Some there are, believers in omens7, who attribute many of the difficulties of her life as Tsaritsa to the name she took when she was received into the Russian Church,—Alexandra Feodorovna, after the grandmother of the Tsar, her husband. For Alexandra has long been an ill-fated name in the unhappy land of Princess Alix’s adoption8.{125}
A daughter of the Emperor Paul who was called Alexandra had a very tragic9 end. When she was but seventeen years of age her grandmother, Catherine II, arranged that she should marry the King of Sweden. The preparations for this royal wedding were all elaborately made and on the day set all was well, so far as the world knew. The tables were laid for the marriage banquet and the bride, all robed and ready, awaited her royal bridegroom. The guests were assembled and the priests stood by in their gorgeous mantles10 of gold. Suddenly His Majesty11 the King announced that he would not go on with the wedding! His courtiers and suite12 pleaded and implored13 him not to offer so terrible an insult to the daughter of an Emperor and to the whole Russian nation. But in vain. The King was obdurate14.
The news was tardily15 announced to Catherine, whose wrath16 knew no bounds. The guests withdrew and the Swedish party quit the Winter Palace and returned to Stockholm. The humiliated17 Alexandra was given no further choice even after this terrible ordeal18, but was speedily married willy nilly to an Austrian Grand Duke. But she really did not survive the shock of the failure of her marriage with the King of Sweden, and she died of humiliation19 and a broken heart—only nineteen years of age.
A daughter of Nicholas I was named Alexandra. She was early married to a step-son of Napoleon Bonaparte. But a fatal disease carried her off be{126}fore she was twenty, again emphasising the traditional tragedy associated with his name.
Alexander II had a daughter Alexandra, a lovely, golden-haired child, but she succumbed20 to an illness in childhood.
No wonder then, that the superstitious21 feared for the future of Princess Alix, when she took for herself the name that has so often been borne by daughters of sorrow in Russia. But Alexandra was the name Nicholas chose for her, and that sufficed. The mourning family returned to St. Petersburg after the death of Alexander III and as soon as preparations could be made, the wedding took place—the entire Court laying aside its mourning weeds for one day. Thus edged in black, the official ceremonial life of the Tsaritsa began.
At the wedding ceremony, she did not show to advantage. She was reserved in her manner to the point of severity, and a trait was noticed on that day that has militated against her ever since. Despite her natural physical grace she does not know how to dress! Her simple German training had not taught her how to wear beautiful clothes. Possibly the wearing of lovely gowns well is an instinct born in some women. At all events on her wedding day, the Empress-bride failed to please the court.
A few days later when the young Tsar was receiving deputations from different parts of the Empire, there occurred a rupture22 between him and{127} some deputies from the Province of Tver, which he has never been able to outlive, and for some unexplained reason the sentiments that he then expressed in heat, were accepted as the sentiments of the Empress as well. The Chairman of the deputation humbly23 offered the congratulations of the people of Tver, and ventured to add that it was their hope that the new Emperor might be pleased, in the course of his reign24, to grant certain liberties to his people, perhaps even a Constitution. This hope was partly based on their faith in the young Empress, whom they expected would have liberal sympathies as a result of her life in Germany and her affiliations25 with England. But the Tsar burst forth26 into a terrible tirade27 against such notions, told them “to be done with these idle dreams,” and even threatened the whole deputation with banishment28.
The whole country was astounded29 at this uncalled for outburst, and a lurking30 suspicion sprang up that the Tsaritsa might not be so liberal as they had hoped. And this indeed seems to have proved true, for whatever influence the Tsaritsa has exerted in Russia from that day to this, has been in the direction of Reaction and severe administration. She has always accepted the point of view of her husband. Nicholas II believes himself a God-ordained Autocrat31, and the great ambition of his life is, not to hand on to his successor a happy and peaceful nation living under a constitutional monarchy32, but an absolute autocracy33, and Alexandra{128} Feodorovna has supported and worked for the realisation of this ambition.
When one remembers the glorious, golden romance of this girl, one’s imagination is fired to highest heat, and one rejoices when the child who was called “Sunny,” who early battled bravely with life, was at last coming unto her own. But alas34! At the very moment when it would seem that Providence35 had filled her cup to the full, the dark clouds began to gather, and the little German Princess, when she ceased to be Princess Alix, also ceased to be “Sunny.” Instead of entering upon a period of life rich in blessings36, showered with happiness, she faced graver responsibilities, greater hardships and harder battles than she yet had known. The crudest blows of fate were yet to fall upon her.
The wedding of the Tsar and Tsaritsa was almost the only bright day of the winter of 1894 in St. Petersburg society. Mourning was resumed before even the usual wedding ceremonials were ended and few court functions were held until after the coronation, which took place the following spring. This event was looked forward to by the entire court and the most elaborate arrangements were made to make it the most magnificent and dazzling spectacle of the kind that a traditionally magnificent court had yet known, an historic occasion, notable from every point of view.
During the festivities celebrating this event, the young Empress might have been expected to have{129} won all hearts. Instead, the popularity of the Dowager was enhanced, and the suspicions against Alexandra, which had been aroused during the wedding celebration, were deepened.
Russia, always poor, was in especially straitened circumstances the year of the coronation. Crops had failed—the winter had been severe—and peasants were starving in different parts of the Empire. Yet the coronation show cost the Government many millions of dollars. The harness worn by the horses that drew the carriage of the Empress alone cost more than one million dollars!
The German Princess, born amid frugal37 surroundings, simply reared, early taught to value pennies, and never affluent38, on this occasion found herself in a strange setting, indeed. Her coach followed the carriage of the Dowager Empress. Eight snow-white horses adorned39 with red morocco trappings trimmed with exquisitely40 engraved41 gold, champed their teeth on bits of solid gold, and above their heads waved snow-white ostrich42 plumes43; in her shining chariot sat the Empress in a silver and satin gown with an ermine cloak over her shoulders, ropes of diamonds hanging from her shoulders, and a crest44 of diamonds above her head. How wonderful a change from the life she had always known! Too great a change, perhaps. For even now her manner did not please the populace. The Dowager was hailed with acclamations and unprecedented45 enthusiasm. The Empress was received in dead silence. The situation was an im{130}possible one. She tried to smile upon the throng46, but her smiles were stony47 and cold, and people remarked to one another that she only “stared in disdain48.” After the long and tedious coronation service, as the Emperor was painfully making his way to the Church of the Ascension, staggering under the weight of his royal robes and crown, he stumbled and fell in a long swoon—just as he has fallen ever since under the weight of responsibilities and cares he has never been strong enough to carry.
The following day the coronation festivities were interrupted by a terrible catastrophe49. Some five thousand peasants were crushed or trampled50 to death in a stampede and panic preceding the distribution of certain simple meals, which were to have been in honour of the great event of the coronation. The calamity51 has never been satisfactorily explained, but there seems to have been a general lack of efficiency among those who had the distribution in charge. No sooner was word received of the disaster, than the Dowager Empress hurried to the overcrowded hospitals, administering personal comfort, and relief, and cheer to the surviving wounded. Her great activity and sympathetic devotion endeared her yet more to the people, and as long as she lives, thousands will revere52 her for her expressions of grief and solicitude53 on this occasion.
Nicholas, however, made himself conspicuous54 by doing nothing. On nearly every occasion during the course of his reign when he has had a signal opportunity for doing the right thing, he has acted{131} precisely55 as he acted on this occasion—he has turned his back and gone off. And Alexandra Feodorovna has acted in concert with her husband. They both attended the ball at the French Embassy that same night, thus horrifying56 not only Russia but the civilised world.
I do not believe that the Tsaritsa is lacking in heart warmth or human sympathies, but her life is dominated by one man. Before she was an Empress she was a woman, and as a woman she loved, and as a woman she gave all to that love, and to the end of the chapter one must look for the real life of the Tsaritsa in those spheres where her personal love for this one man holds sway.
From the coronation day the Tsaritsa never regained57 a place in the affections of the Russian people, and having recognised this fact, and having realised the futility58 of usurping59 the place of the Dowager Empress, she simply ceased trying. The Russian people don’t dislike her, they merely do not know her.
When travelling through the interior of Russia, I constantly heard the Tsar spoken of by the peasants. Sometimes reverently60, of late more often disdainfully, occasionally in the terms of the old Russian proverb: “God is in heaven and the Tsar is far off.” But I do not recall of ever hearing a peasant speak of the Empress. When I have asked about her the moujiks have invariably shrugged61 their shoulders in silence. They often have a bright coloured lithograph62 of her on the walls of their houses, and they all think the picture very beauti{132}ful. More than that, they know nor care not at all.
Once in an interior village I heard a group of peasants discussing the Tsar with a trace of old-time superstitious reverence63 and I asked, “What of the Empress?”
A shaggy old moujik shook his towsled head stolidly64 as he replied: “She is the Little Father’s woman—but what can we know of her?”
The Tsaritsa entered upon a life of unusual difficulty from the moment she crossed the Russian frontier. She realised even at the time of her wedding, and more than ever at her coronation that she was not liked at court, so she did what any sensitive soul would have done under similar circumstances—she turned from the people who criticised her, who failed to appreciate her trying, turned to those whom she loved, who loved her. How many women in our own country have been through just such experiences! Not called upon to serve as queens or empresses, but summoned to positions they never were fitted or trained to occupy. With the realisation of failure comes a terrible disappointment and sorrow, sometimes heartbreak. Good women then turn to the fruits of love and in their children seek the salvation65 necessary to counteract66 the first failure.
The Dowager Empress had never approved of the marriage of Nicholas to Princess Alix. She herself had always been exceedingly popular with the Russian people. In her affliction and bereavement67 the sympathy and affection of the nation went{133} out to her. At the coronation of her son and his spouse68, her warm personality so completely outshone that of her younger successor as Empress of the people, that a circle of the court immediately gathered about her. From that day to the present time the influence of the Dowager Empress and her “court party” has been more potent69 than that of the Tsaritsa. At times this influence has been directed openly against her rival and always to the embarrassment70 of the younger woman. For several years they were not even on speaking terms and to-day they rarely meet save on formal occasions when court etiquette71 demands the presence of them both at some particular function. The attitude of the Dowager Empress has been a source of continual pain to the Tsaritsa and besides actively72 militating against her, it has been one more strong influence driving her away from the usual interests and activities and more into her family life.
This estrangement73 between the two first women of the court has also tended more than anything else to isolate74 Nicholas. It has resulted in periodic ruptures75 between the Tsar and his mother, and it has strained his relations with his numerous relatives and important personages of the court, who have remained loyal to her.
These are some of the reasons why the life which ought to have been bright and happy has been utterly76 miserable77, and now there are indications that a complete nervous breakdown78 may crown the burden of her years.
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1
moribund
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| adj.即将结束的，垂死的 | |
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chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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necessitated
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| 使…成为必要，需要( necessitate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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fortress
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| n.堡垒，防御工事 | |
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omens
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| n.前兆，预兆( omen的名词复数 ) | |
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adoption
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| n.采用，采纳，通过；收养 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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mantles
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| vt.&vi.覆盖（mantle的第三人称单数形式） | |
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majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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suite
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| n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员 | |
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implored
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| 恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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obdurate
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| adj.固执的，顽固的 | |
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tardily
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| adv.缓慢 | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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humiliated
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| 感到羞愧的 | |
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ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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humiliation
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| n.羞辱 | |
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succumbed
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| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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superstitious
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| adj.迷信的 | |
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rupture
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| n.破裂；(关系的)决裂；v.(使)破裂 | |
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humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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affiliations
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| n.联系( affiliation的名词复数 )；附属机构；亲和性；接纳 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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tirade
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| n.冗长的攻击性演说 | |
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banishment
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| n.放逐，驱逐 | |
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astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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autocrat
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| n.独裁者；专横的人 | |
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monarchy
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| n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国 | |
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autocracy
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| n.独裁政治，独裁政府 | |
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34
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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frugal
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| adj.节俭的，节约的，少量的，微量的 | |
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affluent
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| adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的 | |
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adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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engraved
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| v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中） | |
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42
ostrich
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| n.鸵鸟 | |
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plumes
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| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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throng
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| n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集 | |
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stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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disdain
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| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
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catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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50
trampled
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| 踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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51
calamity
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| n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件 | |
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52
revere
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| vt.尊崇，崇敬，敬畏 | |
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53
solicitude
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| n.焦虑 | |
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conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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horrifying
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| a.令人震惊的，使人毛骨悚然的 | |
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regained
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| 复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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futility
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| n.无用 | |
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usurping
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| 篡夺，霸占( usurp的现在分词 )； 盗用； 篡夺，篡权 | |
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reverently
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| adv.虔诚地 | |
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61
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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lithograph
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| n.平板印刷，平板画；v.用平版印刷 | |
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reverence
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| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
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stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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counteract
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| vt.对…起反作用，对抗，抵消 | |
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bereavement
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| n.亲人丧亡，丧失亲人，丧亲之痛 | |
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spouse
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| n.配偶(指夫或妻) | |
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potent
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| adj.强有力的，有权势的；有效力的 | |
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embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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etiquette
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| n.礼仪，礼节；规矩 | |
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actively
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| adv.积极地，勤奋地 | |
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estrangement
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| n.疏远，失和，不和 | |
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isolate
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| vt.使孤立，隔离 | |
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ruptures
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| n.（体内组织等的）断裂( rupture的名词复数 )；爆裂；疝气v.（使）破裂( rupture的第三人称单数 )；（使体内组织等）断裂；使（友好关系）破裂；使绝交 | |
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76
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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breakdown
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| n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌 | |
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