He Won the Empress’ Favor by “Healing” Her Son
Rasputin ended up in Saint Petersburg at a time when Slavism and a conservative yearning for a return to Russia’s ancient roots were in vogue, and when mysticism and the occult were becoming fashionable with its decadent court and high society. Rasputin, the dirty, smelly, holy peasant with captivating eyes and a reputation for faith healing, was a living embodiment of Russia’s roots and Russian mysticism, and became an instant hit.
By 1905, his path paved with introductions and recommendations from prominent Russian religious figures, Rasputin had won over and befriended numerous influential aristocrats. His new friends and patrons included not only prominent members from Saint Petersburg’s high society, but also grand dukes and grand duchesses from the Emperor’s family.
He was introduced to Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra and their children, including the heir to the Russian throne, the young Tsarevich Alexei. Alexei was a hemophiliac – a disease whose sufferers bleed uncontrollably from even minor cuts – and had arrived at death’s door as a result on various occasions. Doctors could offer no cure, and were often unable to even alleviate the symptoms or ease the poor child’s suffering.
Rasputin arrived in the midst of that family tragedy at a time when his parents, particularly his mother, were driven to desperation by their only son’s ailment. Rasputin had developed a reputation as a faith healer by then, so when Tsarevich Alexei suffered a severe bout of internal bleeding in 1907 and the doctors could offer no relief, Empress Alexandra asked him to pray for her son. He arrived at the palace at night and began praying, and the following morning, the child had stopped bleeding. Rasputin’s standing with the Empress rose dramatically.
That standing reached stratospheric levels following an even more severe bout in 1912, when the young Tsarevich suffered internal hemorrhage following a bumpy carriage ride. Alexei became delirious with fever and pain, and seemed on the verge of death, with doctors helpless to cure or soothe him. Rasputin was back in Siberia, and the desperate Empress sent him a telegram asking him to pray for her son. He wrote her back that “God has seen your tears and heard your prayers. Do not grieve. The Little One will not die. Do not allow the doctors to bother him too much“. The following day, the bleeding stopped.
It was purely coincidental – most bouts of hemophilia eventually do stop on their own, and it just so happened that these particular bouts’ ending coincided with Rasputin’s arrival and prayers. Nobody could explain that however to Alexandra, who convinced herself that Rasputin had performed miracles. Here, at long last and in the person of the strannik, was the answer to her fervent prayers. From then on, nothing could shake her firm belief that Rasputin was blessed by God, and that his presence was vital to her family and for the survival of her son.