5 Interesting Facts You Didn't Know About Rasputin
Grigori Rasputin Colorized by Marina Amaral |
1. He was a mystic healer. Well, sort of. He was of the Orthodox Christian faith and was incredibly spiritual. He claimed to have had a religious experience and travelled the country teaching faith gaining him the reputation as a wandering mystic. He came into contact with Tsar Nicholas and tried to help heal his son, Alexei, of haemophilia and it seemed to work. There is dispute over whether this was down to his mystical powers, hypnosis or simply change of medication.
The Russian Royal Family During the First World War © IWM (Q 69052) |
3. It was hard to kill Rasputin. Nobody really knows the full story of how he died and the story is likely to have been exaggerated. But Boney M's song about him pretty much nails the widely accepted story of his death. He was indeed poisoned and shot, multiple times in fact, as they so cheerfully sing. However he was also beaten and thrown into a river but I guess that might be a bit too dark to put into a pop song.
Grigori Rasputin © IWM (Q 81770) |
5. He was a ladies man. Despite his rugged appearance, Rasputin gained a lot of sexual attention from women around him. In Rasputin:A Short Life, Welch describes how he used to visit a bath house to have a grand old time with his 'little ladies'. You might be surpised that a holy man was so promiscuous but Rasputin believed it didn't matter "if you fornicate a little" and believed that "without sin there is no repentance".
Do you know any more wild facts about Rasputin?
Further Reading:
Frances Welch, Rasputin: A Short Life
The Mad Monk: The Grigori Rasputin Story https://historycooperative.org/mad-monk-grigori-rasputin-story/
Is this the foot-long preserved penis of Rasputin? https://metro.co.uk/2009/10/01/is-this-the-foot-long-preserved-penis-of-rasputin-454549/
The colourised photo is very cool, I'll also add the museum to my travel list!
ReplyDeleteYou should check out more of Marina's work, it is amazing! It will be on my list too!
DeleteWell done. really like it
ReplyDeleteThank you for the support!
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