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Alexandra Feodorovna: A Life from Beginning to End
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Alexandra Feodorovna was one of the most tragic figures of the twentieth century. Born in the wrong time, giddy with power, married to a man who ruled one-sixth of the world, she was murdered with her family in 1918. Alexandra’s story is more complex than many realize. She had the rare privilege to marry the man she loved and the rare misfortune to marry a man who never should have been made the leader of an empire. The journey she embarked upon was both of her making, and completely out of her control.
✓ Early Life and Losses
✓ The Tsarevich and His Illness
✓ Rasputin and the Romanovs
✓ The Russian Revolution and World War I
✓ Imprisonment and Death
And much more!
Read On Your Computer, MAC, Smartphone, Kindle Reader, iPad, or Tablet.
Alexandra Feodorovna was one of the most tragic figures of the twentieth century. Born in the wrong time, giddy with power, married to a man who ruled one-sixth of the world, she was murdered with her family in 1918. Alexandra’s story is more complex than many realize. She had the rare privilege to marry the man she loved and the rare misfortune to marry a man who never should have been made the leader of an empire. The journey she embarked upon was both of her making, and completely out of her control.
✓ Early Life and Losses
✓ The Tsarevich and His Illness
✓ Rasputin and the Romanovs
✓ The Russian Revolution and World War I
✓ Imprisonment and Death
And much more!
51 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 15, 2019
156 people are currently reading
161 people want to read
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Hourly History
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 20, 2019
Here are the things I felt I knew before reading this book.
Alexandra Feodorovna: A Life From Beginning to End is a publication of a group known as Hourly History. Alexandra was the wife of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the last Tsar. In my mind she was the dominant one in the family, the Tsar was manipulated by many. She, in turn, is famous for being manipulated by the colorful, frequently drunk, and always unhygienic Rasputin. Alexandra was the mother of the constantly bleeding Prince Alexei (hemophilia) as well as several daughters. The entire family would be executed by a Bolshevik faction but would leave behind a mystery about one of the daughters, Anastasia. Did she survive? If she didn’t, there would be pretenders surfacing occasionally in later years to claim her identity. These are things about Alexandra Feodorovna that stick in my mind. What more can I learn from this Hourly History publication?
And here are things I added to my knowledge.
Alix grew up in Darmstadt, Germany in an English household. Her mother, Princess Alice of Great Britain and her grandmother, Queen Victoria, cemented her status as one of the nobility. Queen Victoria was hesitant about Alix marrying Nicholas, she was wary of Russia. Tsar Alexander III, father of Nicholas, didn’t like Nicholas marrying a German. To further complicate things, Alix was a Lutheran and Nicholas was Orthodox Russian, a religion that viewed the Tsar as God on earth, an equal to God in heaven. It seems everything was against the match.
The wedding went on. At a time when most royal marriages were arranged as a way of cementing political alliances, the marriage between Nicholas and Alexandra was a love match as well. There was, however, no love for Alexandra from the Russian people. Socially inept and completely devoted to hands-on care of her children, the public saw Alexandra’s absence from the social scene as a snub. Alexandra never quite got the Russian language and struggled with French, a language of diplomacy used at the Russian court. With the outbreak of WW I, many suspected Alexandra of being a German spy.
As the forces of the Russian Revolution established their spheres of interest and power, the royal family was moved to ever humbler residences until they were finally executed. I didn’t know that their doctor and three servants were also executed. And I was surprised to learn that the family’s remains were finally interred in 1998.
Hourly History’s slogan, motto, logo, or claim to fame is that their publications can be read in under an hour. The subject of each work will rest in the minds of many readers as something or someone familiar. Reading these publications won’t make you a historical authority but it could motivate you to further research. Think of the fun facts you can dredge up at parties when you know just a little bit more about a subject than the average headline news reader.
I give these publications five Amazon stars for content and for their unique structure of delivering information in one-hour blocks.
Go to their website https://www.hourlyhistory.com and sign up with an email address. Every Friday you will receive an email with a selection of books, typically between three and six, all free. If you go to their website and click on a title, you will be redirected to an Amazon page where most of the books are free to read on KU or they can be purchased at varying prices. I have found the average price to be USD 2.99. Wait for Friday and get the same books for free or buy them on a day of your choice? I look forward to Fridays. This is almost a public service.
Alexandra Feodorovna: A Life From Beginning to End is a publication of a group known as Hourly History. Alexandra was the wife of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the last Tsar. In my mind she was the dominant one in the family, the Tsar was manipulated by many. She, in turn, is famous for being manipulated by the colorful, frequently drunk, and always unhygienic Rasputin. Alexandra was the mother of the constantly bleeding Prince Alexei (hemophilia) as well as several daughters. The entire family would be executed by a Bolshevik faction but would leave behind a mystery about one of the daughters, Anastasia. Did she survive? If she didn’t, there would be pretenders surfacing occasionally in later years to claim her identity. These are things about Alexandra Feodorovna that stick in my mind. What more can I learn from this Hourly History publication?
And here are things I added to my knowledge.
Alix grew up in Darmstadt, Germany in an English household. Her mother, Princess Alice of Great Britain and her grandmother, Queen Victoria, cemented her status as one of the nobility. Queen Victoria was hesitant about Alix marrying Nicholas, she was wary of Russia. Tsar Alexander III, father of Nicholas, didn’t like Nicholas marrying a German. To further complicate things, Alix was a Lutheran and Nicholas was Orthodox Russian, a religion that viewed the Tsar as God on earth, an equal to God in heaven. It seems everything was against the match.
The wedding went on. At a time when most royal marriages were arranged as a way of cementing political alliances, the marriage between Nicholas and Alexandra was a love match as well. There was, however, no love for Alexandra from the Russian people. Socially inept and completely devoted to hands-on care of her children, the public saw Alexandra’s absence from the social scene as a snub. Alexandra never quite got the Russian language and struggled with French, a language of diplomacy used at the Russian court. With the outbreak of WW I, many suspected Alexandra of being a German spy.
As the forces of the Russian Revolution established their spheres of interest and power, the royal family was moved to ever humbler residences until they were finally executed. I didn’t know that their doctor and three servants were also executed. And I was surprised to learn that the family’s remains were finally interred in 1998.
Hourly History’s slogan, motto, logo, or claim to fame is that their publications can be read in under an hour. The subject of each work will rest in the minds of many readers as something or someone familiar. Reading these publications won’t make you a historical authority but it could motivate you to further research. Think of the fun facts you can dredge up at parties when you know just a little bit more about a subject than the average headline news reader.
I give these publications five Amazon stars for content and for their unique structure of delivering information in one-hour blocks.
Go to their website https://www.hourlyhistory.com and sign up with an email address. Every Friday you will receive an email with a selection of books, typically between three and six, all free. If you go to their website and click on a title, you will be redirected to an Amazon page where most of the books are free to read on KU or they can be purchased at varying prices. I have found the average price to be USD 2.99. Wait for Friday and get the same books for free or buy them on a day of your choice? I look forward to Fridays. This is almost a public service.
April 16, 2020
A short, crisp and engaging narration of the life of the last Czarina of the Russian Empire. Hourly History does justice, yet again, to yet another controversial figure in the world history during the early part of 20th century. The travails and tribulations of Alexandra are brought out lucidly.
August 30, 2020
The last of the Romanovs
In 1998, the last tsar and tsaritsa’s remains were discovered and subsequently interred at St. Peter and Paul Cathedral, in St. Petersburg. Russian President Boris Yeltsin, who was in attendance, said of the event, “Today is a historic day for Russia. For many years, we kept quiet about this monstrous crime, but the truth has to be spoken.”
In 1998, the last tsar and tsaritsa’s remains were discovered and subsequently interred at St. Peter and Paul Cathedral, in St. Petersburg. Russian President Boris Yeltsin, who was in attendance, said of the event, “Today is a historic day for Russia. For many years, we kept quiet about this monstrous crime, but the truth has to be spoken.”
April 4, 2020
Not Worth Reading
This book is a very basic summary of Alexandra’s life, and it is poorly written. The chronology is jumbled, and it is difficult to follow the story unless you are familiar with late Imperial Russia. The author is an apologist for Alexandra, constantly making excuses for her behavior, and there are opinions here not backed up by fact. If you want a good book on the royal family, read Radzinsky or Penny Wilson and Greg King’s works.
This book is a very basic summary of Alexandra’s life, and it is poorly written. The chronology is jumbled, and it is difficult to follow the story unless you are familiar with late Imperial Russia. The author is an apologist for Alexandra, constantly making excuses for her behavior, and there are opinions here not backed up by fact. If you want a good book on the royal family, read Radzinsky or Penny Wilson and Greg King’s works.
November 1, 2022
Very badly written, as is the case with so many in Hourly History series.
A far better read is, written in first person with Princess Victoria as protagonist, The Royal Mob.
***
Once again the idiotic author of this volume, as in many others in this series, not only makes asinine comments, but hurries to do so in the introduction.
"It’s sometimes hard to separate Alexandra Feodorovna from her husband, Tsar Nicholas II.
"From the moment of their first meeting, Alexandra was thrust down a path of destruction and instability. ... "
This is snidely insinuating to the effect that there was inescapable doom waiting as soon as she met him, which is nonsense.
And not because such concepts are nonsense, but rather because if anything, the doom had struck when Cousin Willie went after Alexandra, and took her rejection hard.
Alexandra was intended by her grandmother Queen Victoria for her second grandson who, due to subsequent demise of his elder brother, later ruled England as George V; but she, the grandmother, was reconciled to the choice of the granddaughter.
Not so Cousin Willie, who was chiefly responsible for the horrendous events perpetrated against Romanov clan that Alexandra married into, having fallen in love with Nicholas, a first cousin and lookalike of George V, so much so they were often mistaken for one another - even by close relatives.
***
" ... There is no way she could have foreseen the events of the future, and it’s not abundantly clear that she would have done much in her life differently even if she had. Alexandra loved Nicholas with an impetuous, youthful, reckless abandon. That love would ultimately cost her her life."
Is the author, the series, advocating a marriage of a dry contractual relationship free of romance, or merely an old age love with caution? Unless they are counseling in favor of a political relationship modeled on that between, say, UK and Belgium, for example?
As to love costing her her life, didn't an arranged and supposedly loveless marriage cost her life to Marie Antoinette?
***
"While there is a lot of speculation as to who is to blame for the Russian Revolution that caused the murder of the imperial family, Grigori Rasputin, the infamous mystic, certainly didn’t help matters. But the truth is that the wheels of revolution were set in motion decades before Alexandra came to Russia."
Oh, it was Cousin Willie all right. Not Rasputin, not anyone else, but the man responsible for sending Lenin in a diplomatic sealed train deep into Russia.
***
"“We have got to know a man of God; Grigori.”
"—Nicholas II"
Having read somewhat on the topic, one gets the impression that he was murdered partly due to power equations within the Romanov clan, and the aura of fear or fisttudt thst was largely due to an abrahmic creed gripping the land that would not allow spirituality outside institutions sanctioned by church.
****
A far better read is, written in first person with Princess Victoria as protagonist, The Royal Mob.
***
Once again the idiotic author of this volume, as in many others in this series, not only makes asinine comments, but hurries to do so in the introduction.
"It’s sometimes hard to separate Alexandra Feodorovna from her husband, Tsar Nicholas II.
"From the moment of their first meeting, Alexandra was thrust down a path of destruction and instability. ... "
This is snidely insinuating to the effect that there was inescapable doom waiting as soon as she met him, which is nonsense.
And not because such concepts are nonsense, but rather because if anything, the doom had struck when Cousin Willie went after Alexandra, and took her rejection hard.
Alexandra was intended by her grandmother Queen Victoria for her second grandson who, due to subsequent demise of his elder brother, later ruled England as George V; but she, the grandmother, was reconciled to the choice of the granddaughter.
Not so Cousin Willie, who was chiefly responsible for the horrendous events perpetrated against Romanov clan that Alexandra married into, having fallen in love with Nicholas, a first cousin and lookalike of George V, so much so they were often mistaken for one another - even by close relatives.
***
" ... There is no way she could have foreseen the events of the future, and it’s not abundantly clear that she would have done much in her life differently even if she had. Alexandra loved Nicholas with an impetuous, youthful, reckless abandon. That love would ultimately cost her her life."
Is the author, the series, advocating a marriage of a dry contractual relationship free of romance, or merely an old age love with caution? Unless they are counseling in favor of a political relationship modeled on that between, say, UK and Belgium, for example?
As to love costing her her life, didn't an arranged and supposedly loveless marriage cost her life to Marie Antoinette?
***
"While there is a lot of speculation as to who is to blame for the Russian Revolution that caused the murder of the imperial family, Grigori Rasputin, the infamous mystic, certainly didn’t help matters. But the truth is that the wheels of revolution were set in motion decades before Alexandra came to Russia."
Oh, it was Cousin Willie all right. Not Rasputin, not anyone else, but the man responsible for sending Lenin in a diplomatic sealed train deep into Russia.
***
"“We have got to know a man of God; Grigori.”
"—Nicholas II"
Having read somewhat on the topic, one gets the impression that he was murdered partly due to power equations within the Romanov clan, and the aura of fear or fisttudt thst was largely due to an abrahmic creed gripping the land that would not allow spirituality outside institutions sanctioned by church.
****
February 11, 2021
Obviously, Alexandra and Nicholas were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Nicholas' father did a poor job of preparing his son to be a ruler. Alexandra seemed to have been swept up in the swirl of the older Tsar's death, her and Nicholas' marriage, and the quick pregnancy; she was unaware of how badly she was coming across to the Russian people. The couple appears to be two genuinely nice people who were caught up in events they were powerless to prevent or change.
They both shared that arrogance of power, thinking that they knew what was best without listening to others. Rasputin blackened Alexandra's reputation; his death should have been a severe warning to both of the royals. I was surprised to learn that in the Russia of that time, the people looked upon the Tsar as God on earth.
In other books that I've read, they have indicated that Alexandra was the stronger of the two royals; that Nicholas did whatever she decided. That did not come across in this story. I'll have to read further. However, this is an engrossing and quick overview of a very difficult time. I was glad that the author raised the issue of King George V not taking in his first cousin (Tsar Nicholas) and family. George was having problems of his own at that time and did not think his countrymen would be happy if he extended a home to them. Of course, he couldn't have foreseen that they would all be murdered.
They both shared that arrogance of power, thinking that they knew what was best without listening to others. Rasputin blackened Alexandra's reputation; his death should have been a severe warning to both of the royals. I was surprised to learn that in the Russia of that time, the people looked upon the Tsar as God on earth.
In other books that I've read, they have indicated that Alexandra was the stronger of the two royals; that Nicholas did whatever she decided. That did not come across in this story. I'll have to read further. However, this is an engrossing and quick overview of a very difficult time. I was glad that the author raised the issue of King George V not taking in his first cousin (Tsar Nicholas) and family. George was having problems of his own at that time and did not think his countrymen would be happy if he extended a home to them. Of course, he couldn't have foreseen that they would all be murdered.
January 9, 2026
So apart from the fact that I am no longer a fan of the Hourly History series (its just to basic for my reading preferences - as I always find myself wanting more details); this book was poorly written. I've now read better and more in-depth books on the Romanov's and found this to be just plain bad.
Firstly, the narrative is contrite and actually skips alot of information (I also found some sections confusing).
Secondly, the opinions. My god Alexandra made some really terrible decisions during her reign; alienating herself from the court, not learning Russian nor French to an appropriate level, and completely disregarding Russian Imperial Court culture (let alone regular Russian Culture). She made mistakes - but the author makes it seem as though Alexandra was powerless in her decisions (she did not have to marry Nicholas if she was unable to fulfil the role as Tsarina).
Ultimately, Alexandra is a controversial figure in the Russian Revolution - but you really wouldn't know that if you only relied on this poorly written novel.
Firstly, the narrative is contrite and actually skips alot of information (I also found some sections confusing).
Secondly, the opinions. My god Alexandra made some really terrible decisions during her reign; alienating herself from the court, not learning Russian nor French to an appropriate level, and completely disregarding Russian Imperial Court culture (let alone regular Russian Culture). She made mistakes - but the author makes it seem as though Alexandra was powerless in her decisions (she did not have to marry Nicholas if she was unable to fulfil the role as Tsarina).
Ultimately, Alexandra is a controversial figure in the Russian Revolution - but you really wouldn't know that if you only relied on this poorly written novel.
January 31, 2021
Enternecedora y estremecedora biografia sobre una mujer que fue una extranjera en su patria adoptiva, obligada a profesar una fe que no era la suya y que no se supo desenvolver en su ambiente a pesar de ser formada para ello. Una madre ejemplar con intensos sentimientos de culpa por haber transmitido a su hijo varon la hemofilia B que ademas no dudo en consultar a un charlatan debido a que no existia tratamiento medico para la enf. De su hijo.
Arrastrada por las circunstancias corrio la misma suerte que toda su familia asesinados por gente que no supo manejar la situacion.
La historia los ha reivindicado aunque eso no los exime de la responsabilidad que contrajeron como gobernantes y que no supieron enfrentar. Un hecho lamentable que hasta el dia de hoy sigue dando de que hablar y que esta muy bien descrito y matizado en este pequeño libro. Muy complacido me siento por su absorbente lectura.
Arrastrada por las circunstancias corrio la misma suerte que toda su familia asesinados por gente que no supo manejar la situacion.
La historia los ha reivindicado aunque eso no los exime de la responsabilidad que contrajeron como gobernantes y que no supieron enfrentar. Un hecho lamentable que hasta el dia de hoy sigue dando de que hablar y que esta muy bien descrito y matizado en este pequeño libro. Muy complacido me siento por su absorbente lectura.
January 22, 2019
Bitter end for a life of royalty
Not only the Russian Dynasty, many other imperial dynasties were overthrown and diminished after WW1 including the ruling houses of Ottoman of Turkey, Habsburg of Austria, Hohenzollern of Germany as well as Romanov of Russia. But none ended so brutal and heart-breaking as Romanovs. This Hourly History book briefs the final stages of the Romanov Dynasty by a quick but informative way with a perspective on the life of The Last Czarina of Russia. A quick good read on the subject...
Not only the Russian Dynasty, many other imperial dynasties were overthrown and diminished after WW1 including the ruling houses of Ottoman of Turkey, Habsburg of Austria, Hohenzollern of Germany as well as Romanov of Russia. But none ended so brutal and heart-breaking as Romanovs. This Hourly History book briefs the final stages of the Romanov Dynasty by a quick but informative way with a perspective on the life of The Last Czarina of Russia. A quick good read on the subject...
April 7, 2024
Well researched but wrong person
This is a pretty thorough recap of Alexandra Feodorovna's life. Unfortunately she is not an interesting person. Rasputin was interesting. Her husband was sort of interesting. But Alexandra herself was just some average pampered noble.
I mean to say, she didn't do anything. Things happened to her but other people caused them.
When an author writes a biography, it's with the understanding (by the reader) that the subject matter is interesting. Here the subject matter is rather dull.
This is a pretty thorough recap of Alexandra Feodorovna's life. Unfortunately she is not an interesting person. Rasputin was interesting. Her husband was sort of interesting. But Alexandra herself was just some average pampered noble.
I mean to say, she didn't do anything. Things happened to her but other people caused them.
When an author writes a biography, it's with the understanding (by the reader) that the subject matter is interesting. Here the subject matter is rather dull.
April 28, 2020
What a life from beginning to end.
I enjoyed this read a lot. I thought I knew the story of the last Tsarista but the way the author has analyzed her character has opened my eyes about Alexandra and her destiny.
She was closing an era that would never come back.
I enjoyed this read a lot. I thought I knew the story of the last Tsarista but the way the author has analyzed her character has opened my eyes about Alexandra and her destiny.
She was closing an era that would never come back.
October 10, 2020
Concise and precise.
The book can be read easily in one hour, but gives an insight into all the important aspects of the last Russian rulers.
It serves as a lesson in modern European history culminating in the Russian revolution and the First World War.
The book can be read easily in one hour, but gives an insight into all the important aspects of the last Russian rulers.
It serves as a lesson in modern European history culminating in the Russian revolution and the First World War.
January 3, 2022
After seeing the movie The King's Man, I was interested in learning more about Rasputin and Russian history. This book is a concise history of Tsarina Alexandra and a quick read. Enjoyed it very much and learned alot.
September 18, 2023
Interesting Summary
This was an interesting read. Overall a rather sad life marked by the loss of mother, father at an early age. Her subsequent life was overshadowed by hemophilia and the events of the russian revolution.
This was an interesting read. Overall a rather sad life marked by the loss of mother, father at an early age. Her subsequent life was overshadowed by hemophilia and the events of the russian revolution.
December 13, 2019
Another great read
Another great history read by ebooks. This is my 2nd in as many days and I can never put them down
Another great history read by ebooks. This is my 2nd in as many days and I can never put them down
December 20, 2019
Excellent
A brief but complete documentation of the brief life of the czarina and her family, from a different point of view.
A brief but complete documentation of the brief life of the czarina and her family, from a different point of view.
July 10, 2020
Simple, but decent short bio of Alexandra Feodorovna.
July 15, 2020
Good short read.....great info
April 5, 2022
A good review.
June 1, 2022
Very easy read and imformative thanks.
August 27, 2022
Good concise biography of the last tsarina of russia.
July 2, 2022
Good Book
Short and well done biography of her life. Didn’t take long to read and was easy to understand. Good book.
Short and well done biography of her life. Didn’t take long to read and was easy to understand. Good book.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews