The Royal Child Martyrs.
The crown of Imperial Russia was one of the most
resplendent in the world, shining with precious jewels and
symbolizing a mighty nation that covered one-sixth of the
globe. But in the beginning of our century, when the
forces of evil arose to topple this mighty nation, the
bastion of Orthodoxy, then even more resplendently shone
the crown of Holy Russia, made of the purest gold of the
New Martyrs and Confessors. And adorning this unique and
magnificent crown were the most sparkling and wondrous
jewels of all: the royal children-martyrs.
The Romanov children—the Grand Duchesses Olga,
Tatina, Maria, Anastasia and the heir, Grand Duke
Alexis—were extraordinary in their ordinariness.
Despite being born in one of the highest and most enviable
positions in the world (from the secular point of view),
and having access to all possible worldly goods, they
lived and were brought up like ordinary children. Even
more amazingly, despite being surrounded by a court
environment made up of the entirely secular, godless and
apostate aristocracy, the children grew up to be pious
god-fearing and endowed with all manner of Christian
virtue. Their royal father ensured that their upbringing
would be similar to his own: they were not to be treated
like hothouse plants or fragile china, but were to be
taught their lessons, learn their prayers, allowed to
play, and even fight and be moderately naughty. Thus they
were brought up like normal, healthy Russian children, in
an atmosphere of discipline, orderliness and almost
ascetic simplicity.
Tsar Nicholas II and Tsaritsa Alexandra, in front of the Kremlin.
They also grew up in an atmosphere of extraordinary
spiritual love. Their parents' marriage was truly
blessed in heaven, and God granted the Imperial pair that
rare gem of happiness on earth—an idyllic union, so
that during the first ten years of their marriage they
were blissfully happy, both in their union and in their
family life, and all the children were born into this
atmosphere of love and tenderness. Moreover, this
exemplary and close-knit family was further enhanced by
being a veritable home church. Both parents were deeply
religious and represented the ideal of both aspects of
Orthodoxy—by birth and through conversion.
Tsar Nicholas was, of course, born Orthodox, grew up in a
strongly Orthodox atmosphere and had a nearly
thousand-year-old heritage of Orthodoxy behind him. But
this heritage blossomed in him so splendidly primarily
because of his innate qualities: great piety, modesty,
tenderness of soul, generosity, trustiness, love of all of
God's creatures. And this was the heritage, both
ancestral and personal, which he passed on to his children
and which they, too, embodied so well.
Tsarina Alexandra is seen on a hospital visit to injured servicemen.
The
Empress Alexandra, though born Lutheran, grew up in a
family that was also very religious. For this reason,
and due to the sincerity and honesty with which she
lived her faith, for a long time she could not agree to
convert to another religion, even despite her great
love for the Tsar. It was only after acquiring a deep
understanding of Orthodoxy as the one true Faith that
she was able to convert. However, when the Empress
embraced Orthodoxy, she did so completely, with all the
sincerity and honesty of her soul, so that she truly
lived as an Orthodox Christian. It was this sincerity
and honesty of faith which she passed on to her
children and which was part of the fabric of their
daily lives.
In this 1914 picture, four years before their execution, Nicholas's heir Alexei is seen with sisters Olga, left, and Tatiana, right.
The
Romanov children were beautiful—not only in their
outward appearance, which was striking, but primarily
in their inner qualities. From their father they
inherited the traits of kindness, modesty, simplicity,
and unshakeable sense of duty and an all-consuming love
for their homeland. From their mother they inherited
deep faith, straightforwardness, self-discipline and
strength of spirit. The Empress herself abhorred
idleness and taught her children to be fruitfully
engaged at all times. When World War I began, the
Empress and her four daughters participated
wholeheartedly in the war effort: they were literally
tireless in visiting military hospitals and bringing
cheer and comfort to the wounded soldiers, while the
Empress and the two older daughters even qualified as
Sisters of Mercy and performed the often anguishing
tasks of surgical nurses. "The higher a
person's position in society,'' the
Tsar-Martyr used to say, "the more he should help
others without ever reminding them of his
position." Being himself a prime example of
gentleness and attentiveness to the needs of others,
the Tsar-Martyr brought up his children to be the same.
Within the framework of collective family qualities, the
royal children were quite individual in character and
temperament.
Grand Duchess Olga is seen looking through a family album.
Olga,
the oldest daughter, born in 1895, was fair, with
golden-brown hair (the lightest in the family) and
beautiful blue eyes. She was innocent, modest, sincere
and kind. She liked simplicity and paid little
attention to dress. She was most similar to her father,
whom she loved better than anyone else. She had a quick
mind and possessed the virtue of reasoning. According
to her tutors, she had a "crystal'' soul
and a bright smile; inner joy radiated from her and had
an uplifting effect on those around her. Like her
father, Olga deeply loved Russia and the Russian
people. When faced with the possibility of marriage to
a foreign prince, she flatly refused, saying, "I
do not want to ever leave Russia. I am Russian and wish
to remain so." Thus she stayed on in her homeland
to receive the crown of martyrdom.
<img align="center" alt="Tatiana in her
garb as a sister of mercy surrounded by flowers as she
reads."
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src="http://www.pravoslavie.ru/sas/image/101249/124930.p.jpg"
text-align:=""
center;"="">
Tatiana, the second daughter, born in 1897, was a tall,
thin and elegant girl. She had a darker complexion than
the others. She was somewhat reserved, dutiful and
pensive; she was often more decided in her opinions than
her sisters. She was a talented pianist and also painted
and embroidered well. Tatiana was her mother's
favorite, having inherited the Empress' nobleness and
sense of discipline. The younger children nicknamed
Tatiana "the Governess."
Grand Duchess Maria.
Maria, the third daughter, born in 1899, was strong,
broadly-built and good looking, with light gray eyes. She
could paint and draw, and played the piano competently.
She was very fond of children and inclined to domesticity,
and would have made an excellent wife and mother. Maria
had the rare quality of being perfectly happy in ally
surroundings, even when the family was imprisoned in
Tobolsk. For this reason she was chosen by her parents to
accompany them when they were forced to separate from the
family and embark upon their last fateful journey to
Ekaterinburg.
Grand Duchess Anastasia.
Anastasia,
the youngest daughter, born in 1901, was initially a
tomboy and the family clown. She was shorter than the
others, had a straight nose and beautiful gray eyes.
Refined and witty, she had the talent of a comedienne
and made everyone laugh. She aas kind and loved
animals. She had a small dog of Japanese breed, whom
the whole family loved. Anastasia carried this dog in
her arms when she went down into the cellar at
Ekaterinburg on the fateful night of July 4th, and the
little dog was murdered together with her.
Alexis, the heir apparent, was a very special child. He
was born in 1904, in response to prayers offered by the
Imperial family and the entire faithful populace during
the days of glorification of Saint Seraphim of Sarov,
asking God to grant Russia an heir. However, though born
the heir lo the Russian Empire, Alexis could not inherit
it, since Russia was already set on its apocalyptic
course; instead, he inherited an incomparably higher
kingdom—the Kingdom of Heaven.
Tsarevitch Alexei, most likely in the Crimea.
Alexis was
destined for martyrdom from the moment of his birth:
the only and beloved son, he was the young Isaac who
was actually sacrificed, the innocent sacrificial lamb
who was worthy to atone for the sins of his people. He
was born with the dreaded illness of hemophilia, which
showed up when he was only six weeks old, and which
caused him great pain and suffering for the entire 14
years of his brief life. It was also the cause of the
greatest anguish for his family, especially his
parents, and was a contributing factor to the fall of
the Empire. And yet this young boy bore his terrible
burden with great fortitude, silently and without
grumbling, in a true Christian manner. At the same time
he was like any other boy: he enjoyed games and
horseplay, engaged in outdoor activities with other
boys whenever possible, loved to go sailing with his
father, teased his sisters, liked to watch movies, make
boats and other paper models, and, though a very clever
boy, was not fond of books. He had a kind heart, liked
to give presents everyone, and he loved animals. He was
a lively and cheerful child, a universal favorite,
beloved by all with whom he came into contact. His
mother loved him passionately, suffering a mother's
indescribable anguish over his pains and his illness,
which he had inherited from her side of the family.
Tsar Nicholas II and Alexei on a boat in Finland.
God
granted these extraordinary royal children a
spiritually royal fate on earth: after having spent
their childhood and youth in a most glorious Orthodox
way of life, in absolute innocence and purity, they
were ready for the crowning touch—the shining
crown of martyrdom. Their Calvary began on March 2,
1917, the day of the Tsar-Martyr's
abdication—first in their palace at Tsarskoye
Selo, then at the Governor's house in Tobolsk, and
finally, at the Ipatyev house—the "House of
Special Purpose" -in Ekaterinburg, they suffered
increasing stages of harassment, humiliation and
deprivation. Their prison guards became progressively
more insolent, heartless and brutal, subjecting them to
insult, mockery and torment. The royal martyrs bore it
all with great fortitude, strength of spirit, true
Christian humility and total acceptance of the will of
God. They sought solace in church services, home
prayers and spiritual reading. They were heinously
murdered, these pure and innocent children, in the
night of July 4, 1918, and from the blood-soaked cellar
in Ekaterinburg they passed triumphantly into the royal
palace of the King of Heaven.
The grand duchesses Olga and Tatiana as sisters of mercy, at the hay-cutting. Pprivate family photo taken in 1916..
Almost a century separates us from these
holy children-martyrs, and yet they are very close to
us, very real to us, for we, the last Christians, have
much in common with them. They lived at the threshold
of the godless Communist rule—that seventh
apocalyptic "king" of Revelation, who would
"continue for a short space," while we live
at the threshold of the coming of Antichrist -the beast
who is the eighth (Rev. 17:10-11). They were surrounded
by a godless, totally apostate society, while we live
in a godless, totally apostate world. And yet, they
serve as a shining example to us, Orthodox children and
parents who strive to raise Orthodox children in a
pagan world, that with the help of God and through the
intercession of His righteous ones, it is still
possible to live a truly Christian life and raise a
truly Christian family, even in our most evil modern
times.
O holy Royal Martyrs Nicholas, Alexandra, Alexis, Olga,
Tabana, Maria and Anastasia, pray to God for us, that we,
too, when the hour of trial comes upon us, remain faithful
to our Lord Jesus Christi Amen.
Text from: Orthodox
America
Sources: Lives of Russian Saints: 1000 Years of
Russian Holiness (in Russian), vol II, compiled by
Mother Taisia. Jardanville, NY 1984; The House of
Special Purpose: An Intimate Portrait of the Last Days of
the Russan Imperial Family, compiled from the Papers
of their English Tutor Charles Sydney Gibbes, by J C.
Trewin New York, 1975.
Matushka Natalia is the choir director at the Church
of the Holy Transfiguration in Baltimore, Maryland, where
her husband, Fr. Rostlslav, is rector. They have two
daughters, Olga and Anastasia., named in honor of the
Royal Grand Duchesses
17 июля 2013 г.
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