Why We're Still Obsessed With the Fate of Doomed Romanov Princess Anastasia

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Why We're Still Obsessed With the Fate of Doomed Romanov Princess Anastasia
By Lissa Townsend Rodgers/ History/ Broadly/ broadly.vice.com

"July 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the murder of the youngest Grand Duchess of Russia, whose death inspired a string of legends, lawsuits, and women claiming to be “Anastasia.”

Since Anastasia Romanov and her family perished in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution in 1917, her story has been told on Broadway and in Hollywood, by the Royal Ballet and Disney, in books ranging from scholarly treatises to romantic potboilers. But who was Anastasia? And why does her mystery still enthrall, even after it’s been solved?...."

A vintage postcard, published circa 1910, featuring the five children of Tsar Nicholas II and Queen Alexandra of Russia, left to right Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia with the young Grand Duke Alexei in front. Photo by Popperfoto/Getty Images.


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The Legacy of the Romanovs: How is the Last Russian Royal Family Remembered in Russia?
By Helen Rappaport/ Period/ Edwardian/ History Extra: The Official Website for BBC History Magazine and BBC World Histories Magazine/ historyextra.com

"On 17 July 1918, in the wake of the Russian Revolution of 1917, the last Russian royal family – the Romanovs – were brutally murdered by Bolshevik revolutionaries. Their deaths marked the end of a dynasty that had ruled Russia for more than 300 years and heralded the rise of communist Russia. A century on from their brutal execution, Helen Rappaport explores how Russia has remembered the Romanovs and explains what is commemorated by today’s ‘Tsar’s Days’ in Ekaterinburg…"

People march as part of the Tsar’s Days celebrations – which commemorate Nicholas II, the last emperor of Russia, and his family – near Ekaterinburg in July 2017. (Photo by Donat SorokinTASS via Getty Images)


Richard

 

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DNA Analysis Confirms Authenticity of Romanovs' Remains
By Brigit Katz/ Smart News:Keeping You Current/ Smithsonian/ smithsonianmag.com

"Will Russia’s fallen royal family finally receive a full burial from the Orthodox Church?

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the execution of Nicholas II and his family, an event that toppled Russia’s Romanov dynasty. Yesterday, as the country was preparing to commemorate their deaths, Russian investigators announced that new DNA testing had confirmed that remains attributed to last tsar and his family are in fact authentic—a finding that may pave the way for the deceased royals to be buried with full rites by the Orthodox Church, according to Agence France-Presse.

The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for probing serious crimes, said DNA analysis “confirmed the remains found belonged to the former Emperor Nicholas II, his family members and members of their entourage.” As part of the new tests, investigators exhumed the body of Nicholas’ father, Alexander III to prove that the two are related, and also took DNA samples from living members of the Romanov family, according to the Moscow Times.

The new findings are the latest development in a tangled dispute over the remains of the Romanovs, whose downfall was nigh after Nicholas II was forced to abdicate the throne in the midst of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Radical Bolsheviks took power and formed a provisional government, and the tsar, his wife, Alexandra and their five children were imprisoned in the city of Yekaterinburg. In 1918, civil war broke out between the communist government’s Red Army and the anti-Bolshevik White Army. As the White Army advanced on Yekaterinburg, local authorities were ordered to prevent the rescue of the Romanovs, and in the early hours of July 17, the family was executed by firing squad. Those who remained alive after the bullets stopped flying were stabbed to death.

The Romanovs’ bodies were thrown down a mineshaft, only to be retrieved, burned and buried near a cart track. The remains of Nicholas, Alexandra and three of their daughters— Anastasia, Olga and Tatiana—were found in 1979, though the bodies were only exhumed in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, according to the AFP. As Tom Parfitt of the Times reports, DNA testing carried out at the time confirmed that the remains were authentic....."


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