During the Russian Revolution, which began in 1917, the fate of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra took a tragic turn. Here's what happened:
Abdication and Arrest:
- In February 1917, widespread protests and strikes emerged in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg), fueled by economic hardships and discontent with the Tsar's autocratic rule.
- Facing immense pressure, Tsar Nicholas II abdicated the throne on March 15, 1917, ending the Romanov dynasty's 300-year rule over Russia.
- The provisional government, led by Alexander Kerensky, placed the former Tsar and his family under arrest in the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin).
Move to Siberia:
- In August 1917, the provisional government decided to move the Romanov family to Tobolsk, a remote town in Siberia, for their safety.
- The family, including Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, their five children (Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, and Alexei), and a small entourage, was escorted by train to Tobolsk.
- They lived under strict surveillance and were isolated from the outside world.
Ekaterinburg and Execution:
- After the Bolsheviks seized power in the November Revolution of 1917, the former Tsar and his family were moved to Yekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk) in the Urals.
- The Ural Regional Soviet, controlled by the Bolshevik faction, held the Romanovs captive in the Ipatiev House, a modest mansion.
- On the night of July 16-17, 1918, in the midst of the ongoing Russian Civil War, the Ural Soviet decided to execute the imperial family.
- Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, their five children, and several loyal retainers were brutally shot and bayoneted to death by a firing squad in the basement of the Ipatiev House.
Aftermath and Exhumation:
- The bodies of the Romanov family were initially buried in a shallow grave near the Ipatiev House. In 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, their remains were exhumed and subjected to DNA testing for verification.
- In 1998, the remains of Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, and three of their daughters (Olga, Tatiana, and Maria) were reburied in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in St. Petersburg.
- The remains of Alexei and Anastasia were discovered later and were eventually interred alongside the rest of the family in 2007.
- The execution of the Romanov family remains a controversial event in Russian history, symbolizing the radical and violent nature of the Russian Revolution and its aftermath.