Alexandra's Personality Traits - Good & Bad

[Olga Maria]

I dedicate these to Alexandra:

Proverbs 31: 10-31
Read if you want to know...

[Yelena Aleksandrovna]

She was very shy, but the people thought that she was despot, for that reason Russian
people hated her, and also because she was German

[historylover]

I don't think that she was really a good choice of marriage partner for the future Tsar.  Alexandra's brother died of the blood disease that Alexai got and
Alex's personality was not suitable for an Empress.

[Yelena Aleksandrovna]

Well, but he loved Alexandra very much, in fact, Nicholas wasn't
a good Tsar too.

[Alixz]

He must have loved her more than a lot to overlook the fact that she could be carrying hemophilia.

All families at that time expected to have many children and Nicholas and Alexandra did have 5.  Perhaps even Alexander and Marie thought they would be lucky and the gene wouldn't be in Alix.

However everyone speaks of her as "shy" which is a personality trait.  None of her sisters were "shy". 

[Olga Maria]

This is a very nice one:
The Tsar's family was not supposed to go shopping either in St.Petersburg or in Tsarskoe Selo. But in the Crimea, especially on rainy days, when the streets were almost empty, the Tsarina and the children went to Yalta (4 or 5 miles from the palace). They left their carriage in one of the side streets and went to the embankment where there were a lot of stores. Once in the shop which belonged to Sembinsky who sold old pictures, frames, etc. the Tsarina put her wet umbrella in the corner where some rubbish was placed and started looking at the things displayed there. Suddenly Sembinsky cried out - "Madam, how could you dare to put your wet umbrella on my goods!" At that moment he turned his head to the window and saw a big crowd of people gathered at the shop - they tried to look inside and to follow each movement of the Tsarina and her children. They watched them with great interest. Poor Sembinsky understood who his customer was and got pale. The Tsarina laughed. We could hardly make our way through the crowd of people who stayed there in spite of the rain hoping to see the Tsarina and her children. On their way to the carriage the Empress and the children shook many hands. Many wanted to have souvenirs - buttons of the Empress's coat and pieces of her handkerchief.
~ Anna Vyrubova’s rare memoirs

[historylover]

Alexandra seems rather sweet in this anecdote.

[Olga Maria]

I want to hear and read more things like this but unfortunately, I found a negative one.

 Can someone give me the full letter where this came from (if there is)? I find it too unrealistic that Alix said this. I found this at Encarta. 


“Be the Emperor, be Peter the Great, John the Terrible, the Emperor Paul—crush them all under you—Now don't you laugh, naughty one—but I long to see you so with those men who try to govern you.”

Empress Alexandra (1872 - 1918)
Letter to her husband, Tsar Nicholas II

[PAVLOV]

Yes well, this was her problem was it not ? This letter pretty well sums up her attitude, her lack of knowledge about her position,her adopted country, responsibilities, and her plain blatant ignorance. As someone said previously, she was a very bad choice for Nicholas, irrespective of how much he loved her. He, always, I think had good intentions, but she was just plain incompetent from day 1.
I think both of them were largely to blame for the way things turned out. They should have turned Russia into a constituional monarchy in 1905, and they may have survived. However the more gets to know them, I doubt if they would even have made it as constitutional monarchs either. Especially Alexandra.

   
 

[RomanovsFan4Ever]

Now I have to agree with you PAVLOV.

“Be the Emperor, be Peter the Great, John the Terrible, the Emperor Paul—crush them all under you—Now don't you laugh, naughty one—but I long to see you so with those men who try to govern you.”

Unfortunately I think that it's very possible that the Empress said this, is very well know that she was a very "possessive" wife, and sadly, she was the cause of many mistakes that Nicholas committed during his life.
I think that in that letter, Alexandra was trying to suggest to Nicholas to be more strong and determined, and I agree...but I wonder why she said "Be Peter the Great, Emperor Paul and so on...", I'm not agree with this at all!, what she wanted?, that her husband condemned to death all without compassion?...bad suggestion.

[Alixz]

The anecdote about shopping in the Crimea is from Anna Vyrubova's book.

The excerpt is from a letter that Alexandra wrote to Nicholas during his stay at Stavka.

Both stories are true.

Alexandra's letters are proof positive that she did not understand the Russian people and further more that she did understand that her husband was weak.  However what she didn't understand about Nicholas at this point is that he had pretty much given over to the will of God and he was suffering from indecision and the beginning of ill health and the effects of taking drugs (which were very legal at the time).

The anecdote from Vyrubova's book is subject to how much faith one has in Vyrubova to tell the truth and to not gloss over things because of her love and hero worship of Alexandra.

[Helen]

The anecdote about shopping in the Crimea is from Anna Vyrubova's book.
...
The anecdote from Vyrubova's book is subject to how much faith one has in Vyrubova to tell the truth and to not gloss over things because of her love and hero worship of Alexandra.

Anna Vyrubova's book actually isn't the only source. A Berlin newspaper published an account similar to this story in November 1911.

[historylover]

Most people have two sides to them.  I wonder if Alexandra was a Gemini? I can't remember.

[RomanovsFan4Ever]

If I remember correctly, she was born in June 6, so yes, she was Gemini.

[Alex Milleros]

Unfortunately I think that it's very possible that the Empress said this, is very well know that she was a very "possessive" wife, and sadly, she was the cause of many mistakes that Nicholas committed during his life.
I think that in that letter, Alexandra was trying to suggest to Nicholas to be more strong and determined, and I agree...but I wonder why she said "Be Peter the Great, Emperor Paul and so on...", I'm not agree with this at all!, what she wanted?, that her husband condemned to death all without compassion?...bad suggestion.

[/quote]

She indeed wrote that letter to his husband on December 14th 1916. In the same letter she says "Remember even M. Philippe said one dare not give constituion, as it would be Russia's ruin and all true Russians say the same... but my duty as wife and mother and Russia's mother obliges me to say all to you... blessed by our Friend...Be the Master, and all will bow down to you.. We have been placed by God on a throne and we must keep it firm and give it over to our son untouched..."

I doubt she literally meant to put to death to anybody "withouth compassion" but urged the Emperor to be firm. We couldn't call Alexandra a champion of  politics, but it would be unfair to blame her for anything that happened to the Monarchy. Yes, she helped make the dynasty quite unpopular and her autocratic manners and Divine Rights nonense were completely out of place in a country that demanded civil rights more than ever, but she was only the Consort.  If any responsability should be placed over one of them, it should be Nicholas. And being a firm Monarch wouldn't have been a bad idea after all.