Rasputin and the Duma: The 1915-1916 Parliamentary War

Rasputin and the Siberian Peasant Economy

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore an overlooked side of Grigori Rasputin: his roots in the Siberian peasant economy of Pokrovskoye. They discuss the economic pressures on Siberian peasants after the 1861 emancipation, Rasputin's early life as a horse trader and farmer, and how his rural identity shaped his later interactions with the imperial court. The conversation examines the Tolmachevo land dispute, Rasputin's role in the Siberian Agricultural Society, and the irony that a man who embodied the peasant worldview became a symbol of court corruption. Specific figures include the peasant Ivan Tolmachev, Governor Nikolai Likhachev, and Rasputin's wife Praskovya. The hosts also touch on the 1891–92 famine in Tobolsk province and how Rasputin's practical knowledge of livestock and traditional healing contrasted with the court's desperate reliance on him. The episode ends with a reflection on how the myth of Rasputin the 'mad monk' obscured the real economic realities of his origins. #Rasputin #Pokrovskoye #SiberianPeasantry #RussianEmpire #Tobolsk #Emancipation1861 #Tolmachevo #IvanTolmachev #NikolaiLikhachev #PraskovyaRasputina #SiberianAgriculture #Famine1891 #HorseTrading #PeasantEconomy #ImperialCourt #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the Anglo-Russian Press War

In 1916, as World War I raged, a shadow conflict erupted in the newspapers of London and Petrograd. British correspondents like Robert Wilton of The Times and Harold Williams of the Daily Chronicle waged a campaign to discredit Tsarina Alexandra and her confidant Grigori Rasputin, painting them as pro-German traitors. Their reporting was amplified by the Russian Progressive Bloc and figures like Pavel Milyukov, who used foreign press to pressure the Tsar. Meanwhile, Russian nationalist papers like Novoe Vremya and Zemshchina fought back, accusing the British of meddling. This episode examines how Rasputin became a pawn in Anglo-Russian propaganda battles, the Okhrana's surveillance of foreign journalists, and the role of 'Rasputin-gate' in destabilizing the monarchy before the February Revolution. Featuring the real history behind the press war that framed Rasputin as a German spy. #Rasputin #AngloRussianPressWar #WorldWarI #TsarinaAlexandra #PavelMilyukov #Okhrana #RobertWilton #Propaganda #ProgressiveBloc #RussianRevolution #FebruaryRevolution #NovoeVremya #BritishPress #Petrograd #LondonTimes #Zemshchina #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the 1917 Revolution: Did He Destroy the Monarchy?

In this episode, Lucas and Luna examine Rasputin's role in the final unraveling of the Romanov dynasty, focusing on the winter of 1916-17 after his murder. They explore how the political chaos he embodied — the 'ministerial leapfrog', the alienation of the Duma and the army, the collapse of trust in Tsarina Alexandra — created the conditions for the February Revolution. Drawing on eyewitness accounts from Petrograd, the Stavka, and Tsarskoye Selo, the conversation weighs how much Rasputin himself was a cause versus a symptom. Specifics include: the last days of Alexander Protopopov as Minister of the Interior, the secret police reports warning of catastrophe, the mutiny of the Volhynian Regiment, and the Tsar's fateful abdication at Pskov. The episode also considers the puzzling loyalty of Rasputin's followers after his death, and the strange posthumous cult that briefly emerged before the Bolsheviks swept it away. #Rasputin #RussianRevolution #FebruaryRevolution #Romanovs #TsarNicholasII #TsarinaAlexandra #AlexanderProtopopov #VolhynianRegiment #Pskov #Petrograd #Stavka #1917 #Duma #Abdication #Bolsheviks #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the Women of the Imperial Court

While Rasputin's relationship with Tsarina Alexandra has been exhaustively covered, the women who surrounded and supported him at court remain shadowy figures. This episode focuses on Anna Vyrubova, the Tsarina's closest friend and Rasputin's most loyal advocate, as well as other female devotees like Lili Dehn and Vera Zavadskaya. We explore how these women facilitated Rasputin's access to the royal family, served as intermediaries, and shaped his mystique. Drawing on Vyrubova's memoirs and Okhrana surveillance reports, we examine the social dynamics of Tsarskoye Selo—a closed world of aristocratic ladies, court intrigue, and spiritual longing. What did these women see in the starets? Were they naïve dupes, calculating social climbers, or genuine seekers? And how did their loyalty contribute to the erosion of the monarchy's credibility? We also touch on the gendered nature of the attacks against Rasputin, where his female followers were often depicted as hysterical or scandalous. This episode offers a fresh perspective on the Rasputin phenomenon by centering the women who were both his protectors and his path to power. #Rasputin #AnnaVyrubova #TsarinaAlexandra #TsarskoyeSelo #RussianEmpire #Romanovs #WomenOfTheCourt #LiliDehn #VeraZavadskaya #Okhrana #Starets #ImperialRussia #FebruaryRevolution #Mysticism #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope #20thCentury Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the Duma: The 1915-1916 Parliamentary War

In 1915–1916, as Russia staggered through World War I, Grigori Rasputin became the central figure in a bitter political war between the Tsar and the State Duma. This episode traces how Rasputin's influence at court turned the Duma — a fledgling parliament — into a battlefield of accusations, conspiracies, and desperate reform attempts. We follow the rise of the Progressive Bloc, a coalition of liberal and moderate deputies who demanded a 'government of public trust' — and whose leaders, like Pavel Milyukov and Alexander Guchkov, openly blamed Rasputin for the empire's collapse. We examine Rasputin's role in the 'ministerial leapfrog' of 1915–1916, when Nicholas II cycled through prime ministers and war ministers while Rasputin's blessings became the key to high office. We also explore how the Duma's hostility united unlikely allies — from conservative monarchists like Vladimir Purishkevich to left-leaning Kadets — in a campaign that ultimately helped topple the monarchy. Drawing on Duma speeches, Okhrana reports, and the memoirs of key politicians, this episode reveals how a mystic from Siberia became the symbol of everything wrong with the Romanov state. #Rasputin #RussianHistory #StateDuma #ProgressiveBloc #PavelMilyukov #AlexanderGuchkov #VladimirPurishkevich #NicholasII #TsarskoyeSelo #WorldWarI #Petrograd #Okhrana #MinisterialLeapfrog #FebruaryRevolution #RomanovDynasty #EasternEurope #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]