Nicholas and Alexandra

Epic tale of the last years of Russia's Romanov dynasty, from the birth of Prince Alexis in 1904 until the family's execution in 1918. The Romanovs are absolute rulers, among the last of their kind in Europe, living in luxury while the vast majority of Russians live in absolute poverty. Russia is also involved in a costly war with Japan over the Korean peninsula and the Czar rejects all recommendations that he bring the war to an end. Moderate reformers argue in favor of a constitutional monarchy as is found in the United Kingdom but Nicholas will hear nothing of it, continuing his father's harsh policies and retaining absolute control. Revolutionaries abound and the rise of the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky, slowly begin to gain an advantage. The Czar's decision, against advice, to authorize a general mobilization in 1914 leads to the disaster (for them) of World War I on the front and the Czarina's insistence on relying on Father Gregori, aka Rasputin, for advice further alienates the family from those who nominally support them. With the Russian people starving and general strikes spreading across the country, the Czar is forced to abdicate. Before the year is out the Bolsheviks will be in power and the Romanovs in custody. The entire family - the Czar, Czarina, four daughters and one son - were executed in July 1918.