The Female Starets: How Rasputin's Disciples Carried His Legacy

Rasputin and the Empress's Brother: Grand Duke Ernest Louis

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the unlikely connection between Grigori Rasputin and Grand Duke Ernest Louis of Hesse, the Tsarina's brother. Ernest Louis, a liberal-minded German prince with artistic passions, found himself at the center of a web of family loyalty, wartime propaganda, and Rasputin's influence. We trace how Ernest Louis's letters to his sister Alexandra, full of concern about Rasputin's reputation, became a flashpoint in the imperial family. We examine the 1915 Okhrana report on Ernest Louis's intercepted correspondence, the German prince's failed attempts to warn the Tsarina, and how the Rasputin affair strained Anglo-Russian relations through Ernest Louis's mother-in-law, Queen Victoria's daughter Princess Alice. The episode sheds light on a lesser-known figure who tried, from afar, to protect the Romanovs from their own court's darkness. #Rasputin #GrandDukeErnestLouis #TsarinaAlexandra #HesseDarmstadt #Romanovs #Okhrana #WWI #GermanPropaganda #PrincessAlice #TsarskoyeSelo #ImperialFamily #RussianHistory #20thCentury #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope #Monarchy #SpyScandal Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

The Female Starets: How Rasputin's Disciples Carried His Legacy

Grigori Rasputin wasn't the only starets in early 20th-century Russia. This episode explores the surprising phenomenon of female staretzy — holy women who wielded spiritual authority in peasant communities and even at court. We meet Mar’ya, a peasant woman from the Urals who healed and prophesied, and uncover how Rasputin's own daughter, Matryona, tried to preserve his legacy after his death. We also examine the story of Anna Vyrubova, who became a kind of secular starets in her own right. Drawing on Douglas Smith's 'Rasputin: Faith, Power, and the Twilight of the Romanovs' and rare eyewitness accounts, we unpack what 'female starets' meant in Orthodox tradition and why these women were both revered and feared. No cheap mysticism — just the real social and religious dynamics that made women like them possible in the last years of imperial Russia. #FemaleStaretzy #MatryonaRasputina #AnnaVyrubova #MarYaTheHealer #OrthodoxMysticism #Starets #Yurodivy #RussianHistory #ImperialRussia #Rasputin #FemaleHoliness #PeasantHealers #TsarskoyeSelo #DouglasSmith #20thCentury #EasternOrthodoxy #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the Duma: The 1912 Crisis That Nearly Toppled the Tsar

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Rasputin's explosive impact on Russian politics during the 1912 Duma crisis. When the Fourth Duma convened in November 1912, deputies from across the political spectrum united in a rare moment of solidarity to denounce the "dark forces" manipulating the throne. The episode zeroes in on the dramatic October 1912 speech by Octobrist leader Alexander Guchkov, who publicly accused Rasputin of wielding undue influence over state affairs. We trace the fallout: the tsar's furious dissolution of the Duma, the subsequent scandal over the St. Petersburg Metropolitan's alleged cover-up, and how this confrontation hardened the divide between the monarchy and the emerging political class. The conversation also examines the role of the Union of October 17 (the Octobrists) and the Kadets, the specific parliamentary maneuvers used to force a debate on Rasputin, and why this moment is often overshadowed by the 1916 murder plot. By the end, listeners will understand why the 1912 Duma crisis was a turning point — a dress rehearsal for the revolution three years later. #Rasputin #RussianDuma #AlexanderGuchkov #Octobrists #Kadets #TsarNicholasII #FourthDuma #1912Crisis #RussianPolitics #DarkForces #ImperialRussia #StPetersburg #StateDuma #GuchkovSpeech #RussianRevolution #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the Tsarina's Nurse: Vyrubova's Hidden Role

Anna Vyrubova was more than a confidante—she was the bridge between Tsarina Alexandra and Grigori Rasputin. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Vyrubova's devotion and social maneuvering shaped the Romanov court from 1905 to 1916. They unpack her upbringing in the imperial household, her friendship with Alexandra that predated Rasputin, her role in introducing the starets to the royal family, and her tireless work as a Red Cross nurse during World War I. The conversation also covers the Okhrana's surveillance of Vyrubova, the 1915 train crash that left her disabled, and her controversial escape from Petrograd after the February Revolution. Drawing on memoirs, court records, and letters, the episode reveals a woman who was neither a mere pawn nor a villain, but a complex figure caught between faith, duty, and manipulation. New listeners will get a fresh angle on the Rasputin saga, while regulars will deepen their understanding of the human network around the throne. #Rasputin #AnnaVyrubova #TsarinaAlexandra #Romanov #RussianHistory #EasternEurope #ImperialRussia #WorldWarI #RedCrossNurse #TsarskoyeSelo #Okhrana #FebruaryRevolution #Spala #Starets #History #FexingoHistory #Podcast #RussianRevolution Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Rasputin and the German Connection: Spy Scandal 1915-1916

During World War I, rumors swirled that Grigori Rasputin was a German spy, feeding secrets to the Kaiser through his mistress. This episode digs into the origins of the spy scandal — from the Okhrana's surveillance files to the Duma speeches of Vladimir Purishkevich. We examine the evidence: Rasputin's meetings with banker Dmitry Rubinstein, his ties to financier Manus, and the intercepted letters that fueled paranoia. Did the Tsarina's German birth make her a target? Or was the scandal a political weapon wielded by nationalists to discredit the monarchy? We look at the 1915 'Rubinstein affair', the role of the Petrograd press, and how the spy myth contributed to the Romanovs' downfall. Along the way, we explore Rasputin's actual war stance — his opposition to the war, his calls for peace, and how that was twisted into treason. A story of wartime hysteria, propaganda, and the destruction of a dynasty. #Rasputin #GermanSpy #WorldWarI #RussianHistory #Romanovs #Okhrana #Purishkevich #RubinsteinAffair #TsarinaAlexandra #Propaganda #Petrograd #Duma #Treason #WarHysteria #History #FexingoHistory #EasternEurope #SpyScandal Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]