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Grigory Efimovich Rasputin (New, 1869-1916) - public figure late XIX- the beginning of the 20th century, who gained fame as a healer, an "old man", able to heal people from serious ailments. He was close to the family of the last emperor, especially his wife Alexandra Feodorovna. In 1915-1916, he had a direct influence on the political decisions made in the country. His name is shrouded in a halo of secrets and mysteries, and historians still cannot give an accurate assessment of Rasputin: who is this - a great soothsayer or a charlatan.

Childhood and youth

Grigory Rasputin was born on January 9 (21), 1869 in the village of Pokrovka, Tobolsk province. True, in different sources there are other years, for example, 1865 or 1872. Gregory himself never added clarity to this issue, never naming the exact date birth. His parents were simple peasants who devoted their entire lives to working on the land. Gregory was their fourth and only surviving child. WITH early childhood the boy was sick a lot and was often alone, unable to play with his peers. This made him withdrawn and prone to solitude. It was in childhood that Gregory began to feel his chosenness before God and attachment to religion. There was no school in his native village, so the boy grew up illiterate. But he knew a lot in work, often helping his father.

At the age of 14, Rasputin became seriously ill and, being on the verge of life and death, managed to get out of a difficult condition. According to him, the miracle happened thanks to the Mother of God, who intervened and contributed to his healing. This further strengthened faith in religion and motivated the illiterate young man to learn the texts of prayers.

Transformation into a healer

After Rasputin turned 18, he went on a pilgrimage to the Verkhoturye Monastery, but he never took the veil. A year later, he returned to his small homeland and soon married Praskovya Dubrovina, who would later bear him three children. Marriage was not an obstacle to the pilgrimage. In 1893 he embarked on a new journey, visiting a Greek monastery on Mount Athos and Jerusalem. In 1900, Rasputin visited Kyiv and Kazan, where he met Father Mikhail, who was associated with the Kazan Theological Academy.

All these visits again convinced Rasputin of his God's chosenness and gave him a reason to devote others to his healing gift. Returning to Pokrovskoye, he tried to lead the life of a real "old man", but he was far from a real ascetic. In addition, his religious views did not fit in well with canonical Orthodoxy. It's all about the powerful temperament of Gregory, who could not do without women, wine, music and dance. "God is joy and gladness", - Rasputin stated more than once.

People from all over the country flocked to a small Siberian village, eager to find healing and getting rid of diseases. They were not embarrassed by the illiteracy of the "old man" and his complete lack of medical education. But good acting skills allowed Grigory to convincingly portray a folk healer, using advice, prayers and persuasion in his manipulations.

Arrival in St. Petersburg

In 1903, when the country was in a pre-revolutionary situation and was completely restless, Rasputin visited the capital for the first time. Russian Empire. The formal reason was connected with the search for funds necessary for the construction of the temple in his native village. However, there is another explanation for this. While working on the field, Rasputin had a vision of the Mother of God, who told him about the serious illness of Tsarevich Alexei and insisted on the imminent arrival of the healer in the capital. In St. Petersburg, he meets the rector of the theological academy, Bishop Sergius, to whom he turned for help due to lack of money. He brings him together with the confessor of the imperial family, Archbishop Feofan.

Doctor of the heir to the throne

Acquaintance with Nicholas II took place at a very difficult time for the country and the tsar. Strikes and protests took place everywhere, the revolutionary movement heated up, the opposition went on the offensive, and a wave of terrorist attacks covered Russian cities. The emperor, worried about the fate of the country, was on an emotional upsurge, and on this basis he met the Siberian seer. In general, the entire revolutionary chaos was for Rasputin an excellent basis for manifesting himself. He heals, predicts, preaches, earning himself a colossal authority.

The good actor Rasputin made a strong impression on Nikolai and his family members. Particularly believed in the gift of Grigory Alexandra Fedorovna, who hoped for his ability to save only son from illness. In 1907, Alexei's health deteriorated noticeably, and the tsar gave permission for Rasputin's approach. As you know, the boy suffered from a severe genetic disease - hemophilia, which is associated with the inability of blood to clot and, as a result, frequent hemorrhages. He was unable to cope with the disease, but he helped bring the crown prince out of the crisis and stabilize his condition. Incredibly, Gregory managed to stop the blood, in which he was absolutely powerless traditional medicine. He often repeated: "The heir will live as long as I live."

Cases of whiplash

In 1907, Rasputin received a denunciation, according to which he was accused of Khlystism, one of the varieties of religious false doctrine. The case was investigated by Priest N. Glukhovetsky and Archpriest D. Smirnov. In their conclusions, they referred to the report of D. Berezkin, a specialist in sects, who relied on the insufficiency of materials due to the conduct of the case by people who did not understand Khlysty. As a result, the case was sent for further investigation and soon “fell apart”.

In 1912, the State Duma showed interest in this case, and Nicholas II ordered the investigation to be resumed. At one of the meetings, Rodzianko suggested to the emperor that the Siberian peasant be permanently removed. But a new investigation, headed by Bishop Alexy of Tobolsk, expressed a different opinion and called Gregory a true Christian, seeking the truth of Christ. Of course, not everyone believed in this and continued to consider him a charlatan.

Secular and political life

Having settled in the capital, Rasputin, together with the cure of Alexei, plunges headlong into secular life, getting acquainted with the tops of St. Petersburg society. Especially secular ladies were crazy about the "old man". For example, Baroness Kusova frankly declared her readiness to follow him even to Siberia. Using the trust of the empress, Rasputin puts pressure on the tsar through her, promoting his friends to high government posts. He did not forget about his children either: his daughters, under the highest patronage, studied at one of the St. Petersburg gymnasiums.

The city began to be flooded with rumors about the exploits of Rasputin. They talked about his crazy orgies and carousing, drunken brawls, pogroms and bribes. In 1915, due to the difficult situation at the front, the tsar left St. Petersburg and went to the headquarters of the Russian army in Mogilev. For Rasputin, this was a serious chance to further strengthen his position. The slightly naive empress, who remained on business in the capital, sincerely wanted to help her husband, trying to rely on Rasputin's advice. Through him, a decision was made on military issues, the supply of the army and the appointment to government posts. There is a known case when Rasputin decided on the offensive of the Russian army, which ended in complete collapse and the death of thousands of soldiers in the swamp. The tsar's patience was finally undermined by the rumor about the secret closeness of the Empress and Rasputin, which, in principle, could not be by definition. Nevertheless, this became an occasion for the political environment of the king to think about eliminating such an odious figure.

Just at this time, the book “My Thoughts and Reflections” was published from the healer’s pen, in which he presented the reader with his memories of visiting holy places and reflections on religious, moral and ethical topics. In particular, the author devotes a lot of time to presenting his opinion about love. “Love is a big figure, prophecies will stop, but love will never,” the “old man” claimed.

CONSPIRACY

The active and controversial activity of Rasputin disgusted many representatives of the then political establishment, who rejected the Siberian upstart as a foreign element. Surrounded by the emperor, a circle of conspirators formed who intended to deal with an objectionable character. At the head of the group of murderers were: F. Yusupov - a representative of one of the richest families and the husband of the tsar's niece, the emperor's cousin, Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich, and deputy of the IV State Duma V. Purishkevich. On December 30, 1916, they invited Rasputin to the Yusupov Palace on the pretext of meeting with the emperor's niece, who was reputed to be one of beautiful women countries.

The dangerous poison cyanide was sprinkled into the offered dishes of Gregory. But he acted too slowly and did not cause the expected effect. Then Yusupov decided to resort to a more effective method and fired at Rasputin, but missed. He ran away from Felix, but ran into his accomplices, who seriously injured the healer with their shots. However, even being in a serious condition, he tried to escape and attempted to escape. But he was caught, and then thrown into the cold Neva, having previously been tightly tied and packed in a bag with stones. At the insistence of Alexandra Fedorovna, the body of Grigory was raised from the bottom of the river, then it was found out that Rasputin woke up in the water and fought for his life to the last, but, exhausted, choked. At first, Rasputin was buried near the chapel of the Imperial Palace in Tsarskoye Selo, but after the Provisional Government came to power in 1917, his corpse was exhumed and burned.

Rasputin's predictions

Interestingly, shortly before the assassination, Rasputin wrote a letter to the emperor, in which he predicted his own death no later than January 1, 1917. He claimed that he would die at the hands of a relative of Nicholas II, but his family would also die and "none of the children would be left alive." Rasputin predicted the rise and fall Soviet Union(“the arrival of a new government and mountains of the slain”), as well as his victory over Nazi Germany. Some of the predictions of the “old man” also apply to our days, in particular, he saw through the veil of times the threat of terrorism for Europe and rampant Islamic extremism in the Middle East.

Grigory Efimovich Rasputin (New). Born January 9 (21), 1869 - killed December 17 (30), 1916. Peasant of the village of Pokrovskoye, Tobolsk province. He gained worldwide fame due to the fact that he was a friend of the family of the Russian Emperor Nicholas II.

In the 1900s, among certain circles of St. Petersburg society, he had a reputation as a "tsar's friend", "elder", seer and healer. The negative image of Rasputin was used in revolutionary, later in Soviet propaganda, there are still many rumors about Rasputin and his influence on the fate of the Russian Empire.

The ancestor of the Rasputin family was "Izosim Fedorov son." The census book of the peasants of the village of Pokrovsky for 1662 says that he and his wife and three sons - Semyon, Nason and Yevsey - came to Pokrovskaya Sloboda twenty years earlier from the Yarensky district and "came to arable land." Son Nason later received the nickname "Rosputa". From him went all the Rosputins, who became early XIX century Rasputin.

According to the household census of 1858, more than thirty peasants were listed in Pokrovsky, who bore the surname "Rasputins", including Yefim, Grigory's father. The surname comes from the words "crossroads", "crossroads", "crossroads".

Grigory Rasputin was born on January 9 (21), 1869 in the village of Pokrovskoye, Tyumen district, Tobolsk province, in the family of a coachman Efim Yakovlevich Rasputin (1841-1916) and Anna Vasilievna (1839-1906) (nee Parshukova).

Information about Rasputin's date of birth is extremely contradictory. Sources report various birth dates between 1864 and 1872. Historian K. F. Shatsillo, in an article about Rasputin in the TSB, reports that he was born in 1864-1865. Rasputin himself in his mature years did not add clarity, reporting conflicting information about the date of birth. According to biographers, he was inclined to exaggerate his true age in order to better match the image of the "old man".

At the same time, in the metric book of the Slobodo-Intercession Mother of God Church of the Tyumen district of the Tobolsk province, in the first part “On those born”, there is a birth record on January 9, 1869 and an explanation: “Efim Yakovlevich Rasputin and his wife Anna Vasilievna of the Orthodox faith, son Grigory was born.” He was baptized on January 10th. The godparents were Uncle Matthew Yakovlevich Rasputin and the maiden Agafya Ivanovna Alemasova. The baby received the name according to the existing tradition of naming the child by the name of the saint on whose day he was born or baptized.

The day of the baptism of Grigory Rasputin is January 10, the day of the celebration of the memory of St. Gregory of Nyssa.

I was sick a lot when I was young. After a pilgrimage to the Verkhoturye Monastery, he turned to religion.

Growth of Grigory Rasputin: 193 centimeters.

In 1893 he traveled to the holy places of Russia, visited Mount Athos in Greece, then in Jerusalem. He met and made contacts with many representatives of the clergy, monks, wanderers.

In 1900 he went on a new journey to Kyiv. On the way back, he lived in Kazan for a long time, where he met Father Mikhail, who was related to the Kazan Theological Academy.

In 1903 he came to St. Petersburg to the rector of the Theological Academy, Bishop Sergius (Stragorodsky). At the same time, the inspector of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, Archimandrite Feofan (Bystrov), met Rasputin, introducing him also to Bishop Hermogenes (Dolganov).

By 1904, Rasputin had acquired the glory of an “old man”, “holy fool” and “man of God” from a part of high society, which “fixed the position of a “saint” in the eyes of the St. Petersburg world”, or at least he was considered a “great ascetic”.

Father Feofan told about the "wanderer" to the daughters of the Montenegrin prince (later king) Nikolay Negosh - Militsa and Anastasia. The sisters told the empress about the new religious celebrity. Several years passed before he began to clearly stand out among the crowd of "God's people."

On November 1 (Tuesday), 1905, the first personal meeting between Rasputin and the emperor took place. This event was honored with an entry in the diary of Nicholas II. The references to Rasputin do not end there.

Rasputin gained influence on the imperial family, and above all on Alexandra Feodorovna, by helping her son, the heir to the throne, Alexei, fight hemophilia, a disease that medicine was powerless to face.

In December 1906, Rasputin filed a petition to the highest name to change his surname to Rasputin-New, referring to the fact that many of his fellow villagers have the same surname, because of which there may be misunderstandings. The request was granted.

Grigory Rasputin. Healer at the Throne

Accusation of "Khlysty" (1903)

In 1903, his first persecution by the church began: the Tobolsk Consistory received a report from the local priest Pyotr Ostroumov that Rasputin behaved strangely with women who came to him "from St. Petersburg itself", about their "passions from which he delivers them ... in the bath", that in his youth Rasputin "from his life in the factories of the Perm province made acquaintance with the teachings of the Khlyst heresy."

An investigator was sent to Pokrovskoye, but he did not find anything discrediting, and the case was archived.

On September 6, 1907, following a denunciation of 1903, the Tobolsk consistory opened a case against Rasputin, who was accused of spreading false teachings similar to Khlyst's and forming a society of followers of his false teachings.

The initial investigation was conducted by priest Nikodim Glukhovetsky. On the basis of the collected facts, Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov, a member of the Tobolsk Consistory, prepared a report to Bishop Anthony with a review of the case under consideration by a specialist in sects D. M. Beryozkin, an inspector of the Tobolsk Theological Seminary.

D. M. Berezkin, in his review of the conduct of the case, noted that the investigation had been carried out "persons little versed in Khlystism" that only Rasputin's residential two-story house was searched, although it is known that the place where the rejoicings take place “it never fits in residential premises ... but always settles in the backyards - in baths, in sheds, in cellars ... and even in dungeons ... Paintings and icons found in the house are not described, meanwhile, they usually contain the key to heresy ».

After that, Bishop Anthony of Tobolsk decided to carry out an additional investigation into the case, entrusting it to an experienced anti-sectarian missionary.

As a result, the case "fell apart", and was approved as completed by Anthony (Karzhavin) on May 7, 1908.

Subsequently, Chairman of the State Duma Rodzianko, who took the file from the Synod, reported that it soon disappeared, but then "The Case of the Tobolsk Ecclesiastical Consistory on Grigory Rasputin's Khlystism" eventually found in the Tyumen archive.

In 1909, the police were going to expel Rasputin from St. Petersburg, but Rasputin got ahead of her and left for his homeland in the village of Pokrovskoye for a while.

In 1910, his daughters moved to St. Petersburg to Rasputin, whom he arranged to study at the gymnasium. At the direction of the Prime Minister, Rasputin was placed under surveillance for several days.

At the beginning of 1911, Bishop Feofan invited the Holy Synod to officially express displeasure to Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in connection with Rasputin's behavior, and a member of the Holy Synod, Metropolitan Anthony (Vadkovsky), reported to Nicholas II about Rasputin's negative influence.

On December 16, 1911, Rasputin had a skirmish with Bishop Hermogenes and Hieromonk Iliodor. Bishop Germogen, acting in alliance with hieromonk Iliodor (Trufanov), invited Rasputin to his courtyard, on Vasilyevsky Island, in the presence of Iliodor, "convicted" him, hitting him with a cross several times. An argument ensued between them, and then a fight.

In 1911, Rasputin voluntarily left the capital and made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

On January 23, 1912, by order of the Minister of the Interior, Makarov, Rasputin was again placed under surveillance, which continued until his death.

The second case of "Khlysty" (1912)

In January 1912, the Duma declared its attitude towards Rasputin, and in February 1912, Nicholas II ordered V.K. to him the Case of the Tobolsk Ecclesiastical Consistory, which contained the beginning of the Investigative Proceedings on the accusation of Rasputin of belonging to the Khlyst sect.

On February 26, 1912, at an audience, Rodzianko suggested that the tsar expel the peasant forever. Archbishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) openly wrote that Rasputin is a whip and participates in zeal.

The new (replaced Eusebius (Grozdov)) Bishop of Tobolsk Alexy (Molchanov) personally took up this matter, studied the materials, requested information from the clergy of the Intercession Church, and repeatedly talked with Rasputin himself. Based on the results of this new investigation, the conclusion of the Tobolsk ecclesiastical consistory, sent to many high-ranking officials and some deputies of the State Duma. In conclusion, Rasputin-Novy was called "a Christian, a spiritually minded person and seeking the truth of Christ." new investigation results.

Prophecies of Rasputin

During his lifetime, Rasputin published two books: The Life of an Experienced Wanderer (1907) and My Thoughts and Reflections (1915).

In his prophecies, Rasputin speaks of "God's punishment", "bitter water", "tears of the sun", "poisonous rains" "until the end of our century."

The deserts will advance, and the land will be inhabited by monsters that will not be people or animals. Thanks to "human alchemy", flying frogs, kite butterflies, crawling bees, huge mice and no less huge ants, as well as the monster "kobak" will appear. Two princes from the West and the East will challenge the right to world domination. They will have a battle in the land of four demons, but the western prince Grayug will defeat his eastern enemy Blizzard, but he himself will fall. After these misfortunes, people will again turn to God and enter the "earthly paradise."

The most famous was the prediction of the death of the Imperial House: "As long as I'm alive, the dynasty will live".

Some authors believe that there are mentions of Rasputin in the letters of Alexandra Feodorovna to Nicholas II. In the letters themselves, Rasputin's surname is not mentioned, but some authors believe that Rasputin in the letters is indicated by the words "Friend", or "He" with capital letters, although this has no documentary evidence. The letters were published in the USSR by 1927, and by the Berlin publishing house Slovo in 1922.

The correspondence has been preserved in the State Archive of the Russian Federation - the Novoromanovsky archive.

Grigory Rasputin with the Empress and the Tsar's children

In 1912, Rasputin dissuaded the emperor from intervening in the Balkan War, which delayed the start of World War I by 2 years.

In 1915, anticipating the February Revolution, Rasputin demanded an improvement in the supply of bread to the capital.

In 1916, Rasputin spoke out strongly in favor of Russia withdrawing from the war, making peace with Germany, giving up rights to Poland and the Baltic states, and also against the Russo-British alliance.

Press campaign against Rasputin

In 1910, the writer Mikhail Novoselov published several critical articles about Rasputin in Moskovskie Vedomosti (No. 49 - "The Spiritual Tourist Grigory Rasputin", No. 72 - "Something More About Grigory Rasputin").

In 1912, Novoselov published in his publishing house the pamphlet "Grigory Rasputin and Mystical Debauchery", which accused Rasputin of whiplash and criticized the highest church hierarchy. The brochure was banned and confiscated at the printing house. The newspaper "Voice of Moscow" was fined for publishing excerpts from it.

After that, the State Duma followed up with a request to the Ministry of Internal Affairs about the legality of punishing the editors of Golos Moskvy and Novoye Vremya.

In the same 1912, Rasputin's acquaintance, the former hieromonk Iliodor, began to distribute several letters of scandalous content from Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and the Grand Duchesses to Rasputin.

Copies printed on a hectograph went around St. Petersburg. Most researchers consider these letters to be fake. Later, Iliodor, on advice, wrote the libelous book The Holy Devil about Rasputin, which was published in 1917 during the revolution.

In 1913-1914, the Masonic Supreme Council of the VVNR attempted an agitation campaign about the role of Rasputin at court.

Somewhat later, the Council made an attempt to publish a pamphlet directed against Rasputin, and when this attempt failed (the pamphlet was censored), the Council took steps to distribute this pamphlet in a typed typewriter.

Khionia Guseva's assassination attempt on Rasputin

In 1914, an anti-Rasputin conspiracy matured, headed by Nikolai Nikolayevich and Rodzianko.

On June 29 (July 12), 1914, an assassination attempt was made on Rasputin in the village of Pokrovsky. He was stabbed in the stomach and seriously wounded by Khionia Guseva, who had come from Tsaritsyn.

Rasputin testified that he suspected Iliodor of organizing the assassination attempt, but could not provide any evidence of this.

On July 3, Rasputin was transported by ship to Tyumen for treatment. Rasputin remained in the Tyumen hospital until August 17, 1914. The investigation into the assassination attempt lasted about a year.

Guseva was declared mentally ill in July 1915 and freed from criminal liability by being placed in a psychiatric hospital in Tomsk. On March 27, 1917, on the personal instructions of A.F. Kerensky, Guseva was released.

Murder of Rasputin

Rasputin was killed on the night of December 17, 1916 (December 30, according to a new style) in the Yusupov Palace on the Moika. Conspirators: F. F. Yusupov, V. M. Purishkevich, Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich, British intelligence officer MI6 Oswald Reiner.

Information about the murder is contradictory, it was confused both by the killers themselves and by pressure on the investigation by the Russian imperial and British authorities.

Yusupov changed his testimony several times: in the police of St. Petersburg on December 18, 1916, in exile in the Crimea in 1917, in a book in 1927, given under oath in 1934 and in 1965.

Starting from naming the wrong color of the clothes that Rasputin was wearing according to the killers and in which he was found, and to how many and where the bullets were fired.

So, for example, forensic experts found three wounds, each of which is fatal: in the head, in the liver and kidney. (According to British researchers who studied the photograph, the headshot was from a British Webley 455 revolver.)

After a shot in the liver, a person can live no more than 20 minutes and is not able, as the killers said, to run down the street in half an hour or an hour. Also, there was no shot in the heart, which the killers unanimously claimed.

Rasputin was first lured into the cellar, treated to red wine and a pie poisoned with potassium cyanide. Yusupov went upstairs and, returning, shot him in the back, causing him to fall. The conspirators went out into the street. Yusupov, who returned for a cloak, checked the body, suddenly Rasputin woke up and tried to strangle the killer.

The conspirators who ran in at that moment began to shoot at Rasputin. Approaching, they were surprised that he was still alive, and began to beat him. According to the killers, the poisoned and shot Rasputin came to his senses, got out of the basement and tried to climb the high wall of the garden, but was caught by the killers, who heard the rising barking of a dog. Then he was tied with ropes hand and foot (according to Purishkevich, first wrapped in a blue cloth), taken by car to a pre-selected place near Kamenny Island and thrown off the bridge into the Neva hole in such a way that the body was under the ice. However, according to the materials of the investigation, the discovered corpse was dressed in a fur coat, there was neither fabric nor ropes.

The corpse of Grigory Rasputin

The investigation into the murder of Rasputin, which was led by the director of the Police Department A. T. Vasiliev, progressed quite quickly. Already the first interrogations of Rasputin's family members and servants showed that on the night of the murder, Rasputin went to visit Prince Yusupov. Policeman Vlasyuk, who was on duty on the night of December 16-17 on a street not far from the Yusupov Palace, testified that he had heard several shots at night. During a search in the courtyard of the Yusupovs' house, traces of blood were found.

On the afternoon of December 17, a passer-by noticed bloodstains on the parapet of the Petrovsky Bridge. After divers explored the Neva, the body of Rasputin was found in this place. The forensic medical examination was entrusted to the well-known professor of the Military Medical Academy D.P. Kosorotov. The original autopsy report has not been preserved; the cause of death can only be hypothesized.

The conclusion of the forensic expert Professor D.N. Kosorotov:

“During the autopsy, very numerous injuries were found, many of which were already inflicted posthumously. The entire right side of the head was shattered, flattened due to bruising of the corpse during the fall from the bridge. Death followed from profuse bleeding due to a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The shot was fired, in my opinion, almost point-blank, from left to right, through the stomach and liver, with crushing of the latter in the right half. The bleeding was very profuse. The corpse also had a gunshot wound in the back, in the region of the spine, with crushing of the right kidney, and another wound point-blank, in the forehead, probably already dying or dead. The chest organs were intact and were examined superficially, but there were no signs of death from drowning. The lungs were not swollen and there was no water or foamy fluid in the airways. Rasputin was thrown into the water already dead.

No poison was found in Rasputin's stomach. Possible explanations for this are that the cyanide in the brownies was neutralized by sugar or high temperature when cooking in the oven.

His daughter reports that after the assassination attempt, Gusev Rasputin suffered from high acidity and avoided sweet foods. He was reportedly poisoned with a dose capable of killing 5 people.

Some modern researchers suggest that there was no poison - this is a lie to confuse the investigation.

There are a number of nuances in determining the involvement of O. Reiner. At that time, two British MI6 intelligence officers who could have committed the murder were serving in St. Petersburg: Yusupov's friend from University College (Oxford) Oswald Rayner and Captain Stephen Alley, who was born in the Yusupov Palace. The former was suspected, and Tsar Nicholas II explicitly mentioned that the killer was Yusupov's college friend.

In 1919 Rayner was awarded an MBE and had his papers destroyed before his death in 1961.

Compton's chauffeur's log contains entries that a week before the murder he brought Oswald to Yusupov (and to another officer, Captain John Scale), and the last time on the day of the murder. Compton also directly hinted at Rayner, saying that the killer is a lawyer and was born in the same city with him.

There is a letter from Alley written to Scale on January 7, 1917, eight days after the assassination: “Although not everything went according to plan, our goal has been achieved… Reiner is covering his tracks and will no doubt contact you…”. According to modern British researchers, the order for the three British agents (Reiner, Alley and Scale) to eliminate Rasputin came from Mansfield Smith-Cumming (the first director of MI6).

The investigation lasted two and a half months until the abdication of Emperor Nicholas II on March 2, 1917. On that day, Kerensky became Minister of Justice in the Provisional Government. On March 4, 1917, he ordered the investigation to be hastily terminated, while investigator A.T. Vasiliev was arrested and transferred to the Peter and Paul Fortress, where he was interrogated by the Extraordinary Investigative Commission until September, and later emigrated.

In 2004, the BBC aired a documentary "Who killed Rasputin?", which brought new attention to the investigation of the murder. According to the version shown in the film, the "glory" and the plan of this murder belongs to Great Britain, the Russian conspirators were only executors, a control shot in the forehead was fired from a revolver of British officers Webley 455.

Who killed Grigory Rasputin

According to the researchers who published the books, Rasputin was killed with the active participation of the British intelligence service Mi-6, the killers confused the investigation in order to hide the British trail. The motive for the conspiracy was the following: Great Britain was afraid of Rasputin's influence on the Russian Empress, which threatened to conclude a separate peace with Germany. To eliminate the threat, a conspiracy brewing in Russia against Rasputin was used.

Rasputin was buried by Bishop Isidore (Kolokolov), who knew him well. In his memoirs, A. I. Spiridovich recalls that Bishop Isidore served the funeral mass (which he had no right to do).

At first they wanted to bury the dead man in his homeland, in the village of Pokrovsky. But because of the danger of possible unrest in connection with sending the body across half the country, they buried it in the Alexander Park of Tsarskoye Selo on the territory of the temple of Seraphim of Sarov built by Anna Vyrubova.

M. V. Rodzianko writes that during the festivities rumors spread in the Duma about Rasputin's return to St. Petersburg. In January 1917, Mikhail Vladimirovich received a paper with many signatures from Tsaritsyn with the message that Rasputin was visiting V.K. Sabler, that the Tsaritsyn people knew about Rasputin's arrival in the capital.

After the February Revolution, Rasputin's grave was found, and Kerensky ordered Kornilov to organize the destruction of the body. For several days the coffin with the remains stood in a special carriage. Rasputin's body was burned on the night of March 11 in the furnace of the steam boiler of the Polytechnic Institute. An official act was drawn up on the burning of the corpse of Rasputin.

Personal life of Grigory Rasputin:

In 1890 he married Praskovya Fedorovna Dubrovina, the same peasant pilgrim who bore him three children: Matryona, Varvara and Dimitri.

Grigory Rasputin with his children

In 1914, Rasputin settled in an apartment at 64 Gorokhovaya Street in St. Petersburg.

Various gloomy rumors quickly began to spread around St. Petersburg about this apartment, they say, Rasputin turned it into a brothel and uses it to conduct his "orgies". Some said that Rasputin kept a permanent "harem" there, while others - collected from time to time. There was a rumor that the apartment on Gorokhovaya was used for witchcraft, etc.

From the testimony of Tatyana Leonidovna Grigorova-Rudykovskaya:

"... Once, Aunt Agn. Fed. Hartman (my mother's sister) asked me if I would like to see Rasputin closer. ... Having received the address on Pushkinskaya St., on the appointed day and hour, I appeared at the apartment of Maria Alexandrovna Nikitina, my aunt friends. Entering the small dining room, I found everyone already assembled. At the oval table, served for tea, there were 6-7 young interesting ladies. I knew two of them by sight (we met in the halls of the Winter Palace, where it was organized by Alexandra Fedorovna sewing linen for the wounded.) They were all in the same circle and were talking animatedly to each other in an undertone. Having made a general bow in English, I sat down next to the hostess at the samovar and talked to her.

Suddenly, there was a general sigh - Ah! I looked up and saw in the door, located on the opposite side from where I entered, a powerful figure - the first impression - a gypsy. A tall, powerful figure was fitted by a white Russian shirt with embroidery on the collar and clasp, a twisted belt with tassels, black loose-fitting trousers and Russian boots. But there was nothing Russian in it. Thick black hair, a large black beard, a swarthy face with predatory nostrils of the nose and some kind of ironically mocking smile on the lips - the face, of course, is spectacular, but somehow unpleasant. The first thing that attracted attention was his eyes: black, red-hot, they burned, piercing through, and his gaze at you was felt simply physically, it was impossible to remain calm. It seems to me that he really had a hypnotic power that subjugated himself when he wanted it ...

Here everyone was familiar to him, vied with each other trying to please, to attract attention. He cheekily sat down at the table, addressed each by name and “you”, spoke catchily, sometimes vulgarly and rudely, called to him, sat him on his knees, felt, stroked, patted on soft places and all the “happy” ones were thrilled with pleasure. ! It was disgusting and insulting to look at this for women who were humiliated, who had lost both their feminine dignity and family honor. I felt the blood rush to my face, I wanted to scream, bang my fist, do something. I sat almost opposite the “distinguished guest”, he perfectly felt my condition and, mockingly laughing, each time after the next attack he stubbornly stuck his eyes into me. I was a new, unknown object to him...

Brashly addressing one of those present, he said: “Do you see? Who made the shirt? Sasha! (meaning Empress Alexandra Feodorovna). No decent man would ever betray the secrets of a woman's feelings. My eyes grew dark from tension, and Rasputin's gaze unbearably drilled and drilled. I moved closer to the hostess, trying to hide behind the samovar. Maria Alexandrovna looked at me anxiously...

“Mashenka,” a voice rang out, “do you want some jam? Come to me." Masha hastily jumps up and hurries to the place of conscription. Rasputin crosses his legs, takes a spoonful of jam and knocks it over on the toe of his boot. “Lick” - an imperative voice sounds, she kneels down and, bowing her head, licks off the jam ... I could not stand it anymore. Squeezing the mistress's hand, she jumped up and ran out into the hallway. I don’t remember how I put on my hat, how I ran along the Nevsky. I came to my senses at the Admiralty, I had to go home to Petrogradskaya. Half the night she roared and asked me never to ask me about what I saw, and I myself neither with my mother nor with my aunt remembered this hour, I did not see Maria Alexandrovna Nikitina either. Since then, I could not calmly hear the name of Rasputin and lost all respect for our "secular" ladies. Once, while visiting De-Lazari, I came up to the phone call and heard the voice of this scoundrel. But she immediately said that I know who is speaking, and therefore I don’t want to talk ... "

The Provisional Government conducted a special investigation into the Rasputin case. In the opinion of one of the participants in this investigation, V.M. his personality from this side turned out to be in the data of that very secret surveillance of him, which was conducted by the security department; at the same time, it turned out that Rasputin's amorous adventures do not go beyond the framework of night orgies with girls of easy virtue and chansonnet singers, and also sometimes with some of his petitioners."

Matryon's daughter in her book Rasputin. Why?" wrote:

"...that for all his impregnation with life, the father never abused his strength and the ability to influence women in the carnal sense. However, one must understand that this part of the relationship was of particular interest to the father's ill-wishers. I note that they received some real food for their stories ".

Rasputin's daughter Matryona emigrated to France after the revolution, and later moved to the United States.

The remaining members of the Rasputin family were subjected to repression by the Soviet authorities.

In 1922, his widow Praskovya Fedorovna, son Dmitry and daughter Varvara were disenfranchised as "malicious elements." Even earlier, in 1920, the house and the entire peasant economy of Dmitry Grigorievich were nationalized.

In the 1930s, all three were arrested by the NKVD, and their trace was lost in the special settlements of the Tyumen North.

Only Ivan the Terrible can be compared with the inconsistency of assessment of the personality of Grigory Rasputin in Russian history. Grigory Rasputin, biography, interesting facts from whose life attract a large number of researchers. Much that this man could do is still not explained scientifically. about his life are not documented or deliberately falsified.

Grigory Rasputin-Novykh before meeting with the family of Nicholas II

Born into the family of a wealthy peasant in the village of Pokrovskoye, Tobolsk (now Tyumen) province, who had a mill on his farm. Various researchers consider 1864, 1865, 1969, 1871, 1872 to be the year of birth of G. Novykh (Rasputin). As dates of birth are considered 1.10, 23 January and 29 July.

It is believed that Rasputin got his nickname because of his dissolute (immoral) behavior. It would be strange for a person awarded such a contemptuous nickname to use it as a surname. Rasputin is the son of Rasputa (rasputa is an indecisive, insecure person).

"Crossroads" in Russian is "crossroads". According to Grigory Efimovich himself, his entire native village had the surname Rasputin - living at a crossroads. Only he, after walking around the holy places, took the prefix New to himself in order to distinguish himself from his fellow villagers. Intercession - from the Church of the Intercession, which was in the village.

In childhood good health didn't differ. His peasant labor strengthened him - he had to plow, work as a coachman, fish, walk with carts.

Rasputin Grigory Efimovich - interesting facts from life:

• At the age of 18, he quit peasant labor and went on a pilgrimage through the monasteries of Siberia to the Verkhoturinsk monastery in the Perm province.
• In 1890 he married a pilgrim, a peasant woman.
• In 1893 he went to the Athos Monastery in Greece and to Jerusalem.
• After walking around the holy places, he became famous for his ability to heal and predict the future.
• He possessed the innate abilities of a hypnotist, spoke wounds, could turn any objects into talismans.
• He was a devout Christian, but did not always agree with canonical dogmas. Perfection for him was the connection of nature and God, he argued that you can pray both in the monastery and in the dance.

According to G. E. Rasputin himself, he came to St. Petersburg in 1905 at the call of the Mother of God to help Tsarevich Alexei, who was ill with hemophilia.

Grigory Rasputin after meeting the family of Nicholas II

In 1907 he was called to the imperial court to treat the heir during one of the strongest attacks. Prayers stopped the bleeding and was left with the heir as a healer.

Gradually he acquired influential acquaintances, became a confessor and adviser to the queen, who called him "dear friend", "elder", God's man and considered him a saint. He spoke familiarly with the royal couple, expressed his opinions directly, without flattery and worship. They believed that they heard the voice of the people. He gave advice to the tsar on the pressing problems of state administration and personnel issues.

Repeatedly subjected to checks at different levels life path"old man" - no one would let a horse thief, a thief and a rapist near the king and heir. The initiator of one of the checks was P. A. Stolypin. Even the all-powerful prime minister with his administrative apparatus could not find crime in Rasputin's past life. None of the checks revealed anything that could discredit the "old man".

Grigory Efimovich Rasputin was like that with those in power, interesting facts from life are that in everyday life he preferred a Spartan lifestyle. He did not aspire to luxury, did not save money and parted with them easily, like every Russian loved to goof off and “splurge”.

The stronger the influence of the simple peasant Rasputin on the emperor's family and his entourage became, the greater the indignation it caused in the upper strata of society pushed away from the tsar.

A huge role in the appearance of a negative negative opinion was played by newspapers, in which everything was clearly done by order of someone who really needed it. It was the press that formed an opinion about a riotous lifestyle in the form of constant drinking, partying, debauchery.

The “old man” was also accused of treating people without special education. Moreover, few people attached importance to the fact that Rasputin treated more successfully than many certified doctors.

Very often, his influence on officials and nobles was explained by relationships with their women - wives, daughters, etc. Rasputin's influence on the emperor is attributed to leapfrog with the appointments of senior officials.

The most immoral accusation was the confidence of the press in the sexual relationship between Rasputin and the queen.

Most likely, the "old man" was not absolutely holy in relations with women, but he was hardly the sexual monster that everyone was used to describing.

An indirect confirmation of Rasputin's sexual restraint can be the story of the examination, which, after the October Revolution, the Cheka conducted one of his first secular "mistresses" - the maid of honor of the Empress Vyrubova. She herself demanded this, as a result of which it was confirmed that Vyrubova was a virgin (strange, because she was married, though unhappily).

Rasputin found cleansing from sins in repentance and prayers for many hours.

At the end of June 1914, an attempt was made on Rasputin, as a result of which he was wounded in the stomach. From the village of Pokrovskoye, where he was being treated, he wrote letters to the emperor, in which he conjured him from entering the war, otherwise predicting a blood-drenched empire and the collapse of the dynasty.

A few days before the death of the "old man", the emperor was given 16 pages written by Grigory Rasputin, interesting facts from the life of the future were presented with prophetic certainty. Long years the original text was kept in the archives of the special services of the USSR - Russia. Among the predictions were the following:

• the imperial family will perish if Rasputin is killed by aristocrats; if the killers are from the lower strata of society, nothing threatens the imperial family;
• in Russia in 1917 there will be several coups. The royal family will die in a city far from the capital;
• a socialist revolution will take place in Russia, but the Bolshevik regime will fall;
• in Germany, after the defeat in the first world war, a strong leader will appear;
• on the basis of the Russian Empire, another empire will arise;
• Russia will defeat Germany in the next war;
• man's exploration of space and the landing of man on the moon;
• proof of the possibility of reincarnation by European scientists, which will give impetus to a wave of suicides;
• the appearance of Lucifer and the approach of the end of the world;
• the leak of a deadly virus from US secret laboratories (possibly AIDS or another flu strain);
• poisoning by people of water, earth and sky, which will lead to a wide spread of numerous ailments and deaths of people;
• abrupt climate change due to deforestation, construction of dams, destruction of mountain ranges;
• there will be man-made disasters, such as accidents at nuclear power plants;
• during one of the storms (geomagnetic, solar or climatic), Jesus Christ will return to people to help them and warn them about the end of the world;
• from a lake (Loch Ness?) in Scotland a huge animal will come out, but will be destroyed;
• will develop Islamic fundamentalism, which will declare war on the United States, and it will last 7 years;
• the fall of morality and morality, human cloning;
• there will be a third World War after which there will be peace.

December 30, 1916 G. E. Rasputin was found under the ice of the Malaya Moika. According to the official version, the murder was committed by representatives of high society. Among the killers were members of the emperor's family. At first they tried to poison Rasputin with potassium cyanide, then they shot him twice in the back. They put a bag over the body, tied it up and lowered it into the hole. During the autopsy, it was found that the "old man" tried to breathe under water and died as a result of drowning.

But there is nothing in the official autopsy report about a control shot in the forehead, the trace of which is clearly visible in the surviving photographs in the archives of the British secret services.

The UK had a reason. Rasputin persuaded the Russian emperor to a separate peace with Germany, which could not please the Russian allies in the First World War.

The century that has passed since the death of G. E. Rasputin not only clarified who he really was, but confused the knowledge about his life. Grigory Rasputin, biography, from life in many respects remain a mystery in our time. It just so happened - the more significant a person is for the Slavic world, the more they pour mud on him. Will we know for sure who he was? Magician, sorcerer, sorcerer, psychic, villain or holy protector of the Russian land?

Grigory Efimovich Rasputin is an outstanding personality in history. His image is quite ambiguous and mysterious. Disputes about this man have been going on for almost a century.

Birth of Rasputin

Many still have not been able to decide who Rasputin is and what he actually became famous for in the history of Russia. He was born in 1869 in the village of Pokrovsky. Official data on the date of his birth are quite contradictory. Some historians believe that Grigory Rasputin has years of life - 1864-1917. In his mature years, he himself did not clarify, reporting various false data about the date of his birth. Historians believe that Rasputin liked to exaggerate his age in order to match the image of an old man he created.

In addition, many explained such a strong influence on the royal family precisely by the presence of hypnotic abilities. Rumors about the healing abilities of Rasputin have been spreading since his youth, but even his parents did not believe in it. The father believed that he became a pilgrim only because he was very lazy.

Assassination attempt on Rasputin

There were several attempts on the life of Grigory Rasputin. In 1914, he was stabbed in the stomach and seriously wounded by Khioniya Guseva, who came from Tsaritsyn. At that time, she was under the influence of Hieromonk Iliodor, who was an opponent of Rasputin, since he saw him as his main competitor. Guseva was placed in a psychiatric hospital, considering her mentally ill, and after a while she was released.

Iliodor himself more than once chased Rasputin with an ax, threatening to kill him, and also prepared 120 bombs for this purpose. In addition, there were also several more attempts on the "holy elder", but they were all unsuccessful.

Predicting one's own death

Rasputin had an amazing gift of providence, so he not only predicted his own death, but also the death of the royal family, and many other events. The confessor of the Empress, Bishop Feofan, recalled that Rasputin was once asked what the outcome of the meeting with the Japanese would be. He replied that Admiral Rozhdestvensky's squadron would sink, which happened in the battle of Tsushima.

Once, being with the imperial family in Tsarskoe Selo, Rasputin did not allow them to dine in the dining room, saying that the chandelier might fall. They obeyed him, and literally after 2 days the chandelier really fell.

They say that he left behind 11 more prophecies, which are gradually coming true. He also predicted his own death. Shortly before the murder, Rasputin wrote a will with terrible prophecies. He said that if peasants or hired killers kill him, then nothing threatens the imperial family and the Romanovs will remain in power for many years. And if the nobles and boyars kill him, then this will bring death to the Romanov dynasty and there will be no nobility in Russia for another 25 years.

The story of the assassination of Rasputin

Many are interested in who Rasputin is and what he is famous for in history. In addition, his death was unusual and surprising. A group of conspirators were from wealthy families, under the leadership of Prince Yusupov and Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich, they decided to put an end to the unlimited power of Rasputin.

In December 1916, they lured him to a late dinner, where they tried to poison him by slipping cyanide into his cakes and wine. However, potassium cyanide did not work. Yusupov was tired of waiting and shot Rasputin in the back, but the shot only angered the old man more, and he rushed at the prince, trying to strangle him. Yusupov was helped by his friends, who fired several more shots at Rasputin and beat him severely. After that, they tied his hands, wrapped him in cloth and threw him into the hole.

According to some reports, Rasputin fell into the water while still alive, but could not get out, became cold and choked, from which he died. However, there are records that he received mortal wounds during his lifetime and was already dead in the water of the Neva.

Information about, as well as the testimony of his killers, is quite contradictory, so it is not known exactly how this happened.

The series "Grigory Rasputin" is not entirely true, since in the film he was made a tall and powerful man, although, in fact, he was short and sickly in his youth. According to historical facts, he was a pale, frail man with a haggard look and sunken eyes. This is confirmed by the records of police documents.

There are quite contradictory and interesting facts of the biography of Grigory Rasputin, according to which he did not have any outstanding abilities. Rasputin is not the real surname of the elder, it is only his pseudonym. The real name is Wilkin. Many believed that he was a womanizer, constantly changing women, but contemporaries noted that Rasputin sincerely loved his wife and constantly remembered her.

There is an opinion that the "holy old man" was fabulously rich. Since he had influence at court, he was often approached with requests for a large reward. Rasputin spent part of the money on himself, as he built a 2-storey house in his native village and bought an expensive fur coat. Most Money he spent on charity, built churches. After his death, the special services checked the accounts, but they did not find any money on them.

Many said that Rasputin was actually the ruler of Russia, but this is absolutely not true, because Nicholas II had his own opinion on everything, and the elder was only allowed to occasionally advise. These and many other interesting facts about Grigory Rasputin say that he was completely different from what he was considered to be.

A Russian peasant who became famous for "prophecies" and "healings" and had unlimited influence on the imperial family, Grigory Efimovich Rasputin was born on January 21 (January 9, according to the old style), 1869 in the Ural village of Pokrovskoye, Tyumen district, Tobolsk province (now located on the territory of the Tyumen region ). In memory of St. Gregory of Nyssa, the infant was baptized with the name Gregory. Father, Efim Rasputin, was a cart driver and was a village headman, his mother was Anna Parshukova.

Gregory grew up as a sickly child. He did not receive an education, since there was no parochial school in the village, and he remained illiterate for the rest of his life - he wrote and read with great difficulty.

He began to work early, at first he helped to graze cattle, went with his father to the cart, then participated in agricultural work, helped to harvest.

In 1893 (according to other sources in 1892) Grigory

Rasputin began to wander around the holy places. At first, the business was limited to the nearest Siberian monasteries, and then he began to wander throughout Russia, having mastered its European part.

Later, Rasputin made a pilgrimage to the Greek monastery of Athos (Athos) and to Jerusalem. He made all these trips on foot. After wanderings, Rasputin invariably returned home for sowing and harvesting. Upon returning to his native village, Rasputin led the life of an "old man", but far from traditional asceticism. Rasputin's religious views were distinguished by their great originality and by no means coincided with canonical Orthodoxy in everything.

In his native places, he gained a reputation as a seer and healer. According to numerous testimonies of contemporaries, Rasputin did, to a certain extent, possess the gift of healing. He successfully coped with various nervous disorders, relieved tics, stopped blood, easily relieved headaches, drove away insomnia. There is evidence that he possessed an extraordinary power of suggestion.

In 1903, Grigory Rasputin visited St. Petersburg for the first time, and in 1905 he settled in it and soon attracted everyone's attention. The rumor about the "holy old man" who prophesies and heals the sick quickly reached the highest society. In a short time, Rasputin became fashionable and famous person in the capital and became well received in high-society living rooms. Grand Duchess Anastasia and Milica Nikolaevna introduced him to the royal family. The first meeting with Rasputin took place in early November 1905 and left a very pleasant impression on the imperial couple. Then such meetings began to occur regularly.

The rapprochement of Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna with Rasputin was of a deeply spiritual nature, they saw in him an old man who continued the traditions of Holy Rus', wise with spiritual experience, able to give good advice. He won even greater trust of the royal family by helping the heir to the throne, Tsarevich Alexei, who was ill with hemophilia (blood incoagulability).

At the request of the royal family, Rasputin was given a different surname - New - by special decree. According to legend, this word was one of the first words that the heir Alexei uttered when he began to speak. Seeing Rasputin, the baby shouted: "New! New!".

Using access to the king, Rasputin turned to him with requests, including commercial ones. Receiving money for this from interested people, Rasputin immediately distributed part of it to the poor and peasants. He did not have clear political views, but he firmly believed in the connection between the people and the monarch and the inadmissibility of war. In 1912, he opposed Russia's entry into the Balkan Wars.

There were many rumors in Petersburg society about Rasputin and his influence on power. From about 1910, an organized press campaign began against Grigory Rasputin. He was accused of horse stealing, belonging to the whip sect, debauchery, drunkenness. Nicholas II expelled Rasputin several times, but then returned him to the capital at the insistence of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna.

In 1914, Rasputin was wounded by a religious fanatic.

Rasputin's opponents argue that the influence of the "old man" on Russian foreign and domestic policy was almost all-encompassing. During the First World War, every appointment in the highest echelon of government services, as well as in the top of the church, passed through the hands of Grigory Rasputin. The empress consulted with him on all issues, and then persistently sought from her husband the state decisions she needed.

Authors who sympathize with Rasputin believe that he did not have any significant influence on the foreign and domestic policy of the empire, as well as on personnel appointments in the government, and that his influence was mainly in the spiritual sphere, as well as his miraculous abilities to alleviate suffering. Tsarevich.

In court circles, they continued to hate the "old man", considering him guilty of the fall of the authority of the monarchy. In the imperial environment, a conspiracy against Rasputin matured. Among the conspirators were Felix Yusupov (husband of the imperial niece), Vladimir Purishkevich (deputy of the State Duma) and Grand Duke Dmitry (cousin of Nicholas II).

On the night of December 30 (December 17, old style), 1916, Prince Yusupov invited Grigory Rasputin to visit, who served him poisoned wine. The poison did not work, and then the conspirators shot Rasputin and threw his body under the ice in a tributary of the Neva. When Rasputin's body was discovered a few days later, it turned out that he was still trying to breathe in the water and even freed one hand from the ropes.

At the insistence of the empress, Rasputin's body was buried near the chapel of the imperial palace in Tsarskoye Selo. After the February Revolution of 1917, the body was dug up and burned at the stake.

The trial of the murderers, whose act was approved even among the emperor's entourage, did not take place.

Grigory Rasputin was married to Praskovya (Paraskeva) Dubrovina. The couple had three children: son Dmitry (1895-1933) and two daughters - Matryona (1898-1977) and Varvara (1900-1925). Dmitry was exiled to the north in 1930, where he died of dysentery. Both daughters of Rasputin studied in St. Petersburg (Petrograd) at the gymnasium. Varvara died in 1925 from typhus. Matryona in 1917 married officer Boris Solovyov (1893-1926). The couple had two daughters. The family emigrated first to Prague, then to Berlin and Paris. After the death of her husband, Matryona (who called herself Maria abroad) performed in dance cabarets. Later she moved to the USA, where she began working as a tamer in a circus. After she was injured by a bear, she left this profession.

Died in Los Angeles (USA).

Matryona owns memories of Grigory Rasputin in French and German, published in Paris in 1925 and 1926, as well as brief notes about his father in Russian in the émigré magazine Illustrated Russia (1932).

The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources