Chapter 670 The Last Madness
There are different opinions about the whereabouts of Nikolai’s family. Some say that Nikolai’s family has been secretly executed by the provisional government, while others say that Nikolai’s family has been exiled to the king, and even Some people claim to have met Princess Olga in Constantinople.
A more reliable theory is that Nikolai's family should have been imprisoned in Moscow or somewhere in Siberia by the provisional government.
Alexander prayed for Alexei and the princesses, hoping that they would be rescued safely.
Forget it about Nicholas and Alex, they are responsible for the demise of the empire.
With the recovery of St. Petersburg, some nobles who had been in exile after Nicholas abdicated returned one after another, and the call for George to ascend the throne became louder and louder.
Alexander knew what the purpose of these nobles was. They did not miss the empire, but missed their own privileges.
Little Nicholas doesn't care. He and his wife Anastasia have no children and have nothing to worry about.
Some people have opinions, such as the Queen Mother who temporarily lives in Denmark. After losing her royal salary, the Queen Mother’s financial situation was so stretched that she couldn’t even pay the electricity bill for her residence.
Many nobles in exile have no ability to make a living and can only rely on selling jewelry to survive. Newspapers have reports about members of the nobles living on the streets every day.
Alexander just couldn't figure it out.
The aristocratic class is famous for its versatility, and is proficient in literature, art, music, and dance. If you can't even starve to death as a translator, why do you end up on the streets?
"Vova is known as the greatest litterateur in the empire. Do you think his literary quality is really that high?"
Little Nicholas laughed, not really Everyone was as strict as George and Anne.
George and Anne attach great importance to the education of their children. The Alexander brothers and sisters are really versatile.
Others are not so lucky.
Members of the aristocracy are born with a salary, no pressure to survive, and no motivation to learn. Although they can afford tutors, it is hard to say how much they can learn.
The best example of this is Paul, the most famous gourmet in Paris.
Gourmet, as the name suggests, means one who knows how to eat.
The reason why Grand Duke Vladimir is called the greatest litterateur in the empire is because Vladimir wrote a book about geography.
"If I write a play, wouldn't I be the most famous playwright in the empire?"
Alexander lamented that it is so easy for nobles to become famous.
“You don’t even have to write, buy a script, change the name to yours, and you will be the most famous playwright in the empire.”
Little Nicholas’s knowledge of this Very understanding.
“So, it is right for my father not to be a tsar——”
Alexander did not have the slightest fondness for most nobles.
When the battle on the front line was at its fiercest, the Grand Duke of St. Petersburg was still singing and dancing every night, not caring about the fate of the empire at all, only caring about whether his salary had increased.
Every noble who joins the military will be written up in newspapers, trying their best to prove the correctness of the privileges enjoyed by the noble class.
After the war broke out, Russia mobilized 15 million people to participate in the war. How many noble children were there?
Aren’t children from common people worthy of praise?
When Nicholas abdicated, the salary of the Imperial Grand Duke had increased to 1.2 million rubles per year.
There are still many princes who don’t have enough money to spend, so they go to Nicholas to borrow money.
“If your father becomes Tsar, you will be the first heir.”
Nicholas the Younger reminded Alexander that the throne is hereditary.
“I would rather not!”
Alexander was determined.
The Tsar had no attraction for Alexander.
Is Alexei happy?
Even without hemophilia, Alexei's life has nothing to do with happiness.
Yes, Alexey has countless wealth, but he doesn’t even know how much a piece of bread sells for. Wealth has lost its meaning to Alexey.
Alexander also had a lot of money, which he could not spend in ten lifetimes. Wealth was also meaningless to Alexander.
Alexander wanted to be George.
Instead of being hated like Nicholas.
“Smart choice!”
Little Nicholas didn’t want to be a tsar either, rights and obligations complement each other.
The power that George now possesses is no different from that of the Czar——
No, in terms of pure power, George's power is even greater than that of Nicholas.
Nicholas' power was restricted by the aristocracy and the bureaucracy, and was not unlimited. Without the consent of the aristocracy and the bureaucracy, Nicholas's decrees could not even leave the Winter Palace.
Although George was in Constantinople, his orders were unimpeded in most parts of the country. If anyone dared to disobey George's orders, military law would be engaged.
On the Constantinople side, there were also strong calls for George to ascend the throne.
When Nicholas abdicated, most nobles did not realize the seriousness of the matter. It was not until the Provisional Government was overthrown and the Provisional Executive Committee came to power that many belated nobles realized that the empire had changed.
At that time, St. Petersburg was already in chaos. The nobles had no time to deal with their assets. They carried limited belongings with them, and many people were already stretched thin.
Youdao means that it is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to go from luxury to frugality.
Although the nobles who fled to Constantinople lost their salaries, their living habits could not be changed in a day or two. Some nobles sold out the valuables they carried with them and even had to sell themselves.
George is busy with work and has no time to receive guests.
There are many people who come to Annie to sell things or borrow money. "Maria sent me a telegram today asking you when you will ascend the throne."
The Maria Anne was talking about was George's only sister, Maria Maria, wife of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Alexandrovna.
After Maria's marriage, she continued to receive the Grand Duchess's salary from the Russian Empire, and her income was considerable.
After Nicholas abdicated, the provisional government no longer paid Maria a salary, which made Maria very uncomfortable.
"She no longer cares about Nikki's whereabouts?"
George has a problem with Maria.
After Nicholas abdicated, the interim government wanted to send Nicholas and his family to the UK, but the UK refused.
No matter what Maria said at that time, she would not be in vain for the salary that Nicholas had given her over the years.
Maria got married in 1874, and the salary she received from the Russian Empire over the years has exceeded 10 million rubles.
After taking so much money, but not saying a word when the Tsar was in trouble, George didn't know what Nicholas thought. He was quite chilled.
Thinking about how he would have to support these weirdos after becoming a tsar, George would rather distribute the money to his soldiers.
"So what if you care, life has to go on."
Anne downplayed that when Maria got married, Nicholas was only 6 years old, and his feelings were really limited.
George was only two years old at the time, and his emotions were even more limited.
"Don't the British royal family give money?"
George didn't know whether Maria received a salary or a salary in the UK.
"The royal family also has a large number of people to support, and the specific allocation to each person's head is not much."
Anne curled her lips, Britain was famously poor.
After Maria married Alfred, she once praised the Queen of England for her simple life.
Life in Yasan is really simple.
To say that the Queen of England lives a simple life is actually to mock the Queen as shabby.
“Do you want me to be Tsar?”
George asked Anne for her opinion.
To say that the throne is unattractive is to deceive oneself and others.
But starting from Nicholas I, one of the four czars committed suicide, one was assassinated, and one was deposed. Only the third emperor died a good death.
The probability of this accident is too high.
"What they miss is not the empire, but an orderly life."
Anne does not want to be queen, she and Alex are both from Germany.
The people in Constantinople who asked George to take the throne every day are the same people who shouted for Nicholas to abdicate in St. Petersburg every day.
It is indeed miserable to go from being well-dressed and well-fed to living on the streets.
But they deserve it, they deserve it!
But compared to those grand dukes executed by the Second Provisional Government, they were lucky.
At the end of June, news of the execution of Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich spread in Constantinople.
Mikhail is Nikolai's younger brother and one of the biggest masterminds behind Nikolai's abdication.
At the wedding of Nikolai's sister Olga, the royal family members unanimously decided that Nikolai would abdicate, Alexei would ascend the throne, and Mikhail would serve as regent.
Nicholas did not want Alexei to ascend the throne, so he passed the throne to Mikhail.
Mikhail, who had a high heart and a thin life, was frightened by the situation in St. Petersburg. Not only did he not accept the throne, but he also took the initiative to surrender to the Provisional Executive Committee.
After Mikhail's surrender, it was widely publicized by the Provisional Executive Committee. People thought that Mikhail would be entrusted with important tasks, but they did not expect that Mikhail would be secretly executed.
A week ago, a prisoner captured by the Second Balkan Army in Tula confessed that Mikhail had been executed on the eve of the Second Provisional Government moving its capital to Moscow.
Also executed along with Mikhail were Grand Duke Nikolai Konstantinovich and two brothers, Grand Dukes George and Sergey Mikhailovich.
The news reached Constantinople, and the whereabouts of Nicholas' family once again became the focus of attention.
Including the four above, 9 Grand Dukes have been executed.
Including Pavel, who was shot in Constantinople, more than a quarter of the Romanov family men had died.
Even the Tsar's younger brother was executed, and the rest of the Grand Dukes, for whom there was no news, were probably not much better.
Constantinople officials did not restrict people's discussions. George wanted to take this opportunity to remind everyone: cherish life and live in the present.
On July 3, news finally came from Tula. Duke Vasily of Suvorov led the Second Balkan Army to fight bloody battles for half a month and finally recaptured Tula.
In the Battle of Tula, 150,000 troops loyal to the Second Provisional Government were killed, and another 200,000 were captured.
Alexander was very happy and immediately sent a telegram to Vasily, hoping to send all these prisoners to St. Petersburg. They were needed for the reconstruction of St. Petersburg.
Vasily was not in a hurry. He waited for the prisoners in Moscow to arrive and then sent them to St. Petersburg together.
(End of this chapter)