I've always been fascinated by the story of the Romanovs, which began with a family living in opulence, and ended with brutal murders. Nicholas Romanov, Tsar Nicholas II, was the supreme ruler of the Russian Empire from the late 19th century until 1917 when he was forced to abdicate his throne. Even though I don't approve of emperors, the Romanov story is fascinating for many reasons:

• The wealth was staggering. Documentary films about the Romanovs say the family was worth $30 billion and controlled 10% of the world's landmass. Their wealth was much larger than their European counterparts.
• By all accounts, Nicholas II was not trained to rule and he showed little interest in being a good leader. The second half of his rein was embroiled in civil war (the communists revolution). The Tsar underestimated the strength of his opposition, and refused to institute reforms which may have saved his family, if not his rule.
• Finally, in 1917, he was forced to abdicate his rule. A single piece of paper was used to write out the abdication. A year later, he, his wife Alexandra, his son and heir Aleksei, along with their four daughters, were shot and stabbed in the basement of the house in which they were being held in central Russia.
• Among the mysteries surrounding the family and their demise is that Anastasia may have survived. In the 1990s DNA was retrieved from the bodies thought to be the Romanovs, and tested against surviving family members (extended family). It has been scientifically confirmed that Anastasia perished in the Bolshevik murder.
• The communist regime denied the murders for six years, fueling the rumors that some of the family members survived and were smuggled out of the country.

I have scoured the web collecting images of the Romanov family, and if they are any indication, it was a happy family (despite Aleksei's anemia). I placed the images into a slide show / film. View it here.

Links

Romanov memorial

Yale University Romanov images

Alexander Palace

Frozetears.org (includes downloadable video documentaries of the Romanovs)

Video of the royal family:

Tsar Nicholas II coronation

Tsar visiting Crimean troops

Tsar declares war on Germany, 1914

Tsar's private study

Slide show of Romanovs, with lots of photos I've never seen before

Ipatiev House (scene of Romanov murders)

The four Romanov daughters disembarking