Everything about Tsar Nicholas Ii totally explained
canonized as
saints by the
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia as
martyrs. On
14 August 2000 they were canonized by the
synod of the
Russian Orthodox Church. They were not named martyrs, since their death didn't result immediately from their Christian faith; instead they were canonized as
passion bearers. According to a statement by the Moscow synod, they were glorified as saints for the following reasons:
In the last Orthodox Russian monarch and members of his family we see people who sincerely strove to incarnate in their lives the commands of the Gospel. In the suffering borne by the Royal Family in prison with humility, patience, and meekness, and in their martyrs deaths in Ekaterinburg in the night of 4/17 July 1918 was revealed the light of the faith of Christ that conquers evil.
However, Nicholas' canonization was controversial. The Russian Orthodox Church Abroad was split on the issue back in 1981. Some members suggesting that the emperor was a weak ruler and had failed to prevent the outbreak of Communism in Russia. Although it was pointed out by one priest that martyrdom in the Russian Orthodox Church has nothing to do with the martyr's personal actions but is instead related to why he or she was killed. A further criticism was found in that the Orthodox Church outside of Russia seemed to be using Nicholas' murder as propaganda against the Jews.
The Russian Orthodox Church inside Russia rejected the family's classification as martyrs because they were not killed because of their religious faith. Religious leaders in both churches also had objections to canonizing the Tsar's family because they perceived him as a weak emperor whose incompetence led to the revolution, the suffering of his people and made him at least partially responsible for his own murder and the murders of his wife and children. For these opponents, the fact that the Tsar was, in private life, a kind man and a good husband and father didn't override his poor governance of Russia.
The Bolshevik executioners didn't have enough time to treat the rest of the bodies in the same way, hence the survival of their remains. Avdonin believes that, as the remains are so fragmentary, "probably only a few bones — possibly only some dust and ash" - they should be left in peace.
Anna Anderson received worldwide notoriety before the bodies were even found when rumours spread that she was claiming to be
Grand Duchess Anastasia, the alleged sole survivor of the execution.
Hollywood has made films based on this. Anna Anderson helped to fuel these rumours and gained a high degree of notoriety through her claims to be Anastasia. Her supporters alleged she knew information about the Romanovs that only an intimate member of the family would know. However, DNA testing on Anna Anderson's remains proved she was an imposter. According to that DNA testing, she was most likely a missing Polish factory worker,
Franziska Schanzkowska.
During the interment of the bones in 1998, the remains were referred to by the
Russian Orthodox Church as 'Christian victims of the Revolution' rather than as the royal family. One reason for this dispute was the absence of any mark from the
Ōtsu Scandal, an assassination attempt which resulted in a 9 centimeter cut from a saber to Nicholas's forehead during a visit to Japan as the
tsarevich. Tests done by Japanese scientists showed that the blood of Nicholas's nephew Tikhon didn't match with the published profile of Nicholas obtained by Dr Gill. A Stanford study done in 2003 suggested contamination.
Missing Remains Found
On
August 23,
2007, prosecutors acting on standard procedures have reopened the investigation surrounding the deaths of the Imperial Family. Yekaterinburg researcher Sergei Pogorelov said that "bones found in a burned area of ground near Yekaterinburg belong to a boy and a young woman roughly the ages of Nicholas’ 13-year-old hemophiliac son, Alexei, and a daughter whose remains also never have been found." A regional forensics scientist, Nikolai Nevolin explained that testing will be conducted on the newly discovered remains. On
28 September it was announced by the regional authorities that it was "highly probable" the remains belonged to Alexei and one of his sisters.
Missing Remains Identified
On
April 30,
2008, DNA tests performed by a U.S. laboratory have proved that bone fragments exhumed in the Ural Mountains belong to two children (Crown Prince Alexei and Grand Duchess Maria) of Russia's last Tsar,according to Russian news agencies. On
30 April it was announced by Russian authorities that the remains of the entire family have now been identified.
Ancestors
As can be seen from this family tree, Nicholas was 94% German and 6% Russian.
Patrilineal descent
Nicholas's patriline is the line from which he's descended father to son.
Patrilineal descent is the principle behind membership in royal houses, as it can be traced back through the generations — which means that if Nicholas II were to have chosen an historically accurate house name it would have been
Oldenburg, as all his male-line ancestors were of that house.
House of Oldenburg
- Egilmar I of Lerigau, dates unknown
- Egilmar II of Lerigau, d. 1142
- Christian I of Oldenburg, d. 1167
- Moritz of Oldenburg, d. 1209
- Christian II of Oldenburg, d. 1233
- John I, Count of Oldenburg, d. 1275
- Christian III, Count of Oldenburg, d. 1285
- John II, Count of Oldenburg, d. 1314
- Conrad I, Count of Oldenburg, 1300 - 1347
- Christian V, Count of Oldenburg, 1340 - 1423
- Dietrich, Count of Oldenburg, 1398 - 1440
- Christian I of Denmark, 1426 - 1481
- Frederick I of Denmark, 1471 - 1533
- Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1526 - 1586
- John Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1575 - 1616
- Frederick III, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1597 - 1659
- Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1641 - 1695
- Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1671 - 1702
- Charles Frederick, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, 1700 - 1739
- Peter III of Russia, 1728 - 1762
- Paul I of Russia, 1754 - 1801, putative father of
- Nicholas I of Russia, 1796 - 1855
- Alexander II of Russia, 1818 - 1881
- Alexander III of Russia, 1845 - 1894
- Nicholas II of Russia, 1868 - 1918
Issue
The children of Nicholas II and empress Alexandra as follows:
Further Information
Get more info on 'Tsar Nicholas Ii'.
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