|
Execution
of Tsar Nicholas II - The First World War - July 1918
Following
the Bolshevik seizure of power in October/ November 1917 civil war erupted
in Russia as the Bolsheviks fought to gain total control of the country.
Their opponents had a number of aims, some of which were in conflict with
other groups fighting the Bolsheviks, but in most cases they were fighting
for a return to one of the previous forms of government: be that the
Provisional Government or Tsarism.
The
Bolsheviks had captured and imprisoned the former Tsar, Nicholas II and
his immediate family shortly after the revolution. The Tsar was a natural
focal point for the Bolsheviks opponents to look towards as a leader. So
long as he was alive the Bolsheviks would be susceptible to plans to oust
their government and restore the monarchy. They were also acutely aware of
the threat posed to their regime from the Western Powers. The Tsar was
elated to the royal families of Britain, Germany and Austria amongst
others. Once fighting on the Western Front was over they would, perhaps,
send troops to liberate the imprisoned Tsar with the intention of
returning him to his throne.
With
this fear in mind the Bolshevik leaders made the decision to execute the
Russian Royal family. They were being held in a city called Ekaterinburg,
close to the Ural mountains. The accepted version of their fate, there are
several interpretations and question marks about what really happened, is
that the family were taken into the cellar of Ipatiev house, their home in
Ekaterinburg. Here they were lined up, as if to have a photograph taken.
Instead a dozen armed guards entered the room and shot the family.
Popular
myths surround the fate of the family, there have been numerous people
claiming to be Romanov's, most famously, the Princess Anastasia. Recent
DNA testing on remains believed to be those of the Russian Royal Family,
of members of Royal Families who are closely related (the Duke of
Edinburgh for example) and of claimants show that the family did indeed
perish at the hands of the Bolsheviks in July 1918. Questions can still be
raised as to the whereabouts of some remains though.
This
information is included within the First World War Timeline as it can be
seen as a direct result of the Russian Empires involvement in the First
World War. The fact that war continued within Russia is also significant,
as is the timing of the execution of the Russian Royal Family. In the
longer term the rise of the Bolsheviks and their subsequent victory in the
Russian Civil War is a consequence of the war and a major factor in World
and European politics over the following 80 years.
|