09-27-2016, 01:03 PM
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Certainly Rasputin was able to influence Russian politics after his initial encounter with Tsar Nicholas and his wife in 1906, but he was not nice or charming in any way. He was dirty, smelled bad and was uncouth. Most everyone who knew him disliked him, including his own children. His personality may have been mesmerizing, but this man was known for being on the fringe of social behavior. He was believed to be associated with dark secret societies, and claimed to have the power of prophesy. As he seemed able to prevent the death of the son of the Tsar and Tsarina, he was trusted by them and became an advisor for foreign and domestic policy just at the time when Russia could have made positive democratic reforms. He also advised the Tsar to command his own army on the front of WWI, and the Tsarina to allow rioting and dissent to fester in St Petersburg. He was so uncharming that many people plotted to kill him in the name of rescuing Mother Russia from his grips.
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Certainly Rasputin was able to influence Russian politics after his initial encounter with Tsar Nicholas and his wife in 1906, but he was not nice or charming in any way. He was dirty, smelled bad and was uncouth. Most everyone who knew him disliked him, including his own children. His personality may have been mesmerizing, but this man was known for being on the fringe of social behavior. He was believed to be associated with dark secret societies, and claimed to have the power of prophesy. As he seemed able to prevent the death of the son of the Tsar and Tsarina, he was trusted by them and became an advisor for foreign and domestic policy just at the time when Russia could have made positive democratic reforms. He also advised the Tsar to command his own army on the front of WWI, and the Tsarina to allow rioting and dissent to fester in St Petersburg. He was so uncharming that many people plotted to kill him in the name of rescuing Mother Russia from his grips.
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