The Crime Book

314

were later interpreted as sexual in

nature. Rasputin habitually bragged

of his special relationship with the

Romanovs and flashed around

Alexandra’s letters in public.

Because of this, Rasputin soon

became a scapegoat for all of

Russia’s problems, and was

portrayed as wielding a sinister

and corrupting influence over the

royal family. During the summer of

1914, in the belief that he was the

THE ASSASSINATION OF RASPUTIN

Nicholas II’s family were the last of

the Romanov dynasty. The Tsar and

Tsarina were executed along with their

son Alexei and daughters (left to right)

Marie, Olga, Tatiana, and Anastasia.

Antichrist, a woman named

Chionya Guseva slashed Rasputin

across the stomach with a knife,

leaving a 36-cm (14-inch) wound

that exposed his intestines.

While Rasputin recovered in

hospital, tensions mounted in

Europe – war between the Triple

Entente and the Central Powers

seemed imminent. Rasputin sent

an ominous telegram to the tsar

warning of a whole ocean of tears.

Rasputin prophesied that they

would all drown in blood. Ignoring

the mystic’s words, however, the

tsar went to war with Germany and

Austria-Hungary on 1 August.

Millions of Russian soldiers were

killed as their enemies advanced in

the east. Again, the Russian public

blamed Rasputin.

Rasputin’s mystical predictions

continued. By 1916, Rasputin was

convinced of his impending death.

He wrote an impassioned note to

the Romanovs on 7 December,

prophesying that, should he die at

the hand of one of their family

members, none of their children

or relations would outlive him by

more than two years.

Uncanny prescience

Nine days after the letter was sent,

Prince Felix Yusupov, who was

married to the tsar’s only niece,

arrived at the Rasputin family

residence. The prince called upon

Rasputin for help – his wife, the

Princess Irina, was experiencing

terrible headaches and required

immediate treatment. Rasputin

agreed to leave with Yusopov,

despite earlier warnings from the

Minister of the Interior, Alexander

Protopopov, to stay inside his home.

The minister had heard of several

plots against the mystic.

When they arrived at Yusupov’s

home, the Moika Palace, the prince

led Rasputin into the “games room”.

It was actually part of the wine

cellar, but had been decorated to

look as though it was in regular

use. Yusupov told Rasputin that

his wife was hosting a party and

offered him Madeira wine and

Toxicology

Pioneered by Paracelsus in the

16th century, toxicology is the

study of poisons and drugs.

Toxicology reports can give the

authorities clues to determine

a victim’s cause of death, and

either corroborate or undermine

a suspect’s statements.

Forensic toxicology, studied

post-mortem, differs from

clinical toxicology, which tests

living patients who exhibit drug

or toxin-related symptoms.

Forensic toxicology exams test

samples of urine, as well as

blood from different parts of the

body. Blood from the femoral

vein may yield a different

concentration of a toxin to blood

from the heart, so this allows

toxicologists to get a complete

picture. Tissue samples can be

collected from the liver, brain,

kidney, and vitreous humour (in

the eyeball chamber). Stomach

contents and bile are also

examined. Different techniques

including immunoassay, in

which antibodies search out

toxins, are then used to screen

all samples and determine the

concentration of each substance.

312-315_Rasputin_Assassination.indd 314 13/12/2016 10:10

ASSASSINATIONS AND POLITICAL PLOTS 315

cake while he waited. However,

the food and drink had been

laced with cyanide – and the

only guests in the house were

Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich,

politician V. M. Purishkevich,

and Dr Stanislas de Lazovert.

All wanted to end Rasputin’s

influence over the Romanovs.

Yusupov left Rasputin in the

room, but the mystic was still alive

when he returned. The poisoning

had failed. Yusupov excused

himself again and went upstairs,

where the Grand Duke handed

him a revolver. Yusupov returned

to the cellar and shot the mystic

through the chest. Rasputin fell to

the floor. Exuberant, Felix raced

upstairs and announced that

Rasputin was dead.

The joyous men descended into

the cellar only to find Rasputin

gone. They tracked him into the

courtyard where he was limping

towards the gate. Purishkevich

took aim with the revolver and fired

four times, hitting Rasputin

through the kidney. When he fell

into the snow, one of the

conspirators shot him through the

head. The four men battered

Rasputin’s body, then tied him up

and dumped him into a hole in the

half-frozen river.

Prophecy fulfilled

The next day, Rasputin’s daughter,

Maria, contacted the tsarina to

inform her that her father had

disappeared after going to Moika

Palace to treat Irina’s headache.

Alexandra, however, knew that

Irina was not even in the city. An

investigation was quickly launched

to find the missing mystic.

During a search of Moika

Palace, police found traces of blood

near the back door, which Yusupov

claimed belonged to a dog. More

blood was discovered on a parapet

by Bolshoy Petrovsky bridge, along

with one of Rasputin’s galoshes. On

18 December, a Uhlenhuth test –

used to determine the species of a

blood sample – revealed the blood

on the back steps to be human.

Yusupov and Grand Duke Pavlovich

were placed under house arrest.

Rasputin’s body was found on

19 December. The autopsy showed

that he had died instantly when the

The conspirators

dump Rasputin into

the icy Nevka River

Rasputin consumes

cyanide-laced wine

and cake in the Moika

Oalace cellar

Rasputin survives the

poisoning and remains in

the cellar

Rasputin is shot in the

head and kidneys by

Purishkevich

Rasputin survives,

and escapes into

the courtyard

Rasputin’s hands and feet

are bound with chains

and rope

The conspirators beat

Rasputin

Rasputin is shot in the

chest by Yusupov

Rasputin falls into the

snow. The conspirators

fear he is still alive

third bullet penetrated the frontal

lobe of his brain. However, his

body showed no evidence of the

supposed cyanide poisoning.

A week later, Nicholas II sent

Yusupov and Pavlovich into exile

without trial. While they succeeded

in murdering Rasputin, they failed

to save the Romanovs. In 1917,

Nicholas was forced to abdicate,

and the Bolsheviks seized power

that October. The Romanovs were

held in a house in St Petersburg

until 17 July 1918, when they were

shot by a firing squad. Rasputin’s

dark prophecy had come to pass. ■

Without Rasputin,

there could have been

no Lenin.

Alexander Kerensky

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