Book cover of A Lifelong Passion: Nicholas and Alexandra: Their Own Story

Book description

In the darkest days of the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, when all talk of the Romanovs was punishable at the very least by banishment to Serbia, a group of archivists were exempt. They sorted and filed the thousands of letters and photographs of the last Tsar of Russia,…

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2 authors picked A Lifelong Passion as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

An indispensable work to anyone interested in the Romanovs, and especially in the life and reign of Tsar Nicholas II. Here, in their own words from diaries and letters are the thoughts and inner-most feelings of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Tsarina Alexandra, as well as numerous royal relatives – though the main focus is on Nicholas and Alexandra. Through these written words, the imperial couple and their families are revealed; they’re given a voice and come alive across more than six hundred pages of text. Interspersed as well are a variety of primary sources such as memoirs, documents,…

Access to the State Archives of the Russian Federation is something that many can only dream about. The story of Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna is well-known, but here we have it through letters and diaries in the State Archives, as well as extracts from memoirs. Reading the story in the words of Nicholas, Alexandra and the members of the wider Imperial family has added greatly to our knowledge of these turbulent times and is the closest many will come to researching in the archives.

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