Grigori Rasputin - The Dark One - Extra History - #3
Added 2021-09-17 17:30:01 +0000 UTCHere's where we start getting into the weird stuff.
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It does sound like Rasputin MAY have had a hand in Alexi's recovery by keeping the Doctors out, but then again he could have simply naturally recovered coincidentally with Rasputin's visits. 1876 14th February In the United States, Scottish ~ Born Inventor Alexander Graham Bell Applies for a Patent for a Telephone, as does American Electrical Engineer Elisha Gray. 10th March In the United States, Scottish ~ Born Inventor Alexander Graham Bell makes the First Successful Telephone Call, saying: “Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.” 1889 In the Russian Empire, Russian Inventor Fyodor Blinov Invents the First Caterpillar Tracked Vehicle. He Sells them to the Logging Industry in Russia’s Alaskan Colonies for Hauling Logs out of Remote Areas over Rough Country. are not Widely Known outside of Alaskan Lands nor indeed inside Russian Lands. 1895 In the Russian Empire, by 1895, the Grand Duchy of Finland is Seething with Discontent; the Tsar’s Decision to Pursue a Policy of ‘Russification’ is deeply Unpopular and in the Years before the Fifth Great Global War have already Provoked small Petitions, Passive Resistance and similar Tokens of Dissent. What the Russian Authorities find so Reprehensible about Finland is its ‘Separatism,’ that is, Autonomous, Political, Economic and Cultural Institutions that Differ Sharply from the Russian Model. These have always held the Danger of Encouraging Alternative ways of Thinking elsewhere in the Empire, Including the Ethnically Russian Lands. There is also the need for Security. The Diplomatic Shift to a Pro ~ French Policy has Shifted Russian Security Concerns to Central and Northern Europe; as Finland lies so Close to Saint Petersburg it is the Key to Russia’s Northern Border. In the Russian Empire, Russian Inventor Andrei Cherenkov, using Recent Advances in Refrigeraton Technology, sets up a large ~ Scale Plant for the Production of Liquid Air. 1899 15th February In the Russian Empire, it is becoming Clear that while, for the Finns, their Nation is a Separate State United with the Russian Empire only through the Tsar, for Russia, it is Merely another Autonomous Province. Tsar Nicholas II Issues a Proclamation Asserting the Right of the Imperial Government to Rule the Grand Duchy without the Consent of the Finnish Diet. The Proclamation is Viewed by many in as Unconstitutional, and furthermore, the Proclamation Fails to Elaborate the Criteria a Law has to Meet in Order for it to be Considered a Imperial Interest and not an Internal Affair of Finland to be Decided by the Autocratic Emperor. 1900 In the Persian Empire, since the Defeat in the Wars of the last Century, Persia has been in a State of Steady Decline. When Petroleum Reserves are Discovered in Several Places Controlled by the Pahlavian Persian Empire [Southern Iran, Mesopotamia, and the Peninsula] since Persia doesn’t have the Financial Resources or the Technical Know ~ how to Develop this Resource, the Government Invites Foreign Petroleum Companies to Bid for Contracts. A Joint British ~ Russian Company Wins out and is given Exclusive Rights to Develop the Oil Fields of Persia. 1904 The Russian Empire is Famous for its “Stanniks.” A Ragged Army of Holy Men and Mystics Endlessly Traverse the Empire, Wearing Tatterd Robes and with Staff in Hand. People of every Class do it, Travelling in Groups and Occasionally Practicing Self ~ Mortification. During the Winter Months, some go Barefoot, Wearing Chains around their Legs and Rejoicing at the Trail of Blood they leave in the Snow. Personally, Rasputin finds Chains Distracting; instead, he tries Wearing the same Shirt for a Year without taking it off: Walking to Holy Sites through the Heat and the Cold, Dodging Brigands, and Meeting Fellow Pilgrims. In the Russian Empire, Sergei Zubatov, the Chief of the Okhrana, Believes that they Represent “the out ~ and ~ out Anarchist Elements among Russian Peasantry;” the Stannik, he says, “Possesses no real ID Papers, or even False Ones, Conceals his real Name with the utmost Persistence, and can Survive, Undetected, Thanks to Village Sympathisers who Secretly Supply them with Food and Lodging in Dark Cellars. They are Underground Men, Free from Official Identity and Earthly Restraint. They are Dangerous.” Zubatov is Correct. While 1904 is not as bad a Harvest Year as 1891 or 1892, it is still Reasonably Poor and this, Combined with the Fear and Anger at the Prospect of Conscription and the News coming out of Afghanistan Ensures that Agrarian Discontent Steadily Grows over the Autumn of the Year. All that is needed is a Spark. This is Provided in September in Tomsk when the Stannik Grigori Rasputin Meets Several Exiled Doukhobours. In the Russian Empire, in its True Form, Doukhobour is a Difficult Creed to Master, and Demands much of the Devotee. It is not a Sect that lends itself Easily to Evangelisation. Rasputin Cares little for this. His Trade is in Telling the People what they Wish to Hear and when Confronted by the Strict Tenets of the Sect, he doesn’t even try to Conform. Rasputin Simply takes the Attractive Aspects of Doukhobour ~ Resistance to Conscription, Communalism, Intense Religiosity ~ and Weaves them into his Own Rabble ~ Rousing Preaching. The Result is Dramatic: as Rasputin Gradually makes his way Westwards from Tomsk to his Home in Pokrovskoye, he leaves in his Wake a Growing Number of Believers. As Winter Descends upon Western Siberia, Thousands of Peasants Return to their Villages to Spread the Word. By the Time Spring ~ and the Conscription Proclaimations ~ come, the Entire Country is ready to Rise… 21st October In the Kingdom of Great Britain, while En Route from Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok to Reinforce the Russian 1st Pacific Squadron Stationed at Port Arthur, Manchuria, the Captain of a Russian Supply Ship Mistakes a Passing Svealandic Ship for a Japanese Torpedo Boat, Despite being more than 20,000 Miles from Japan, and Radioes that he is under Attack. Later that same Night, in heavy Fog, the Officers of the Russian Baltic Fleet Sight a Fleet of British Fishing Trawlers from Kingston upon Hull, Read their Signals Incorrectly, and Classify them as Japanese Torpedo Boats. The Russian Warships Illuminate them with their Searchlights and Open Fire. Because their Nets are down, the Trawlers cannot Flee. The British Trawler Crane is Sunk and its Captain and First Mate are both Killed and Six others are Injured. In the Confusion, the Russian Cruisers Aurora and Dmitrii Donskoi are taken for Japanese Warships and are Bombarded by Seven Russian Battleships Sailing in Formation, Killing a Sailor and a Russian Orthodox Priest. After 20 Minutes’ Firing, the Fishermen see a Blue Light Signal on One of the Warships ~ the Order to Cease Firing.
Martin Verran
2021-09-21 17:05:03 +0000 UTCIt's fascinating how the human psyche can figure out how to justify any perspective.
John Cox
2021-09-17 19:10:43 +0000 UTCAlmost feel sorry for him.
Jason Youngberg
2021-09-17 17:59:07 +0000 UTCGrigori, you've gone green!
Martin Verran
2021-09-17 17:45:19 +0000 UTC
