Synopsis
'The definitive biography' – Simon Sebag Montefiore, bestselling author of The Romanovs
Get lost in the labyrinthine life of Grigori Rasputin, an enigmatic figure that continues to puzzle historians to this day.
Drawing on major new sources hitherto unexamined by western historians, Russian history expert Douglas Smith offers an unparalleled biography that exposes the mysteries and myths surrounding this extraordinary figure.
Rasputin. A horse thief and a hard-drinking ruffian in his youth. A devout Orthodox Christian – or just a fake holy man. This book scrutinises the myths – of his debauchery and sexual exploits, his healing powers and uncanny influence over Russia's empress and emperor, and whether he manipulated the Russian government at his own behest, or under the influence of forces more sinister.
Smith scrutinises his murder and the players involved, with focus on Prince Yusupov and his fellow conspirators – questioning broader conspiracy theories involving British secret agents and Freemasons, and discussing the long shadow his murder cast over the Romanov dynasty.
Meticulously researched and rich in detail, this is a magisterial biography of one of history's most intriguing characters.
Shortlisted for the James Tait Black Prize.
'The most comprehensive account of Rasputin to date, brimming with complexities and fascinating detail, and stands as an enlightening re-evaluation of this crucial figure in Russian history' – The Telegraph
Details
Reviews
“This brilliantly written, meticulously researched account of the life of Rasputin is the best, most complete and accurate I have ever read. Step by step, day by day, week by week in this life, Douglas Smith tells the story from its humble beginnings, through its obscene sexual chapters, to its violent end. He describes how a peasant became 'Our Friend' to the last emperor and empress of Russia. He explains why this dependency came at terrible cost for the imperial couple, for their children, for Russia, and for the Twentieth Century world. Readers will begin by saying that this is an impossible story to believe. They will read on because, in Douglas Smith's mesmerizing telling, it must be believed. And because it did happen.”Robert K. Massie, author of Nicholas and Alexandra
“A prodigious piece of scholarship. Doug Smith's exhaustive and forensic examination of a wealth of new and previously unseen evidence finally lays to rest the tired old myth of 'the mad monk' and rightly positions Rasputin as a crucial figure in late Imperial Russian history.”Helen Rappaport, author of Four Sisters
“Douglas Smith understands that history is not only what happened, but what people think happened. In Rasputin, he deftly unpicks myth, legend and fact, separating and examining each thread, before weaving them back to create a pattern not merely of a man, but of a time, and a place, and a revolution. It is, itself, revolutionary.”Judith Flanders, author of A Circle of Sisters
“Few figures in 20th century history have been more obscured by myth and legend than Grigory Yefimovich Rasputin, the mystic confident of the last tsar and tsarina. In his research, comprehensive to the nth degree, Douglas Smith has dug up previously unseen archives, followed previously unexplored leads, and connected the dots across the Russian landscape. They're dots of blood. Rasputin reveals the true character of the man without minimizing his malign hold on the loathsome, feckless Romanovs.”Ken Kalfus, author of The Commissariat of Enlightenment
