Nicholas quotes

View Quote [Describing to Nicholas II the logistics problems of the Russo-Japanese War; holding a bullet]

Well, Nicky, let me put it this way. This is a bullet, munitioned in Saint Petersburg. I send it off to war. How does it get there? On a single spur of railroad track four thousand miles long, and in the middle, no track at all. God help us, it spends three days packed on sleds. It works the same way for every pair of boots, first aid kit, or pound of tea we send. Get out now, Nicky. While there is time!

View Quote [Following the murder of Prime Minister Stolypin, the Tsar orders a string of crackdowns. The conspirators behind Stolypin's assassinations are convicted and executed; but various crackdowns on civil liberties occur and police brutality is left unchecked. The Tsar also orders the dissolving of the Duma. Russian police are standing by to escort the Duma members out. Alexander Kerensky, now a member of Duma, is protesting this]

Alexander Kerensky: "Tell the Tsar that he can close this building, but he cannot close the Duma or the concept of the Russian people being represented in government!"

Members of the Duma<in unison>: "HEAR, HEAR!"

Duma President: "Mr. Kerensky, I have the floor. You will not speak out of turn!"

Alexander Kerensky: "The Duma is not a street corner. We are not rebels and bombmakers. Most of us want a system like the English do. Let there be a Tsar. But let there be representative government and the rule of law as well. Bring the Tsar here and let him be told that."

Members of the Duma: "HEAR, HEAR!"

Duma President: "The Tsar is not here right now. He is at his hunting lodge in Poland."

Alexander Kerenksy: "I do not care if he is in Scotland shooting wild grouse! Go tell the Tsar that by dissolving the Duma he is bring ruin upon his head and that he cannot silence the voice of the Russian people. Tell him now! Tell him, while there is still a Tsar left to tell!"

View Quote [In an unnamed nation, presumably Poland, Belarus, or Austria. Ragged Russian soldiers are lined up in formation. Colonel Volkov, his mood now much more depressed and realistic from his prewar overconfidence a couple of years ago, is inspecting soldiers, who are poorly equipped. The Imperial Russian Army, unable to afford being selective, has drafted many types of men to become soldiers, from teenage boys just barely finishing puberty to old men with white beards. Volkov confers with an inferior officer.]

Colonel Volkov: "The men have orders to be on the front line tonight. Do we have any horses or motor transport?"

Russian Major: "No sir, there is none available for our unit."

Colonel Volkov: "Very well, then they have to walk."

Russian Major: "Right face!" <Soldiers face right> "Forward, march!" <Major leads the soldiers marching down the road>

[Colonel Volkov walks off in the opposite direction and reclines under a tree. He takes one last look at the clouds, sky, and falling leaves from the trees as he unholsters his pistol and places it in his mouth. Camera zooms off screen as the sound of a gunshot is heard, indicating Colonel Volkov has taken his own life]

View Quote [Lenin is living in a squalid apartment in France. The Bolshevik party is in big trouble; having been infiltarted by the Ohkrana and is near ruin. Lenin is not faring well himself having to go into exile. He is confirming his depression to his wife.]

In my ten years of exile, I have only been to Russia three months. I speak, no one listens to me. I write, no one bothers to read what I publish. I am out of style, no one is wearing me this season. I know what happens to expatriates; they go mad or they fade away in lands they are not native to. Is this all there is. I mean, three hundred years of Romanovs. What is there to say there will not be three hundred more?

View Quote [Nicholas & Alexandra are going to a birthday ball in honor of his mother; the Empress Dowager]

Tsarista Alexandra: "Oh Nicky, do we have to go? Can't we just say I have a headache."

Tsar Nicholas II: "It is my mother's birthday. You are too old for that now."

Tsaritsa Alexandra: "You never see unpleasant things. You drift away. I even wonder if you hear me half the time."

Tsar Nicholas II: "Just now I find you all too audible."

Tsaritsa Alexandra: "Nicky, guess what?"

Tsar Nicholas II: "You have got your headache."

[Both chuckle]

View Quote [On his train car riding through Russian villages during the 300th anniversary of the Romanov family ruling Russia. Russian peasants are seen waving at the royal family's train as it passes by their villages.]

I did not want to come on this tour. But by God, I do so love it when they stand and wave!

View Quote [Rasputin is in his home village in Siberia. He is riding on a horse and drinking liquor straight from the bottle. He sees three beautiful peasant girls shoveling hay into a horse drawn cart and approaches the ladies. The cart is then seen moving as a nun is walking by]

Nun: "Good day, and the Lord be with you."

[The nun is then shocked to see the three peasant women emerge from the hay cart in the nude and giggling. Rasputin then also emerges shirtless, still seen drunk and guzzling from his liquor bottle]

Grigori Rasputin: "And the Lord be with you!"

[Rasputin laughs in a drunken manner; the nun crosses herself at seeing such a spectacle]

View Quote [Sarejevo, Serbia. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the Crown Prince of Austria, and his wife are riding in a motorcade waving to spectators. A man comes out of the crowd and guns them both down. Scene changes to Tsarskoe Selo. The Tsarevitch Alexei awakens screaming as it was a nightmare of his. The Tsar, Tsaritsa, and their four daughters are awakened by the screaming and run to Alexei's room to see what is the matter.]

Grand Duchess Olga: "What is it Alexei, what is wrong?"

Tsaritsa Alexandra: "It is all right darling, we are here"

Tsarevitch Alexei: "There were royals in a car; a man shot them..."

Tsar Nicholas II: "You were dreaming about Archduke Franz Ferdinand. This is what happened..."

Tsaritsa Alexandra<interrupting him>: "Nicky, please do not tell them those horrible things."

Tsar Nicholas II: "Sunny, they are not children anymore. They have to know these things. Franz Ferdinand's assassination is bad for the royal family of Austria. It is also an unbelievable burden and sadness for the family of the assassin. You see, sometimes governments do things their people do not like. So the people react in different ways. The British vote. The Americans frequently remind their leaders they must be loyal to the U.S. Constitution. And the Serbs throw bombs. You see, Serbia wants its independence. But Austria will not grant it to them. So the Serbs resort to violence. It has happened in this country too sometimes. Your great-grandfather was killed by a bomb, so was Uncle Sergei. But Serbia is a long way away. Our foreign ministry will write some angry letters to the Serbian leaders, our generals will go on exercise and everything will be right again. And we do not need have bad dreams about archdukes. All over Europe kings and queens are sleeping safely in their beds, and that is what we are going to do too."

View Quote [Soldiers have opened fire on the peasants, culminating in the infamous Bloody Sunday. Ambulance drivers are taking away the killed and wounded; Petya's wife Sonya is among the dead. His toddler is crying for his mother and he is in shocked having been now widowered by the massacre. Father Gapon is dishevled and his idealism in peaceful reform is shattered]

He did not come. He never came. Nicholas the murderer. The bloody, bloody murderer!

View Quote [The "Bloody Sunday" massacre has just occurred. Tsar Nicholas II furiously storms into his office to see Prime Minister Witte]

Tsar Nicholas II: "How many dead?"

Prime Minister Witte: "Sir, we are still counting, but it is estimated to be in the hundreds."

Tsar Nicholas II: "Who gave the order to fire upon them?"

Prime Minister Witte: "Your Majesty, nobody ordered it."

Tsar Nicholas II: "You run this government. Somebody had to have ordered something!"

Prime Minister Witte: "Would you have gone out to meet them?"

Tsar Nicholas II: "Of course not."

Prime Minister Witte: "Would you have given them a Duma? Allowed them to have elections? Had schools and hospitals built for them?"

Tsar Nicholas II: "How could I?"

Prime Minister Witte: "THEN WHY BOTHER TO INFORM YOU ABOUT THIS?! You would not have done anything!"

View Quote [The Empress Dowager has a moment alone with her son, the Tsar, at her birthday party]]

Empress Dowager Marie: "Witte had tea with me today."

Tsar Nicholas II: "Oh, did he?"

Empress Dowager Marie: "He ate all my sturgeon but he never stopped talking. Clever man! He talked about the war like everyone else. He thinks..."

Tsar Nicholas II<cutting her off>: "I know what he thinks."
Empress Dowager Marie: "Nicky, will you please let me finish. I know I am not as clever as everybody makes me out to be but I do know this. Witte thinks we cannot afford wars. They are too ambitious. I very much agree with him. We are an 18th Century nation trying to make it in a 20th Century world. Get out of Korea and forget about Japan. We need all our strength, resources, and money to look after Russia. Do not waste it on those little yellow Buddhists, pagans, or whatever the heck they are called. You only encourage them by taking them seriously."

Tsar Nicholas II: "I am 36 years old, Mama. You must let me look after this war on my own."

Empress Dowager Marie: "It is as your father always said..."

Tsar Nicholas II<again cutting her off as she has hit a sore point>: "Thank you for your kind advice."

View Quote [The overconfident flag officers have concluded their operations plans and have started drinking champagne. Suddenly the Tsar enters with his ministers and Grand Duke Nicholas. All the soldiers immediately stand at attention as the Tsar enters. A somber looking Tsar orders the men at ease and prepares to deliver shocking news]

Tsar Nicholas II: "Gentlemen, Germany has declared war on Russia.

Grand Duke Nicholas: "God save Russia."

Flag officers (in unison): "God save the Tsar."

View Quote [The Russian flag officers are all celebrating and congratulating themselves on their war plans and believe their entry into the First World War will be quick and painless for Russia. Witte, now retired, is trying in vain to convince them and the Tsar of the dire consequences of what World War One will do. It seems Witte is prophetic in predicting the rise of the Soviet Union, the rise of Nazi Germany, and the eventual coming of the Second World War]

None if you will be here when this war ends. Everything we worked to build will be destroyed. There is no question another great war will come. The societies and kingdoms of Europe we knew will crumble, and out of the wreckage madmen and lunatics will come to power. And the world will grow old.

View Quote [The Tsar is meeting with his flag officers to discuss troop movements as the Austrians have engaged in a military exercise near the Russian border. It looks imminent that Russia will be hurtled into the First World War. Retired Prime Minister Witte is trying to convince the Tsar not to agitiate any other nation. He is sending a recieving telegrams to Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany, the so called "Willy & Nicky" correspondences]

Military Aide: "Your Majesty, good news. I have a personal telegram from the Kaiser offering to mediate between us and Austria!"

Tsar Nicholas II: "I knew I could count on Willy! You see?"

Prime Minister Witte: "With all due respect to your cousin sire, the Kaiser is a deceitful megalomaniac. If he is offering to help, then it is really time for us to start praying."

View Quote [The Tsar is meeting with Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin (Witte's successor) at the Livadia Palace by the Crimean Sea]

Prime Minister Stolypin: "One finds these in Saint Petersburg everywhere. The drawings are crude, but you get the idea of what they mean."

[Stolypin shows the Tsar vulgar cartoons of himself and the Tsaritsa sitting in Rasputin's lap. Another cartoon shows the Tsaritsa topless with Rasputin]

Tsar Nicholas II: "Damn it! What is wrong with the Ohkrana? Cannot 10,000 secret agents find a printing press? I want it stopped!"

[The Tsar angrily crumples up the cartoons and throws them over the rocks into the Crimean Sea]

Prime Minister Stolypin: "It is not just one printing press. The agents cannot find them all. Nobody knows why you have allowed Rasputin into the palace."

Tsar Nicholas II: "You know why."

Prime Minister Stolypin: "Yes, but the people do not."

Tsar Nicholas II: "I suppose I should tell them, shall I. Very well, I shall make the annoucement. <Somewhat stately voice> "Citizens, your Tsarevitch could have a nosebleed and die from it."

Prime Minister Stolypin: I have these as well." [Stolypin hands the Tsar a dossier] "Police reports on Grigori Efifmovitch Rasputin. Drunk half the time. Chases after all the women of Saint Petersburg. Oh, he is generous with himself, I will give him that, it is his only Christian virtue. Whores, officer's wives, the list goes on. You have to banish him from the palace; away from Saint Petersburg. I cannot control the situation if you do not. People are spreading rumors that he goes to bed with your wife and daughters!"