Reflections on Nicholas II - His Character Traits Good and Bad #1

[rskkiya]

Who is Emperor Michael?

[lexi4]

Everyone has really made a lot of good points here.
I think part of the problem was the system. Nicolas never wanted to tbe Tsar. He would have been happy living a quiet life in the country with Alix and his children. But the rules of succession required the oldest son to become Tsar.
I also think that he lacked the confidence he needed to follow his heart. For example, after the tragedy at Khodynka Meadow, N wanted to cancel the Ball that was being given by the French Ambassador that night.  However, his uncles intervened and convinced the young Tsar to go through with the ball. Had he followed his instincts and stuck by his decision I think it would have been better for all.
What puzzles me about all of this is that he absolutely never veered from this decision to marry Alix despite his parents opinion in the matter. That shows that he could stick to a decision he made, but he didn't seem to use that same conviction in affairs of the state.

[olga]

Who is Emperor Michael?

Mikhail Alexandrovich.

[AGRBear]

According to Hall we  incorrectly call Nicholas II a Tsar.  His real title was Emp. of All the Russias.  To make this complex, he was also  the Tsar of a certain area of Russia, which I don't recall at this moment.

When GD Michael Alexandrovich was handed the title it was as both Emp. and Tsar.  Since the title of Emp. had not exsisted when the other Tsar Michael's were in power, they were not Emp. but Tsars only.  Therefore GD Michael became Emp. Michael I and Tsar Michael IV at the same time.  Since Emp. was his major role then that was the title to which he is connected first and above all other titles such as Tsar.

If you care to disagree, please ask Hall to whom I bow to the power of having such knowledge.

And, if I have it wrong, I'll be glad to make corrections.

AGRBear

[RichC]

What puzzles me about all of this is that he absolutely never veered from this decision to marry Alix despite his parents opinion in the matter. That shows that he could stick to a decision he made, but he didn't seem to use that same conviction in affairs of the state.

Yes, Nicholas did stick to his guns when it came to Alix.  I believe that Alexander III and Marie Feodrovna were against Alix because they didn't think she could do the job required of a public figure -- Empress of Russia.  They may have also been concerned  about hemophilia.  But I believe they also wanted Nicholas to be happily married because that would also help him carry out his duties as Emporer of Russia.  As it turned out Alix was a good wife, but she was a terrible Empress.  And Nicholas' parents did not really give in to his "will" until Alexander III was already getting sick in the Spring of 1894.  His father gave in because he was dying.

Aside from this, Nicholas knew he was lousy at standing up to people, giving orders, etc.  It must have made him feel extremely inadequate.  Here's part of a letter that Nicholas wrote to his Uncle Vladimir Alexandrovich shortly after becoming Tsar about his uncle's disregarding his wishes on various military appointments, "My kindness is responsible for this whole incident - yes, I insist on this - my stupid kindness.  I have constatly given in to avoid quarreling and disturbing family relationships ...a blockhead, without will or character.  Now, I do not merely ask, I command you to carry out my previously expressed will."

[Tsarfan]

My memory may be rusty on titles, but I believe the title of Emperor was first taken by Peter I.  He assumed the title "gosudar imperator", which means "sovereign emperor."

Of course, the word "Tsar" itself derives from the Roman title of "Ceasar," so in a sense Tsar and Emperor are the same title.

More specifically, Nicholas was Tsar of Muscovy (the original grandy duchy surrounding Moscow, which eventually became ascendant over the earlier city states of Kiev and Nizhny-Novgorod.)

[Elisabeth]

Aside from this, Nicholas knew he was lousy at standing up to people, giving orders, etc.  It must have made him feel extremely inadequate.  Here's part of a letter that Nicholas wrote to his Uncle Vladimir Alexandrovich shortly after becoming Tsar about his uncle's disregarding his wishes on various military appointments, "My kindness is responsible for this whole incident - yes, I insist on this - my stupid kindness.  I have constatly given in to avoid quarreling and disturbing family relationships ...a blockhead, without will or character.  Now, I do not merely ask, I command you to carry out my previously expressed will."

Thank you, RichC, for continuing to provide us with such important and intriguing information... I am flabbergasted by this quote from Nicholas. Where on earth did he get such a terrible self-image? This passage is incredibly revealing. I mean, how on earth can you expect to lead others when you describe yourself to them as "a blockhead, without will or character" - ?!?

Having read this, I am now ready to believe all those stories that Nicholas' father was an alcoholic. For example, in another thread Greg King wrote that periodically, whenever Alexander went on a binge, Marie Feodorovna would have to take the children and seek refuge in a palace (can't remember which one), far away from him. The only reason I was originally inclined not to believe this anecdote is that I first heard it from a member of the Russian intelligentsia, who to this day utterly despise the last Romanovs and all their works. So naturally, I assumed this was just another story aimed at slandering the family... Now I am not so sure. Nicholas sounds very much like a brow-beaten, undervalued eldest son. He got this horrible, negative self-image from somewhere. If you ask me, Alexander III has a lot to answer for, both in terms of his political and his personal legacies to Nicholas II.

[Tsarfan]

In the only authorized biography of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna (Nicholas' younger sister), GD Olga did, in fact, blame her father for Nicholas' unpreparedness for the throne.  She said her father, when approached by his ministers about putting Nicholas on the State Council, derided them for even bringing it up.  He asked whether any of them had ever seen a single serious thought enter his head.

(The reputed hide-away was at the Tauride Palace, where Marie Feodorovna was said to have kept a suite of rooms ready for herself and the children when Alexander's drinking got out of control.)

At the other end of his life, when Alexandra was debating whether or not to go with Nicholas from Tobolsk to Ekaterinburg or stay behind with Alexei, she was overheard by the commandant of the guard muttering about Nicholas doing something "stupid" if she let him out of her sight.

No one who knew the man at close quarters was ever impressed with his decision-making ability.  It's hard to tell the chicken from the egg.  Did Nicholas have no confidence in himself because he was surrounded by domineering, abusive individuals?  Or did people assert dominance over him because they saw or sensed an incapacity for sound judgment?

[AGRBear]

...[in part]...
  Now, I do not merely ask, I command you to carry out my previously expressed will[/i]."

It appears that when pushed into a corner, Nicholas II did "command".

I'd love to know the source.

AGRBear

[Elisabeth]

In the only authorized biography of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna (Nicholas' younger sister), GD Olga did, in fact, blame her father for Nicholas' unpreparedness for the throne.  She said her father, when approached by his ministers about putting Nicholas on the State Council, derided them for even bringing it up.  He asked whether any of them had ever seen a single serious thought enter his head.

(The reputed hide-away was at the Tauride Palace, where Marie Feodorovna was said to have kept a suite of rooms ready for herself and the children when Alexander's drinking got out of control.)

At the other end of his life, when Alexandra was debating whether or not to go with Nicholas from Tobolsk to Ekaterinburg or stay behind with Alexei, she was overheard by the commandant of the guard muttering about Nicholas doing something "stupid" if she let him out of her sight.

No one who knew the man at close quarters was ever impressed with his decision-making ability.  It's hard to tell the chicken from the egg.  Did Nicholas have no confidence in himself because he was surrounded by domineering, abusive individuals?  Or did people assert dominance over him because they saw or sensed an incapacity for sound judgment?

I'm sure it's a combination of the two. Things are generally never as clear-cut or one-sided as they appear on the surface. For that matter, trusting Alexandra's judgment of her husband seems to me a mistake, because she herself was a remarkably unintelligent person (by which I mean, she was obstinate, short-sighted, narrow-minded, and impractical). Certainly she was totally lacking in self-awareness, which to me at least is always a sign of intelligence - whereas her husband seems to have had self-awareness in spades, perhaps erring the opposite way.

Nicholas is so reminiscent of Louis XVI. Neither were associated with any particular political circle before coming to the throne. Both were denigrated for their commonness, their "simplicity," even their stupidity. Nicholas seems to have over-compensated for what he (rightly?) perceived to be a lack in himself by holding sacred all of his father's ideals. No doubt this accounts for his absolute unwillingness to compromise the principles of autocracy, except at gunpoint.  

[Tsarfan]

You've got me there, Elisabeth.  I really have reached a low ebb when I'm using Alexandra's views to make a point about anything.  As Botkin told his daughter shortly before the revolution, as a medical practitioner he could "no longer certify the Empress as entirely normal."

[AGRBear]

You've got me there, Elisabeth.  I really have reached a low ebb when I'm using Alexandra's views to make a point about anything.  As Botkin told his daughter shortly before the revolution, as a medical practitioner he could "no longer certify the Empress as entirely normal."

I'd love to know the source of this comment, too.

You're full of interesting quotes today.

AGRBear

[helenazar]

Having read this, I am now ready to believe all those stories that Nicholas' father was an alcoholic.

Elisabeth, when I first read about A III binge drinking, I thought "I wouldn't be surprised if this were true", and that it would explain certain things about Nicholas. He does seem to have had many traits that children of alcoholics possess.
Then I forgot all about it until you brought it up just now. Yes, this could very well explain some things, such as Nicholas's self esteem, his indecisive character, his unwillingness to have, what he thought of as, confrontations, his fatalism and his self destructiveness (some of his behavior can be seen as that). All these are ACOA traits. Just because he was a Tsar and his father was a Tsar, it doesn't mean that he couldn't end up with the same dysfunctional personality as anyone else from that situation!

[Elisabeth]

Yes, this could very well explain some things, such as Nicholas's self esteem, his indecisive character, his unwillingness to have, what he thought of as, confrontations, his fatalism and his self destructiveness (some of his behavior can be seen as that). All these are ACOA traits. Just because he was a Tsar and his father was a Tsar, it doesn't mean that he couldn't end up with the same dysfunctional personality as anyone else from that situation!

Thanks, Helen, for your observations. I had no idea that these traits were associated with Adult Children of Alcoholics (although I've heard this expression before). I was just so astonished by that quote of Nicholas's that I made an instantaneous connection with his (obviously domineering and no doubt alcoholic) father. BTW, is an exaggerated emotional dependency on one's spouse also a trait of ACOA?

[AGRBear]

Nicholas II needed to handle each person in certain ways to get his command fullfilled.  It appears he was doing this in the letter/doc above.  These words of Nicholas II does not mean he was always presenting himself as a person with low esteem to others to whom he gave commands.

Just take ourselves.  All of us have a uncle or cousin Henry, who thinks he knows everything.  We'd ask him to do something differently in order for him to do whatever it was we wanted than we would aunt Mary, who is very meek.

..[in part]...

Here's part of a letter that Nicholas wrote to his Uncle Vladimir Alexandrovich shortly after becoming Tsar about his uncle's disregarding his wishes on various military appointments, "My kindness is responsible for this whole incident - yes, I insist on this - my stupid kindness.  I have constatly given in to avoid quarreling and disturbing family relationships ...a blockhead, without will or character.  Now, I do not merely ask, I command you to carry out my previously expressed will."

Rich C did mention to whom he wrote.  The person was Uncle Vladimir, and it was before Nicholas became Tsar.

Was good old uncle Vladimir like our uncle/cousin Henry?

This note/letter certainly tells us he was willing to swallow his pride and admit he'd made a mistake.  What was the mistake?

Also, we need to take note this was written before* he became Tsar.

AGRBear

* Correction: It was written shortly after he became Tsar