Just before midnight on the night of March 2nd, 1917,
in a wagon of the Imperial train stationed in the ancient Russian city of Pskov
Nicholas II, Emperor and autocrat of all the Russians, in the 48th year of his life and the 23rd of his reign
surrendered the crown that his forebearers had held since 1613.
His diary entry for that day read: "All around there's treachery, cowardice, and deceit".
And again on the same day while holding a bundle of telegrams from his generals and even one from his own
uncle Nicholas Nikolayevich he said: "What is left for me to do when everyone has betrayed me?
When in the winter of
1917 the February Revolution began in Petrograd
General Hasan Khan Nakichelonsky
a Muslim was one of only two Russian generals who supported the Emperor.
The general sent a telegram to the headquarters of the Supreme commander-in-chief
to offer Nicholas the use of his troops for suppression of the revolt, but the Emperor never received this telegram.
The Tsar's poignant diary entry of March 2nd bore much truth to the betrayal by his ministers, generals,
soldiers, and even members of his extended family
who turned their back on their sovereign breaking their oath of allegiance and thus committing treason in the process.
Even his distant relations, members of the various royal families of Europe, turned their back on the Emperor.
Treachery was indeed everywhere.
One of the most shocking plots was spearheaded by Pavel Milyukov and Alexander Guchkov,
both harsh critics of the emperor, who openly discussed a treasonous plan to oust Nikolas from the throne,
which meant that they must take power into their own hands even if that meant that the emperor had to be liquidated.
The emperor was more than aware that the various branches of his own family were creating a politically dangerous
situation by their open hostility towards him. These included Grand Duke Nicholas
Mikhailovich, however, it was the hostility which simmered from the Vladimirovich branch of the family
which posed the greatest threat to both him and his throne. The power-hungry Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna,
wife of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovitch, talked about saving the monarchy by replacing the Emperor.
Four guards regiments were to join in a midnight march on Tsarskoe Selo
to proclaim Tsarevich Alexei as Emperor, with Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolayevich
as regent. The French ambassador in St Petersburg
noted in his memoirs that her plan was supported by her three sons
Grand Dukes Kirill, Boris, and Andrei.
Prince George Lvov
suggested to Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolayevich
that he should proclaim himself Emperor. The plot included sending Nicholas into exile
and Alexandra sent to a convent. The Grand Duke reacted evasivel,
however, not quite sure how the people and the army would react.
The signing of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty came as a terrible blow to the Tsar.
This treasonous act enabled the Bolsheviks to further their tyranny.
Russia's former allies turned a blind eye to the arrests, violence, and murders that terrorized the Russian people.
Britain however, wasted little time in recognizing the new Soviet regime
followed by France and the United States.
But aside from the treachery, cowardice, and deceit Nicholas II was also the victim of many myths and lies,
the seeds of which,
planted during his reign, were allowed to germinate during the Soviet years and to the present day.
The charge most frequently leveled against Nicholas II by his detractors has been that of his alleged indecisiveness.
He was often accused of not being able to make up his mind,
constantly changing his opinion; and yet, can this be proven or is it a reflection of the
disappointment felt by those whose advice he did not take?
Nicholas II was surrounded by
self-serving ministers, many of whom sought nothing more than to improve their own position.
Contemporary historians also tell us that news of Nicholas' II death was met with indifference among the Russian people.
This is not entirely true.
Patriarch Tikhon was one of the few who openly defended the imperial family
by condemning the Bolsheviks for committing regicide.
Prince Sergey Galitsin
recalled in his diary how people of all levels of society went and prayed
upon hearing of the Tsar's death and how he himself as a nine-year-old boy cried
night after night in his pillow.
In the summer of 1918
Lenin unleashed the first Red Terror
People lived in fear of punishment from the thugs and criminals of the new order
for showing any sympathy for the murdered Tsar.
Many of them hit their frame portraits of the Tsar and kept their grief and monarchist sentiments to themselves.
