Tsarina
Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Tsar
Nicholas II of Russia, gives birth to their fifth child and first son,
Alexei. Despite pleas from
Grand Duke Nicholas and
Count Sergei Witte, Nicholas refuses to end the
Russo-Japanese War or accept demands for a
constitutional monarchy, believing that doing either will make him look weak and endanger the Romanov dynasty. As the war drags on, growing public unrest causes workers to march to the
Winter Palace, hoping to present Nicholas with a petition demanding political representation.
Soldiers open fire on the approaching crowd, killing hundreds. The resulting
revolution forces Nicholas to create the
Duma. At a birthday party for the Tsar's mother, Alexandra meets
Grigori Rasputin, a self-proclaimed holy man, whom she later turns to for spiritual guidance after court physicians diagnose Alexei with
haemophilia. As the years go by, the close relationship between the royal family and Rasputin, along with Rasputin's behavior, leads to public mockery of the royal family. Nicholas eventually dismisses Rasputin from the court despite Alexandra's pleas to keep him. The
Romanov Tercentenary celebrations take place, and a lavish tour across
Imperial Russia follows, but resentment among the impoverished persists. Amidst the national festivities, Russian prime minister
Stolypin is assassinated. Nicholas responds by executing the assassins, allowing the police to terrorize the peasants, and closing the Duma. After a fall at the
Spała Hunting Lodge, Alexei experiences a severe bleeding attack, and it is believed he will die. Alexandra sends a telegram to Rasputin, who responds with prayer and instructions for the doctors to leave Alexei alone. His recovery is credited to Rasputin's intervention, and he is allowed to return to the imperial household. After the
assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Nicholas orders a mobilization of the
Imperial Russian Army on the European border aimed at Austria-Hungary during the
July Crisis.
Germany responds by declaring war. Later, with the war going badly for Russia on the
Eastern Front, Alexandra persuades Nicholas to take personal command of the troops; he leaves for the front, relieving the weary but experienced
Grand Duke Nicholas. Alexandra is left nominally in charge upon Nicholas' absence but a series of poor decisions leaves her seen to be a German agent under the influence of Rasputin, resulting in growing unpopularity amongst the population at large as conditions get worse. Nicholas receives a visit from the Dowager Empress, but her requests for him to return to St. Petersburg and remove Rasputin go unheeded. Rasputin's later assassination does little to stop Alexandra's misrule, culminating in revolt by workers and soldiers in St. Petersburg. Nicholas finally attempts to return to
Tsarskoye Selo but is instead
forced to abdicate on his train. The family, along with a small entourage, are exiled by
Alexander Kerensky and the provisional government to
Siberia after none of Russia's allies agree to grant the former royals sanctuary, fearing that the lingering resentment at their autocratic rule would unleash similar domestic revolts. The provisional government doesn't last however following the
seizing of power by the Bolsheviks and the country's descent into
civil war. Fearing that the encroaching pro-monarchist "
Whites" will attempt to restore the Romanovs, the Bolsheviks in Moscow attempt to have the royal family brought back for trial. En route back to the capital, the royals and their escort are intercepted by representatives of the local Ural Soviet, who seize the royals and bring them to
Yekaterinburg. Under harsh conditions, they are guarded by
Yakov Yurovsky, who later receives orders to have the family killed. In the middle of the night the family are awoken by his men and, under the pretense they need to be transferred again, are brought to the cellar
where they are executed. ==Cast==