The Reign of Tsar Nicholas II Trivia Quiz

Answer: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, Aleksey

There were five children in all: Grand Duchess Olga, born 1895, Grand Duchess Tatiana 1897, Grand Duchess Maria 1899, Grand Duchess Anastasia 1901 and Tsarevitch Aleksey (the only boy) born in 1904.

Answer: Overcrowding resulted in a stampede and hundreds of people were crushed to death

Nicholas ascended the throne at age 26 after the unexpected death of his father in 1894. During the formal celebration, the conditions were so overcrowded that a stampede ensued where hundreds of people were crushed to death.

Answer: Livadia Palace

The stunning Livadia Palace, containing 116 rooms, is in the Crimea and was the preferred summer retreat of the last Russian Tsar. The palace was completed in 1911 and came about after the Tsar and his wife, captivated by the Renaissance palaces they had seen in Italy, engaged Nikolay Krasnov, Yalta's most fashionable architect, to prepare plans for a new imperial palace. An interesting architectural note is how 'international' Livadia is: It features Crimean granite, a spacious Arabic patio, an Italian patio, a Florentine tower, Bramantesque windows, a neo-Byzantine church, a Pompeian vestibule, an English billiard-room, a Neo-baroque dining room, and a Jacob-style study.

Answer: He was poisoned, shot four times, badly beaten and drowned

Rasputin was first poisoned at Moika Palace by Prince Yusupov. The poison didn't work, so Yusypov shot him in the back, leaving him for dead. On returning to check on the body, Rasputin grabbed Yusupov and attempted to strangle him. At that moment, other conspirators arrived and fired at Rasputin.

After being hit three times in the back, he fell again. As the conspirators neared his body, they were amazed to find him still alive and struggling to get up, so they began clubbing him. They then bound his body, wrapped him in a carpet and threw him into the icy Neva River. Amazingly, his autoposy established that the cause of death was drowning; but that Rasputin's arms were found in an upright position, as if he had tried to claw his way out from under the ice.

Some people just won't die quietly!

Answer: The Battle of Tsushima

The Russo-Japenese war began when the Japanese executed a surprise attack on the Russian fleet at Port Arthur in 1904. Whilst there was no formal declaration of war, many Russians (with the exception of the Tsar) were not surprised because of Japan's territorial ambitions in Chinese and Asian mainlands.

The Tsar was steadfast in his refusal to seek peace, and it was only when the Russian Baltic fleet was annihilated in the Battle of Tsushima that Nicholas was eventually forced to pursue peace.

Answer: Granddaughter

The Tsarina was the granddaughter of Queen Victoria. She was given the name Alexandra Feodorovna after being received into the Russian Orthodox Church, which, incidentally, canonized her as Saint Alexandra the Passion Bearer in 2000.

Answer: Bloody Sunday

It was Bloody Sunday, of course. Not surprisingly, this event came to have grave consequences for the Tsarist regime, as it showed a disregard for ordinary people and the massacre drastically undermined support for the state.

Answer: The State Duma

The term "duma" comes from the Russian word "dumat", which is "to think" or "to consider". Despite the creation of the Duma, unrest continued.

Answer: Latin

The origin of the title 'Tsar' is 'Caesar' from Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44BC) - the Roman general, historian and statesman.

"1550s, from Rus. tsar, from Old Slavic tsesari, from Gothic kaisar, from Gk. kaisar, from L. Caesar. First adopted by Russian emperor Ivan IV, 1547". From:
http://www.etymonline.com/

Answer: True

Tsar Nicholas II abdicated on 15th March 1917. By this time, his family were held by the provisional government, the war (WWI) was proving a disaster and his autocracy was all but dead. The Tsar and his family were placed under house arrest five days later. The entire Romanov family were all executed in the early hours of 17th July 1918.

Answer: Britain

The British initially offered the Tsar asylum, but this was overruled by King George V, acting on the advice of the Prime Minister, as it was felt Nicholas' presence might provoke an uprising.

Answer: 9 months

The Kerensky government evacuated the Romanovs to Tobolsk in the Urals in August 1917. This was done to allegedly 'protect them from the rising tide of revolution'. They lived here, in the former Governor's mansion for nine months (and were in relative comfort, until the 1st March 1918 when they were placed on soldier's rations).

They were then moved to Ipatiev House on 30th April 1918.

Answer: The lack of seating

When the family arrived in the basement, it is alleged that the former empress complained that there were no chairs to sit on. Yurovsky ordered chairs brought in, and, once the empress and the heir were seated, Yurovsky had the executioners file into the room. Yurovsky then announced to the family that they had been condemned to death by the Ural Soviet of Workers' Deputies. Apparently a stunned Nicholas asked, "What? What?" and turned toward his family, but they were shot almost at once.

Answer: The Ipatiev Monastery was where the Romanovs came to the throne

Ipatiev House was where the former Emperor Nicholas II of Russia, his family and members of his household (their court physician, lady in waiting, cook and valet) were executed. Ironically, Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma was the place where Mikhail Romanov - The Tsar's ancestor, came to the throne in 1613.

Answer: No-one escaped

Since the executions, persistent rumors circulated that Anastasia - and possibly Alexei - had escaped. This was fueled by the fact that in 1991 the mass grave near Ekaterinburg was uncovered, holding the remains of the Tsar, his wife, and three daughters, but not the bodies of Alexei Nikolaevich and one of his sisters.

Since then, their possible survival has, sadly, been entirely ruled out. In January 2008, Russian scientists announced the discovery of the charred remains of a young boy and a young woman at Ekaterinburg. On April 30th, 2008 Russian forensic scientists confirmed the remains were those of the Tsarevich Alexei and one of his four sisters; and finally, in March 2009, the final results of the DNA testing were published: it proved conclusively that the remains of all four girls and Alexei had been accounted for, and that no-one, not even Anastasia, managed to escape.