude, it seemed in their exile in 1918 she understood the situation considerably more than the rest of the family and was aware of how dangerous it was. Olga's finely tuned nature clearly predisposed her to a sense of impending tragedy, accentuated by her love of poetry and her increasing concentration, in her reading, on religious texts. She wrote to her friends: “Father asks me to tell all who have remained loyal to him and those over whom they might have an influence, that they should not avenge him, for he has forgiven everyone and prays for them all; that they should not themselves seek revenge; that they should remember that the evil there now is in the world and it will become yet more powerful, and that it is not evil that will conquer evil – only love”.

Of all the Romanov sisters, sweet, accommodating Maria (b. 1899) remained the most self-effacing, her consistently loving and stoical personality inviting the least amount of comment or criticism. Everyone, including the red guards and even the commissar, adored her. She was the archetypal, wholesome Russian girl “kind-hearted, cheerful, with an even temper, and friendly”.

Anastasia (b.1901) had an irrepressible personality; she was “the family's cheer-leader who kept everyone's spirits up with her high energy and mimicry”. She certainly could be juvenile at times, challenging authority in the classroom. But all in all, [in their exile], her “gay and boisterous temperament proved of immeasurable value to the rest of the family”, for when she chose to, “Anastasia could dispel anybody's gloom”.

Everyone who spent the last months in 1918 with the family noticed their quiet fortitude in the face of so much desperate uncertainty. “My respect for the Grand Duchesses only grew the longer our exile lasted” - recalled family doctor Botkin, “Every time the Emperor enters the dining room with a sad expression on his face the Grand Duchesses push each other with their elbows and whisper: “Papa is sad today. We must cheer him up”. And so they proceeded to do so. They would begin to laugh, to tell funny stories, and, in a few minutes, His Majesty begins to smile”.

When the daughters were leaving for Ekaterinburg, the place of their martyrdom (where the rest of the family was already under arrest), a local engineer who was at the station suddenly caught sight of three young women dressed in pretty dark suits with large fabric buttons whom he recognized as the Grand Duchesses: “They walked unsteadily, or rather unevenly. I decided that this was because each one was carrying a very heavy suitcase and also because the surface of the road had become squelchy from the incessant spring rain... They passed by very close and very slowly. I stared at their lively, young, expressive faces somewhat indiscreetly – and during those two or three minutes I learned something that I will not forget till my dying day. It felt that my eyes met those of the three unfortunate young women just for a moment and that when they did I reached into the depths of their martyred souls, as it were, and I was overwhelmed by the pity for them – me, a confirmed revolutionary. Without expecting it, I sensed that we Russian intellectuals, we who claim to be the precursors and the voice of conscience, were responsible for the undignified ridicule to which the Grand Duchesses were subjected... We do not have the right to forget, nor to forgive ourselves for our passivity and failure to do something for them”.

As the young women passed him, the engineer was struck by how “everything was painted on those young, nervous faces: the joy of seeing their parents again, the pride of oppressed young women forced to hide their mental anguish from hostile strangers, and, finally, perhaps, a premonition of imminent death... Olga, with the eyes of a gazelle, reminded me of a sad young girl from a Turgenev novel. Tatiana gave the impression of a haughty patrician with an air of pride in the way she looked at you. Anastasia seemed like a frightened, terrified child, who could, in different circumstances, be charming, light-hearted and affectionate...”

That engineer was, forever after, haunted by those faces. He felt – indeed he hoped - “that the three young girls, momentarily at least, sensed that what was imprinted on my face wasn't simply a cold curiosity and indifference towards them”. His natural human instincts had made him want to reach out and acknowledge them, but – “to my great shame, I held back out of weakness of character, thinking of my position, of my family”.

This was the last account of meeting the Romanov daughters alive and free...

Prince Alexei Romanov: A Short and Bright Life

Look at the icon of New Martyrs and Confessors of the Russian Orthodox Church and you will see something very important. There is a boy standing in front of all the great martyrs and confessors who defended the Faith in its darkest hour in Russia. He is up there like the main intercessor before God for all people. How come a boy’s prayers can be so powerful and important to God?

We know that a child’s prayer is always particularly dear to God, and that’s why it’s always a good idea to teach kids to pray. The Russian Orthodox Church is very lucky and unique in the fact that it has a child as its intercessor. This boy is St. Alexei (†1918), Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandra’s only son and the heir to the Russian throne. The whole Royal Family went through martyrdom at the cruel hands of godless commissars in July of 1918. St. Alexei was the youngest in the family; he was about 14 at the time.

St. Alexei was born on July 30 (August 12, NS), 1904, in Peterhof, a beautiful suburb of St.Petersburg. He was the fifth and the last child in the royal family. Alexei was very long awaited by his parents as the line of hereditary succession in Russia required a male heir to the throne. Before Alexei Tsar and Tsarina had four daughters: Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. Together they made up one of the most loving and exemplary families in the world. They were canonized in Orthodox Christianity as a family too.

Pierre Gilliard, a Swiss academic and a French language tutor to the royal children wrote in his memoirs about the first time he saw Alexei: “I almost finished my class with Olga Nikolaevna [-Tsar’s daughter-] when the Empress entered with the Prince on her hands. She obviously wanted to show me her newborn son who I have not seen yet. Her face shone with maternal joy as the Prince was the answer to her long prayers. I felt she was very proud and happy for her beautiful son… And indeed the Prince was as good-looking a boy as you could only imagine with his pretty fair-hair curls, big grey-green eyes, long and beautiful eyelashes. His face had healthy rosy complexion, and when he was smiling he had two cute dimples at his cheeks… I noticed that the Empress was holding the Prince very tenderly and tightly to herself. There was some deep underlying concern about her loving look at him. It was much later when I realized the reason for her concern”.

Little Alexei was found to have a rare hereditary blood condition called hemophilia causing very slow blood clotting and thinning of blood vessels. Any small bruise or cut would cause him a lot of painful suffering and might be deadly. From his earliest age his doctors required special care for him, which was carried out by two sailors who were with him at all times. Many regular kids’ activities that his sisters enjoyed were prohibited for him, like playing tennis or riding a bike.

Nonetheless, little Alexei was a very playful boy. Pierre Gilliard noted in his diaries that Alexei liked to play with his guards’ kids, never paying any attention to his royal status or their being sailors’ children; yet he was a very thoughtful, bright and compassionate boy. Gilliard was often struck by the questions Alexei would ask, which meant just how delicate and sensitive he was. Gilliard wrote: “I found in him a boy with a naturally loving heart with unusually deep understanding of other people’s pain, probably because he suffered himself a lot”. Another commentator noted that Alexei’s condition increased his will power as he did not like to cause too much concern in those around him while his sufferings were truly great. He also had a lot of respect for his mother and for all who would devote themselves to caring for others.

Young Prince’s life was far from being luxurious. Alexei spent a lot of time studying and doing homework. He studied with breaks from 9 am to 2 pm. Then there was a mandatory walk in the fresh air with other kids, his favorite pet animals or his sisters (he especially enjoyed the company of Anastasia who was just a little older than him). At 4pm the studies resumed and lasted until dinner time. All commentators noted his bright and quick mind, his high ability to learn. Before bedtime Alexei would listen to his father's reading out his favorite book. Alexei was very religious and when his health allowed it he always attended Church services with his family (missing Church for other members of the royal family was not an option).

All this suffering and the incurable condition shaped a very special personality in him. By ten he had learnt quite well what pain was and how close death could be. Once his sister Olga found him lying on his back and looking at the clouds: “What are you doing?” – she asked. “I like to think. I enjoy so much the sun and the summer, and I know tomorrow I might not see it again” – he replied. He realized very well how fragile life was and how limited the physical presence might be even if you are a Prince.

They say there are no ifs in history but looking at the downfall of Soviet Russia in the 20th century it’s very important to think of what Russia would have become had Alexei become its Tsar. His father, Tsar Nicholas II laid out very firm and fertile foundation for the economic, cultural and religious development of the country which flourished under his rule. Russia was still behind some world powers but this lag was only temporary. With Alexei being all Nicholas II hoped for in terms of intellect, character, faith, and more – due to his specific condition – Russia would have soared as an economic, political, scientific, cultural and spiritual leader of the world. It would have become the country demonstrating both might and highest moral principles and ideals, setting the mark of responsible political behavior at such high levels that are nowhere seen at the real moment. The Russian monarchy would have become the glorious kingdom, emulating the mystical Kingdom as close as it is physically possible in this world.

There is profound wisdom in the fact that God did not let this happen at that time. For the good of the mankind He sent His Own Son to die on the Cross. For the same good of the Russian people the Royal Passion-Bearers accepted their martyrdom. The world was simply not ready for this bright kingdom that Russia would have become, and God in His Wisdom made it impossible – for the moment. But as St. Paul wrote it in his Epistle “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.” (1Cor 1:21). The life of St. Alexei shows that the only true and lasting answer to all human weakness and suffering is humility, unconditional love for Jesus Christ Who would accept all His faithful servants in His Heavenly Kingdom. And this Kingdom would never crumble as did Russia without the Orthodox Christianity and the pious Tsar.

(Translated from Russian and English-language sources)

"Her Love Will Prevail"

Auto-portrait by Tsarina Alexandra

To say that Tsarina Alexandra (†1918), Russian Tsar Nicholas's wife, was under pressure means to say almost nothing about her. In fact she was under such tremendous pressure all her life at the Russian Royal Court that it’s almost a miracle she never complained. Yet only her profound faith in Christ and His Ultimate Sacrifice helped her cope with that pressure. True, she had a loving and supportive husband but there are places human support cannot reach.

Consider such challenges St. Alexandra faced. After she married to Tsar Nicholas II she moved to the Russian Royal Court in the capital city of St. Petersburg. She happened to be of German descent (of a mostly Anglo-German mix) during the war between Russia and Germany, when the anti-German sentiment in Russia was so high that even the then-capital was officially renamed Petrograd to avoid the German sound. Newspapers hinted bluntly about her being a German spy, to say nothing of court gossip. Interestingly, the public chose to completely forget about her Grandmother who was the famous British Queen Victoria ruling the ally nation of Great Britain!

Another example. St. Alexandra was supposed to produce a male heir to the Russian Throne but kept giving birth to girls, four of them one after another. When the fourth daughter Anastasia was born the most popular Russian newspaper at the time described the event in a front-page article under the title “What a Disappointment!.. A Fourth Girl!” Not really supportive, is it?! Finally, when she gave birth to a son named Alexei, it was found he had incurable blood condition hemophilia. It impaired his blood to clot, which meant that a simple bruise would make him suffer severe pains and might easily kill him. This disease was inherited, and it came down from her German ancestry, so she actually was the cause of his sufferings. How is that for a mother to bear?

But even in areas where it was hard to find fault with her, some ridiculous accusation would still arise. In 1914 next day after the war with Germany broke out she and her three elder daughters went to become hospital nurses. St. Alexandra wanted her daughters to become real nurses, not just appropriate pictures on fashionable magazine covers. She ordered simple uniforms for them, found a doctor who could teach the girls the basics of medical care and wound treatment, and got that doctor to work with the daughters in real operation rooms with severely mutilated soldiers. If they could not assist they would dress wounds. They would even cut soldiers’ nails! One would think you can’t really find fault with that exemplary behavior. Well, there were people who publicly accused Tsarina of seeking cheap popularity, demystifying imperial women, and their “common” association with unclean wounds and men’s bodies. She never said a word back…

You get the idea now, Tsarina Alexandra was not very popular with the Russian media. Understandably, it made her devote most of her time to the family, and after Alexei was born – to him. Of course, there were public accusations of being cold, haughty, snobbish, you name it. By that time she already learnt simply to ignore them but her general health had already taken a hit and she had a lot of back pain for the rest of her life. However, it never affected her work as a nurse. She worked full time herself as a regular nurse in a regular hospital providing an example to her daughters and to all staff.

There God revealed her gift of giving religious consolation to the sick and the dying. Many suffering soldiers reported (and many fellow nurses witnessed) how their pains would ease once St. Alexandra just sat by the bed, holding their hand and praying for them or talking to them about Christ and His Immeasurable Sufferings. She never refused a single request of that kind, sometimes leaving home in the middle of the night on a phone call to console a dying soldier who wished to see her before death. Just like sick Alexei they were all her children and she was able to share with them her unlimited compassion and religious wisdom. In her own words she believed “her responsibility was to be where people were suffering”.

To those who still harbour scorn for the Royal Martyrs I would suggest reading Tsarina’s letters from Siberian imprisonment, after 1917, when they had lost everything and were completely vulnerable to commissars, militant atheists and anti-monarchists. Those letters are published now. Her religious wisdom there takes biblical profundity: “One must always and ever be thankful to God for everything one has, and what one has lost is even better, as it makes one brighter, cleaner. Never complain but hope, for God is so big we can just pray. I keep praying for my Russian Motherland which is crushing terribly at the moment… We are all fine, God thinks about us, locals keep sending us bread, fish, and vegetables secretly. Really, dear, don’t worry about us. My heart is broken only when I think about Russia – what they did to it in just a year! But God let it happen, and then it should be so, to make people see the lies around. It hurts to think that everything we cherished and were proud of got shamelessly destroyed and trampled upon. Only this is good for the soul which must grow and rise above the earthly, mustn’t it? We all need to understand that God is above all, that He wants us to get closer to Him through our sufferings. Love Him as much as you can… Right now the country is dying but with God’s help it will manage, He will show His strength and wisdom, we just need to wait, believe, and pray”.

(From Russian and English-language sources)

"They Were an Ideal Family"

Translated from the Russian-language memoirs of nun Nina Krygina:

“Before I became a nun I used to be a certified counsellor, I also have a son of my own. My interest in family psychological health started during my secular life, and I came to understand that the most effective and comprehensive answer to almost all family issues can be found only in the Christian Orthodox faith.

As somebody studying counselling I often asked myself why divorce statistics in Tsar Russia was so much lower than in today’s Russia, only 2-2.5% of families registered their divorce back in those times. I know that a real life story is often much more powerful than a theoretical discussion. Could it be that families back in those times had a real-life example of an ideal family? That everybody knew perfectly well who the ideal family was and they were trying to be like them? What was that ideal yet very real family anyway?

Once I was walking in Moscow streets, I was a young student then. Suddenly I saw a picture of Tsar Nicholas’ family in a window of a Moscow publishing house. It was there by some miracle as everything relating to the Tsar was strictly banned in the Soviet Russia. And I saw their eyes… The eyes of the Emperor, his wife Alexandra, their children Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, and little Alexey… That was a pivot moment in my life as I found the answer to my questions. That ideal family who everybody knew as a real family was the Tsar Nicholas’ family. No wonder they were canonized in Orthodox Christianity as a family too!

From then on I have pointed all families who needed my professional advice to the Tsar family. This is an example everybody in Russia can understand and somehow relate to, especially if one wants to have a happy family. Theirs was a very happy family, despite their tragic end and dramatic times they were living through. They often wrote in their private correspondence how they valued each other as people, as parents, and as children.

And then I decided to find the keys to their happiness. I started to study the documents and I realized how little we, Russians, knew about this great Russian Tsar, how many false accusations had been laid upon them. It was extremely sad to see how easily the Russian people had fallen for those completely ungrounded accusations, how eager we were to spread those lies and to think down on the Tsar family. Truly, we see the world through the window glass of our own sins, and the more sinful we are, the dirtier the picture is!

So, I studied the correspondence of the Tsar family, some first-hand accounts of their lives and I gradually found the first key to their happiness. It’s something that I could call integrity. Integrity means unity of soul, body and spirit of all; it stands for such attitude towards life where God is the cornerstone of everything a family does, and the man is the head of the family and the receiver of God’s grace. The woman is his helper and she receives the God’s grace through her husband. The children live in this hierarchy and also receive grace. That’s the law of God.

At this point I am often asked how a contemporary family can be patriarchal if some men cannot be natural leaders, if the wife makes more money, if she does some important responsibilities, etc. Indeed, today these are important factors in any family, and the science has proved that there are actual pain points which can trigger a divorce. They can be boiled down to money matters, decision making, birth of a child, even retirement.

I would reply to all "equalists" and "feminists" with words I once heard when monks were burying a fellow monk who they particularly loved. There was one of them who said that it was only sin that separated people from each other. Without sin all people would be an integral unity dedicated to each other and to God. So, I would repeat this to all today’s families who have marital issues: only your own sin separates you from each other and prevents you from building a strong and loving family. The Tsar family were very aware of this and it helped them deal with their own issues. They wrote a lot about their struggles with their passions, particularly when bringing up the children and especially – the hemophiliac Alexei who was the heir to the throne of Russia.

There is also this issue of being busy or tired today, when parents cannot spend time together with their children as they are so “busy” and "tired". Now think about the Emperor, was he not busy? Was he not tired? He, probably, was the busiest person on the planet ruling the biggest country in the world. Compare that to your “busy” and realize that if the Emperor could find time and energy for his family, so can everybody else. True, he could not spend much time, but what he could he turned into a quality time, more often reading Russian literature to his children, sometimes singing with them. That was one great tradition that can be easily and with great success borrowed in today’s busy families. Another tradition of Nicholas’ family was physical education of the children. Nicholas II was a very physically fit man; he especially liked swimming and rowing. He made a very concerted effort to ensure his children also did physical exercises and spent as much time in the fresh air as possible; that they knew how to take care after themselves, to keep everything clean and in order. As an Emperor he could have everything done by servants but he was wise enough not to let his children get spoiled. What a lesson for all of us today, surrounded with TVs and dishwashers!

The second key to their happiness was humility. Tsarina Alexandra told her son Alexei never to be proud of their wealth and the elevated position. It is wrong to do so because everybody is equal before God. These were not empty words, they were supported with example. When the War broke out Alexandra and her elder daughters went to become nurses in hospitals assisting in bloody operations or simply sitting by the bed and praying for the wounded and the dying. The soldiers were all their children needing attention and prayer, just as the sick Alexei was. Nicholas II never showed off his rank, his regular attire was humble military uniform.

They were a very loving family. They believed in God with all their heart, they were truly Christian Orthodox. We must model them to have at least little of God’s Grace that they had in such abundance”.