Feasts Of The Northwest | Local Food, Travel and Treats

Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (22 January 1869 – 29 December 1916) was a Russian mystic and Orthodox Christian who is credited with having exerted a great deal of influence over the latter days of Nicholas II, Russian emperor, and his wife Alexandra and son Alexei. Referred to often as the ‘Mad Monk’, ‘strannik’ (religious pilgrim), and ‘starets’ (elder), Rasputin was generally esteemed to be a psychic and faith healer. Contemporaneous opinions on Rasputin were divided; some saw him as a saintly visionary, healer and prophet whilst others believed him to be a religious charlatan.

Many have argued that Rasputin facilitated the fall of the Romonov dynasty in 1917 by helping to discredit the tsarist government. Much uncertainty shrouds Rasputin’s life however, as all accounts are based on legend, hearsay and rather dubious memoirs. Rasputin was introduced to the Tsarist family when he became Tsarevich Alexei’s healer. It was not known in 1904 that Alexei had haemophilia, a disease that was prolific among European royalty (not florists) descended from Queen Victoria.