How Exactly Did Rasputin Die? The Real Answer (And The Weird ...

6 Who Was Rasputin?

Rasputin is one of the most famous figures in modern history, but there are a lot of misconceptions about his life. For example, he was not “Russia’s greatest love machine,", nor was he the “lover of the Russian queen." And no matter what a certain animated movie may have claimed, he definitely did not rise from the dead to lead the Russian Revolution. Basically, he was a Siberian peasant who left home to live as a strannik, a type of “holy wanderer” who walked across Russia, seeking communion with God. His reputation as a holy man grew until 1905, when he was invited to Saint Petersburg and introduced to Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra. 

There was nothing unusual in this. Nicholas and Alexandra were huge believers in the occult and constantly sought the wisdom of gurus and magicians. Before Rasputin, one of their closest confidants was a French miracle-worker named Nizier Anthelme Philippe, who could supposedly summon lightning and turn invisible. But Rasputin established a special bond with the couple by treating their son, Crown Prince Alexei, who was tragically suffering from not having a creepy old faith healer lurking around at all times. Alexei also had hemophilia and Rasputin was apparently able to improve his condition through prayer (or more likely through keeping his incompetent doctors away). 

Unfortunately, none of this was apparent to the general public, since the tsar had decided to keep his heir’s illness a closely guarded secret. As far as most people could tell, a mysterious black-clad mystic appeared at court one day and somehow became the tsar’s beloved adviser, traveling everywhere with the family. It was as if the president suddenly appeared with a guy in a goat mask and was just like “oh, this is Obsidian, he’s my ... good friend. No more questions!” To make things worse, Rasputin became known for sexually harassing female courtiers, cavorting with prostitutes, and was accused of several rapes. But the tsar refused to punish him, mysteriously telling his prime minister “everything you say about Rasputin may be true. At any rate, I can do nothing about it.” In private, he wrote that he would tolerate “ten Rasputins” rather than risk his family’s health. 

Naturally, rumors flew, claiming that Rasputin had hypnotized the tsar, that he was the queen’s secret lover, that he actually ran the government. All of Russia’s misfortunes soon came to be blamed on him, particularly once it became clear that the country was losing the First World War (ironically, he was one of the few figures at court to consistently oppose the war). In 1914, he was stabbed by a noseless follower of the mad priest-monk Iliodor. In 1916, the Interior Minister tried to send a hitman to kill him. Meanwhile, another plot was being hatched by an immensely wealthy 21-year-old named Prince Felix Yusupov, who had made himself unpopular at court by weaseling out of serving in the army. And that’s when things get weird.