(Ella of Hesse)
(1864-1918)
part 3
Meanwhile, Empress Alexandra was still suffering about Alexis' illness. The Tsarevitch had severe and constant crisis that postrated him in bed and made him cried in pain. About 1906 a dirty Russian peasant appeared in Alexandra's life; he was the only one who could sto Alexis' bleedings and pains by a strange hypnotic power, even without touching the boy. His name was Grigori Efimovich Rasputin. Alexandra, anxious of relieving his son's suffering, became under Rasputin's malignant influence. Since the beginnig, Elisabteh disliked and distrusted Rasputin and warned her sister several times against him, who was a heavy drinkwer and an absolutely depreved man, but Alexandra was so blind about him, even believing he was a man of God, that she distanced herself from her sister.
In 1907, Marie became engaged to Prince William of Sweden, the second son of the future King Gustaf V. She would divorce some years later, and would follow her aunt's steps in nursing the woundeds during the war. Dimitri erolled in the Cavalry School to prepare for a career in the Horse Guards. Once her niece and nephew had already taken their own lifes, Elisabeth dedicated wholetime to care the sick and poor.She embraced religious life and founded a sisterhood of nuns dedecated to nurse and charity. She also established a convent that was named St. Marha and St. Mary. Elisabeth was like a mother for all her Sisters and was an "example of humilituy and self abnegation".
Meanwhile, Rasputin's presence among the Imperial family had provoke a scandal in the whole country and increased Alexandra's unpopularity. It was said that he was the Empress and the Grand Duchesses' lover. During World War I, while Nicholas was at the front, Rasputin, through Alexandra, named and dismissed ministers as he pleased. Each time Elisabeth saw Alexandra, she warned her about the danger of Rasputin's influence, but Alexandra believed he was a holy man, the only hope for her son to stop bleeding.
In 1916 a rumour had spread in Moscow about Grand Duke Ernest of Hesse, Elisabeth's brother, being in Russia in a secret mission, sent by the Kaiser, in order to convinced the Tsar to sign a secret peace with Germany. Infuriated by this rumour, a drunken mob marched on to Elisabeth's convent, entrying by force and broken the windows, and evenhurting some Sisters. When Elisabeth appeared before them, the mob was silent. She asked if they wanted to speak to her. One shouted that they wanted her German brother and she calmly answered that he was not there and if hey wish, they could look for himinto the convetn, only without disturbing the patients who were there. At the moment the mob were begining to search into the convent a cavalry troop appeared outside the building and sorrounded the mob; some could ran away but others were hurt Elisabeth and her Sisters begant to attend the woundeds.
Later on, Dimitri paid a visit to his aunt. He had been involed in a conspiracy, organized by Prince Felix Yussopov, to kill Rasputin; nevertheless he had some doubts about participating in the plot. After a conversation with Elisabeth, who told him of Alexandra's stubborness about Rasputin, Dimitri decided to join Yussopov and go ahead with the murder. Prince Felix Yussopov, Grand Duke Dimitri and two other partners, Purishkevitch and Lazovert, killed Rasputin on the night of December 16, 1916.
Some days before, Elisabeth had had a las meeting with Alexandra at Tsarkoe Selo, urgingn her to banished Rasputin, but Alexandra refused to listen and interrupting the conversation, she asked her sister to leave. It was the last time the two sisters would see each other. Later on, Elisabeth described her last meeting with her sister: "She drove me away like a dog! Poor Nicky! Poor Russia!".
On December 31, Elisabeth sent a telegram to Dimitri: "Prayed for you all ...God grant Felix the necessary strenght afgter the patriotic deed". Alexandra heard about the message and concluded that Elisabeth had been a partner in the murder.
Rasputin's murder had come too late. His bad influence and the War had completely deteriorated the prestige of the Tsar. Nicholas II was forced to abdicate in March 1917 and a Provisional Government seized the power. Since she heard the terrible news, Elisabeth and her Sisters kept up constant services of prayer day and night. On March 15, two cars with red flags and full with drunk soldiers bearing riffles arrived the convent. Elisabeth oredered the Sisters to let her face the soldiers alone. They wanted to arrest her but as she asked them to let her go into the church and pray, they went with her and joined the short service Father Mitrophan was celebrating and afterwards they left without Elisabeth. With her brave attitudes, Elisabeth encourage the Sisters not to show fear before danger and adversity.
In Germany, Wilhelm II, who was still devoted to Ella, feared she could be murdered, so he offered her a safe passage to Germany. She refused, her mission was in Russia serving the sick and poor. After the Bolshevick government signed peace withh Germany at Brest Litvosk, Wilhelm intended again to take Ella to Germany. he sent his Embassador, Count Mirbach, to offer her asylum in Germany in the Kaiser's name., but Ella refused even to see him. She had lost her last chance of saving herself. The Bolsheviks had decided to imprisson her and sent an emisaire to tell her she must joined Nicholas and Alexandra, now imprissoned in Siberia. Elisabeth answered that her duty was to stay with her Sisters but she would submit to God's will. Durinmg Easter week, Elisabeth left the convent escorted by two Bolshevik cars. Two Sisters had insisted in going with her, Sister Varvara and Sister Catherine Yanisheva.
Elisabeth and her two Sisters were put on a guarded train and during several endless days they crossed the vast Russian forest. Finally they arrived to Ekaterimburg where they were sent to Novotikhvinsky convent. Some other Russian relatives were imprissoned in the convent: Prince Vladimir Paley, who was Grand Duke Paul's son from his second marriage; Grand Duke Sege Mikhailovitch, who was a grandson of Nicholas I, and three sons of Grand Duke Konstantine (KR the poet), Ioann, Igor and Konstantine. There was Ioann's wife too, Princess Helena of Serbia. On May 20, Elisabeth and the other prisoners were transfered to Alapayevsk, a small mining town in tjhe district of Pern, a hundred miles at the north of Ekaterimburg. The treatment the prissoners were given there were not so hard as they could attend church on Sundays where Elisabeth met her old friend Father Seraphim, who became her confessor. As always, she gave strenght and affection to her fellows.
When the Tsar's brother, Grand Duke Michael, was shot at Pern, and the false rumour he had escaped spread out, the vigilance at Alapayevsk turned more severe. All the prissoner's properties were confiscated and they were let only with the cloth they were wearing. On June 21, they were even confined to their rooms. Sister Catherine and Princess Helena were forced to leave the prisson and three days later the rest of the prissoners, with their hands tied on their backs, were taken to an abandoned half-floode mine at the outsides of Alapayevsk. Grand Duke Serge Mikhailovitch had at first resisted, but was shot and wounded in an arm by a soldier named Ryabov. As they were forced to walk about a hundred yards in the darkness with the riffles appointing at their backs, Elisabeth began to sing an hymn and the others joined her. When they arrived at the edge of the mine's shaft, the guards chose Elisabeth to be thrown the first. She asked for a pray and her lasts words were "Father, forgive them, they don't know waht they are doing". According to Mager a guard hit her in the head with the butt of his riffle nad her unconscious body, still breathing, was trown into the shaft. According to one of the assasins named Ryabov, cited by Maylunas and Mironenko, after Ella was trown into the shaft, she war heard struggling in the water for some time, but he never says she was thrown unconscius. If she was, it is probable she recovered consciousness at the conatc with the water. After Ella, the following to be pushed down was Sister Varvara. The splasing of water and the voices of both women were heard then. The rest of the prissoners were thrown inmediately after. According to Mager, grand Duke Serge resisted again and was shut in the head and then pushed down. According to Ryabov, non of them drawn and the voices were herad again after a while. Then the assasins threw a granade and for a while again everything was quiet.. Since they heard voices again they threw another granade, the last they had, but the prissoners were still singing the prayer "Lord save your people". Then the assasins filled the shaft with dry brushwood set it fired; for some time the hymns were still heard and afterwards everything was silent.
There is story told by Father Seraphim in which he was allowed to approach the shaft, eraly the next morning, some hours after the prissoners had been thrown down, and he could still heard the faint singing of hymns. Later on Father Seraphim was allowed to exhumate the bodies and he found sisde by side the bodies of Elisabeth and Prince Iaonn. Elisabeth's fingers of her right hand were doing the sign of the Cross. Father Seraphim began a long journey with the coffin containing the remains of the Alapayevsk prissoners. According to a stoy he told to Princess Alice of Athlone, another of Queen Victoria's granddaughters, he escaped from a train crashed thanks to the advice of "My Sacred Lady" (Elisabeth) who was supposed to have appeared to him.
Father Seraphim took the coffins first to the convent at Irkhurst where Elisabeth's coffin was opened and her body was "not decayed but only dried up". The nuns cleaned her and changed her clothes for nun's habits. Afterwards he continue his jounrney until he reached China. He had left Alapayevsk in July 1919 and reached Beijing in April 1920, where he interered the bodies.
When Elisabeth's sister, Princess Victoria, found out where her sister body was, she made the arrengementrs so that her coffin was transferered to Jerusalem to be buried in the Orthodox Church of St. Mary Magdalene at the foot of the mounts of Olives, to which consecration Elisabeth had attended. Ftaher Seraphim established his home in a small room besides the crypt were Ella layed. Until his death he watcxhed over it with great devotion. Grand Duchess Elisabeth was cononized in New York by the Russian Orthodox Church in exile in 1982.
Mager, Hugo: Elizabeth, Grand Duchess of Russia
Massie, Robert K.: Nicolas y Alejandra
Maylunas, Andrei & Mironenko, Serguei: A Life Long Passion
Pavlovna, Maria: Educacion de una Princesa
Radzinsky, Edvard: El Ultimo Zar
