Rasputin was born a peasant in the small village of Pokrovskoye, along the Tura River in the Tobolsk Governorate (now Tyumen Oblast) in the Russian Empire. According to official records, he was born on 21 January [

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In 1897, Rasputin developed a renewed interest in religion and left Pokrovskoye to go on a pilgrimage. His reasons are unclear; according to

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Word of Rasputin's activity and charisma began to spread in Siberia during the early 1900s. At some point during 1904 or 1905, he traveled to the city of

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The royal family's belief in Rasputin's healing powers brought him considerable status and power at court. The tsar appointed Rasputin his lampadnik (lamplighter), charged

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On 12 July [O.S. 29 June] 1914 a 33-year-old peasant woman named Chionya Gusevaattempted to assassinate Rasputin by stabbing him in the stomach outside his home in Pokrovskoye. Rasputin was seriously wounded, and for a time it was not clear if he would

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A group of nobles led by Prince Felix Yusupov, Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich, and right-wing politician Vladimir Purishkevichdecided that Rasputin's

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Much of Rasputin's influence with the royal family stemmed from the belief by Alexandra and others that he had on several occasions eased

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