Grigory Rasputin is one of the few infamous, enigmatic and mysterious people in modern history. Despite the fact that many years have passed since his death, his identity and history are still shrouded in mystery. Rasputin to this day is a man about whom no one knows much for sure.
Was he really a monk? Did he have a special healing gift? Could he really hypnotize a person with his wild look? This is only a small part of the questions that arise when the name of Grigory Rasputin is mentioned.
As the favorite of the family of the Russian Tsar Nicholas II, he possessed practically indescribable power not only over ordinary people, but also over clergymen and those who were at the court of the Tsar. However, it was this influence and power that an ordinary monk mysteriously came to, and became the cause of his fall and death.
After his first pilgrimage to the monastery, Rasputin became a very religious man and set off to travel to the holy places of Russia, Greece and Jerusalem, earning himself the glory of an old man and a man of God. His pilgrimage provided Rasputin with a wide range of influential acquaintances among the Orthodox clergy.
Arriving in St. Petersburg, he became popular in secular circles for his healing gift and soon won the favor of the imperial family.
Here are ten interesting facts that are actually known about the man in whose hands the fate of the Russian Empire once was.
Promotional video:
His name bears a world famous hit
Few historical figures are honored to be at the top of the world charts. The Boney M group rendered Rasputin such a service, naming their 1978 hit after him. In one pop song, the musicians managed to accurately point out everything that the public loves about the personality and history of this mysterious monk. If you don’t know who Rasputin is and you don’t have time to read an article on Wikipedia dedicated to him, you can just listen to this disco hit.
After death, his body was dug up and burned
A few months after the death, or rather the murder of Rasputin, the interim government decided to find the grave and destroy the monk's body. According to urban legends, during the burning, Rasputin's body lay stretched out, as if by a string, and he continued to look at the defilers of the grave with wild eyes. The fact of the burning was attested to without mentioning these stories, but somehow they came into being.
It turns out that even after his death, the mysterious stories associated with Rasputin do not stop and are able to intrigue and scare anyone.
He easily seduced high society ladies
This fact was the source of a huge amount of gossip and intrigue at the court of the emperor. Despite his strange appearance, and maybe thanks to him, Rasputin managed to turn the heads of a considerable part of the noblewomen, regardless of age and marital status.
Rasputin became especially popular among the ladies of the court after he became close to the imperial family. Many of the upper class were only happy to look into his mesmerizing eyes and fall into a trance, allowing Rasputin to do whatever he wants.
He was married
For a man of God, Rasputin's behavior at the court of Tsar Nicholas II was extremely controversial, especially considering the fact that Rasputin had married a pilgrim long before he arrived in St. Petersburg. His wife, Praskovya Feodorovna, remained to live in Central Russia even after her husband moved to the capital. Whatever the reason for the separation of the spouses, she played into the hands of Rasputin's dissolute disposition (forgive the pun), because without a wife asking delicate questions, the holy monk could freely incline as many ladies to love affairs.
He found a common language with animals
Part of Rasputin's mysterious gift was the ability to calm and heal injured animals. His hypnotic presence helped the frightened beast to calm down and relax. Some even compared its effect on the animal to anesthesia.
In addition to animals, Rasputin had a special gift for communicating with children, as evidenced by the fact that the eerie-looking monk easily found a common language with Tsarevich Alexei.
He ruled Russia during World War I
When the First World War broke out, Tsar Nicholas II went to the front line to command the troops. The Russian emperor believed he should be close to his soldiers, giving them support and showing the respect he demanded in return.
As a result, the leadership of the country fell on the shoulders of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, who was almost completely at the mercy of Rasputin.
He was against the entry of Russia into the First World War
Despite his reputation as a madman, Rasputin was the voice of reason during the events that unleashed the First World War. He successfully dissuaded Nicholas II from entering the Balkan War, which, according to historians, postponed the start of the world conflict by two years.
Rasputin was convinced that the involvement of Russia in a war of this magnitude would be the death of the nation. The problem was that the emperor decided to disobey "God's man." If Nikolai had listened to Rasputin, the fate of Russia could have been quite different.
He predicted the fall of the imperial family
Long before his death, Rasputin uttered a prophecy that shocked everyone who heard him. He argued that as long as he was alive, the imperial dynasty was also alive. In addition, Rasputin wrote that if the court of the emperor became the cause of his death, the family would not live even two years.
Seven months after his assassination, the result of a conspiracy of the nobility and even members of the royal family, a revolution took place. As a result of the seizure of power, the Bolsheviks shot the royal family and burned their bodies.
It stank
Despite his immense popularity with the ladies of high society, Rasputin looked like a homeless vagabond and smelled like that. Notes of contemporaries say that Rasputin smelled disgusting, and his breath was rancid due to black, rotten teeth. Obviously, his gaze was indeed hypnotic.
He was killed in several ways
Another gift of Rasputin was his strength and vitality. He has been assassinated more than once, he has survived attempts at poisoning, a knife wound, and, according to rumors, many conspiracies against him.
Even on the night of the murder, the conspirators had to use several methods before sending the hated monk to the next world. At the Yusupovs' residence, Rasputin was first poisoned with cyanide, when he happily continued to drink wine and eat poisoned pie, Prince Yusupov shot him in the back.
Returning to check the body, Yusupov ran into Rasputin, who was still alive, who tried to strangle the prince. The prince's comrades who fled began to shoot at Rasputin, and then began to beat the still living monk. As a result, the conspirators had to throw the body of the still alive Rasputin into the Neva, under the ice, where he drowned.
Hope Chikanchi