Felix Yusupov and the murder of Rasputin

[Valmont]

I personaly do not think Felix was involved in Rasputin's murder out of a  sentimental rejection. I think  that  was the least Felix care  about and even less comming from rasputin. I would go  for the  rejection and humiliation his mother suffered from Alexandra when Zenaida tried to talk the Tsarina to get rasputin away from the RF. If I were someone like Felix I could not  take very well that such an important  character as my Mother, one of the most Aristocratic   members of Russian  Society suffer such a humiliation  because of a "low" filthy social climber as Rasputin..
That is what I think, but again same as you, I have no evidence to probe it... so It is my own  speculation of Felix"s motivations.

[lancashireladandre]

I personaly do not think Felix was involved in Rasputin's murder out of a  sentimental rejection. I think  that  was the least Felix care  about and even less comming from rasputin. I would go  for the  rejection and humiliation his mother suffered from Alexandra when Zenaida tried to talk the Tsarina to get rasputin away from the RF. If I were someone like Felix I could not  take very well that such an important  character as my Mother, one of the most Aristocratic   embers of Russian  Society suffer such a humiliation  because of a "low" filthy social climber as Rasputin..
That is what I think, but again same as you, I have no evidence to probe it... so It is my own  speculation of Felix"s motivations.

I think you are exactly on the right track.

[Annie]

Yes, I agree it had a lot to do with those things. Like I said in the other thread, Zenaida was disowned by Alix because she told her to get rid of Rasputin. There are letters on this site that prove Zenaida, Ella (her friend, Alix's sister, and Dmitri's aunt who raised him) and Anna Rodzianko (Zenaida's cousin, and wife of Duma president Michael Rodzianko) were discussing and plotting against Rasputin for awhile. They wrote in code for each person, Rasputin being 'the book', his supporters 'read from the book.'

Not only was his mother shamed by Alexandra, Ella (who was also very close to Felix) was also disowned and 'thrown out like a dog' because of Rasputin. In addition, Felix's father, Old Felix, had lost his job as a sort of 'Lord Mayor' of Moscow because of Rasputin.

Michael Rodzianko had been quoted as saying he'd kill Rasputin himself if he weren't so 'old and fat.' So there was a very deep rooted hatred and conspiracy against Rasputin involving Felix long before the murder. Many people Felix knew hated Rasputin and wanted him gone.

This was no way a spurned lover type of thing. From what you read of Felix, he was obsessed with youth and beauty, and would not have been sexually attracted to the dirty, scruffy, smelly, older Rasputin. I believe he was fascinated by him, but had no physical attraction to him.

Another part of the intrigue is that Felix was also friends with Munya Golovina, one of Rasputin's biggest supporters, and also was a lifelong acquaintance with Anna Vyrobova, maybe Rasputin's biggest supporter after Alexandra. It's all such an interesting story, I suggest reading a variety of books on the subject to get the best objective view of it all.

[Romanov_fan]

Yes, Felix did reiterate again and again who was responsible for the last of Rasputin, he made sure people thought, realized it was him, only him. He may have thought it was the most important event in lhis life, it seems he did. But he had another life, too, and it must have been a little dull eventually to be known as Rasputin's murderer, and nothing else-like this was all he did.He did want attention, and if this got him that, he had no reason to look elsewhere. Like other chracters, he grabs the stage, and doesn't allow anybody else.

[Romanov_fan]

In Greg King's book, he brings up these issues, aand I read the book with interest. I really believe that that the murder of Rasputin, and the whole circumstances were more complex than it might seem.I doubt however that there was any phsyical relationship between Prince Felix Yusupov and Rasputin, even if the fascination existed, which it might have to some measure, but not as all consuming love relation. There are much better reasons why Rasputin's murder happened than merely some unknown sort of  affair between the two men. One does not know for sure, but it can be assumed this wasn't an overiding factor and most likely not really one at all.

[Eddie_uk]

I would have hoped that Felix had better taste in men.  

[lancashireladandre]

I would have hoped that Felix had better taste in men.  

According to Theo Aronson that was not the case....although  allegedly he had a liason in the 20's with Fulco Santostefano, Duc di Verdura...

[Devarani]

Yes you're rigth. I've also read that after his wedding Félix continued to have relation with men and particularly with this man, an Italian.
But what do you think of it :  one of Rasputin's daugters (I think it was the one called Maria) said that she once saw Félix completed naked in his father office . I do not think it is true :-/ because if I really  understand Félix's book, I think that Rasputin left his family and when Félix went to him to be cured, Rasputin had no longer contacts with his own family.

There is also something I did not understand. Because in its book Lost Splendor, Félix says that the first time he met Rasputin was while he was in Miss.G. house (but at this time he already knew him but only by rumors) and after he started his private interviews with him in order to know more things about the man he planned to kill.  
But what the book does not say is that Felix already knew Rasputine a long time ago before his supposedly first meeting in Mlle.G. house. Since Felix had played a nasty trick to Raspoutine, indeed, he disguised himself as a woman and presented himself to Raspoutine. But when this one discovered the imposture and he did not appreciate the joke and gave a slap on Felix's face . And I think that this event is one of the reasons which led félix mother to hate Raspoutine.
So this prooves that Félix was a liar and didn't tell us all the truth about his real story and his relation with Raspoutine.

[AkshayChavan]

I wish to know what book r u talking about. I have never heard this idea of felix dressing up as a woman in front of Rasputin. I personally do not believe that Felix had any sexual relation with rasputin. Felix's "taste" was different. He had very handsome men falling at his feet. There was no reason for him to have sex with a disgusting peasant.

what i suspect is that reasons for actual killing were much deeper and Felix was just a front man for the job. I personally reject that notion of felix having sex with rasputin. I would really appreciate that while making future claims they are properly referenced from where they come from.

[Devarani]

OK! I have left the idea that Raspoutine and Félix didn't have any sexual relation!!! That's perfectly clear now. But what i want to know now is what their relation was really made of? Because you know (as I wish everybody know now) Félix was a great, great, great liar and he didn't tell us all the thing that happened in his life (I mean in his books). But I persist on telling that even if it was not something sexual, there was something between Félix and Raspoutine. Read the new version of Félix book, the one called Memoires and you will see how he describes the monk and how their relation was while they had their private interviews.

Now I am not lying abt the fact that Félix once played a joke to Raspoutine. If I can refind this article, I'll put it on the post and you'll see it by your own eyes.

[Devarani]

Dear Askhaychavan, here are few extracts which also stresses what I mean. Don't know if they are true but just have a look on it :

Why Felix Youssoupov Murdered Rasputin?
Free XpresSion [August 2001]

Rasputin became a malignant force in the Imperial couple's lives, interfered in politics and made recommendations for key government posts. Many believed the two were having an affair and that Rasputin had raped the four grand duchesses. Relatives, including the Tsarina's sister, Elizabeth, tried to warn her but the Tsarina refused to hear anything against Rasputin, which caused alienation within the family.
Away from the Court, Rasputin led a very scandalous life for a holy man. He visited prostitutes and nightclubs. He drank to excess and exposed himself in public.
Felix, himself, was a homosexual and a transvestite. Some historians claim he wanted revenge because Rasputin had rejected his advances. Maria, Rasputin's daughter, claimed she once found Felix in her father's study, completely naked.

Another extracts from another text.

From Enclyclopedia

There is also a strong sense that there was a homoerotic undertone to Felix's fascination with Rasputin. Rasputin, however, was apparently more interested in Irina, and it was on the pretext of a tryst with her that Felix invited him to the Moika Palace on the night he died.

When I'll find more I'll post it.

[jybenton]

In the 1930's my great grandmother was interviewed by an Irish writer (I think biographer but I have no clue who) about the relationship between Prince Yussupov and Rasputine.

One of the questions and its answer during this interview has gone down in family lore; When she was asked if Yussupov and Rasputine had a homosexual relationship her reply was, "Rasputine Gommosexual? but he was only a muzhik (peasant)!"

My understanding of belle epoque russian society is that it was generally amoral and rather free thinking as long as one kept up the social side of things. With that in mind it is rather interesting that my great-granny wasn't shocked by the question in general, yet rather seemed to think that it was the perrogative of the aristocracy.

[Devarani]

 :)Thanks for these precisions. But can you tell me what does"gommosexual" mean?

[Valmont]

I could take a wild guess and  infer it was a mistype error and jybenton meant "Homosexual".....

[lancashireladandre]

In the 1930's my great grandmother was interviewed by an Irish writer (I think biographer but I have no clue who) about the relationship between Prince Yussupov and Rasputine.

One of the questions and its answer during this interview has gone down in family lore; When she was asked if Yussupov and Rasputine had a homosexual relationship her reply was, "Rasputine Gommosexual? but he was only a muzhik (peasant)!"

My understanding of belle epoque russian society is that it was generally amoral and rather free thinking as long as one kept up the social side of things. With that in mind it is rather interesting that my great-granny wasn't shocked by the question in general, yet rather seemed to think that it was the perrogative of the aristocracy.

Are you a descendant of Zenaida Bashkiroff, or her sister Who lived in Ireland and whose mother  was Felix's first cousin (Nee Countess Soumarokov-Elston)?