Sermon by Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeev) on the day of remembrance of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers. Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker on the Waters - holy royal martyrs
And the imperial couple were distinguished by their deep religiosity. The education of the children of the Imperial Family was imbued with a religious spirit. All its members lived in accordance with the traditions of Orthodox piety. Mandatory attendance at services on Sundays and holidays, and fasting during fasting were an integral part of their life. The personal religiosity of the Tsar and his wife was not a simple adherence to traditions. Brief services in court churches did not satisfy the Emperor and Empress. Services are held especially for them in the Tsarskoye Selo Feodorovsky Cathedral. The Emperor's family life was distinguished by amazing simplicity, mutual love and consent of all members of this closely knit family. As a politician and statesman, the Emperor acted on the basis of religious and moral principles.
On March 2, 1917, representatives of the State Duma and traitors from the high military command forced Nicholas II to abdicate the throne. “If I am an obstacle to the happiness of Russia and all the social forces now at its head ask me to leave the throne, then I am ready to do this, I am even ready to give not only my kingdom, but also my life for the Motherland,” said the Tsar.
In the Royal Family, which found itself in captivity, we see people who sought to embody the commandments of the Gospel in their lives. Together with their parents, the Tsar's children endured all humiliation and suffering with meekness and humility. A priest who knew them well wrote: “Lord, grant that all the children will be as morally high as the children of the Tsar. Such kindness, humility, obedience to parental will, devotion to the will of God, purity of thoughts and complete ignorance of earthly dirt - passionate and sinful - left me in amazement.” In almost complete isolation from outside world Surrounded by rude and cruel guards, the prisoners of the Ipatiev House show amazing nobility and clarity of spirit. Their true greatness stemmed not from their royal dignity, but from the amazing moral height to which they gradually rose.
Holy royal passion-bearers, pray to God for us!
The ceremony of consecrating the foundation stone at the construction site of the Church of the Sovereign Icon of the Mother of God in the Monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers on Ganina Yama, after which he addressed the believers with the Primate’s word.
Christ is Risen!
Your Eminence, Metropolitan Kirill! Your Eminences and Graces! Dear senior leadership of the region! Dear fathers, brothers and sisters!
It was with great joy that I arrived in Yekaterinburg in the year when we remember the 400th anniversary of the House of Romanov. This royal dynasty came to power after the decisive battle for the independence of our Fatherland, which took place at the end of the so-called Time of Troubles. The country, at least a significant part of it, was liberated from foreign occupation, and the Russian people had the opportunity to elect a legitimate government. Then, at the Zemsky Sobor, Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was elected - still a very young man, from a pious, well-known boyar family, who laid the foundation of a dynasty that ruled for more than 300 years. Among the sovereigns and empresses there were outstanding people, and even if there were among them less successful and less capable of ruling, then they also served their Motherland and their people.
We know that during these 300 years of small state our country has become a great power from Baltic Sea before Pacific Ocean. Russia, especially during the reign of Emperor Nicholas II - before the outbreak of the First World War - showed miracles of economic, social and political development. In the coming decades, Russia could become the leader of the whole world, and this happened without camps, without prisons, without forced collectivization, because it stemmed from the people's potential, which was really revealed in those years in Russia. But we know that the war, which was aimed primarily at weakening the power of the Russian state, led to a split in our society, and then revolutionary events, civil war and all the grave consequences that our people experienced in the twentieth century.
We also remember the 145th anniversary of the birth of Emperor Nicholas II and the 95th anniversary of his martyrdom. This gives us the opportunity to think about the history of our Fatherland, about the tragedy of our people, to remember once again spiritual feat sovereign Emperor Nicholas II and his family, who was revealed in accepting death as any Christian should accept it - in kindness and calmness, in forgiveness of enemies, in complete humility and in surrendering his soul and body into the hands of God. That is why we glorify the holy passion-bearer Emperor Nicholas II and his family.
On this place, in Ganina Yama, where the gravest crime was committed - hiding the remains of the holy passion-bearers - a wonderful monastery has now been erected; and on the day when we remember all these events on Yekaterinburg land, the foundation of the temple erected in honor of the Sovereign Icon of the Mother of God was consecrated.
Probably, those who killed the royal family, who tried to destroy their bodies and completely erase everything that happened from history, were guided, on the one hand, by fear, and on the other hand, by hatred. Those people had power on their side and had the opportunity to control the destinies, including the captured sovereign emperor and his family. It would seem that the subsequent decades lay down on the memory of this family like a huge concrete slab through which it cannot grow. green grass. It seemed to many that the memory of them had been destroyed, and if it was preserved, it was only as an object of ridicule and desecration. Few could imagine that the memory of the royal family was alive among the people and that even at a time when politic system assessed the activities of the late emperor extremely negatively, commemoration of the sovereign and his family began, veneration of the terrible Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg, where the execution took place.
Today we see that our people reverence with deep faith the memory of the deceased sovereign and his family. And the question arises: how did all this become possible? The words of the great Easter hymn - the kontakion of Holy Pascha - come to mind: “Although you descended into the grave, Immortal, you crushed the power of hell.” The Lord crushed the power of hell with His Resurrection. And this means that any evil that is present in human history cannot achieve final victory - it has already been defeated. The victory of evil, especially on the scale of history, is temporary, fleeting. And how clearly for all of us the glorification of the royal family testifies to the crushing of hellish power! How amazingly green sprouts, sprouts of life emerged through concrete slab, with which they tried to close any memory of those times in the historical consciousness of the people!
In order to have strong faith, you need to be able to read history and see the signs of God's presence. Sometimes it seems to us that what is happening is inexplicable; people brush aside any attempts to explain, including, what happened to our Fatherland in the twentieth century. But we, believers, understand that evil was punished and destroyed precisely because the Risen Christ crushed the power of hell.
What does all this mean for our modern life? And this means that we must live with the fear of God in our hearts, not do evil, not carry lies and untruths with us. Sometimes it seems to us that only we, or perhaps some narrow circle of people, know that we are doing bad, disgusting things, and no one will ever know anything about it. However, life experience shows that everything becomes clear, and history gives surprisingly correct assessments of historical figures, despite all attempts to distort history.
I am very glad to see all of you, my dears. It is with a special emotional feeling that I visit this place where I was now praying with you. Today and tomorrow we will continue these anniversary celebrations on Yekaterinburg soil. May the Lord protect you all, strengthening you in the Orthodox faith, in purity of life, in purity of thoughts, in a way of thinking and a way of acting that would always correspond to God’s truth. And if something doesn’t work out for someone, if the enemy tempts, if it seems that evil is invincible, remember Ganina’s pit and remember the amazing words of the Easter hymn “thou hast crushed the power of hell,” and these memories, like these words, will help us perk up even in the most difficult life circumstances. May the Lord protect our Fatherland, the land of Yekaterinburg and all of you.
Christ is Risen!
Press service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'
July 17 is the day of remembrance of the Holy Passion-Bearers Tsar Nicholas, Tsarina Alexandra, Tsarevich Alexy, Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia
photo from Yekaterinburg on the night of July 17 - the Divine Liturgy is being celebrated. 40-50 thousand pilgrims come these days to Yekaterinburg to the Church on the Blood.
The royal martyrs are the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and his family. They suffered martyrdom - in 1918 they were shot by order of the Bolsheviks. In 2000, the Russian Orthodox Church canonized them as saints. We will talk about the feat and the day of remembrance of the Royal Martyrs, which is celebrated on July 17.
Who are the Royal Martyrs
Royal Passion-Bearers, Royal Martyrs, Royal Family -
this is how, after canonization, the Russian Orthodox Church names the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and his family: Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, Tsarevich Alexei, Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. They were canonized for the feat of martyrdom - on the night of July 16-17, 1918, on the orders of the Bolsheviks, they, along with the court doctor and servants, were shot in Ipatiev’s house in Yekaterinburg.
What does the word “passion-bearer” mean?
“Passion-bearer” is one of the ranks of holiness. This is a saint who suffered martyrdom for fulfilling God's Commandments, and most often - at the hands of fellow believers. An important part of the feat of the passion-bearer is that the martyr does not hold a grudge against his tormentors and does not resist.
This is the face of saints who suffered not for their actions or for the preaching of Christ, but for the fact by whom they were. The fidelity of the passion-bearers to Christ is expressed in their fidelity to their calling and destiny.
It was in the guise of passion-bearers that Emperor Nicholas II and his family were canonized.
When is the memory of the Royal Passion-Bearers celebrated?
The memory of the holy Passion-Bearers Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra, Tsarevich Alexy, Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia is celebrated on the day of their murder - July 17 according to the new style (July 4 according to the old style).
Murder of the Romanov family
The last Russian emperor, Nicholas II Romanov, abdicated the throne on March 2, 1917. After his abdication, he, along with his family, doctor and servants, were placed under house arrest in the palace in Tsarskoe Selo. Then, in the summer of 1917, the Provisional Government sent the prisoners into exile in Tobolsk. And finally, in the spring of 1918, the Bolsheviks exiled them to Yekaterinburg. It was there that on the night of July 16-17 the Royal Family was shot - by order of the executive committee of the Ural Regional Council of Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Deputies.
Some historians believe that the order for execution was received directly from Lenin and Sverdlov. The question whether this is so is debatable, perhaps historical science the truth is yet to be known.
Royal wedding
Very little is known about the Ekaterinburg period of exile of the Royal Family. Several entries in the emperor's diary have reached us; There are testimonies from witnesses in the case of the murder of the Royal Family. In the house of engineer Ipatiev Nicholas II and his family were guarded by 12 soldiers. Essentially, it was a prison. The prisoners slept on the floor; the guards were often cruel to them; prisoners were allowed to walk in the garden only once a day.
The royal passion-bearers courageously accepted their fate. A letter from Princess Olga has reached us, where she writes: “Father asks us to tell all those who remained devoted to him, and those on whom they may have influence, that they do not take revenge for him, since he has forgiven everyone and is praying for everyone, and so that they do not avenge themselves, and so that they remember that the evil that is now in the world will be even stronger, but that it is not evil that will defeat evil, but only love.”
Those arrested were allowed to attend services. Prayer was a great consolation for them. Archpriest John Storozhev performed the last service in the Ipatiev House just a few days before the execution of the Royal Family - July 14, 1918.
On the night of July 16-17 security officer and leader of the execution Yakov Yurovsky woke up the emperor, his wife and children. They were ordered to gather under the pretext that unrest had begun in the city and they urgently needed to move to a safe place. The prisoners were escorted to a semi-basement room with one barred window, where Yurovsky informed the Emperor: “Nikolai Alexandrovich, according to the resolution of the Ural Regional Council, you and your family will be shot.” The security officer shot several times at Nicholas II, and other participants in the execution shot at the rest of the condemned. Those who fell but were still alive were finished off with shots and bayonets. The bodies were taken out into the yard, loaded into a truck and taken to Ganina Yama - an abandoned Isetsky. There they threw it into a mine, then burned it and buried it.
Convent in honor of the Holy Royal Martyrs, p. Kislovka, Belotserkov Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
Along with the Royal family, the court doctor Yevgeny Botkin and several servants were shot: the maid Anna Demidova, the cook Ivan Kharitonov and the valet Alexei Trupp
On July 21, 1918, during a service in the Kazan Cathedral in Moscow, Patriarch Tikhon said: “The other day a terrible thing happened: the former Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich was shot... We must, obeying the teaching of the word of God, condemn this matter, otherwise the blood of the executed person will fall on us, and not only on those who committed it. We know that he, having abdicated the throne, did so with the good of Russia in mind and out of love for her. After his abdication, he could have found security and a relatively quiet life abroad, but he did not do this, wanting to suffer with Russia. He did nothing to improve his situation and resignedly resigned himself to fate.”
For many decades, no one knew where the executioners buried the bodies of the executed Royal Martyrs. And only in July 1991, the presumed remains of five members of the imperial family and servants were discovered near Yekaterinburg, under the embankment of the Old Koptyakovskaya Road. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office opened a criminal case...
Canonization of the Royal Family
People abroad have been praying for the repose of the Royal Family since the 1920s. In 1981, the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad canonized Nicholas II and his family.
The Russian Orthodox Church canonized the Royal Martyrs almost twenty years later - in 2000: “To glorify the royal family as passion-bearers in the host of new martyrs and confessors of Russia: Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra, Tsarevich Alexy, Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia.”
Why do we honor the Royal Passion-Bearers?
Archpriest Igor FOMIN, rector of the Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky at MGIMO:
“We honor the royal family for their devotion to God; for martyrdom; for giving us an example of real leaders of the country who treated it like their own family. After the revolution, Emperor Nicholas II had many opportunities to leave Russia, but he did not take advantage of them. Because he wanted to share the fate with his country, no matter how bitter this fate was.
We see not only the personal feat of the Royal Passion-Bearers, but the feat of all that Rus', which was once called leaving, but which is in fact abiding. As in 1918 in the Ipatiev House, where the martyrs were shot, so here, now. This is a modest, but at the same time majestic Rus', in contact with which you understand what is valuable and what is of secondary importance in your life.
The royal family is not an example of correct political decisions; the Church glorified the Royal Passion-Bearers not for this at all. For us, they are an example of the ruler’s Christian attitude towards the people, the desire to serve them even at the cost of their lives.”
How to distinguish the veneration of the Royal Martyrs from the sin of kingship?
Archpriest Igor FOMIN, rector of the Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky at MGIMO:
“The royal family stands among those saints whom we love and glorify. But the Royal Passion-Bearers do not “save us,” because the salvation of man is the work of Christ alone. The royal family, like any other Christian saints, leads and accompanies us on the path to salvation, to the Kingdom of Heaven.”
Icon of the Royal Martyrs
Traditionally, icon painters depict the Royal Passion-Bearers without a doctor and servants, who were shot along with them in Ipatiev’s house in Yekaterinburg. We see on the icon Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and their five children - princesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia and the heir Alexei Nikolaevich.
In the icon, the Royal Passion-Bearers hold crosses in their hands. This is a symbol of martyrdom, known from the first centuries of Christianity, when followers of Christ were crucified on crosses, just like their Teacher. At the top of the icon two angels are depicted; they carry the image of the “Sovereign” icon of the Mother of God.
Temple in the name of the Royal Passion-Bearers
The Church on the Blood in the name of All Saints, who shone in the Russian land, was built in Yekaterinburg on the site of the house of engineer Ipatiev, in which the Royal Family was shot in 1918.
The Ipatiev House building itself was demolished in 1977. In 1990, a wooden cross was erected here, and soon a temporary temple without walls, with a dome on supports. The first Liturgy was served there in 1994.
Construction of the stone temple-monument began in 2000. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy laid a capsule with a commemorative letter about the consecration of the construction site at the foundation of the church. Three years later, on the site of the execution of the Royal Passion-Bearers, a large white-stone temple, consisting of a lower and an upper temple, grew up. In front of the entrance there is a monument to the Royal Family.
Inside the church, next to the altar, is the main shrine of the Yekaterinburg church - the crypt (tomb). It was installed on the site of the very room where eleven martyrs were killed - the last Russian emperor, his family, the court doctor and servants. The crypt was decorated with bricks and the remains of the foundation of the historical Ipatiev house.
Every year, on the night of July 16-17, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated in the Church on the Blood, and then believers go in procession from the church to Ganina Yama, where after the execution the security officers took the bodies of the martyrs.
Zhana Bichevskaya song about the royal martyrs
Valery Malyshev Dedication
About the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers
The guidance for Emperor Nicholas II was his father’s political testament: “I bequeath to you to love everything that serves the good, honor and dignity of Russia. Protect autocracy, bearing in mind that you are responsible for the fate of your subjects before the Throne of the Most High. Let faith in God and the holiness of your royal duty be the basis of your life. Be strong and courageous, never show weakness. Listen to everyone, there is nothing shameful in this, but listen to yourself and your conscience.”
From the very beginning of his reign as a Russian power, Emperor Nicholas II treated the duties of a monarch as a sacred duty. The Emperor deeply believed that for the hundred million Russian people, tsarist power was and remains sacred. He always had the idea that the Tsar and Queen should be closer to the people, see them more often and trust them more.
The year 1896 was marked by coronation celebrations in Moscow. Royal wedding - most important event in the life of a monarch, especially when he is imbued with deep faith in his calling. The Sacrament of Confirmation was performed over the royal couple - as a sign that just as there is no higher, so there is no more difficult on earth royal power, there is no burden heavier than royal service, the Lord ... will give strength to our kings (1 Sam. 2:10). From that moment the Emperor felt himself to be a true Anointed One of God. Betrothed to Russia since childhood, he seemed to have married her on that day.
To the great sorrow of the Tsar, the celebrations in Moscow were overshadowed by the disaster on the Khodynskoye Field: a stampede occurred in the crowd awaiting royal gifts, in which many people died. Having become the supreme ruler of a huge empire, in whose hands the entire legislative, executive and judicial power was practically concentrated, Nikolai Alexandrovich took upon himself enormous historical and moral responsibility for everything that happened in the state entrusted to him. And the Sovereign considered one of his most important duties to be the preservation of the Orthodox faith, according to the word Holy Scripture: “The king... made a covenant before the Lord - to follow the Lord and keep His commandments and His revelations and His statutes with all my heart and with all my soul” (2 Kings 23:3).
Church of the Holy Royal Martyrs , Donetsk, Donetsk and Mariupol diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
A year after the wedding, on November 3, 1895, the first daughter, Grand Duchess Olga, was born; she was followed by the birth of three daughters, full of health and life, who were the joy of their parents, the Grand Duchesses Tatiana (May 29, 1897), Maria (June 14, 1899) and Anastasia (June 5, 1901). But this joy was not without an admixture of bitterness - cherished wish The royal couple had the birth of an Heir, so that the Lord would add days to the days of the king, and extend his years for generations and generations (Ps. 60:7).
The long-awaited event took place on August 12, 1904, a year after the Royal Family’s pilgrimage to Sarov, for the celebration of the glorification of St. Seraphim. It seemed that a new bright streak was beginning in their family life. But a few weeks after the birth of Tsarevich Alexy, it turned out that he had hemophilia. The child's life hung in the balance all the time: the slightest bleeding could cost him his life. The mother's suffering was especially intense...
Deep and sincere religiosity distinguished the Imperial couple from representatives of the then aristocracy. From the very beginning, the upbringing of the children of the Imperial Family was imbued with the spirit of the Orthodox faith. All its members lived in accordance with the traditions of Orthodox piety. Mandatory attendance at divine services on Sundays and holidays, and fasting during fasting were an integral part of the life of the Russian tsars, for the tsar trusts in the Lord and will not be shaken in the goodness of the Most High (Ps. 20:8).
However, the personal religiosity of Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich, and especially his wife, was undoubtedly something more than simple adherence to traditions. The royal couple not only visit churches and monasteries during their numerous trips, venerate miraculous icons and relics of saints, but also make pilgrimages, as they did in 1903 during the glorification of St. Seraphim of Sarov. Brief services in court churches no longer satisfied the Emperor and Empress. Services were held especially for them in the Tsarskoe Selo Feodorovsky Cathedral, built in the style of the 16th century. Here Empress Alexandra prayed in front of a lectern with open liturgical books, carefully following the progress of the church service.
Church of the Holy Royal Martyrs, Alushta, Simferopol and Crimean dioceses of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
The Emperor paid great attention to the needs of the Orthodox Church throughout his reign. Like all Russian emperors, Nicholas II generously donated to the construction of new churches, including outside Russia. During the years of his reign, the number of parish churches in Russia increased by more than 10 thousand, and more than 250 new monasteries were opened. The emperor himself participated in the laying of new churches and other church celebrations.
The personal piety of the Sovereign was also manifested in the fact that during the years of his reign more saints were canonized than in the two previous centuries, when only 5 saints were glorified. During the last reign, St. Theodosius of Chernigov (1896), St. Seraphim of Sarov (1903), Holy Princess Anna Kashinskaya (restoration of veneration in 1909), St. Joasaph of Belgorod (1911), St. Hermogenes of Moscow (1913), Saint Pitirim of Tambov (1914), Saint John of Tobolsk (1916). At the same time, the Emperor was forced to show special persistence, seeking the canonization of St. Seraphim of Sarov, Saints Joasaph of Belgorod and John of Tobolsk. Emperor Nicholas II highly revered the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt. After his blessed death, the king ordered a nationwide prayerful commemoration of the deceased on the day of his repose.
During the reign of Emperor Nicholas II, the traditional synodal system of governing the Church was preserved, but it was under him church hierarchy got the opportunity not only to widely discuss, but also to practically prepare for the convening of the Local Council.
Coronation
The desire to introduce Christian religious and moral principles of one’s worldview into public life has always distinguished the foreign policy of Emperor Nicholas II. Back in 1898, he approached the governments of Europe with a proposal to convene a conference to discuss issues of maintaining peace and reducing armaments. The consequence of this was the peace conferences in The Hague in 1889 and 1907. Their decisions have not lost their significance to this day.
But, despite the Tsar’s sincere desire for the First World, during his reign Russia had to participate in two bloody wars, which led to internal unrest. In 1904, without declaring war, Japan began military operations against Russia - the revolutionary turmoil of 1905 became the consequence of this difficult war for Russia. The Tsar perceived the unrest in the country as a great personal sorrow...
Few people communicated with the Emperor informally. And everyone who knew him family life firsthand, they noted the amazing simplicity, mutual love and the consent of all members of this closely knit family. Its center was Alexey Nikolaevich, all attachments, all hopes were focused on him. The children were full of respect and consideration towards their mother. When the Empress was unwell, the daughters were arranged to take turns on duty with their mother, and the one who was on duty that day remained with her indefinitely. The children's relationship with the Emperor was touching - he was for them at the same time a king, a father and a comrade; their feelings changed depending on the circumstances, moving from almost religious worship to complete trust and the most cordial friendship.
A circumstance that constantly darkened the life of the Imperial family was the incurable illness of the Heir. Attacks of hemophilia, during which the child experienced severe suffering, were repeated several times. In September 1912, as a result of a careless movement, internal bleeding occurred, and the situation was so serious that they feared for the life of the Tsarevich. Prayers for his recovery were served in all churches in Russia. The nature of the illness was a state secret, and parents often had to hide their feelings while participating in the normal routine of palace life. The Empress understood well that medicine was powerless here.
But nothing is impossible for God! Being a deep believer, she devoted herself with all her soul to fervent prayer in hope miraculous healing. Sometimes, when the child was healthy, it seemed to her that her prayer had been answered, but the attacks were repeated again, and this filled the mother’s soul with endless sorrow. She was ready to believe anyone who was able to help her grief, to somehow alleviate the suffering of her son - and the Tsarevich’s illness opened the doors to the palace to those people who were recommended to the Royal Family as healers and prayer books.
Among them, the peasant Grigory Rasputin appears in the palace, who was destined to play his role in the life of the Royal Family, and in the fate of the entire country - but he had no right to claim this role. People who sincerely loved the Royal Family tried to somehow limit Rasputin’s influence; Among them were the Holy Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth, the Holy Martyr Metropolitan Vladimir...
In 1913, all of Russia solemnly celebrated the three-hundredth anniversary of the House of Romanov. After the February celebrations in St. Petersburg and Moscow, in the spring, the Royal Family completes a tour of ancient Central Russian cities, the history of which is connected with the events of the early 17th century. The Tsar was greatly impressed by the sincere manifestations of the people's devotion - and the population of the country in those years was rapidly increasing: in a multitude of people there is greatness to the king (Proverbs 14:28).
Russia was at the peak of glory and power at this time: industry was developing at an unprecedented pace, the army and navy were becoming more and more powerful, agrarian reform was being successfully implemented - about this time we can say in the words of Scripture: the superiority of the country as a whole is a king who cares about the country ( Ecclesiastes 5:8). It seemed that all internal problems would be successfully resolved in the near future.
But this was not destined to come true: the First World War was brewing. Using the murder of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne by a terrorist as a pretext, Austria attacked Serbia. Emperor Nicholas II considered it his Christian duty to stand up for the Orthodox Serbian brothers...
On July 19 (August 1), 1914, Germany declared war on Russia, which soon became pan-European. In August 1914, the need to help its ally France led Russia to launch an overly hasty offensive in East Prussia, which resulted in a heavy defeat. By the fall it became clear that there was no imminent end to hostilities in sight. However, since the beginning of the war, internal divisions have subsided in the country on a wave of patriotism. Even the most difficult issues became solvable - the Tsar’s long-planned ban on the sale of alcoholic beverages for the entire duration of the war was implemented. His conviction of the usefulness of this measure was stronger than all economic considerations.
The Emperor regularly travels to Headquarters, visiting various sectors of his huge army, dressing stations, military hospitals, rear factories - in a word, everything that played a role in the conduct of this grandiose war. The Empress devoted herself to the wounded from the very beginning. Having completed courses for sisters of mercy, together with her eldest daughters - Grand Duchesses Olga and Tatiana - she spent several hours a day caring for the wounded in her Tsarskoye Selo infirmary, remembering that the Lord requires us to love works of mercy (Mic. 6, 8).
On August 22, 1915, the Emperor left for Mogilev to assume command of all Russian armed forces. From the beginning of the war, the Emperor considered his tenure as Supreme Commander-in-Chief as the fulfillment of a moral and national duty to God and the people: he appointed paths for them and sat at their head and lived as a king in the circle of soldiers, as a comforter to those who mourn (Job 29, 25). However, the Emperor always provided leading military specialists with broad initiative in resolving all military-strategic and operational-tactical issues.
From that day on, the Emperor was constantly at Headquarters, and the Heir was often with him. About once a month the Emperor came to Tsarskoe Selo for several days. All important decisions were made by him, but at the same time he instructed the Empress to maintain relations with the ministers and keep him informed of what was happening in the capital. The Empress was the person closest to him, on whom he could always rely. Alexandra Feodorovna herself took up politics not out of personal ambition and thirst for power, as they wrote about it then. Her only desire was to be useful to the Emperor in difficult times and to help him with her advice. Every day she sent detailed letters and reports to Headquarters, which was well known to the ministers.
The Emperor spent January and February 1917 in Tsarskoye Selo. He felt that the political situation was becoming more and more tense, but continued to hope that a sense of patriotism would still prevail and retained faith in the army, whose position had improved significantly. This raised hopes for the success of the great spring offensive, which would deal a decisive blow to Germany. But forces hostile to the sovereign also understood this well.
On February 22, the Emperor left for Headquarters - this moment served as a signal for the enemies of order. They managed to sow panic in the capital because of the impending famine, because during the famine they will get angry and blaspheme their king and their God (Isa. 8:21). The next day, unrest began in Petrograd caused by interruptions in the supply of bread; they soon developed into a strike under political slogans - “Down with war”, “Down with autocracy”. Attempts to disperse the demonstrators were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, debates were going on in the Duma with sharp criticism of the government - but first of all these were attacks against the Tsar. The deputies claiming to be representatives of the people seemed to have forgotten the instruction of the supreme apostle: Honor everyone, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king (1 Pet. 2:17).
On February 25, Headquarters received a message about unrest in the capital. Having learned about the state of affairs, the Emperor sends troops to Petrograd to maintain order, and then he himself goes to Tsarskoe Selo. His decision was obviously caused by the desire to be at the center of events to take action if necessary. quick solutions, and concern for the family. This departure from Headquarters turned out to be fatal. 150 versts from Petrograd, the Tsar's train was stopped - the next station, Lyuban, was in the hands of the rebels. We had to go through the Dno station, but even here the path was closed. On the evening of March 1, the Emperor arrived in Pskov, at the headquarters of the commander of the Northern Front, General N.V. Ruzsky.
There was complete anarchy in the capital. But the Tsar and the army command believed that the Duma controlled the situation; in telephone conversations with the Chairman of the State Duma M.V. Rodzianko, the Emperor agreed to all concessions if the Duma could restore order in the country. The answer was: it's too late. Was this really the case? After all, only Petrograd and the surrounding area were covered by the revolution, and the authority of the Tsar among the people and in the army was still great. The Duma's response confronted the Tsar with a choice: abdication or an attempt to march on Petrograd with troops loyal to him - the latter meant civil war while the external enemy was within Russian borders.
Everyone around the Emperor also convinced him that renunciation was the only way out. The commanders of the fronts especially insisted on this, whose demands were supported by the Chief of the General Staff M.V. Alekseev - fear and trembling and murmuring against the kings occurred in the army (3 Ezra 15, 33). And after long and painful reflection, the Emperor made a hard-won decision: to abdicate both for himself and for the Heir, due to his incurable illness, in favor of his brother, Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich. The Sovereign left supreme power and command as a Tsar, as a warrior, as a soldier, until last minute without forgetting his high duty. His Manifesto is an act of the highest nobility and dignity.
On March 8, the commissioners of the Provisional Government, having arrived in Mogilev, announced through General Alekseev the arrest of the Sovereign and the need to proceed to Tsarskoe Selo. For the last time, he addressed his troops, calling on them to be loyal to the Provisional Government, the very one that arrested him, to fulfill their duty to the Motherland until complete victory. The farewell order to the troops, which expressed the nobility of the Tsar’s soul, his love for the army, and faith in it, was hidden from the people by the Provisional Government, which banned its publication. The new rulers, some overcoming others, neglected their king (3 Ezra 15, 16) - they, of course, were afraid that the army would hear the noble speech of their Emperor and Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
In the life of Emperor Nicholas II there were two periods of unequal duration and spiritual significance - the time of his reign and the time of his imprisonment, if the first of them gives the right to talk about him as an Orthodox ruler who fulfilled his royal duties as a sacred duty to God, about the Sovereign , remembering the words of the Holy Scripture: Thou hast chosen me as king for Thy people (Wisdom 9:7), then the second period is the way of the cross of ascension to the heights of holiness, the path to Russian Golgotha...
Born on the day of remembrance of the holy righteous Job the Long-Suffering, the Tsar accepted his cross just like the biblical righteous man, and endured all the trials sent down to him firmly, meekly and without a shadow of a murmur. It is this long-suffering that is revealed with particular clarity in history. last days Emperor. From the moment of abdication, it is not so much external events as the internal spiritual state of the Sovereign that attracts attention. The Emperor, having accepted, as it seemed to him, the only correct solution, nevertheless experienced severe mental anguish. “If I am an obstacle to the happiness of Russia and all the social forces now at the head of it ask me to leave the throne and hand it over to my son and brother, then I am ready to do this, I am even ready to give not only my kingdom, but also my life for the Motherland. I think no one who knows me doubts this,” the Emperor said to General D.N. Dubensky.
On the very day of abdication, March 2, the same General Shubensky recorded the words of the Minister of the Imperial Court, Count V.B. Fredericks: “The Emperor is deeply sad that he is considered an obstacle to the happiness of Russia, that they found it necessary to ask him to leave the throne. He was worried about the thought of his family, which remained alone in Tsarskoe Selo, the children were sick. The Emperor is suffering terribly, but he is the kind of person who will never show his grief in public.” Nikolai Alexandrovich is also reserved in his personal diary. Only at the very end of the entry for this day does his inner feeling break through: “My renunciation is needed. The point is that in the name of saving Russia and keeping the army at the front calm, you need to decide to take this step. I agreed. A draft Manifesto was sent from Headquarters. In the evening, Guchkov and Shulgin arrived from Petrograd, with whom I spoke and gave them the signed and revised Manifesto. At one o'clock in the morning I left Pskov with a heavy feeling of what I had experienced. There is treason and cowardice and deceit all around!”
Monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers, Hesbjerg estate , near Odense, Denmark
The Provisional Government announced the arrest of Emperor Nicholas II and his August wife and their detention in Tsarskoe Selo. The arrest of the Emperor and Empress did not have the slightest legal basis or reason.
When the unrest that began in Petrograd spread to Tsarskoe Selo, part of the troops rebelled, and a huge crowd of rioters - more than 10 thousand people - moved to the Alexander Palace. The Empress that day, February 28, almost did not leave the room of the sick children. She was informed that all measures would be taken to ensure the safety of the palace. But the crowd was already very close - a sentry was killed just 500 steps from the palace fence. At this moment, Alexandra Feodorovna shows determination and extraordinary courage - together with Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, she bypasses the ranks of soldiers loyal to her, who have taken up defense around the palace and are ready for battle. She convinces them to come to an agreement with the rebels and not shed blood. Fortunately, at this moment prudence prevailed. The Empress spent the following days in terrible anxiety about the fate of the Emperor - only rumors of abdication reached her. It was only on March 3 that she received a short note from him. The Empress’s experiences during these days were vividly described by an eyewitness, Archpriest Afanasy Belyaev, who served a prayer service in the palace: “The Empress, dressed as a nurse, stood next to the Heir’s bed. Several thin wax candles were lit in front of the icon. The prayer service began... Oh, what a terrible, unexpected grief befell the Royal Family! The news arrived that the Tsar, who was returning from Headquarters to his family, was arrested and even possibly abdicated the throne... One can imagine the situation in which the helpless Tsarina, a mother with her five seriously ill children, found herself! Having suppressed the weakness of a woman and all her bodily ailments, heroically, selflessly, devoting herself to caring for the sick, [with] complete trust in the help of the Queen of Heaven, she decided first of all to pray before the miraculous icon of the Sign Mother of God. Hotly, on her knees, with tears, the Earthly Queen asked for help and intercession from the Queen of Heaven. Having venerated the icon and walked under it, she asked to bring the icon to the beds of the sick, so that all the sick children could immediately venerate the Miraculous Image. When we took the icon out of the palace, the palace was already cordoned off by troops, and everyone in it was arrested.”
On March 9, the Emperor, who had been arrested the day before, was transported to Tsarskoe Selo, where the whole family was eagerly awaiting him. An almost five-month period of indefinite stay in Tsarskoe Selo began. The days passed in a measured manner - with regular services, shared meals, walks, reading and communication with family. However, at the same time, the life of the prisoners was subjected to petty restrictions - A.F. Kerensky announced to the Emperor that he should live separately and see the Empress only at the table, and speak only in Russian. The guard soldiers made rude comments to him; access to the palace for persons close to the Royal Family was prohibited. One day, soldiers even took away a toy gun from the Heir under the pretext of a ban on carrying weapons.
Father Afanasy Belyaev, who regularly performed divine services in the Alexander Palace during this period, left his testimonies about the spiritual life of the Tsarskoye Selo prisoners. This is how the Good Friday Matins service took place in the palace on March 30, 1917. “The service was reverent and touching... Their Majesties listened to the entire service while standing. Folding lecterns were placed in front of them, on which the Gospels lay, so that they could follow the reading. Everyone stood until the end of the service and left through the common hall to their rooms. You have to see for yourself and be so close to understand and see how the former royal family fervently, in the Orthodox manner, often on their knees, prays to God. With what humility, meekness, and humility, having completely surrendered themselves to the will of God, they stand behind the divine service.”
The next day the whole family went to confession. This is what the rooms of the royal children looked like, in which the Sacrament of Confession was performed: “What amazingly Christian decorated rooms. Each princess has a real iconostasis in the corner of the room, filled with many icons of different sizes depicting especially revered saints. In front of the iconostasis is a folding lectern, covered with a shroud in the form of a towel; prayer books and liturgical books, as well as the Holy Gospel and a cross are placed on it. The decoration of the rooms and all their furnishings represent an innocent, pure, immaculate childhood, ignorant of everyday dirt. To listen to prayers before confession, all four children were in the same room..."
“The impression [from the confession] was this: God grant that all children would be as morally high as the children of the former Tsar. Such kindness, humility, obedience to the parental will, unconditional devotion to the will of God, purity of thoughts and complete ignorance of earthly dirt - passionate and sinful, writes Father Afanasy, - I was amazed, and I was absolutely perplexed: is it necessary to remind me as a confessor about sins, perhaps unknown to them, and how to incite them to repent of the sins known to me.”
Kindness and peace of mind did not leave the Empress even in these most difficult days after the abdication of the Emperor. These are the words of consolation she addresses in a letter to cornet S.V. Markov: “You are not alone, do not be afraid to live. The Lord will hear our prayers and will help, comfort and strengthen you. Do not lose your faith, pure, childish, remain as small when you become big. It is hard and difficult to live, but ahead there is Light and joy, silence and reward, all suffering and torment. Walk straight on your path, do not look to the right or left, and if you do not see a stone and fall, do not be afraid and do not lose heart. Get up again and move forward. It hurts, it’s hard on the soul, but grief cleanses us. Remember the life and suffering of the Savior, and your life will seem to you not as black as you thought. We have the same goal, we all strive to get there, let us help each other find the way. Christ is with you, do not be afraid."
In the palace Church or in the former royal chambers, Father Athanasius regularly celebrated the all-night vigil and Divine Liturgy, which were always attended by all members of the Imperial family. After the Day of the Holy Trinity, alarming messages appeared more and more often in the diary of Father Afanasy - he noted the growing irritation of the guards, sometimes reaching the point of rudeness towards the Royal Family. The spiritual state of the members of the Royal Family does not go unnoticed by him - yes, they all suffered, he notes, but along with the suffering their patience and prayer increased. In their suffering they acquired true humility - according to the word of the prophet: Say to the king and queen: humble yourself... for the crown of your glory has fallen from your head (Jer. 13:18).
“...Now the humble servant of God Nikolai, like a meek lamb, kind to all his enemies, not remembering insults, praying earnestly for the prosperity of Russia, believing deeply in her glorious future, kneeling, looking at the cross and the Gospel... expresses to the Heavenly Father the innermost secrets of his long-suffering life and, throwing himself into the dust before the greatness of the Heavenly King, tearfully asks for forgiveness for his voluntary and involuntary sins,” we read in the diary of Father Afanasy Belyaev.
Meanwhile, serious changes were brewing in the lives of the Royal prisoners. The Provisional Government appointed a commission to investigate the activities of the Emperor, but despite all efforts to discover at least something discrediting the Tsar, nothing was found - the Tsar was innocent. When his innocence was proven and it became obvious that there was no crime behind him, the Provisional Government, instead of releasing the Tsar and his August wife, decided to remove the prisoners from Tsarskoye Selo. On the night of August 1, they were sent to Tobolsk - this was done allegedly in view of possible unrest, the first victim of which could be the Royal Family. In fact, by doing so, the family was doomed to the cross, because at that time the days of the Provisional Government itself were numbered.
On July 30, the day before the departure of the Royal Family to Tobolsk, the last Divine Liturgy was served in the royal chambers; for the last time, the former owners of their home gathered to pray fervently, asking with tears, on kneel, the Lord for help and intercession from all troubles and misfortunes, and at the same time realizing that they were entering the path outlined by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself for all Christians: They will lay their hands on you and persecute you, handing you over to prison, and bringing you before the rulers for My name’s sake (Luke 21:12). The entire Royal family and their already very few servants prayed at this liturgy.
On August 6, the royal prisoners arrived in Tobolsk. The first weeks of the Royal Family's stay in Tobolsk were perhaps the calmest during the entire period of their imprisonment. September 8, Christmas Day Holy Mother of God, the prisoners were allowed to go to church for the first time. Subsequently, this consolation extremely rarely fell to their lot. One of the greatest hardships during my life in Tobolsk was the almost complete absence of any news. The letters arrived with a huge delay. As for newspapers, we had to be content with a local leaflet, printed on wrapping paper and giving only old telegrams several days late, and even those most often appeared here in a distorted and truncated form. The Emperor watched with alarm the events unfolding in Russia. He understood that the country was rapidly heading towards destruction.
Kornilov suggested that Kerensky send troops to Petrograd to put an end to the Bolshevik agitation, which was becoming more and more threatening day by day. The Tsar’s sadness was immeasurable when the Provisional Government rejected this last attempt to save the Motherland. He understood perfectly well that this was the only way to avoid an imminent disaster. The Emperor repents of his abdication. “After all, he made this decision only in the hope that those who wanted to remove him would still be able to continue the war with honor and would not ruin the cause of saving Russia. He was afraid then that his refusal to sign the renunciation would lead to civil war in the sight of the enemy. The Tsar did not want even a drop of Russian blood to be shed because of him... It was painful for the Emperor to now see the futility of his sacrifice and realize that, having in mind then only the good of his homeland, he had harmed it with his renunciation,” recalls P. Gilliard , teacher of Tsarevich Alexei.
Meanwhile, the Bolsheviks had already come to power in Petrograd - a period had begun about which the Emperor wrote in his diary: “much worse and more shameful than the events of the Time of Troubles.” The news of the October revolution reached Tobolsk on November 15. The soldiers guarding the governor's house warmed up to the Royal Family, and several months passed after the Bolshevik coup before the change in power began to affect the situation of the prisoners. In Tobolsk, a “soldiers’ committee” was formed, which, striving in every possible way for self-affirmation, demonstrated its power over the Sovereign - they either force him to take off his shoulder straps, or destroy the ice slide built for the Tsar’s children: he mocks the kings, according to the word of the prophet Habakkuk (Hab. 1 , 10). On March 1, 1918, “Nikolai Romanov and his family were transferred to soldiers’ rations.”
The letters and diaries of members of the Imperial Family testify to the deep experience of the tragedy that unfolded before their eyes. But this tragedy does not deprive the Royal prisoners of fortitude, faith and hope for God’s help.
“It’s incredibly difficult, sad, hurtful, ashamed, but don’t lose faith in God’s mercy. He will not leave his homeland to perish. We must endure all these humiliations, disgusting things, horrors with humility (since we are unable to help). And He will save, long-suffering and abundantly merciful - He will not be angry to the end... Without faith it would be impossible to live...
How happy I am that we are not abroad, but with her [the Motherland] we are going through everything. Just as you want to share everything with your beloved sick person, experience everything and watch over him with love and excitement, so it is with your Motherland. I felt like her mother for too long to lose this feeling - we are one, and share grief and happiness. She hurt us, offended us, slandered us... but we still love her deeply and want to see her recovery, like a sick child with bad, but also good qualities, and my native homeland...
I firmly believe that the time of suffering is passing, that the sun will again shine over the long-suffering Motherland. After all, the Lord is merciful - he will save the Motherland...” wrote the Empress.
The suffering of the country and people cannot be meaningless - the Royal Passion-Bearers firmly believe in this: “When will all this end? Whenever God pleases. Be patient, dear country, and you will receive a crown of glory, a reward for all your suffering... Spring will come and bring joy, and dry up the tears and blood shed in streams over the poor Motherland...
There is still a lot of hard work ahead - it hurts, there is so much bloodshed, it hurts terribly! But the truth must finally win...
How can you live if there is no hope? You must be cheerful, and then the Lord will give you peace of mind. It’s painful, annoying, insulting, ashamed, you suffer, everything hurts, it’s punctured, but there is silence in your soul, calm faith and love for God, who will not abandon His own and will hear the prayers of the zealous and will have mercy and save...
...How long will our unfortunate Motherland be tormented and torn apart by external and internal enemies? Sometimes it seems that you can’t endure it anymore, you don’t even know what to hope for, what to wish for? But still, no one like God! May His holy will be done!”
Consolation and meekness in enduring sorrows are given to the Royal prisoners by prayer, reading spiritual books, worship, and Communion: “... The Lord God gave unexpected joy and consolation, allowing us to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, for the cleansing of sins and eternal life. Bright jubilation and love fill the soul.”
In suffering and trials, spiritual knowledge, knowledge of oneself, one’s soul, increases. Striving for eternal life helps to endure suffering and gives great consolation: “...Everything that I love suffers, there is no counting of all the dirt and suffering, and the Lord does not allow despondency: He protects from despair, gives strength, confidence in a bright future even at this point.” light."
In March it became known that a separate peace with Germany had been concluded in Brest. The Emperor did not hide his attitude towards him: “This is such a shame for Russia and it is “tantamount to suicide.” When there was a rumor that the Germans were demanding that the Bolsheviks hand over the Royal Family to them, the Empress declared: “I prefer to die in Russia than to be saved by the Germans.” The first Bolshevik detachment arrived in Tobolsk on Tuesday, April 22. Commissioner Yakovlev inspects the house and gets acquainted with the prisoners. A few days later, he reports that he must take the Emperor away, assuring that nothing bad will happen to him. Assuming that they wanted to send him to Moscow to sign a separate peace with Germany, the Sovereign, who under no circumstances abandoned his high spiritual nobility (remember the Message of the Prophet Jeremiah: king, show your courage - Epistle Jer. 1, 58), firmly said : “I’d rather let my hand be cut off than sign this shameful agreement.”
The heir was ill at that time, and it was impossible to carry him. Despite fear for her sick son, the Empress decides to follow her husband; Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna also went with them. Only on May 7, family members remaining in Tobolsk received news from Yekaterinburg: the Sovereign, Empress and Maria Nikolaevna were imprisoned in Ipatiev’s house. When the Heir's health improved, the remaining members of the Royal Family from Tobolsk were also taken to Yekaterinburg and imprisoned in the same house, but most of the people close to the family were not allowed to see them.
There is much less evidence left about the Yekaterinburg period of imprisonment of the Royal Family. Almost no letters. Basically, this period is known only from brief entries in the Emperor’s diary and the testimony of witnesses in the case of the murder of the Royal Family. Particularly valuable is the testimony of Archpriest John Storozhev, who performed the last services in the Ipatiev House. Father John served mass there twice on Sundays; the first time was on May 20 (June 2), 1918: “... the deacon spoke the petitions of the litanies, and I sang. Two female voices (I think Tatyana Nikolaevna and one of them) sang along with me, sometimes in a low bass voice and Nikolai Alexandrovich... They prayed very earnestly..."
“Nikolai Alexandrovich was dressed in a khaki tunic, the same trousers, and high boots. On his chest is an officer's St. George's Cross. There were no shoulder straps... [He] impressed me with his firm gait, his calmness and especially his manner of looking intently and firmly into the eyes..." wrote Father John.
Many portraits of members of the Royal Family have been preserved - from beautiful portraits of A. N. Serov to later photographs taken in captivity. From them one can get an idea of the appearance of the Sovereign, Empress, Tsarevich and Princesses - but in the descriptions of many persons who saw them during their lifetime, special attention is usually paid to the eyes. “He looked at me with such lively eyes...” Father John Storozhev said about the Heir. Probably, this impression can most accurately be conveyed in the words of the Wise Solomon: “In the bright gaze of the king there is life, and his favor is like a cloud with the latter rain...” In the Church Slavonic text this sounds even more expressive: “in the light of life the son of kings” (Proverbs 16 , 15).
Living conditions in the “special purpose house” were much more difficult than in Tobolsk. The guard consisted of 12 soldiers who lived in close proximity to the prisoners and ate with them at the same table. Commissar Avdeev, an inveterate drunkard, worked every day together with his subordinates to invent new humiliations for the prisoners. I had to put up with hardships, endure bullying and obey the demands of these rude people - among the guards were former criminals. As soon as the Emperor and Empress arrived at Ipatiev’s house, they were subjected to a humiliating and rude search. The Royal couple and the Princesses had to sleep on the floor, without beds. During lunch, a family of seven was given only five spoons; The guards sitting at the same table smoked, brazenly blew smoke into the faces of the prisoners, and rudely took food from them.
A walk in the garden was allowed once a day, at first for 15-20 minutes, and then no more than five. The behavior of the guards was completely indecent - they were even on duty near the door to the toilet, and they did not allow the doors to be locked. The guards wrote obscene words and made indecent images on the walls.
Only Doctor Evgeny Botkin remained with the Royal Family, who surrounded the prisoners with care and acted as a mediator between them and the commissars, trying to protect them from the rudeness of the guards, and several tried and true servants: Anna Demidova, I. S. Kharitonov, A. E. Trupp and the boy Lenya Sednev.
The faith of the prisoners supported their courage and gave them strength and patience in suffering. They all understood the possibility of a speedy end. Even the Tsarevich somehow escaped the phrase: “If they kill, just don’t torture them...” The Empress and the Grand Duchesses often sang church hymns, which their guards listened to against their will. In almost complete isolation from the outside world, surrounded by rude and cruel guards, the prisoners of the Ipatiev House display amazing nobility and clarity of spirit.
In one of Olga Nikolaevna’s letters there are the following lines: “Father asks to tell all those who remained devoted to him, and those on whom they may have influence, that they do not take revenge for him, since he has forgiven everyone and is praying for everyone, and so that they do not avenge themselves, and so that they remember that the evil that is now in the world will be even stronger, but that it is not evil that will defeat evil, but only love.”
Even the rude guards gradually softened in their interactions with the prisoners. They were surprised by their simplicity, they were captivated by their dignified spiritual clarity, and they soon felt the superiority of those whom they thought to keep in their power. Even Commissar Avdeev himself relented. This change did not escape the eyes of the Bolshevik authorities. Avdeev was removed and replaced by Yurovsky, the guards were replaced by Austro-German prisoners and people chosen from among the executioners of the “extraordinary emergency” - the “special purpose house” became, as it were, its department. The life of its inhabitants turned into continuous martyrdom.
On July 1 (14), 1918, Father John Storozhev performed the last divine service in the Ipatiev House. The tragic hours were approaching... Preparations for the execution were being made in the strictest secrecy from the prisoners of the Ipatiev House.
On the night of July 16-17, around the beginning of three, Yurovsky woke up the Royal Family. They were told that there was unrest in the city and therefore it was necessary to move to a safe place. About forty minutes later, when everyone had dressed and gathered, Yurovsky and the prisoners went down to the first floor and led them into a semi-basement room with one barred window. Everyone was outwardly calm. The Emperor carried Alexei Nikolaevich in his arms, the others had pillows and other small things in their hands. At the request of the Empress, two chairs were brought into the room, and pillows brought by the Grand Duchesses and Anna Demidova were placed on them. The Empress and Alexei Nikolaevich sat on the chairs. The Emperor stood in the center next to the Heir. The rest of the family and servants were housed in different parts rooms and prepared to wait for a long time - they were already accustomed to night alarms and various types of movements. Meanwhile, armed men were already crowded in the next room, waiting for the killer’s signal. At that moment, Yurovsky came very close to the Emperor and said: “Nikolai Alexandrovich, according to the resolution of the Ural Regional Council, you and your family will be shot.” This phrase was so unexpected for the Tsar that he turned towards the family, stretching out his hands to them, then, as if wanting to ask again, he turned to the commandant, saying: “What? What?" The Empress and Olga Nikolaevna wanted to cross themselves. But at that moment Yurovsky shot at the Sovereign with a revolver almost point-blank several times, and he immediately fell. Almost simultaneously, everyone else started shooting - everyone knew their victim in advance.
Those already lying on the floor were finished off with shots and bayonet blows. When it seemed that everything was over, Alexei Nikolaevich suddenly groaned weakly - he was shot several more times. The picture was terrible: eleven bodies lay on the floor in streams of blood. After making sure that their victims were dead, the killers began to remove their jewelry. Then the dead were taken out into the yard, where a truck was already standing ready - the noise of its engine was supposed to drown out the shots in the basement. Even before sunrise, the bodies were taken to the forest in the vicinity of the village of Koptyaki. For three days the killers tried to hide their crime...
Most of the evidence speaks of the prisoners of the Ipatiev House as suffering people, but deeply religious, undoubtedly submissive to the will of God. Despite the bullying and insults, they led a decent family life in Ipatiev’s house, trying to brighten up the depressing situation with mutual communication, prayer, reading and feasible activities. “The Emperor and Empress believed that they were dying as martyrs for their homeland,” writes one of the witnesses to their life in captivity, the Heir’s teacher, Pierre Gilliard, “they died as martyrs for humanity. Their true greatness stemmed not from their kingship, but from the amazing moral height to which they gradually rose. They became an ideal force. And in their very humiliation they were a striking manifestation of that amazing clarity of soul, against which all violence and all rage are powerless and which triumphs in death itself.”
Together with Imperial family Their servants who followed their masters into exile were also shot. These, in addition to those shot along with the Imperial family by Doctor E. S. Botkin, the Empress’s room girl A. S. Demidova, the court cook I. M. Kharitonov and footman A. E. Trupp, included those killed in various places and in different months of 1918, Adjutant General I. L. Tatishchev, Marshal Prince V. A. Dolgorukov, “uncle” of the Heir K. G. Nagorny, children's footman I. D. Sednev, maid of honor of the Empress A. V. Gendrikova and goflextress E. A. Schneider.
Soon after the execution of the Emperor was announced, His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon blessed the archpastors and pastors to perform memorial services for him. His Holiness himself on July 8 (21), 1918, during a service in the Kazan Cathedral in Moscow, said: “The other day a terrible thing happened: the former Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich was shot... We must, obeying the teaching of the word of God, condemn this matter, otherwise the blood of the executed person will fall on us, and not just those who committed it. We know that he, having abdicated the throne, did so with the good of Russia in mind and out of love for her. After his abdication, he could have found security and a relatively quiet life abroad, but he did not do this, wanting to suffer with Russia. He did nothing to improve his situation and resignedly resigned himself to fate.”
The veneration of the Royal Family, already begun His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon in the funeral prayer and word at the memorial service in the Kazan Cathedral in Moscow for the murdered Emperor three days after the Yekaterinburg murder, continued - despite the prevailing ideology - for several decades of the Soviet period of our history.
Many clergy and laity secretly offered prayers to God for the repose of the murdered sufferers, members of the Royal Family. IN last years in many houses in the red corner one could see photographs of the Royal Family, and icons depicting the Royal Martyrs began to circulate in large numbers. Prayers addressed to them, literary, cinematic and musical works were compiled, reflecting the suffering and martyrdom of the Royal Family. The Synodal Commission for the Canonization of Saints received appeals from ruling bishops, clergy and laity in support of the canonization of the Royal Family - some of these appeals had thousands of signatures. By the time of the glorification of the Royal Martyrs, a huge amount of evidence had accumulated about their gracious help - about the healing of the sick, the unification of separated families, the protection of church property from schismatics, about the streaming of myrrh from icons with images of Emperor Nicholas and the Royal Martyrs, about the fragrance and the appearance of blood stains on the icon faces of the Royal Martyrs colors.
One of the first witnessed miracles was the deliverance during the civil war of hundreds of Cossacks surrounded by red troops in impenetrable swamps. At the call of the priest Father Elijah, in unanimity the Cossacks addressed a prayer appeal to the Tsar-Martyr, the Sovereign of Russia - and incredibly escaped the encirclement.
In Serbia in 1925, a case was described when an elderly woman, whose two sons died in the war and the third was missing, had a dream vision of Emperor Nicholas, who reported that the third son was alive and in Russia - in a few months the son returned home.
In October 1991, two women went to pick cranberries and got lost in an impassable swamp. Night was approaching, and the swamp bog could easily drag in unwary travelers. But one of them remembered the description of the miraculous deliverance of a detachment of Cossacks - and, following their example, she began to fervently pray for help to the Royal Martyrs: “Murdered Royal Martyrs, save us, servant of God Eugene and Love!” Suddenly, in the darkness, the women saw a glowing branch from a tree; Grasping it, they got out to a dry place, and then went out into a wide clearing, along which they reached the village. It is noteworthy that the second woman, who also testified to this miracle, was at that time still a person far from the Church.
student high school from the city of Podolsk, Marina is an Orthodox Christian who especially reveres Royal Family- through the miraculous intercession of the Tsar’s children, she was saved from a hooligan attack. The attackers, three young men, wanted to drag her into a car, take her away and dishonor her, but suddenly they fled in horror. Later they admitted that they saw the Imperial children who stood up for the girl. This happened on the eve of the Feast of the Entry of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Temple in 1997. Subsequently, it became known that the young people repented and radically changed their lives.
Dane Jan-Michael was an alcoholic and drug addict for sixteen years, and became addicted to these vices from an early youth. On the advice of good friends, in 1995 he went on a pilgrimage to the historical places of Russia; He also ended up in Tsarskoe Selo. At the Divine Liturgy in the house church, where the Royal Martyrs once prayed, he turned to them with an ardent plea for help - and felt that the Lord was delivering him from sinful passion. On July 17, 1999, he converted to the Orthodox faith with the name Nicholas in honor of the holy Martyr Tsar.
On May 15, 1998, Moscow doctor Oleg Belchenko received an icon of the Martyr Tsar as a gift, in front of which he prayed almost every day, and in September he began to notice small blood-colored spots on the icon. Oleg brought the icon to the Sretensky Monastery; During the prayer service, all those praying felt a strong fragrance from the icon. The icon was transferred to the altar, where it remained for three weeks, and the fragrance did not stop. Later, the icon visited several Moscow churches and monasteries; the flow of myrrh from this image was repeatedly witnessed, witnessed by hundreds of parishioners. In 1999, miraculously, at the myrrh-streaming icon of Tsar-Martyr Nicholas II, 87-year-old Alexander Mikhailovich was healed of blindness: a complex eye operation did not help much, but when he venerated the myrrh-streaming icon with fervent prayer, and the priest serving the prayer service covered his face with a towel with marks peace, healing came - vision returned. Myrrh-streaming icon visited a number of dioceses - Ivanovo, Vladimir, Kostroma, Odessa... Everywhere where the icon visited, numerous cases of its myrrh streaming were witnessed, and two parishioners of Odessa churches reported healing from leg disease after praying in front of the icon. The Tulchin-Bratslav diocese reported cases of grace-filled help through prayers before this miraculous icon: the servant of God Nina was healed from severe hepatitis, the parishioner Olga received healing from a broken collarbone, the servant of God Lyudmila was healed from a severe lesion of the pancreas.
During the Jubilee Council of Bishops, parishioners of the church being built in Moscow in honor of the Monk Andrei Rublev gathered for joint prayer to the Royal Martyrs: one of the chapels of the future church is planned to be consecrated in honor of the new martyrs. While reading the akathist, the worshipers felt a strong fragrance emanating from the books. This fragrance continued for several days.
Many Christians now turn to the Royal Passion-Bearers with prayer for strengthening the family and raising children in faith and piety, for preserving their purity and chastity - after all, during the persecution, the Imperial family was especially united and carried the indestructible Orthodox faith through all the sorrows and suffering.
The memory of the holy passion-bearers Emperor Nicholas, Empress Alexandra, their children - Alexy, Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia is celebrated on the day of their murder, July 4 (17), and on the day of the cathedral memory of the new martyrs and confessors of Russia, January 25 (February 7), if this the day coincides with Sunday, and if it does not coincide, then on the nearest Sunday after January 25 (February 7).
Moscow Diocesan Gazette. 2000. No. 10-11. pp. 20-33.
God is marvelous in His saints. Nicholas II
On the day of remembrance of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers on July 17, sermons were heard in churches about the martyrdom of Tsar Nicholas II and his long-suffering family - Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna and the Grand Duchesses - Tatiana, Maria, Olga, Anastasia and Tsarevich Alexei.
By omitting the details of the brutal regicide, it is impossible to avoid the issue of the spiritual betrayal of their Sovereign by the Russian people. A hundred years have passed since this shameful stain in the annals of Russian history. Songs of repentance are heard, in churches from the icons the faces of the holy royal passion-bearers, glorified in the martyrdom, look at us - their faces are bright, illuminated with smiles, they pray there, in Heaven for their people, who even after their death did not cease to be Their people, but so the people learned to live without a king - in the soul and in the head.
But churches are being built in honor of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers throughout the Russian land! Here is one such temple - in the village of Peniki, ten kilometers from Lomonosov - a decade has passed - they cannot complete it. Who lives in these very Peniki? - you ask. Yes, ordinary Russian people drink, sometimes they commit robbery in neighboring farms, they live hard, without work and money. And there are also visiting people there who do not relate to our Tsar in any way, due to their national and religious characteristics. So, they can probably donate to the temple occasionally, little by little, but for the whole world to come together and finish the temple, people are not yet mature enough. Passing by expensive cars, from afar the turrets of cottages and mansions are visible, and the temple still stands in the woods...
But inside the church it is light, cozy, golden log walls with a few icons, candlesticks with burning candles, and the priest-rector, alone: both as a priest and as a deacon, conducts the service. July 17 is the Patronal Feast, a few days before the date the church was decorated inside, and on the very day of remembrance of the murdered family of the last Russian Tsar there was a procession of the Cross. Not many, I must say.
Well, have our simple Orthodox people not yet matured spiritually for sincere veneration of the Tsar, who laid his head on the block of that revolution, which was called the Great October Revolution and proclaimed its bloody sacrifices for the good and prosperity of ordinary working people? So we still believe that for the sake of the “theory of happiness for all” we had to go through a civil war, when brother against brother? Or are we silent, not touching on this topic, so as not to offend the memory of the heroes who “fell for our common happiness”?
We don’t touch, and we don’t repent... This is a sad day, there are tears and a lump in your throat when you think about Them, stabbed with soldiers’ bayonets on a still living body, meeting their killers with beautiful, bewildered gazes. First, Their people raised their hands against the Tsar, the Anointed of God, and then against the priesthood, then they beheaded churches, in the heat of war and in the post-revolutionary years of building a “bright future”, the people who became God-fighters removed and threw down bells from churches, destroyed temples.
This is a Holy day - the day of Their execution, a day that should become a day of unification of the people in repentance of the crime committed, and then the Lord can give the people another chance for salvation as a bearer of the true faith, repentant of betrayal, which has no statute of limitations.
I would like to quote excerpts from several sermons on the day of the Holy Royal Martyrs.
“On this day we glorify the entire Royal Family. Throughout Rus' and throughout the world today prayers are being sung to our Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov and His Holy Family. Everywhere and, of course, in Yekaterinburg there are numerous religious processions in memory of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers. The bells are ringing.
Every year the veneration of the Royal Family grows. Every year we see more and more clearly the greatness of Their feats and the moral beauty of Their lives. And every year we become more and more aware of the depth of the tragedy that happened on July 17, 1918. Shooting at the Tsar then, they were shooting at Christ Himself. After all, the King is God’s Anointed One.
What happened then was monstrous and incredible. ...Only a great insanity of the entire Russian people could lead to such a spiritual catastrophe. After all, the sin of Regicide is a disaster for the entire people. ...
And so the Tsar, having suffered martyrdom together with His Family, was brutally shot in the Ipatiev House. Who dared to raise his hand against our King? To the Great Sovereign, the sovereign ruler who raised Rus' to great spiritual heights, giving it unprecedented material opportunities.
Let us remember that under Tsar Nicholas II the construction of the Great Siberian Railroad was completed, along which Orthodoxy and Russian culture rushed to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. And Rus' finally established itself in the Far East. The level of well-being of the people was such that all Soviet rulers later tried to equal the economic indicators of 1913.
And how many temples were built! Almost half of the monasteries in Russian Empire was founded under Tsar Nicholas II. ...Under Emperor Nicholas II, more saints were glorified than in all previous years of the Synodal period, starting from the time of Peter the Great.
Remember how St. Seraphim the Wonderworker of Sarov was glorified. At the Synod’s report on the beginning of preparations for glorification, the Tsar wrote: “Glorify immediately.” All Royal Family was in the Diveyevo Monastery at the great celebrations of the glorification of St. Seraphim, dearly loved and revered by the Russian people.
How much is written today about the Holy King! There is so much criticism and all kinds of comments on his actions and political decisions. But is any of the critics capable of knowing what our Martyr King experienced, what he thought, how he suffered? Great is the suffering of a betrayed, innocently slandered and condemned person. But what is the suffering of the King, responsible before the Lord for his people, and betrayed by these people! ... And the people committed the sin of Regicide and this sin on everyone who belongs to this people. Throughout all generations, until nationwide repentance occurs.
The Holy Tsar Martyr Nicholas and His Holy Family were glorified in the year 2000. This is a great step in the repentance of the Russian people.
Today is popularly called Russian Easter. After all, our King and His Family are winners. Following Christ, they conquered death through their suffering. They have achieved holiness. And the highest glory to the Lord. They look at us from the heights of the spiritual sky and pray for us. About my people, about Russia. And we believe that our people, through the prayers of the holy Royal Passion-Bearers, will receive their sight and bring repentance before the Lord. And Rus' will rise again and shine in its sovereign greatness, glorifying the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Amen." Metropolitan Benjamin (Pushkar)
“The Holy Royal Martyrs, like all saints, are so close to the feat of Christ that everything connected with their martyrdom is filled with prophetic meaning. It is no coincidence that they occupy a central place in the history of Russian holiness of the past century. And what happened in Ipatiev’s house has a mysterious continuation in the events that have already happened and are still expected in the life of our Church and our people.
...When the Royal Family was captured by the godless authorities, the commissars were forced to change their guards all the time. Because under the miraculous influence of the holy prisoners, being in constant contact with them, these people unwittingly became different, more humane.
...The Tsar-Martyr is in a special way, spiritually connected with the Russian people. And by his fate, and his service, and his readiness to sacrifice himself for the salvation of Russia. He did it. And we pray to him, giving a clear account of the fact that the sin of regicide played main role in the terrible events of the 20th century for the Russian Church and for the whole world. We are faced with only one question: is there any atonement for this sin and how can it be realized. The Church calls us to repentance. This means realizing what happened and how it continues in today's life.
If we really love the Martyr Tsar and pray to him, if we truly seek the moral and spiritual revival of our Fatherland, we must spare no effort in order to overcome the terrible consequences of mass apostasy (apostasy from the faith of our fathers and trampling on morality) in our people .
There are only two options for what awaits Russia. Or, through the miracle of the intercession of the Royal Martyrs and all the new Russian martyrs, the Lord will grant our people to be reborn for the salvation of many. But this will happen only with our participation - despite natural weakness, sinfulness, powerlessness and lack of faith. Or, according to the Apocalypse, the Church of Christ will face new, even more formidable shocks, in the center of which the Cross of Christ will always be.
Through the prayers of the Royal Passion-Bearers, who lead the host of new Russian martyrs and confessors, may it be given to us to withstand these trials and become partakers of their feat.”
Archpriest Alexander Shargunov
The Constantine-Elenin Monastery preserves one of the relics remaining from the family of the last emperor - a lock of hair from Tsarevich Alexei. The reliquary with this relic is located in the Church of the Saints Equal to the Apostles Constantine and Elena.
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