Editor says, what if Rasputin had enabled the Romanovs to survive? muses Jackie Rose. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the August 2012 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.

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Editor says, point of divergence: Rasputin did attend that fatal party, where he was brutally murdered. For a long time, it was believed that the killer was Prince Yusupov, especially since he bragged that he had done the deed. However, Wikipedia now reports that the British secret service might well have been responsible, because they did, indeed, fear that the monk would convince the Czarina to urge her husband towards peace. As it was, World War I raged on, the people rebelled, the royal family was overthrown, and the Bolsheviks seized control of the revolution by promising to take Russia out of the war .. everything that the British had feared. The Bolsheviks went on to kill the entire royal family, including the couple's five children.

Stan Brin commented on 2012-07-23 09:17:13 ~ The *imperial* family! ; - )) The Russians were very sticky on that point.

Stan Brin commented on 2012-07-23 09:20:03 ~ The Romanovs were the Russian *Imperial*family. Fixed - thanks. Ed They were very sticky on that point. As they liked to say, "Bozheh Tsaria krani!"

Stan Brin commented on 2012-07-23 09:21:36 ~ By the way, how would there be a WWII if nobody was overthrown? In this scenario, Poland would probably be a buffer state, the kingdom of Poland, as would be Finland.

Richard Roper commented on 2012-07-23 10:10:19 ~ British agentsdid indeed assassinate Rasputin, the controlling agnet remaining outside the building and having Russian assassins do the deed. We know this because the British records were captured in Petrograd. The reason was indeed moves were being made towards peace and historians ask "but why did not the Russians make a rational decision and make peace.?" The Duke of Hesse, the czarina's BROTHER now actually DOES are in St.P on a secret peace mission, his offer is quickly accepted, and Russia makes a seperate peace with Germany and A-H.

Jeff Provine commented on 2012-07-23 14:15:49 ~ Don't know enough about the personality for Russia under Alexander IV (li'l Alexei) later on. Would he have worked to modernize Russia, or would he live long enough?

Richard Roper commented on 2012-07-23 16:07:36 ~ Cassandra, the Romanovs are a large family, like the Price regent and his brothers in Britain in 1810, there are even LIBERAL Grand Dukes amongst them. The extreme revolutionaries are a tiny minority and the situation is only created by the continuing involvement in the war. If the pro-german party under the czarina gain power they can easily modernise, linked to other people like Kerensky. Also Ha! Ha! Ha!, they can renounce the french loans.

H. Torrance Griffin commented on 2012-07-23 16:09:50 ~ Finland and Poland could easily be sold as the price of peace, while Russia itself may well be pulled into the German economic orbit. The big question is what peace deal London and Paris would make with the Germans freed up for the Western Front this early.

H. Torrance Griffin commented on 2012-07-23 16:45:39 ~ *rechecks timeline* Okay 3-4 months earlier may not make that much of a difference, but without the Red Menace(tm) you can forget about the Nazis in any recognizable form.

Richard Roper commented on 2012-07-23 17:03:04 ~ If there is no Versailles Peace, no American entry into the War, therefore no Reparations and no wothdrawal of the American loans to Germany to pay for them, there is no depression. Peace of Helsinfors Jan. 1917. Hystria in French and British capitals. Wilson now has greater difficulties as it appears war is ending. Offensive in West April 1917 and not march 1918. Germans arrive in Paris as American army not ready in August 1917 and Britain has no reserves.

H. Torrance Griffin commented on 2012-07-23 17:36:25 ~ Maybe... much depends on if effective political reform can be pushed through by whoever follows Nick. Continued Autocracy after getting out of (note, _not_ winning) the Great War would have only slowed down pressure for reform.

Richard Roper commented on 2012-07-23 18:07:33 ~ It is for this reason the Versailles peace is such a disaster and there is a series of American books on this, since it sets loose the 20th Century's disasterous history. There is no Nazi movement, Hitler never comes to power and remains a baad nationalist folk-artist in Vienna.. It is likely liberals will take over if there is peace with Germany and A-H and the Czars are still ruling as constitutional monarchs. The reactionary party or the Military-reactionary clique as it was referred to would be discredited for losing their "Short, Victorious War" and the pro_germans gain influence as the German minister-plenepotentiary is the Czarina's BROTHER, the Duke of Hesse.

Mike commented on 2012-07-23 19:57:04 ~ This outcome would have been far better

Eric Oppen commented on 2012-07-23 20:04:53 ~ It's ironic that Rasputin has this scary, evil reputation when his advice "Don't get into WWI!" was so good. In this TL, did he move on to Scotland and take up a position as a Potions Professor at a certain school, after losing the beard? *grin*

Richard Roper commented on 2012-07-23 21:16:10 ~ No, he gets promoted to an Orthodox bishop. He eventually get an American peace prize and a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts and ending the Great War. Finally he gets declared an Orthodox saint for saving Holy Russia. Churches abd chapels of cathedrals are dedicated to him and he gets stained glass window in the new cathedral in Moscow. He had in fact always advised the Czar not to get involved in war and had succeeded in getting him to demobilise in the crisis of 1912. There is a documentarty that if he had been in St.P.in July 1914 he would probably have persuaded the Czar not to mobilise, unfotunately he was in hospital in his home towm recovering from an assassination attempt which has never been satisfactorily explained. Yes, Charles manson, he was a con-man and a right one.