The heir of Russia's once powerful Romanov dynasty1 fell victim to2 bad decision, bad luck, and the tide of history.
At the dawn of the 20th century, the mighty Romanov family had ruled the vast Russian empire for nearly 300 years. By 1918, the last Romanov Czar3, Nicholas Ⅱ, and his family were prisoners of Russia's new government in a remote coal-mining city in the Ural Mountains. The outlook was grim.
This never would have happened to the previous Czar, the powerful autocrat4 Alexander Ⅲ. But Nicholas was not like his father. “What am I going to do? What is going to happen to me?” the 26-year-old Nicholas fretted5 when he became Czar, after Alexander died unexpectedly in 1894. Later, Nicholas called being Czar “the awful job I have feared all my life.”
In the end, the awful job would destroy him. Neither his devoted wife, Alexandra, nor his rank and power could save the last Czar.
Bloody Sunday
When Nicholas came to the throne, Russia was a rigidly6 structured society, with a large gap between the poor and the nobility7. During the 19th century, a series of unsuccessful revolts had shaken that system. Now, the next wave of discontent was building.
Nicholas tried to be the autocrat his father had been. But indecision8 had choices, and bad luck worked against him. A war with Japan over Korea and Manchuria9 in 1904-1905 ended in a humiliating loss for Russia. Many began to see the Czar as a weak leader.
On a bitter-cold day in January 1905, 200,000 workers assembled at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia's capital under the Romanovs. The peaceful marchers asked for civil liberties10 (individual rights) and an end to the war. Nervous policemen opened fire, killing at least 130.
Bloody Sunday, as the day was called, set off more strikes and riots11. Nicholas partly calmed tensions by granting the people and elected Duma12 (lower house of parliament). But when he dismissed the first Duma, and then the second, unrest redoubled.
Rasputin
In August 1904, the royal couple's only son, Alexis, had been born with hemophila13 (a serious blood disease). Distraught14, Alexandra prayed for a miracle.
In 1908, a certain holy man from Siberia, who claimed to have healing powers, was summoned15 to the palace. Called Rasputin, from the Russian word for scandalous behavior, he at first appeared to cure the boy.
The grateful Alexandra fell under Rasputin's spell16. Soon, he was using her protection to make and attack powerful enemies in the government and aristocracy17. The grumbling18 against Rasputin grew ominous19.
War and Revolution
World War I, which broke out in 1914, was a terrible burden on the Russia people. The Russia Army suffered huge losses. Breadlines stretched throughout Petrograd (as St. Petersburg was then called). People died in unheated rooms.
In August 1915, Nicholas set out for the battlefront20 to direct the war effort, leaving Alexandra—and Rasputin—in charge of the government. Their handling of affairs was disastrous21. The situation got so bad, a group of influential men, including a cousin of the Czar, assassinated22 Rasputin in December 1916.
Nicholas was at the front on March 8, 1917, when workers in Petrograd spontaneously23 went on strike. A few days later, soldiers joined the demonstrations24.
Finally, even the Czar's generals demanded that he abdicate25 (give up) the throne. Two members of the Duma went to his private railcar on March 15 to obtain his resignation. “Do you think it might have been avoided?” he asked them, to their amazement.
Too Dangerous to Live
Nicholas and his family were placed under house arrest26 by Russia's Provisional27 Government. The family was moved twice—finally, in April 1918, to a house in faraway Ekaterinburg28. On July 16, 1918, soldiers took the family to the basement of the house and
俄罗斯历史上一度非常强大的罗曼诺夫王朝继承人沦为错误决策、时运不济和历史潮流的牺牲品。
二十世纪初，势力强大的罗曼诺夫家族已经统治了幅员辽阔的俄罗斯帝国近300年。到了1918年，罗曼诺夫最后一个沙皇尼古拉二世及其家人成了俄罗斯新兴政权的阶下囚，被关在乌拉尔山区一个偏僻的矿山城市，前景暗淡。
这一切绝对不会发生在老沙皇、独断专行的亚历山大三世身上。但是，尼古拉不像他的父亲。“这如何是好？我该怎么办？”1894年，亚历山大突然驾崩， 26岁的尼古拉登上了沙皇的宝座，茫然不知所措。后来，尼古拉谈到自己登上皇位是“我一生中最可怕糟糕的事情。”
这件糟糕的差事最终毁了他。无论是他忠诚的妻子——亚历山德拉，还是他的地位、权势，都不能改写这位末代沙皇的命运。
血腥的星期天
尼古拉登基之时，俄国社会等级森严，贫民与贵族之间存在着巨大的鸿沟。整个19世纪的一系列起义虽未成功，但是却动摇了这种等级制度。现在，一场新的社会动荡正蓄势待发。
尼古拉试图像他父亲一样独断专行。但是，优柔寡断造成举措不当，时运偏又与他作对。1904-1905年间，俄国为朝鲜和满洲的问题，与日本开战，结果俄国一败涂地。许多人开始认为沙皇是一个软弱无能的统治者。
1905年1月，在一个滴水成冰的日子里，20万工人聚集在圣彼得堡的冬宫前面。当时的圣彼得堡是罗曼诺夫王朝统治下的俄国首都。和平请愿者要求公民自由（人权），要求结束战争。神经紧张的警察开枪镇压，至少130人被杀。
这天正好是星期天，故称血腥的星期天。这一事件激起了更多的罢工和暴乱。尼古拉同意了人民的要求，部分地缓解了紧张局势，并进行了杜马选举（议会下院）。但是，当他解散第一届杜马的时候，第二波动荡来势更为凶猛。
拉斯普金
1904年8月，沙皇惟一的儿子亚历克斯生下来就患有血友病（一种严重的血液病）。亚历山德拉悲痛不已，祈求奇迹发生。
1908年，西伯利亚来的一个圣人，自称有高超的医术，被召进皇宫。人们把这个西伯利亚人称作拉斯普金，即俄语“丑恶行径”的意思。他最初似乎真的治好了皇子的病。
亚历山德拉对他感激不尽，终入拉斯普金的魔咒。不久，他利用亚历山德拉的庇护，在政府和贵族中广泛树敌，攻击异己。对拉斯普金的怨言一时甚嚣尘上。
战争和革命
1914年，第一次世界大战爆发，这对俄国人民来说是一个可怕的负担。俄国军队蒙受巨大损失。彼得格勒（当时人们对圣彼得堡的称呼）到处是等待救济的人群。许多人在不能取暖的房子里冻死。
1915年8月，尼古拉到前线督战，留下亚历山德拉和拉斯普金负责政府事务。他们把政事处理得一团糟。形势日趋恶化，一部分实力派人物，包括沙皇的堂兄，于1916年12月暗杀了拉斯普金。
1917年3月8日，彼得格勒的工人自发举行大罢工。此时，尼古拉还在前线。几天之后，士兵纷纷倒戈，加入了抗议者的行列。
最后，甚至沙皇的将军们都要求他退位。3月15日，杜马两名议员来到沙皇的专列上接受他的逊位诏书。令他们感到惊讶的是，尼古拉问他们：“你们认为这一切可以避免吗？”
活下去太危险
尼古拉及其家人被俄国临时政府软禁起来。沙皇一家两次转移在押地，最后于1918年4月转往遥远的叶卡特琳堡，囚禁在一所房子里。1918年7月16日，士兵们把尼古拉一家押入
1． Romanov Dynasty: 罗曼诺夫王朝
（1615－1917年统治俄罗斯长达302年）
2． fall victim to 成为．．．受害者（或牺牲品）
3． Czar n． （1917年以前的）俄国沙皇，皇帝，专制独裁者
4． autocrat ] n． 独裁者
5． fret [fret] v． 焦急
6． rigidly adv． 严格地
7． nobility n． 高贵，贵族
8． indecision n． 优柔寡断
9． Manchuria ] n． 满洲（中国东北的旧称）
10． civil liberty 公民自由
11． riot n． 暴动
12． Duma n． 杜马（俄皇时代的国会，俄罗斯议会）
13． hemophilia n． 血友病
14． distraught adj． 发疯的
15． summon v． 召唤，号召
16． spell n． 魔咒
17． aristocracy n． 贵族
18． grumble v． 抱怨，发牢骚
19． ominous adj． 恶兆的，不吉利的
20． battlefront n． 前线
21． disastrous adj． 损失惨重的
22． assassinate v． 暗杀，行刺
23． spontaneously adv． 自发地
24． demonstration ] n． 游行
25． abdicate v． 退位，放弃（职位、权力等）
26． be placed under arrest 在拘留中
27． provisional adj． 临时的
28． Ekaterinburg n． 叶卡特琳堡（前苏联乌拉尔地区的斯维尔德洛夫斯克）