15. Placing Tsarina Alexandra in charge of the country was a very bad idea.
Things grew worse when Tsar Nicholas, acting again on Rasputin’s advice, placed Tsarina Alexandra in charge of running Russia while he was running the war. On the one hand, there was no doubt of her loyalty to the ruling family. On the other, she proved to be wildly incompetent in the face of running the country in her husband’s stead.
Before long, the Tsarina Alexandra was soliciting the barely literate charlatan’s advice on matters of state and governance. She then heeded his advice, or badgered her husband, Tsar Nicholas, into carrying out Rasputin’s recommendations. Soon, officials were being hired and fired based on Rasputin’s say so, and those seeking to advance or secure their positions showered him with bribes. Others sent their wives and daughters to seduce Rasputin into putting in a good word for them with the ruling couple. The scandal of Rasputin’s malign influence on Russia’s rulers kept growing.