The Romanov Family: Beyond the Mystery of the Missing Anastasia

One of history's most interesting mysteries is that of Princess Anastasia. For many, her story is known as the lost Russian princess.

The name Anastasia has provoked much theorizing. It wouldn’t be controversial to say that she has become more famous after death than in life.

Yet, few truly know about the real Anastasia. I thought it would be interesting to learn about her, beyond what most people know.

Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia was the fourth out of five children to be born to Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra. Her older siblings were Olga, Tatiana, and Maria. She had a younger brother named Alexei.

Interestingly, Nicholas and Alexandra had a ‘Romeo-and Juliet- esque youth. This was due to the fact that Alexandra’s German family held disdain for Russia, and Nicolas’s father didn’t bother to hide his disdain towards Germany.

Despite these odds, the two still married and ruled the final Russian monarch.

Although the story of Princess Anastasia is fascinating, the stories of her overshadowed siblings are much more enthralling.

Olga, doing her favorite past time (reading)

Olga, the firstborn, had often felt convicted as the oldest sibling. She enjoyed bible stories, particularly the story about Joseph and his twelve brothers.

On one occasion, she said she sympathized with the oldest brother, and said he had deserved the coat instead of Joseph.

Tatiana, the second oldest, was nicknamed “the Governess” by her siblings because of her controlling nature and her direct sense of order.

Despite this, she hated to be called by her official title. On one occasion of which she was called ‘your Imperial Highness, she kicked the offender under the table and called them crazy.

Tatiana, the second oldest child

Whenever any of the children wanted something, Tatiana was the one sent to ask their father. This was due to two reasons. The first being the fact that Tatiana was particularly close to her father. The second being that out of all the children, she resembled her mother the closest.

During World War I, Tatiana and Olga became nurses to help out with the war effort. Many nurses that worked with Tatiana praised her skill. Some even said she was “born to be a nurse.”

Maria, the third daughter in the family

Maria was the third born, and is known as the most captivating of all the sisters. She had light hair, and such deep blue eyes they became known as ‘Maria’s Saucers’.

She was so captivating, in fact, Maria had charmed one of the soldiers guarding her family during their house arrest. He had smuggled in a cake for her 19th birthday, but got chastened when they were caught.

Maria was such a kind, generous, and good-mannered child that her siblings had nicknamed her ‘Fat Little-Bow-Wow’. On one occasion, her father remarked that he was relieved when Maria got in trouble, because he was afraid that one day she would grow wings.

Anastasia

As the youngest girl in the family, Anastasia was known as a sharp and clever child.

Like most children, Anastasia disliked schoolwork. To get out of her schoolwork, Anastasia would climb trees and refuse to come down.

Anastasia liked to pull pranks and tricks on whomever she could (and Maria would often follow behind apologizing).

In fact, a laundrywoman reported seeing Anastasia stick out her tongue at a firing squad who had shot at her because she had peered out the window against orders.

There are many photos of the Romanov family, and not all of them are as proper as this one. In fact, there are quite a few photos of Anastasia being a silly goose, or an 'Imp' like her nickname.

The four grand duchesses grew up with a ‘Spartan’ upbringing, as to the request of their mother. They slept on iron beds, received each other’s hand-me-down clothes, and took cold baths daily.

The Romanov sisters, posing for a picture after shaving their hair

The sister’s were especially close. Olga and Tatiana were known as ‘The Big Pair’, while Maria and Anastasia was known as ‘The Little Pair’. Each 'pair' shared a room. Maria and Anastasia often wore matching clothes.

While under house arrest, many members of the family contracted measles. When their hair started to fall out, the four sisters decided to shave their hair together.

Alexei Romanov, the young heir of Russia

Alexei, the youngest and only boy, was born with a rare disease, hemophilia (the inability to form blood clots). Despite this, he was named heir and the truth of his sickness was a kept state secret.

Alexei was adored by his entire family. The mood of the entire royal court seemed to depend entirely on whether on not he was feeling well.

Alexei was reported to be very cheerful and intelligent. When Alexei and his family were held captive, he had sled down the stairs and nearly died. Many historians believe that this was intentional.

Nevertheless, because of the incident, he spent the rest of his short life in a wheelchair.

When unrest grew too great in Russia, Nicolas abdicated his throne. This ended Russia’s monarchy and the Romanov family’s reign, which had lasted for three centuries.

The Romanovs were placed in the Alexander Palace. They had a peaceful exile until they were finally forced into the Ipatiev house, also known as the “House of Special Purpose”.

The Romanovs final days were nothing extravagant. They were treated strictly and only allowed outside for a brief daily exercise. Under the radar, Alexandra managed to sew jewels into her daughter’s dresses in case of escape.

The cellar of the "House of Special Purpose" where the Romanov execution took place

On July 17, 1918, the entire Romanov family and their servants were lined up in the basement, as if to take a photograph.

An execution order was quickly read out and a squad came in and started firing.

Nicolas, Alexandra, and two servants were instantly killed. Several others were harmed.

Unfortunately, all five children were protected by the jewels sewn into their clothes. They acted like a shield from the bullets.

Alexei, who was stuck in a chair, was shot at repeatedly in the chest. When the soldiers noticed that the bullets were ricocheting, they decided to use other measures.

Alexei was then stabbed by a bayonet, and finally shot in the head. Tatiana and Olga died quickly, both shot in the head.

Anastasia and Maria, close even right before death, were clinging to each other in the corner. They were crying out for their mother when they were both stabbed by a bayonet.

Tatiana (left) and her French Bulldog, Ortino, and her sister Olga (right)

Anastasia apparently was the last child to die. She had died holding her pet dog, named Jimmy, who was killed as well. Tatiana’s dog, Ortino, also suffered the same fate.

The bodies were then burned with acid and buried in an abandoned mine shaft, and not found until 1979. The news was not made to the public until 1991. They have all been buried together in Saint Petersburg.

Alexei and Maria’s remains were found at a separate grave in 2007, and they have yet to be buried due to refusal claims by the Russian Orthodox church. Their remains lie in a state vault, still locked away. Hopefully soon, Alexei and Maria will be able to finally rest with their family.