Learn English via Listening - Level 4 - Anastasia and the Russian Revolution
текст песни

The twentieth century brought many changes to traditional cultures around the world.
Some of the most radical changes occurred in the Russian Empire, which had one of the
oldest monarchies in Europe. In 1917-18 the rule of the Tsars was replaced by the world's
first communist government led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. No one was more affected by
these changes than Anastasia, the Tsar's youngest daughter.
Between 1895 and 1901, Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra, became the parents of
four beautiful and healthy daughters - Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia. However, since
a girl could not inherit the throne of Russia, it was important for Alexandra to give birth
to a son. Finally, in 1904, the Tsar and Tsarina had a son, Aleksei.
This event, which should have made the whole family very happy, proved to be a source
of great sorrow. Aleksei was soon found to have an incurable disease. This disease,
hemophilia, meant that Aleksei regularly suffered from uncontrollable internal and
external bleeding which left him very weak. This caused anxiety for all the family,
especially his mother and father.
The Tsar and Tsarina loved their children. The girls, who didn't have to worry about
becoming rulers, led a fairly carefree existence. Anastasia and her sisters lived in a
palace with hundreds of servants. They attended many society parties with their parents.
The most elaborate parties were the grand balls, where everyone dressed in their finest
clothes and danced all through the night.
The absolute rule of the Tsar was not popular with everybody. The majority of the
population was poor peasant farmers who could barely keep themselves and their
families alive. If they moved into the city to get jobs in the factories, they had to work
long hours for very low wages, and live in slum conditions. Popular opposition forced
the Tsar in 1905 to give up some of his power to an elected parliament.
None of the girls married. They all lived a happy life together. They moved from palace to
palace, attended by their private tutors, visiting the beach, and sailing on the royal yacht.
Anastasia was the clown of the family. She didn't like schoolwork, but she enjoyed
painting and photography. Many of her photos of the royal family in happy times survive.
Soon the Tsar's problems worsened. The Empress Alexandra worried about her son and
became ill. War with Germany broke out in 1914, and the Russians suffered many defeats
and losses. In March 1917, there was popular revolution, and the Tsar was deposed.
From that time on, the royal family was prisoners. At first, they were treated kindly, but in
November, the Bolsheviks or communists gained control of the revolution. Lenin and his
followers hated the Tsar.
The royal family had been living in Tobolsk in Siberia. Because of fears that they might
escape, they were brought back to Ekaterinburg in the Ural region. Here, after midnight
on June 19, 1918, the entire royal family was shot by the Bolsheviks.
To some, this news was too dreadful to be believed. The thought that the Tsar's lively and
beautiful daughters had been killed was too hard to bear. Within a couple of years, a
woman who went by the name of Anna Anderson appeared in western Europe. She
claimed to be Anastasia. Some believed her story and some did not.
With the fall of the Soviet Union, it was possible to investigate the murder of the royal
family. It was also possible to prove that Anna Anderson was not the real Anastasia. After
a long search, the bodies of Anastasia and Aleksei were found. They had died with the
rest of the family. A great mystery was finally solved.