The Court of the Last Tsar: Pomp, Power and Pageantry in the Reign of Nicholas II - Hardcover

Greg King

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471727636 ISBN 13: 9780471727637

Publisher: Trade Paper Press, 2006

Synopsis

It was the most magnificent court in Europe—a world of fairy-tale opulence, ornate architecture, sophisticated fashion, extravagant luxury, and immense power. In the last Russian imperial court, a potent underlying mythology drove its participants to enact the pageantry of medieval, Orthodox Russia—infused with the sensibilities of Versailles—against a backdrop of fading Edwardian splendor, providing a spectacle of archaic ceremonies carefully orchestrated as a lavish stage upon which Nicholas II played out his tumultuous reign.

While a massive body of literature has been devoted to the last of the Romanovs, The Court of the Last Tsar is the first book to examine the people, mysteries, traditions, scandals, rivalries, rituals, and riches that were part of everyday life in the last two decades of the Romanov dynasty.

It is as difficult for the twenty-first-century mind to imagine the pomp and splendor that accompanied the tsar and his family everywhere they went as it was for the simple Russian peasant toiling a thousand miles from St. Petersburg. This stunningly illustrated volume removes the mystery with more than a hundred black-and-white photos; floor plans of the tsar’s Winter Palace, the Alexander Palace, and the Grand Kremlin Palace; a map of St. Petersburg; and plans of the imperial parks at Tsarskoye Selo and Peterhof.

This eye-popping tour of hedonistic imperial Russia on the edge of oblivion draws on hundreds of previously unpublished primary sources, including memoirs, personal letters, diary entries, and official documents collected during author Greg King’s fifteen years of research in Russia and elsewhere in Europe. It invites you to experience dozens of extravagant ceremonies and entertainments attended only by members of the court; exposes the numerous sexual intrigues of the imperial family, including rape, incest, and brazen affairs; and introduces many of the more than fifteen thousand individuals who made the imperial court a society unto itself.

Chief among these, of course, was Tsar Nicholas II. He ruled an empire that stretched over one-sixth of the earth’s land surface but lacked, according to one courtier, both his father’s inspiring presence and his mother’s vibrant charm. His wife, Alexandra, was a strong and passionate woman who “never developed the social skills necessary to her rank.” Their wedding and the tsar’s coronation are two of the most spectacular ceremonies described in this lavish volume.

Vetted with care by the last remaining members of the Russian imperial court, The Court of the Last Tsar brings the people, places, and events of this doomed but unforgettable wonderland to vivid and sparkling life.

About this title

About the Author

GREG KING is the coauthor of The Fate of the Romanovs (Wiley). His previous works include "The Last Empress: The Life and Times of Alexandra Feodorovna, Tsarina of Russia and The Man Who Killed Rasputin: Prince Felix Youssoupov" and the "Murder That Helped Bring Down the Russian Empire." He has worked as an on-screen commentator with the Learning Channel, the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, and the Arts and Entertainment Channel.

From the Back Cover

Praise for "The Court of the Last Tsar"

"Any book by Greg King is a book to be kept and savored. He has not only given us a fresh, clear-eyed, and often startling new look at the life of the last Romanovs, but also lived up to the promise of his title. He has shown us how the whole enterprise worked, from Tsar Nicholas to his lowest cook and chambermaid. This book is a great work of scholarship--and a wonderful read."
--Peter Kurth, author of "Tsar: The Lost World of Nicholas and Alexandra" and "Anastasia: The Riddle of Anna Anderson"

"A mammoth, monumental achievement. No other book captures the essence and the entire scope of life at the court of Nicholas II. It's a thoroughly enjoyable and encyclopedic masterpiece that will be a major source for historians and biographers for years to come."
--Marlene A. Eilers, author of Queen Victoria's Descendants and publisher of "Royal Book News"

"Greg King has truly written a tour de force. The book is extremely well researched, has over 100 illustrations and is, quite simply, marvelous."
--Coryne Hall, author of "Little Mother of Russia, Once a Grand Duchess, and Imperial Dancer"

"Greg King is emerging as one of the leading authorities in today's liveliest field of Russian studies, and this is a major contribution to the study of late Imperial Russia."
--Joseph T. Fuhrmann, author of Rasputin and the editor of "The Complete Wartime Correspondence of Tsar Nicholas II and the Empress Alexandra"

From the Inside Flap

It was the most magnificent court in Europe--a world of fairy-tale opulence, ornate architecture, sophisticated fashion, extravagant luxury, and immense power. In the last Russian imperial court, a potent underlying mythology drove its participants to enact the pageantry of medieval, Orthodox Russia--infused with the sensibilities of Versailles--against a backdrop of fading Edwardian splendor, providing a spectacle of archaic ceremonies carefully orchestrated as a lavish stage upon which Nicholas II played out his tumultuous reign.

While a massive body of literature has been devoted to the last of the Romanovs, The Court of the Last Tsar is the first book to examine the people, mysteries, traditions, scandals, rivalries, rituals, and riches that were part of everyday life in the last two decades of the Romanov dynasty.

It is as difficult for the twenty-first-century mind to imagine the pomp and splendor that accompanied the tsar and his family everywhere they went as it was for the simple Russian peasant toiling a thousand miles from St. Petersburg. This stunningly illustrated volume removes the mystery with twenty-four pages of breathtaking color photos; more than eighty black-and-white photos; floor plans of the tsar's Winter Palace, the Alexander Palace, and the Grand Kremlin Palace; a map of St. Petersburg; and plans of the imperial parks at Tsarskoye Selo and Peterhof.

This eye-popping tour of hedonistic imperial Russia on the edge of oblivion draws on hundreds of previously unpublished primary sources, including memoirs, personal letters, diary entries, and official documents collected during author Greg King's fifteen years of research in Russia and elsewhere in Europe. It invites you to experience dozens of extravagant ceremonies and entertainments attended only by members of the court; exposes the numerous sexual intrigues of the imperial family, including rape, incest, and brazen affairs; and introduces many of the more than fifteen thousand individuals who made the imperial court a society unto itself.

Chief among these, of course, was Tsar Nicholas II. He ruled an empire that stretched over one-sixth of the earth's land surface but lacked, according to one courtier, both his father's inspiring presence and his mother's vibrant charm. His wife, Alexandra, was a strong and passionate woman who "never developed the social skills necessary to her rank." Their wedding and the tsar's coronation are two of the most spectacular ceremonies described in this lavish volume.

Vetted with care by the last remaining members of the Russian imperial court, The Court of the Last Tsar brings the people, places, and events of this doomed but unforgettable wonderland to vivid and sparkling life.

Reviews

This high-end coffee-table book offers a comprehensive look at the lifestyles of the late-czarist rich and famous. King (The Fate of the Romanovs) includes chapters on major czarist institutions like the Russian Orthodox Church, but this is not his main interest; instead, he focuses on imperial ceremonies, palaces and the fashions of Nicholas's court, as well as sexual scandals involving members of the Romanov family. King has a vast knowledge of the subject, and those who are fascinated by the life of the royals and aristocratic intrigue will find much to delight in; for instance, his description of czarist royal jewelry and the magnificence of Russian balls, even as the regime was soon to crumble, adds to our understanding of how myopic the regime was. The photographs, both color and b&w, add to the book's appeal. King has made valuable use of memoirs from the era, but sometimes he uses them uncritically. But for those who are intrigued by the Russian high court, there is no better escort. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Anyone who has read about the reign of the last czar of Russia understands that the imperial court was a place of opulence, but just how opulent it was is given almost staggering detail in this picture of the incredibly elaborate setting in which Nicholas II and his relatives existed. The House of Romanov, which included the czar's immediate and collateral family members, spared themselves nothing in terms of luxury in the declining years of the imperial regime, before the horrors of World War I brought an end to the monarchy. King marshals an amazing amount of information, and just as amazingly he presents it all in a very fluid, compelling fashion; specifically, he profiles the major members of the Romanov clan, then visits where they lived, gathers information on their possessions (such as jewelry, automobiles, and country estates), reconstructs the major pageants they performed in, and details how they spent their leisure. It's eye-opening, and even fun (now that it's all in the past), to visit this extraordinary group in its time and place. Brad Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Trade Paper Press
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0471727636
• ISBN 13: 9780471727637
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 600