Did Nicholas beg to abdicate?

[LisaM]

Back to the abdication.

Is there a book that discusses the details of his abdication and who said what to whom?   Also, why did Nicholas II do so at that time?  Who was present?

AGRBear

Nicholas was on the train, returning home from the front in March 1917, when his train was stopped by revolutionaries. They refused to allow him to continue to St. Petersburg until he abdicated. Nicholas did so, originally in favour of Alexei, but then in favour of Mikhail. Nicholas, it is true, had very little desire to be Tsar, and the assassination of his father in 1894 only strengthened his fear. He was always reluctant about his position but was frequently reminded by Alexandra that God had placed him on the throne. It wouldn’t surprise me if Maria Fyodorovna wanted Mikhail on the throne, as he was her favourite, and she had more influence over his wife, however, she was not present at the time, so the notion that she forced Nicholas to abdicate for his brother is unlikely.

[olga]

Nicholas was on the train, returning home from the front in March 1917, when his train was stopped by revolutionaries.

His train was not stopped by revolutionaries. The train stopped and headed to Pskov because the revolutionaries were further up the track and would not let them pass.

Nicholas, it is true, had very little desire to be Tsar, and the assassination of his father in 1894 only strengthened his fear.

Nikolai Alexandrovich's father, Alexander III Alexandrovich died of liver failure. Alexander II Nikolaevich was assassinated in 1881.

Please get your facts straight before posting, people!!  

[LisaM]

His train was not stopped by revolutionaries. The train stopped and headed to Pskov because the revolutionaries were further up the track and would not let them pass.

Nikolai Alexandrovich's father, Alexander III Alexandrovich died of liver failure. Alexander II Nikolaevich was assassinated in 1881.

Please get your facts straight before posting, people!!  

For some reason my reply kept getting deleted so I forgot what I meant to say. I know that Nicholas watched his grandfather Alexander II die and his father get throne into the role; and I meant to say untimely death and not assassination, and because I'm not a member I couldn't edit it. Sorry.

I only know that my History text book says 'March 15 Revolutionaries stop Tsar's train 250 km from Petrograd.'  
Again, sorry, I missed the lesson on the abdication, so I only heard the discussion on it the following day. My apologies.

[LisaM]

I am sorry   I am only a humble 17 yr old history student, and I feel very stupid.

[chatelaa]

I am sorry   I am only a humble 17 yr old history student, and I feel very stupid.

Hi Lisa,
   Most of us don't know a whole lot, which is why we are on this List; to learn more.  
    Some people are very parental- acting and expect others to think like themselves; try to ignore them....And PLEASE continue asking questions.
     There are a whole lot of us who are behind you 100% of the way.
      For the rest of the List:  Try to remember there are many here who are gradeschool and highschool students.  Don't we want to encourage them to Post?  

--Adele
     

[Louise]

Adele, I couldn't agree with you more. We are all here to learn from each other, and we have to remember there are young adults still in school who are learning about history and the Romanov's. We also have to remember that this is a very public board and those of us who have any knowledge on the Romanov's should take the time to consider that not all people out there are as informative as others. I know that I have learned quite a few new facts since I have been here and many of the historical events that I considered facts have turned out to be rumours.

Lisa, keep posting, keep reading and if any of us can assist you, just ask. We are glad to help.

Louise

[Sunny]

Consideration of others is key...thank you Adele.
Welcome LisaM.

Sunny

[Kim]

Just a note, one thing I learned the hard way on message boards is if you aren't sure of facts it's better to phrase your post as a question or put (?) around it if it is a statement, that way nobody can say you posted false information or anything. It is embarrassing when someone corrects you but please don't let it make you afraid to post anywhere.

[olga]

I am sorry   I am only a humble 17 yr old history student, and I feel very stupid.

I'm sorry for sounding aggressive, I know sounding threatening can discourage people from posting.   Sorry Lisa!

I'm 16, near your age if that makes you feel any better!  

[AnBhanfhaidh]

I think if Nicholas didn't act like it was the 17th century his reign would have gone much better. He thought he was Tsar because God made him so, it was his divine right.  That just made him sound like Louis XIV (& Alix didn't help because she just reinforced the idea). If he just realized that people should have been able to have some say in their government he would have survived. He would have had an easier reign. Or perhaps if he had taken a more serious attitude. Alexander III said Nicholas was no good when it came to participating in Government affairs., that he had no interest.
Angie

I'm not sure if I quite agree with this statement. Actually, among the revolutionary movements in Russia, there seems to have been several groups that were devoted to the dissolution of monarchy no matter how it was administered. Many historians believe that Prime Minister Stolypin was targeted for assassination primarily because his reforms were beginning to address the major complaints of the mass of people (easier access to land, re-introduction of the zemstvo - people's council of the land) etc.) In doing so, he made the monarchy more palatable. Of course, he also made a juicy target because he was a high-ranking official of the Tsardom. I think Angie has some good points, but I don't think it's quite that cut and dried.

[Romanov_fan]

I agree with what you say about Stolypin, that's the way I have always thought of it. I am not sure why he was targeted, but it is certainly an interesting theory to say it might have been because he was making the monarchy more acceptable through reforms. Of course, many czarist officials could get assasinated or they could be potential targets. It seemed it waa the most repressive ones who got assasinated though. Stolypin wasn't one of those, at all. As for being begged to abdicate, that didn't happen, it was circumstances that forced him to abdicate, technically Nicholas II still had the power then, so people could beg, but they weren't doing that, etc. That's a different way of looking at the initial question. Louis and Marie Antoinette were, in my opinion, more clueless than Nicholas and Alexandra.