Discussions about the Imperial Family and European Royalty > Tatiana Nicholaievna
Did Tatiana see someone get shot?
Angelic Duchess:
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
On September 14 (September 1 Old Style) 1911, while he was attending a performance at the Kiev Opera House in the presence of the Tsar and his family, Stolypin was shot by Dmitri Bogrov, who was both a leftist radical and agent of Okhranka. Stolypin died four days later. Bogrov was hanged 10 days after the assassination, and the judicial investigation was halted by order of Nicholas II. This led to suggestions that the assassination was planned not by leftists, but by conservative monarchists who were afraid of Stolypin's reforms and his influence on the Tsar.
Stolypin's death was allegedly prophesied by Grigori Rasputin, who is reported to have shouted "Death is after him! Death is driving behind him!" as he ran after the Imperial couple in the crowd outside the opera house.
..I'm still looking for letters or diary entries from the girls or Nicholas about this event :)
bell_the_cat:
It may be that they never wrote or talked about this event :(.
Forum Admin:
Here is Spiridovitch's first hand account, from"Les Dernieres Annees.." Vol. 2 Ch. 4. The translation from the French is mine, (copyright Rob Moshein 2005):
When I went to the theater on the day of the performance, I found all of my men at their posts. The control posts were already in place. My adjutant, Lt.Col. Oupravine, who was directing the service, reported that the inspection of the theater had been made, and all of my orders were followed to the letter.
The curtain rose. I was in such a state that that I understood absolutely nothing which was happening on stage; each instant I thought I heard steps in the aisle and, despite myself, I would turn around, obsessed by indescribable anxiety.
At the end of the first act, when the Emperor left his box, I went into the corridor to make sure that the guard supposed to be posted there during the intermission was actually in place, in front of the Emperor's entrance. I saw neither Kourlov nor Koubliako in the corridor. I saw only Vyerigine, some ways off, busy as always, approaching everyone with a mysterious, conspiritorial air.
Here is what I know on my part. After the second act, the Emperor left his box to take tea in an adjacent room. His children followed. The Imperial box was empty. I went again out into the corridor. No one was left on the parterre. Stolypin was standing in front of the ramp separating the parterre from the orchestra, his back to the stage. On his right were Baron Freedericks and Gen. Souhkomlinov. Yessaoulov had gone to smoke.
Along the aisle to the left, a young man in elegant clothes calmly approached the group of those three men. Arriving at the top of the fourth row of seats, he fired three shots at Stolypin. Someone in the orchestra shouted. The Minister put his hand to his chest, and staggered.
"I am wounded" he said; then he took off, mechanically, his frock coat, dropped it on the ramp, look at the blood pouring out and fell without a sound into his seat.
"I am happy to die for the Tsar" the Minister said. He turned toward the Imperial Box, then seeing the Emperor who had entered the box, he made a gesture with both hands to tell the Emperor to go back.
The Minister was immediately surrounded by the people in the hall, to care for him, and they carried him off.
The young man, after firing the gunshots, went calmly still towards an exit. Suddenly he started to run. He was immediately caught, grabbed, thrown to the ground, and beaten.
Forum Admin:
PART TWO:
At the moment he fired the gunshots I was in the corridor.
Hearing the shots, I jumped down into the parterre. The crowd was thick and I could not push my way through. Having drawn my saber, I then succeeded, by jumping from seat to seat, to go up the group pressed around the assassin. At the moment I went to hit him, I saw his face and recognized Bogrov.
"This is treason" I thought. "There has been an attempt."
My arms fell. My thoughts were spinning.
"Shall I finish him off?" the Chief of the Escort, Prince Troubeskoy asked me, greatly upset, holding his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"No, Prince, he must be arrested." I said briefly, and then left him at a run. My thoughts quickly ran and I saw immediately what was to be done.
I ran to the Imperial Box and planted myself in front of it and forbade the public from approaching. The word "treason" burned in my ears. I waited for more gunshots. I was convinced that terrorists were in the theater.
The public pulled back from the box. Gen. Dyedyuline came down into the hall by jumping over the rail of the box.
"Go see what happened in the orchestra" he told me.
"No, Excellency, I will not move. They might fire again. Get the Emperor out."
Dyedyuline went to the orchestra himself. He came back a few seconds later and told me"
"Your agents are there. Nothing to fear from there."
The entire theater had been shaken up. I shouted several things to the adjacent box.
This is he himself later recounted several days later to the officers of the Standardt, the Emperor had heard the gunshots, but thought they were to signal the rising of the curtain, he went toward the door of the outer box room. Grand Duchess Tatiana had had the time to look out the door and for her see and understand what was happening in the theater, had shut the door on the Emperor.
"Papa, don't come in, they are shooting" she yelled to him, crying.
I was in the presence of genuine chaos. Everywhere were shouts of "the anthem, the anthem". The orchestra began to play "God Save the Tsar."
The Emperor appeared in his box. He was greeted by endless hurrahs. He saluted and left. I immediately went towards the exit.
grandduchess_42:
that was amazing FA!
thank you.
so sad...
but i'm a bit confused
it was the minister that was shot?
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