The Great Aristocratic Revival

The dark side of the Belle Epoque - anti-semitism

unhistorical:

January 5, 1895: Alfred Dreyfus is convicted of treason and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Captain Alfred Dreyfus was a French artillery officer who, in October of 1894, was arrested for treason, accused of passing military secrets to Germany. Dreyfus was a native of Alsace and more importantly, of Jewish background, a factor that probably contributed (or led) to his arrest and conviction based on flimsy evidence. The army stripped Dreyfus of his rank upon his conviction, and he was shipped to Devil’s Island, a penal colony/labor camp located off the coast of French Guiana; this was where Dreyfus would have spent the rest of his life had his guilty verdict remained intact, which seemed likely, as few people aside from his own family members were willing to stand up for him.

Dreyfus spent 1,517 days on the island and wrote several letters to the French president pleading that he search for the “true guilty party, the author of this abominable crime”, unaware that a political scandal bearing his name was brewing thousands of miles away in France. Evidence that the French army had wrongfully punished Dreyfus and then attempted to cover up its mistake set off the “Dreyfus affair”. In early 1898 Émile Zola’s famous open letter to the president, “J’accuse”, ran in a newspaper run by future Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau (another Dreyfus supporter):

 The evidence of Dreyfus’s character, his affluence, the lack of motive and his continued affirmation of innocence combine to show that he is the victim of the lurid imagination of Major du Paty de Clam, the religious circles surrounding him, and the “dirty Jew” obsession that is the scourge of our time… (the full article)

The Dreyfus affair divided the nation into two main camps. On one side lay the anti-Dreyfus camp, composed mainly of anti-semites, nationalists, certain religious leaders, and on the other, the pro-Dreyfus faction (called “Dreyfusards”), which included men like Zola (and other intellectuals and artists), republicans, socialists, and advocates of religious freedom. The latter group eventually triumphed. In 1899 Dreyfus was tried  again and sentenced to ten years imprisonment this time, but in 1906 he was officially exonerated and reinstated to the army with a promotion to major. The Dreyfus affair and the anti-semitism exposed (and refuted) by it was one of the events that inspired the formation of the modern Zionist movement. 

Schloss Schönbrunn

(Source: hate-cockroaches)

historyofromanovs:

One Hundred Years ago: The Imperial Royal Family of Russia in 1913.

For 300 years the history of Russia was inextricably linked to that of one family: the Romanovs. Tracing their line back to Tsar Michael and claiming a divine right to reign, they shaped the history of Russia, for the better or for worse, over three centuries. Their influence defined the politics, society, art, and philosophy of the time and led to the establishment of Russia as one of the great world powers.

When they gathered to celebrate their tercentenary in 1913, the Romanovs’ grip on Russia had begun to loosen. The strain of World War I had spread unrest throughout Russia. On July 17th, 1918, three hundred and four years of the Romanovs ended when Tsar Nicholas II, his wife and five children were brutally murdered by a Bolshevik execution squad. - Source: The Romanovs: Ruling 1613-1917.

The year of 2013 is the Quatercentenary, 400th anniversary, of the founding of the Romanov Dynasty.

(via the---governess)

historyofromanovs:

Romanov Birthdays → Empress Elizabeth of Russia, December 29

Elizabeth was born on 29 December 1709, the second-surviving daughter of Peter the Great and his wife, Empress Catherine I. As her parents were not publicly acknowledged as being married at the time of her birth, Elizabeth’s ‘illegitimacy’ would be used by political opponents to challenge her right to the throne. On 6 March 1711, she was proclaimed a Tsarevna, and on 23 December 1721, a Tsesarevna. She led the country into the two major European conflicts of her time: the War of Austrian Succession and the Seven Years’ War. She remains one of the most popular Russian monarchs due to her strong opposition to Prussian policies and her abstinence from executing a single person during her reign.

As a child, Elizabeth was bright, if not brilliant, but her formal education was both imperfect and desultory. Her father adored her. Elizabeth was his daughter and in many ways resembled him as a feminine replica, both physically and temperamentally. She was also an excellent dancer and rider. From her earliest years, she delighted everyone with her extraordinary beauty and vivacity. She was commonly known as the leading beauty of the Russian Empire. Under the reign of Elizabeth, the Russian court was one of the most splendid in all Europe. Foreigners were amazed at the sheer luxury of the sumptuous balls and masquerades. Russian court had steadily increased in importance throughout the 18th century and came to hold more cultural significance than many of its Western counterparts due its inclusive nature.

After the death of Empress Anna, the regency of Anna Leopoldovna with infant Ivan VI was marked by high taxes and economic problems. Elizabeth, being the daughter of Peter the Great, enjoyed much support from the Russian guards regiments. Elizabeth often visited the regiments, marking special events with the officers and acting as godmother to their children. The guards repaid her kindness when on the night of 25 November 1741, Elizabeth seized power with the help of the Preobrazhensky Regiment. After winning the regiment over, the troops marched to the Winter Palace where they arrested the infant Emperor, his parents, and their own lieutenant-colonel. It was a daring coup and passed without bloodshed. Elizabeth had vowed that if she became Empress that she would not sign a single death sentence, an unusual promise that she—notably—kept to throughout her life.

Elizabeth was only too aware that the deposed Ivan VI, whom she had imprisoned in the Schlusselburg Fortress and placed in solitary confinement, was a threat to her throne. Elizabeth feared a coup in his favour and set about destroying all papers, coins or anything else depicting or mentioning Ivan. Elizabeth had issued an order that, should any attempt be made for him to escape, he was to be eliminated. Catherine II upheld the order and when an attempt was made he was killed and secretly buried within the fortress.

In the late 1750s, Elizabeth’s health started to decline. She began to suffer a series of dizzy spells and refused to take the prescribed medicines. She forbade the word “death” in her presence. Knowing she was dying, Elizabeth used her last remaining strength to make her confession, to recite with her confessor the prayer for the dying and to say good-bye to those few people who wished to be with her including Peter and Catherine. Finally on 25 December 1761, the Empress died. She was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in Saint Petersburg on 3 February 1762, after six weeks lying in state. Peter III, Elizabeth’s nephew, succeeded her.