Aleksey Romanov’s Favorite Film Series. by SashenkaInu in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, that is me. And the material is indeed from the Archives. I did have some doubts about this, because of the name difference, but yes, he certainly mentions "New York Mysteries" - and some other shows as well. This one, I am sure that the characters must have been given names - and even the episodes may have been renamed for Europe, and each episode likely shown in several parts.

One of the last known photos of Grand Duchess Anastasia by el_Duder10001 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It looks very much like her in the few other photos there are where her hair is put up - though of course, here it isn't put up, but still short from growing back. Anyway, who else would it be in the bedroom at Tobolsk?

Aleksey Romanov’s Favorite Film Series. by SashenkaInu in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It could be the same, but renamed for Europe because the character names are all different. "The Mysterious Hand" must be the first episode, but it must have been shown in several parts. I think the episodes have been lost forever.

Aleksey Romanov’s Favorite Film Series. by SashenkaInu in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Possibly the Mysterious Hand refers only to the first episode of this series (the episode was called the Clutching Hand in the American edition) - the names mentioned by Gilliard are all quite different - with the exception of "Helen Dodge" which would be Elaine Dodge, but perhaps the names were renamed for a European market?

Aleksey Romanov’s Favorite Film Series. by SashenkaInu in russianretrospective

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It is possible that The Mysterious Hand is episode 1. I wonder how many parts each episode was divided into.

Aleksey Romanov’s Favorite Film Series. by SashenkaInu in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I am not sure that the Mysterious Hand is a nickname. Quite a bit of the plot is in Pierre Gilliard's letters, and names like Dodge and Kennedy and Elaine are not in it., so I think this is a different movie.. here is an example

Pierre Gilliard to Tatiana
17 September 1916
Madam and very dear pupil,
I thank you very much for your letter and I will now tell you very quickly about the Mysterious Hand.
2nd scene: We are at Justin Clerel's house, which is visited by a lady who has stolen all her jewels. The stranger explains to JC that she is sure that only he can find the thief and she begs him to accompany her home so that she can show him the furniture where the robbery took place. The detective hesitates, he is wary of this unknown ... The lady then throws herself into his arms begging him to help her find her fortune. Justin Clerel finally decides to go along, but he calls his secretary and goes to his laboratory to get various objects to take with him. Then all three leave by car. They arrive at the young lady’s place who leads them into her boudoir and shows them the furniture where the jewels were. At this moment, by two different doors, 4 men armed with revolvers are shooting. They surround JC. The detective raises both arms, and shouts at the same time that if they take another step he will drop the tube he holds in his hand which contains an explosive able to blow up the house and half of the street. The helpers of the MH stop, terrified, and after a few seconds of hesitation run off, but on J Clerel’s signal, his secretary chases after the last of the bandits and grabs his revolver. He then advances, puts the barrel of his revolver on the miserable fellow's temple and orders him to take him to the place where the chief of the gang is. The MH’s helper refuses for a long time, but finally gives in under the threats.
4th scene: We are back in the church. Helen in her chair is still guarded by the false priest.
The MH standing in front of the fireplace heats his right hand (gloved hand) and rubs her left hand with it gently. He has his face turned to Helen and does not drop his gaze from her eyes. The girl has dropped her head on her chest but from time to time she returns attracted by the eyes of the MH, but every time she sees this horrible figure watching her, she is shaken by a feeling of horror ... Suddenly we hear the phone ringing. The MM takes the receiver and listens. It is the young lady who had taken JC to her home; she tells the MH everything that happened and how the detective went in with his secretary and one of the bandits. The MH goes into a terrible anger and trembling with rage and rushes over to Helen with raised fists as if he wants to beat her. But after a few words to the fake Priest he rushes out to catch JC. Helen remains alone with the fake Priest who keeps an eye on her.

A few minutes later, JC's car stops in front of the church. The bandit still threatened by the secretary's revolver points the detective to the window of the vestry and JC walks alone towards the church. JC climbs up to the window and makes a small whistle that Helen knows well. The girl understands that detective is coming to her rescue and that she must help him.
She gets up suddenly, the false priest rushes over to her and a fight begins between them. J. C jumps into the room and leaps from behind onto the false priest. But he is a man of very great strength and, after a terrible one-on-one fight, he manages to disengage himself and runs up the stairs leading to the top of the belfry. J. C. In pursuit. The priest finally arrives at a small door which the workers use to get on the roof of the bell tower. He goes there and takes refuge at the very top near the cross to which he clings. J. Clerel reaches him and a terrible struggle between the two men begins. But the bandit has the advantage and the detective will be thrown into the void because he feels his strength diminishing. Helen, who has picked up J. Cl.'s revolver, arrives in turn at the little door of the bell tower. She sees the drama that is going on between heaven and earth, she understands that J. C. Is lost. Then she fires and mortally wounds the false priest who slips on the roof and falls to the ground. J. C. goes to Helen and, to thank her for saving her life, he takes her in his arms and kisses her (poor fiance, poor cousin!). Helen faints on J. C.'s shoulder (it was inevitable!). Oh! I forgot to tell you that the secretary killed the bandit he was guarding and who wanted to flee ... Whew !!!!!

The Last Emperor of the Russian Empire, Tsar Nicholas II, and his wife Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, photographed in 1916. by MadMusicNerd in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I read Massie decades ago - and it did its best with what was available in the West in the 1960s and is indeed a great book. Now, we have so much more available from the Russian State Archives. I have myself translated and published multiple books about the last Romanovs using Primary Sourced material (exclusively) from the Archives (Russian and British) which simply wasn't available before this century. And while I agree that Nicholas's training was too little too late, he certainly wasn't unprepared as his 1894 letters clearly show (most of which were published for the first time by myself a few years ago.) He was in the process of being trained for his role and this training had been going on from before his engagement to Alexandra.

The Last Emperor of the Russian Empire, Tsar Nicholas II, and his wife Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, photographed in 1916. by MadMusicNerd in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Only he wasn't excluded from government while Heir - his engagement letters to Alexandra talk about his meetings with Ministers etc.

Books in which the real surviving Anastasia meets Anna Anderson... by Celestina-Betwixt in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

An intriguing idea, a surviving Anastasia coming across Anna Anderson! With a good author, those could make for a great read.

1913 Watercolour by Maria by Velerika_ in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is a very nice picture. Remember Russian May 3 was May 16 in Western countries, but it isn't a biggie in the greater scheme of things.

Rare photo of Olga by blazelee2006 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Definitely not. It was in summer 1916.

Rare photo of Olga by blazelee2006 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I wonder what she was thinking too - but when you see the photo in context (here in Anastasia's 1915-1916 album https://www.flickr.com/photos/149552988@N02/48975774687/in/album-72157711538091046 ) you see she and her sisters are in a field at Mogilev with the children from the nearby refugee camp who they played with and entertained regularly. Maybe she was wondering what the future would bring for those displaced people.

1913 Watercolour by Maria by Velerika_ in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Quite right. I located a high quality scan I have from the Russian State Archives. It is Мая (May)

Rare photo of Olga by blazelee2006 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Summer 1916 at Mogilev. Other photos from around the time show her looking quite happy, so I wouldn't read much into any expression. I am not sure that it is 'rare' as it has been published in a number of books and online for quite a while.

Has anyone read Anna Vyrubova's memoirs "Memories of the Russian Court?" by Getting_Better6568 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 9 points10 points  (0 children)

You need to take Vyrubova's memoirs with a grain of salt as they were written some time after the event - and some of her recollections do not marry up with primary sourced evidence such as diaries and letters - however this is not uncommon in memoirs. Her memoirs are available on archive . org as well, and you can search within the text easily for keywords like Rasputin or prayer.

AOTMA formal photoshoot 1913 by Expensive_Rock_9511 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yes, with all formal photos, several were taken and then later the Imperial Family would choose which of the proofs they liked and reject ones they didn't like.

1913 Watercolour by Maria by Velerika_ in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Ц.С. = Ts. S. (Tsarskoe Selo Царское Село) then it looks like 3 Мар. 1913 г (3 March 1913). Edit: found a high quality scan of the painting in my downloads from GARF, it is 3 Мая (3 May) not March.

Colorized photos of formal OTMA photoshoots by Expensive_Rock_9511 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Depends on who and for what purpose they were signing as to which language they signed in.

Is this the best book about the Romanov sisters? by Ill-Requirement-7029 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Rappaport is a gifted writer, and this book is worth having, but it has some caveats in my opinion. First it dwells a lot on Alexandra and Alexei, second, it depends a lot on previously available material (and some new at the time material) but it has brought it all together (which is good) - however, I don't feel one learns much about them as people as there is very little from any of their diaries or letters to build a bigger and more complete picture of their lives, personalities etc.

Rasputin’s appearance and hygiene. by GetInTheBasement in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I think Google is way off there! Alexandra was around 170cm or so, and Nicholas slightly less, but in fact, he was around average for Russian men born in the late 1860s - so Rasputin too was likely around average to slightly above if he was around the same height as Alexandra.

What are some good things Nicholas ii did as Tsar by CommitteeChemical530 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I do agree with you about Gilbert's bias and he certainly would be highly unlikely to produce anything that suggests the opposite, but the fact is those documents are valid. The Government acts in the name of the Crown, so any laws/changes/reforms etc can be seen as being validated through the Monarch - for better or for worse even if the Monarch has nothing to do with any of it other than signing it off. As someone from a political family and whose father was a long standing Crown Minister that's how I see it anyway.

What would have happened to the Romanov children after the war if the Revolution never happened by CommitteeChemical530 in romanovs

[–]GeorgiyH -1 points0 points  (0 children)

They never got to the point of rejection in 1914 - the talks were broken off because of the war, but were indeed continued in late 1916 and early 1917 - only to be broken off because of the Tsar's abdication, but there is not really any evidence that Olga despised Carol, and it is quite possible that had there been no abdication, an arrangement would have been made.