Well we can argue for ever. She may not have been entirely responsible, but she certainly contributed a great deal to what happened to Russia, and really did not have any conception of her position and responsibilities in Russia. I think being Royal is all about marketing oneself, and creating the right" image" and to be seen doing the right things.
A couple of things besides the Rasputin relationship, which was highly irregular, spring to mind. A number of them are not her fault, but if she had the intelligence, and listened to good advice at the time, and was less narrow minded, arrogant and prudish, perhaps she may have "softened the blow", or at least have changed the course of events.
First BIG mistake :
The French ambassadors ball on the night of the coronation. Against all odds Nicholas and Alexandra attended the ball, full well knowing that thousands of people had been killed. What a public relations disaster for them.
The Khodynka celebration went on for days. Many of the bodies were shoved under the huge pavillion which was erected for the royal family to sit on during the festivities. Nicholas and Alexandra literally sat on top of the bodies when they attended the festivities. Despite trying to down play the tragic events, many people found out about this and were horrified and blamed the Imperial Family for the disaster.
Marie Feodorovna, did not celebrate anything, but was visiting the hospitals at the very time that Nicholas and Alexandra were partying at the ball.
That is the difference between the two Empresses. The British Royal family would never have behaved in this fashion.
Also she was very influenced by Queen Victoria, who was also very reclusive, especially in the period after Alberts death. Queen Victoria was very judgemental of people, prudish, and arrogant in many ways.
I think this all rubbed off on Alexandra, and certainly influenced her attitude later on. She applied all she had learnt, and which she believed was the correct way to conduct oneself, in her position. How could Queen Victoria be wrong? Who would ever question Queen Victoria ?
I also think she had a natural arrogance ( the worst personality trait a member of any Royal family can have ), and used this to mask her obvious feelings of inferiority after she became Empress. She was no match for the many stimulating, cultured and intellectual people who made up Russian Society. So she critised them for being corrupt, and unsuitable for her family to socialise with. An easy way of solving her problem.
If one analizes the social structure of Russia before the revolution, as created by Peter the Great, one soon realises that Alexandra made an enormous mistake by alienating the aristocracy. The whole system was designed in order for the Tsar to have a continuous interaction with his people, be it the aristocracy or the peasants. They were all integral to the survival of the monarchy. One cannot exclude one entire strata of society, treat them with disdain, or marginalise them. My opinion is that this was exactly what Alexandra did, she broke a very important link in the chain. The peasants still believed in their "little Father" the tsar, because they were ignorant. The aristocracy and the intellectuals did not.
The Russian revolution came from the top and not from the bottom.
The British royals have always realised the importance of getting on with all levels of society, because their survival depended on it. i think the British Royals at the time, although horrified at what happened, where not surprised at the outcome.
I think they disliked Alexandra because she was one of them, and they expected her to behave in a certain way, and she did not. She let the side down. Queen Mary was particularly verbal about people who shirked their Royal duties. Even her own children did not escape her criticism, at the merest suggestion of not wanting to perform a duty.
Yes she did not have as long a time as Queen Mary to aclimatise to her new country, and she was a foreigner. So what ? She never listened to any good advice either. Even towards the end she did not listen. In 1917 she made hardly any effort to fulfill her royal duties, so what difference would it have made ?
Also, she deserted St Petersburg, because she and her husband were afraid of being killed by the revolutionaries. On the eve of the 1905 revolution, when she found out about the famous march on the Winter Palace, she was running around hysterically begging her husband to leave. And they did, in a closed carriage, that very evening.
The British Royals would never have left, they even sat out the bombing during the second world war.
I dont think the British Royal Family had much respect for the manner in which Alexandra conducted her life, and thought her unsuited for the position. So did the Russian Royal family actually.
Poor woman, she was in the wrong country at the wrong time, doing everything wrong.
