#konstantin pavlovich

[graceofromanovs]

Orders and Medals → ɢʀᴀɴᴅ ᴅᴜᴋᴇ ᴋᴏɴꜱᴛᴀɴᴛɪɴ ᴘᴀᴠʟᴏᴠɪᴄʜ

Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, the second son of Emperor Paul I of Russia, was recorded to have been a recipient of twenty-three awards. Seven nationals: Order of Saint Andrew, Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky, Order of St. Anna, Order of St. John Jerusalem, Order of St. George, Order of St. Vladimir, and Order of the White Eagle. And sixteen foreign: Military Order of Maria Theresa (Austria), Military Order of Maximilian Joseph (Bavaria), Order of the Golden Fleece (Spain), Order of St. Januarius (Naples), Order of Saint Ferdinand and Merit (Naples and Sicily), Military Order of William (The Netherlands), Order of the Black Eagle (Prussia), Iron Cross (Prussia), Supreme Order of the Holy Annunciation (Italy), Order of St. Maurice and Lazarus (Italy), Legion of Honour (France), Order of the Holy Spirit (France), Order of St. Michael (France), Order of Our Lady of Carmel and Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem (France), Order of Saint Seraphim (Sweden), and Order of the Sword (Sweden).

#konstantin pavlovich #romanovs #history #orders

[royal-confessions]

“The two eldest sons of Emperor Pavel I (Aleksandr and Konstantin) were terribly ugly because they physically resembled him, whereas the two youngest (Nikolay and Mikhail) were more beautiful because they did not resemble him physically.” - Submitted by Anonymous

#Paul I of Russia #Alexander I of Russia #Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich #Nicholas I #Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich

[foreverinthepagesofhistory]

On this day: July 18th 1918, The Bolsheviks took several Romanovs to a mine shaft in Alapaevsk and brutally murdered them. These victims were:

Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich, Prince Ioann Konstantinovich, Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich, Prince Igor Konstantinovich, and Vladimir Pavlovich Paley, along with nun, Varvara Yakovleva and Feodor Semyanovich Remez

Photos of the tragic dead bodies of the victims and other photos from the murder.

⚠️ !!!TRIGGER WARNINGS!!! ⚠️

May their souls rest in peace ❤️‍🩹🕊️✨

#romanov #romanovs #alapaevsk #alapayevsk #elisabeth feodorovna #princess elisabeth of hesse #sergei mikhailovich #ioann konstantinovich #igor konstantinovich #konstantin konstantinovich #konstantinovichi #Vladimir Pavlovich Paley #1918 #July 18

[imperial-russia]

What was Tsar Nicholas's relationship with other Grand Dukes? Which one did he not like and which ones did he greatly respect and admire?

Assuming you mean Nicholas II:

Among his uncles, Nicholas was not very fond of Vladimir Alexandrovich, because the latter had a very forceful personality and intimidated Nicholas. They also had a great conflict over Kyril´s marriage, which resulted in Vladimir shouting at Nicholas and even tearing off his epaulettes and throwing them into the Tsar´s face.

With Grand Dukes Sergei and Pavel Nicky had a good relationship, especially because he was very fond of their wives, but Sergei was later murdered and Pavel, after the death of his first wife, married a commoner without Nicholas´ permission, thus earning exile and the relationship was pretty much completely severed, up until the revolution.

His favourite uncle was Grand Duke Alexei. We know him as a person who loved life and was pretty much useless when it came to doing any meaningful work, either in politics or Navy, in which he had the post, but he was funny, always kind to Nicholas and pretty much an antithesis to Vladimir. Tsarevich Alexei was named after him.

When it came to cousins and other Grand Dukes, with most of them nicholas had good and even close relationships when he was younger, but as the time went by and the Imperial family closed off themselves (because of Alexei´s hemophilia and other issues) from the rest of the Romanovs, most of those relationships deteriorated. Mikhail Alexandrovich and Kdyril Vladimirovich married without permission and pretty much against the family law. Boris and Andrei Vladimirovichi were good for nothings with loose morals. Sandro had distinctly different political (and other) views (and frankly suffered from a big head, especially in later years).

The favourite relatives, besides Grand Duke Alexei, who died in 1905, were Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich, whom both Nicholas and Alexandra, for the longest time, treated with great love and warmth , until the moment he involved himself with Rasputin´s murder, after which he pretty much ceased to exist to Alexandra and Nicholas had him banished (which ironically saved his life). The other great favourite was grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (KR). His whole family remained close to the Tsar, his daughters being friends with OTMA, his sons serving during the war at the front and in the headquarters.

#answered

[thestarik]

Nicholas, Olga and Tatiana with Princess Elizabeth Nikolaevna Obolensky, Anna Vyrubova, Alexander Alexandrovich Drenteln, N P Sablin, Nikolai Vasilievich Sablin, Nikolai Pavlovich Chistyakov and Konstantin Dmitrievich Nilov on Padio Sari, 1908.

#otma #romanov #olga nikolaevna #tatiana nikolaevna #nicholas ii

[adini-nikolaevna]

Do you know anything about anna feodorovna? There's even less info about her than her sister in law Elizabeth. But she seems to be an interesting woman.

Hi! Helen Rappaport is currently at work on a biography of Anna Feodorovna. She seems to be a controversial historian around the Romanov “fandom,” but I am personally very excited to read the new book—as you said, there isn’t much information available about Anna Feodorovna. In the meantime, I will give you what I can: Anna was born Princess Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, so she was sister to King Leopold I of the Belgians and aunt to both Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, who even had a portrait of her at (I think)Kensington Palace. Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was small, and by royal standards, poor, but when Catherine the Great’s adjutant went on the hunt for a bride for Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, he fell ill there and was tended to by Coburg court doctor Baron Stockmar; Stockmar pointed the Russian general in the direction of the Coburg princesses, whose parents were very enthusiastic about the possibility of such an advantageous match. So, Juliane traveled to St. Petersburg with her mother and sisters, and Konstantin ultimately (albeit unwillingly—he did not want to get married in the first place) chose her as his bride. He referred to her as “the little monkey” and remarked that “it dances prettily.” The marriage took place, although the new Grand Duchess Anna was only 14, but it was a VERY unhappy union. Konstantin was jealous of his wife’s popularity, and he was was physically and emotionally abusive. He even forbade her to leave her room! Anna was close to her sister-in-law, Elizaveta Alexeievna, and the two girls supported each other through their difficult marriages. After her father-in-law became emperor, Anna pleaded illness and returned to Coburg for treatment, but she had no intention of returning to Russia… and she did not. She wanted a divorce, but the Russian court refused, and she began having romantic not-so-secret affairs; she was still legally married, but she wanted to be a mother, and she had two illegitimate children. During the Napoleonic wars, Alexander I tried to bring about a reconciliation between Konstantin and Anna, but the grand duchess adamantly refused to go back to the man who had made her life so miserable, and the marriage was finally annulled after almost 20 years of separation. Konstantin remarried, morganatically, to a Polish countess, but Anna never married again. She lived the rest of her life in Germany, where she was devoted to charity work and musical societies. That’s about all the info I have, but I think it’s safe to say that she was a strong, brave woman who was far ahead of her time.

#answered

[orthodoxadventure]

Borne to God on Angelic Hymns

Photos from the 100th Anniversary Celebration of the Martyrdom of St. Elizabeth the Grand Duchess and Those With Her

A host of bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrated the 100th anniversary of the martyrdom of St. Elizabeth the Grand Duchess, the Nun Barbara, and Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich Romanov, the Princes Ioann Konstantinovich, Konstantin Konstantinovich, Igor Konstantinovich, and Vladimir Pavlovich Paley, and Grand Duke Sergei's secretary Fyodor Remez martyred with them yesterday at the site of their martyrdom.

The celebration followed the festivities in honor of the 100th anniversary of Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, and their children and faithful servants the day before in Ekaterinburg. St. Elizabeth the New Martyr was the sister of Tsarina Alexandra.

The service in honor of Sts. Elizabeth, Barbara, and those with them was headed by His Eminence Metropolitan Kirill of Ekaterinburg and Verkhotursky, with the concelebration of twelve other hierarchs and the clergy of the Metropolitanate of Ekaterinburg.

Following the service, the hierarchs, clergy, and faithful processed to the mine where the bodies of the holy martyrs were thrown on the night of July 17-18, 1918. A moleben was celebrated at the mine, followed by the singing of the Cherubic Hymn, which the martyrs sang throughout the course of several days within the mine until they finally departed to the Heavenly Kingdom. As the hymn was being sung, the mine, which has become a place of pilgrimage for hundreds of thousands from throughout the world, was censed. Particles of the relics of St. Elizabeth were brought out of the church for veneration.

Met. Kirill of Ekaterinburg then addressed the congregation with an archpastoral homily:

For us, believers, today is the day of our personal relationship to Elizabeth Feodorovna and to all the martyrs of the Russian Church and Russian land, who … now defend holy Orthodoxy so our people might live not under the seal of the Satanism, but under the blessing of God. And today, when we incline our heads and the knees of our hearts at this mine, we see the meek face of Elizabeth Feodorovna and her loving heart, which forgives all: the killers and their successors, and prays for all—for our people, and for us today, that this cruelty, this antipathy, this lack of understanding of one another has finally gone from our lives, and we have again become one, great, powerful Russian people, the name and banner of which is the banner of Christianity and the name of Christianity, and the protection of which is the saints of God, who stand before the throne of God today for our infirmity, tearfully praying for us, for our lives, bitter and often unjust.

Among other guests, the service was attended by the head of the Russian Imperial House of Romanov, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna and her son and other members of the Romanov family.

Photos: The Diocese of Ekaterinburg Text: OrthoChristian.com

#Christianity #Orthodox Christianity #Russia #Religion #History

[loiladadiani]

Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna and Prince Ioann Konstantinovich

Everybody knows by now that my favorite Romanov changes just about every week. Probably the one I "favor" most frequently is Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna. My heart goes out to her. In the time and place where she lived, a twenty-three-year-old girl was frequently already married and had children. Olga had to watch these and many other experiences pass her by from her captivity in Tobolks and Ekaterinburg. They say Olga was thin, withdrawn, sad, and did not seem to be coping as well as the other girls with the imprisonment. I think that Olga's "denial mechanism" was not working as well as that of the others, and she strongly suspected what was coming.

Enough of that....several names floated about (none of them seriously) as matrimonial prospects for Olga, such as that of her cousins Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich and Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich. Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark had expressed interest. Carol II of Romania had been considered. And then there was another, which I really liked for her (you may not): Prince Ioann (Ioannshick) Konstantinovich, the first-born son of Grand Duke Konstantine Konstantinovich and Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna.

The following is a letter from Grand Duke Konstantine to his son when Ioann apparently mentioned the matter to him (not for the first time):

3 December, 1910. Pavlovsk. From bruderschaft [brotherhood, German], you very unexpectedly suddenly turn to Lubochka. You cannot marry her at this point, but without breaking the law, with which you need to familiarize yourself, taking advantage of conversations between AAs. Makarov and Kostya. During one of these conversations, ask for the federal secretary to explain to you the legalization of marriages of the members of the Imperial family. The Tatiana question has not been resolved by far, as it needs a change of the existing law. But let’s assume that it will be changed: then I advise you to be careful. Last year, you wrote to me about your love for Olga Nikolaevna and for Tanya and someone else, and now it’s Lubochka while you are still bringing up Olga Nikolaevna as well. Seems like you do not know yourself with whom specifically you are in love, but without a tested and faithful love, one should not marry. 

Ioann was at that age when we fell in love every other day. He did ask the Tsar, who dismissed the idea by not taking the matter seriously, and told Ioann that his daughter was too young (in 1910, Olga would have been 15). The Empress had never liked the Konstantinovichi as potential grooms for her daughters because of their "poor health." Other than that, they were one of the few Grand Duccal families Alix liked.

Ioann married Helen of Serbia in 1911. He fought in WWI, had two children, and was eventually murdered by the Bolsheviks at Alapaevsk in the Urals (along with several other Romanovs, at least one of whom was his brother.) He was 32 years old. Olga died with her family not far from where he was killed, in Ekaterinburg at the age of 23.(gcl)

#russian history #romanov dynasty #imperial russia #nicholas ii #vintage photography #Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna #Princess Ioann Konstantinovich #Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich

[best-romanov-monarch]

Honourable electorate (well, those of you who are still with us), you simply MUST see this

We are simply THRILLED to have someone to argue with, now that this election is over.

25.Pyotr III. - *rings the bell behind OP's back* SHAME! Look, noone is going to argue that he was some misunderstood genius (though he WAS misunderstood in some regards, we suppose), and his one L was pretty significant, but to argue he was worse than, say, Anna Ivanovna just based on it?! For shame! IN THIS POLL: Got eliminated in the first round (big L), where he lost to Pavel I. (even bigger L). In the Worst Romanov poll, he was deemed much worse than Alexander I., but absolutely not as bad as Nikolai I., so. Overall not THE worst obviously, but one of the least esteemed members of this bracket certainly.

24.Pyotr II. - ...okay, that is just. Unfair. This guy was literally excluded from this bracket because HE WAS A FUCKING MINOR. He died at 14. You ghouls.

23.Nikolai II. - This one, though, is completely fair. His record was indeed just as terrible as OP claims, noone's gonna argue with that. IN THIS POLL: Well, except for our esteemed electorate, we suppose! He at least won in the first round over Mikhail I., so that's something. Of course the one who defeated him was Alexei I., and we are still unsure why. We suppose Alexei I. was indeed less of an unmitigated disaster than Nikolai II., low bars and all.

22.Nikolai I. - A bit unfair to place him under Anna Ivanovna mostly based on OP's misunderstanding of the Crimean War, but very well. Our knowledge of his domestic policy is somewhat limited, but what little we do know is that he certainly HELP matters in any way. IN THIS POLL: Was unequivocably named the second worst Romanov tsar after Alexander III.

21.Fyodor I. - "Obligatory insane one" well fuck you too sir??? That one's also unfair. The guy didn't really rule, like he wasn't even capable of it. Not a Romanov, so not in this poll, though we suppose one can ascertain what our electorate would think of him from the position of Ivan V. in this bracket.

20.Ivan VI. - Just like Pyotr II., this one was excused for being a fucking minor.

19.Konstantin Pavlovich - Not in this bracket, didn't rule, case closed.

18.Fyodor II. - Would probably be excused from the regular bracket, as well as in the admin's eyes, on account of being a minor. IN THIS POLL: Was mentioned in passing in the True Heir Of The Rurikids bonus poll, where his dad, and he by extension, would've won had it not been for those meddling Poles!

17.The Totally Real Dimitry I. - I'll be honest, I don't have much faith in this guy's ruling capabilities. His reign amounted to worming himself into the good graces of those damn Poles by making a bunch of promises he couldn't keep, then getting shanked when that fact came to light. He probably wouldn't even get to Moscow had it not been for Boris Godunov's untimely death. This guy is the ultimate proof that sometimes, not even luck can often compensate for raging incompetence. IN THIS POLL: Ranked after Boris Godunov and above Vasily Shuysky AND patriarch Filaret in the True Heir of Rurikids bonus poll. Make of that what you will.

16.Vasily IV. - We have absolutely nothing to add to the OP's assessment, other than sheer bafflement at the fact that he's not even lower. IN THIS POLL: Another True Heir of Rurikids candidate - and definitely the worst ranking one (together with patriarch Filaret, which is frankly horrific patriarch Filaret slander).

15.Ekaterina I. - Look, we're not saying she was a GOOD ruler, we just implore you to give the woman a break. When she ascended the throne, she had 18 years of marriage to Pyotr I. behind her. Of course she didn't do shit, she must've been so tired at that point! IN THIS POLL: Managed to beat Ivan V., only to then lose (after a rematch) to Alexander II., our eventual winner. Again, make of that what you will.

14.Ivan V. - See my opinion on Fyodor I. This guy arguably shouldn't even count. IN THIS POLL: Though it's true Ekaterina I. beat him in the first round of Best Romanov, which qualified him for the Worst Romanov. He beat his brother there, too, so in the esteem of this electorate, he seems to be pretty low.

13.Pavel I. - Again, OP was supremely unfair to this... Unique political thinker. He might not have gotten to put that many of his ideas in praxis, but he did have them; boy, did this guy EVER have ideas. IN THIS POLL: This electorate was much more capable of appreciating this super special snowflake of a monarch; he beat not only Pyotr III., but Sophia Alexeievna as well, which is a pretty good result! He was eventually unable to defeat his mother, but that's a feat that only one Romanov in this bracket achieved, so.

12.Alexander III. - OP really does not give this guy enough credit for laying the groundwork for the Russian Revolution. And the fact that it was ultimately Nikolai II. whose sheer incompetence caused it is no excuse, considering it was Alexander who ensured that Nikolai's education was so lacking. IN THIS POLL: The unquestionable winner of the Worst Romanov Monarch title, so. This electorate does not seem especially fond of him, needless to say.

11.Fyodor III. - A decent ruler, all things considered, but loses some points for being ultimately unable to prevent horrific factional warfare on his court from festering and ultimately erupting right after his death. IN THIS POLL: Another one with fairly ambiguous results; in the Best Romanov, he was knocked out in the first round by the eventual winner Alexander II., while in the Worst Romanov, he was proclaimed better than Ivan V., a literal puppet ruler.

10.Boris I. Godunov - A bit of a mixed bag, really; seemed to have been highly competent, but... The cementing of serfdom tho. That's kind of a black spot on his entire resume, innit? His reign was over not a good time for most Russians, but admittedly that wasn't all his fault. IN THIS POLL: As we mentioned when we talked about his son, he would've won the True Heir Of Rurikids if it wasn't for THE GODDAMN POLES.

9.Alexei I. - Funnily enough, his alleged passivity is a myth according to some? In fact, he had quite the temper, comparable to his youngest son, at least by some accounts. As for his ability to identify talent, which OP mentions... *softly* No. Admittedly, he also had competent advisors, but c'mon, this dude promoted old Morozov AND Nikon the Drama Queen. And of course OP doesn't mention the fact that he was a reactionary even by the standards of 17th century Russia, so. IN THIS POLL: Despite all of this, he was surprisingly successful on this poll. He pummelled Alexander III., no surprises there, but also won over the baby blue eyes of Nikolai II., before being rightfully eliminated by Alexander II.

8.Anna Ivanovna - Is way, way too high on this. To be fair, the way she come to full power was pretty badass, not gonna lie, but what she did with that power... Honestly all the good things about her reign could be attributed to people like Osterman, and if we give her credit for promoting him - well, she promoted fucking Biron even more, so there. Please, OP, stop letting the tsars off the hook for having shitty favourites, like just because they were favourites, that doesn't mean they HAD to be incompetent! Even Mikhail I. and Elizaveta Petrovna knew how to pick people to share power with, so what is your excuse for Anna?! IN THIS POLL: Won the elimination round against Nikolai I., then wasn't allowed in the round anyway, because the race was *this* close. Which honestly tells you all you need to know about the gal.

7.Mikhail I. - I mean... On paper, he certainly looks like a hypercompetent ruler, untill you realize that the stabilization after the Smuta was mostly the work of his dad. He deserves the credit for getting out of Filaret's way, at least, so. IN THIS POLL: He was bested by Nikolai II. on the Best Monarch, but according to Worst Monarch, managed to be not quite as terrible as Alexander III. Overall not a great result, but then, this is the electorate that snubbed good old Filaret, TWICE (on the True Heir Of Rurikids and Best Favourite bonus polls).

6.Ivan IV. - He's not in here, but by God I want to know where he'd end up. I mean, consolidation of the country and multiple fabulous military victories are awesome, but I myself would put him at the bottom just for Novgorod and the overall Stalin vibes he gives me. Giving me Stalin vibes in the 16th century is the worst crime of all. That said, I'll admit, he's a fairly controversial figure, so I wouldn't entirely begrudge OP for placing him... Well, pretty much anywhere in that ranking, really.

5.Elizaveta Petrovna - Look, I love her, can't say she was a BAD ruler per se... She certainly had a good nose on favourites and did show baseline competence. But she also had a tendency to spend tons of money on stupid shit and overall didn't do anything that amazing (other than remain on the throne for 20 years as an 18th century empress, which is admittedly impressive), so. IN THIS POLL: Pretty much trounced Alexander I., which is nothing to scoff at, but alas, then came the second round and Ekaterina II., a.k.a. the woman she had always been compared to, unfavourably. The poor gal didn't stand a chance.

4.Alexander I. - I mean the fucking Holy Alliance was pretty much his idea and we can attribute Napoleon's defeat more to his generals than him... But look, we can't stay mad at this dude. He was a wonderful little chaos gremlin, plus, he seems to have been more skilled at diplomacy than people give him credit for. IN THIS POLL: As mentioned above, this electorate has been pretty clear on whether they like him better than Elizaveta Petrovna, so. He was deemed to be less terrible than Pyotr III. at least, so that's something?

3.Alexander II. - Look, he's my favourite, but I'll admit, his military record is not great and even as reformer, he was only progressive by the standards of 19th century tsars, so. Fair. But I will say Ekaterina II. should still place lower than him. IN THIS POLL: Pulled out a narrow victory over Ekaterina II. and was proclaimed the Best Romanov Monarch.

2.Ekaterina II. - Overrated. As. Fuck. I mean to be fair her military record is pretty great, being good at imperialism means you are at least good at something, and she was definitely a competent administrator... But an enlightened ruler she was not and I wish people stopped calling her that. Rating her above Alexander II. is pretty preposterous. IN THIS POLL: Came in close second after Alexander II., so nothing to scoff at!

1.Pyotr I. - Yeeeaaah. I mean this guy was personally responsible for huge military victories, legal, structural, cultural etc. transformation of the Russian Empire, plus he worked with some of the greatest minds of late 17th century Russia... All the while being an absolute maniac in both good and bad sense of the word. And unlike Ivan the Terrible, he wasn't responsible for TOO many atrocities, so. His place at the top is pretty justified in my opinion. IN THIS POLL: Could've scored pretty high, but alas, in the first round, he was pitted against Ekaterina II. and our electorate just likes their toxic girlbosses too much to let him win that match.

#Youtube #russia #history #house of romanov

[romanovsonelastdance]

Hi! I just noticed your hashtag Pavlovichi in a recent post and it piqued my interest. I saw that it was connected to posts about Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the younger, her brother Dmitri and one of her Paley half sister. Is it her father Paul's patronymic in another language or alternative spelling? Googling didn't get me any answers. It just kept correcting Pavlovichi to Pavlovich. Thank you!

Pavlovichi is the plural of Pavlovich, it basically means the family/descendants of Grand Duke Paul (Pavel).

It's one of the ways historians group the Romanov family, based on the sons of Nicholas I. There's a wikipedia page that explains it HERE.

Technically the Pavlovichi are a subgroup of the "Alexandrovichi" - descendants of Alexander II - but I don't use 'Alexandrovichi' because it covers way too many people in the family to be useful for tagging (Nicholas II and OTMAA, for example, are Alexandrovichi). Vladimirovichi, the descendants of Paul's brother Vladimir, is another commonly used subgroup, and one I use here. And then it's Alexander II's brothers (Konstantin, Nikolai and Mikhail Nikoalevich) and their families who makes up the Konstantinovichi (which includes the Greek Royal Family), Nikolaevichi (the smallest group) and Mikhailovichi (which includes Xenia Alexandrovna's children because their father Sandro was a Mikhailovich).

[andrewmoocow]

Little Homeworld Life chapter 11: From Russia with Hate, Part 2 (originally posted on October 24, 2022)

AN: And we're back, everyone! That ending surely took you in for a loop, huh? Mr. Bond may have faced his fair share of strange adversaries in both novels and cinema, but I'm definitely sure he never went up against the forces of magic before, though that would be real interesting. Anyways, when last we left our band of heroes, Tina has revealed her true colors as the descendant of Rasputin the Mad Monk, and she's out for revenge on the Crystal Gems for their crimes against her forefather! Can they save Little Homeworld and stop von Bowling and The Sickle from starting World War III?! Where does Black Rutile fit into all of this? Is she merely using P.H.A.N.T.O.M for her own nefarious deeds and will abandon them the first chance she gets? Find out now, comrades!

Synopsis: In their battle against The Sickle, the Crystal Gems fight a different kind of foe in the form of Rasputin's descendant.

Cast:

Michaela Dietz as Amethyst

Jennifer Paz as Lapis

Pierce Brosnan as Bane Jones

Estelle as Garnet

Deedee Magno-Hall as Pearl

Shelby Rabara as Peridot

Uzo Aduba as Bismuth

Vladimir Mashkov as The Sickle

Olga Kurlyenko as Rasputina

Christoph Waltz as Francis von Bowling

Noël Wells as Black Rutile

Diedrich Bader as Lennie

Wayne Knight as Milton

Andrey Batt as Konstantin

Edward Furlong as Pavel

Seth Green as Leo

Susan Egan as Rose Quartz

Featuring John Cusack as Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich

Hank Azaria as Prince Felix Yusupov

And Kelsey Grammar as Vladimir Purishkevich

--

Though the people of Russia hated and feared the Crystal Gems for destroying their ancestral homeland, it wasn't always this way. During the early 20th century, when Rose Quartz still led them, the team maintained a civil working relationship with the family of Tsar Nicholas II before the Romanov family's murder on Red October and thus were acquainted with Grigori Rasputin. However, some were very wary of how Rasputin seemed to influence the Romanov royal family ever since the holy healer had cured Alexei of his hemophilia. To try and stop Rasputin should he turn out to be more than he seemed, the Crystal Gems were enlisted by the grand duke Dmitri Pavlovich and his noble cohorts to investigate the healer. Unfortunately for Pavlovich, not only did the Gems turn up with no evidence, but they were also suspicious of his true motives.

"I am sorry, Sir Pavlovich, but we were unable to find anything insidious about Mr. Rasputin." Rose said to the grand duke and his two associates, Prince Felix Yusupov and Vladimir Purishkevich, as everyone gathered at Moika Palace.

"You must be joking here." Dmitri groaned in disappointment. "You Crystal Gems are legendary warriors of Earth's ancient past, yet one man completely befuddles you?!"

"It's not just that, but I'm unsure if we believe your claims." Pearl agreed with Rose. "Rasputin is such a kind and genial man of the cloth; alcoholism and womanizing aside, how could he possibly be plotting against Tsar Nicholas?"

"That is what he wants you to think!" Prince Yusupov yelled angrily. "He probably seduced you with the cursed magic he gained from selling his soul to the powers of darkness that be! If you are under a spell now, just tell us!"

"Oh, I see what's going on!" Amethyst declared. "I bet you guys are just jealous that Razzy is getting more attention than all three of you combined, and you probably want him dead for it!"

"Since when were you under the impression that we were plotting against Grigori?" Purishkevhich asked while sitting down in a chair with his fingers steepled together. "We are only working together for Russia's best interests."

"Don't get too cocky, boys." Garnet coolly said to the trio of noblemen. "You may think you're doing what's best for the royal family, but this will prove disastrous in the long run."

"Oh, enough of this tomfoolery!" Prince Yusupov yelled in disgust. "Guards, escort these Gems off the premises at once!" Just then, the Yusupov family's royal guards stormed into Moika Palace to drag the Gems away from the prince and his allies, but they refused to back down and give up on Rasputin.

"Please, you have to listen to us!" Rose cried out to the noble trio. "You don't understand; there is more to Rasputin that you haven't learned yet!"

"Ugh, foreign women, am I right? They simply have no clue what I'm suffering from here." Felix scoffed at Rose's claims as the Gems were tossed out of the palace. With the Crystal Gems out of the picture, Felix had another plan. "My friends, it would seem that no matter what, those Gems retain their good image to the Tsar. Might I suggest we change that?"

And change that they did. Rasputin would die shortly after the Crystal Gems' confrontation with Prince Yusupov. Although reports differed on how the assassination was carried out, one rumor they spread like wildfire was that the Gems had sold out Rasputin before fleeing like cowards. The story would be passed down from Rasputin's daughter Maria to her children, to their children, and then to their children, one of whom would include Rasputina.

"So, is that what really happened to him?" Maria's great-great-granddaughter Rasputina said while being bounced on her father's knee.

"No one can truly know for sure, my child." Tina's father said with a gentle stroke of his daughter's hair. "Of course, your great-grandmother also once said that she was psychic, and Nixon's wife met her in a dream, so there's no telling if there is any truth to those claims."

"Where are those scary Gem ladies now, daddy?" Tina asked again.

"No one knows about that, either." Tina's father answered. "Some say they came from space, or maybe they're from another dimension entirely! But one thing is certain: they have betrayed our family and our people." With that last word, he gave his daughter a gentle pat on the head. "Now, up to bed, my dear. Rasputin would want you to have a happy and healthy mind when you wake up tomorrow."

"Okay." Rasputina obeyed as she picked up her stuffed bat Bartok and walked away. "Good night, daddy."

"Good night, my darling." The father said before Tina took off for her bedroom and slept. As her father commanded, Rasputin would've wanted Rasputina to wake up the following day with a happy and healthy mind. And happy and healthy that mind was, but it was also clouded with thoughts of revenge.

As Tina grew older, she began taking a scholarly interest in her family history to prepare for the day she would avenge her great-great-grandfather Grigori and search for ways to practice the mystic arts as he did. By the present day, Rasputina had molded herself into a true successor to Russia's mightiest monk, but one key ingredient was missing to complete her look. Rumor has it that Rasputin kept a mysterious spellbook now hidden somewhere in Russia, and she needed some help locating it. Luckily, she began corresponding with a certain criminal mastermind at that time to assist her.

"So you are telling me you are the descendant of the Mad Monk Rasputin?" The Sickle laughed in disbelief at Tina's claims as the two met one night under a bridge. "Next, you'll tell me he's still making comic books!"

"Laugh all you want, Nikolay, but allow me to demonstrate why you should be helping me." Rasputina scowled at The Sickle before taking her childhood toy Bartok out of her pockets. The stuffed bat had aged quite a bit over the years, but Tina did everything she could to keep it in one piece. With a wave of Tina's finger, a dark aura swallowed the toy, and it suddenly came to life, much to The Sickle's alarm. "I'd like to introduce you to my familiar, and oldest friend, Bartok. He's a little beat up, but very loyal all the same."

Unfortunately for Tina, The Sickle still didn't believe her. "THAT! IS! A! TOOOOOY!" he abruptly screamed. "I can see through your parlor tricks, little girl; he is not alive at all! He is mere child's plaything!"

"You are a sad, strange little man, and you have my pity." Rasputina rolled her eyes and literally zipped The Sickle's lips shut with a snap of her fingers. "Dosvidanya!" As Tina walked away with her sentient toy perched on her shoulder, The Sickle unzipped his lips and finally caved in.

"Okay, I give, I give!" the Russian crime boss yelled. "You may join me; just name your price, anything!"

"Oh, a price, you say?" Rasputina smirked as she came back to help The Sickle to his feet. "How does the complete and utter annihilation of a shared enemy sound to you?"

"Shared enemy, you say?" The Sickle raised an eyebrow with intrigue. "What kind do you mean?"

"Just a motley crew of strange women calling themselves Earth's defenders." Rasputina explained before conjuring up an image of the Crystal Gems that Nikolay immediately recognized.

"The Crystal Gems?" Nikolay gasped as his eyes widened at the sight of Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl. "How did you know?"

"I just did a little mind reading, is all." Rasputina replied. "I saw you have some history with these creatures back in your youth."

"Yes, and I never forgave them since." The Sickle grinned before the two of them shook hands. "If you bring me Crystal Gems, I shall find you spellbook. Da?"

"Da." Tina grinned as the alliance between the two was formed that fateful night.

--

"Mmm, you won't get away this time, Lord Gravy." Amethyst stirred in her sleep as she began hearing a faint but very familiar voice almost right next to her.

"I knew I chose the right man to assist me." Black Rutile chirped as she looked at the imprisoned Crystal Gems before her. "Thank you very much, Mr. Sidorov. Now, please give me everything I need for my portal."

"In due time, Madame Rutile." The Sickle responded as Amethyst slowly woke up. "Ah, it seems one of them is finally waking up. Let us greet them, shall we?"

"Oh, my head hurts." Amethyst said as she woke up in a prison cell and hung upside down by her ankles. "Last thing I remember was some magic lady taking us by surprise before knocking us all out after putting us in some excruciating pain. Oh, wait."

"Rise and shine, insipid Crystal Gems!" Black Rutile laughed triumphantly as she was flanked by Francis von Bowling, The Sickle, and Rasputina. "Surprised to see me, eh?"

"I want to say I am, but then again, figures you'd team up with someone with a beef with us again." Lapis snarked. "What did you want with these guys?"

"It is only a little trade." Francis explained. "She helps us capture you, and we give her what she needs for this portal she's building."

"Wait, a portal? To where?" Pearl wondered as everyone else woke up as well.

"I think I may have heard rumors about one back when I worked for Yellow Diamond." Peridot declared. "The Diamonds wanted to conquer other universes and commissioned Black Rutile, Bloodstone, and Serpentine to build a portal, but too many failed tests caused them to reject the idea."

"Well, it looks like you found out my big, evil plan this time." Black Rutile agreed with Peridot. "Since you can't seem to agree that I'm doing what's best for all Gemkind, I'm going to look for a dimension where you actually do and where evil finally wins!"

"Fat chance!" Peridot yelled from the cell. "We'll stop you!"

"Stop me?" Black Rutile smirked cruelly. "You'll have to speak with whoever I meet on the other side about that. But in the meantime, my dear friends here will show you around. Toodles!"

"Oh, you're gonna love what we have here, Rutty!" Leo said as he led Black Rutile away from the cell.

"So what will happen to us now?" Bane finally asked.

"Oh, not much." Rasputina declared. "We're just going to torture you all into confessing that you're terrorists on live television so we can be justified in destroying your friends!"

"And it shall be glorious doing to them what you did to me so long ago." The Sickle added. "You remember me, don't you, Gems?"

"If we did, we'd rather forget." Garnet defiantly replied.

"Oh, ye of little faith." The Sickle tutted and shook his head. "For someone with three eyes and the power to see the future, you are blind to what's in front of you. Before I became the most powerful criminal in Russia, I was known as Nikolay Sidorov!"

--

Back in 1950s Russia, when the Soviet Union reigned supreme, there lived a little boy named Nikolay Sidorov whose family and neighborhood in Kazan were frequently endangered by corrupted Gems that infested the Russian wilderness and often would menace nearby cities. Though the Crystal Gems were there to defend the Russians from their mutated brethren all the time, it was not without its casualties.

"Mother, father!" the then-four-year-old Nikolay yelled for his parents as he searched for his family through the rubble left behind by the Gems' latest battle with a corrupted Gem. "Sofia, Igor!" he called out for his older siblings too. "Anyone?!"

Luckily for Nikolay, he was able to find the building that his family called home. Unfortunately, he could only find what was left of it, as it now was a large pile of rubble with a few hands sticking out of it. "No! No, no, no, no!"

"Whoo, how much damage did you think that did?" Amethyst asked, causing Nikolay to hide behind a large piece of rebar as the Crystal Gems strolled throughout the destroyed neighborhood, fresh off saving Kazan from a corrupted Gem.

"I'm going to assume a lot." Rose replied before turning to some of the gathered townsfolk. "We sincerely apologize for any damage caused. We were only saving you all, even if it meant accidentally letting some things get destroyed." This enraged Nikolay like no other. His family had just died, and they were just regarded as mere things instead of formerly living human beings? No, he could simply not allow this to continue any longer. If the Gems were so ignorant of the lives they ruined, then someone should try and return the favor.

For many years afterward, Nikolay spent his years in the slums as a criminal. He started snatching purses to steal the money in them for himself, then selling drugs as a petty fence in the alleyways. Eventually, he finally evolved into a powerful enough crime lord to become a close associate of Francis von Bowling. By then, Nikolay Sidorov was dead, as his friends and family once knew him. Now, there was only The Sickle, the most powerful gang leader in all of Russia.

--

"So basically, corrupted Gems have been endangering lives in Russia, and you forgot about this one family, which caused him to go evil?" Bismuth asked as soon as The Sickle finished his story. "Geez, and they said I was a little messed up."

"I should've known there was at least someone we forgot." Garnet declared in heartbroken realization. "I just didn't consider it because too many others lost their lives to the corrupted Gems."

"Is this true?" Bane asked Pearl, who looked utterly crestfallen at how it was their fault their captor was the way he was.

"Yes, very true." Pearl proclaimed sadly. "Please, Nikolay, if you still want to be called that, Garnet, Amethyst, and I are so sorry for our carelessness. I know it's been ages since that day, but Steven has taught us that it's never too late to be given a second chance."

"I am sorry Pearl, but Nikolay died ages ago. I am simply too far gone to be helped." The Sickle calmly answered with his back to his prisoners. "Besides, turning over a new leaf would take all the fun out of being one of the most powerful criminal masterminds in the world."

"But in the meantime, let the karma begin." Francis proclaimed. "Lennie, Milton, bring Bane and his companions to my quarters! As for the rest of them, do your thing, Rasputina."

"With pleasure." Tina agreed evilly as Bane, Lapis, and Amethyst were dragged away by Lennie and Milton as some video cameras began rolling. "Greetings, my fellow Russians. I am Rasputina, great-granddaughter of the Mad Monk Grigori Rasputin, here to deliver a message on behalf of the loathsome Crystal Gems."

"You clods won't get away with this!" Peridot yelled as she struggled to break free.

"Quiet, you!" Tina yelled at Peridot before turning back to the camera. "Now, you may believe that I am telling the most outlandish of tall tales regarding my heritage, and you'd be justified. In fact, that's what my associate believed when we first encountered each other."

"It is true." The Sickle agreed while looking into the cameras focused on him.

"Anyways, I am here to finally bring the Crystal Gems to justice as their judge, jury, and executioner." Tina announced. "Once I have tortured them enough, they shall confess to their terrorism wrought upon our people, and we shall react by wiping the rest of their kind off the face of the Earth with these nuclear missiles!"

"But wait, aren't Gems invulnerable?" Konstantin asked off-screen, only to be greeted by a blast of dark magic to the face.

"Now, without further ado, let the torture commence!" Rasputina announced before she read another incantation from her grimoire. "Higitus figitus bibbidi bobbidi boo!" With another wave of her hand, Garnet, Pearl, Peridot, and Bismuth were put through more agonizing pain, just like when she first revealed herself. "If only your friends could see you now!"

--

Meanwhile, Bane, Lapis, and Amethyst were forced into Francis von Bowling's quarters by Lennie and Milton, where their archnemesis was awaiting them patiently. "Ah, Bane Jones." Francis sneered as he entered the room. "If only you kept away, then maybe all of this would've been water under the bridge, but alas. I figured you'd try to interfere with my plans."

"We won't let you or The Sickle nuke Little Homeworld!" Lapis yelled. "Gems are far stronger than that!"

"You see, that's the thing, we'll destroy everything around them and let the general public sort them out." Von Bowling responded. "You could've been given the world, but you choose to defend it instead. Why is that?"

"Sometimes, the world is not enough." Bane declared defiantly. "Family motto, just FYI."

"We chose to keep the Earth safe because Rose Quartz valued organic life so much." Amethyst said.

"If you valued us men so much, then why did you act so ambivalent towards the lives of one family?" Francis inquired coldly. "Seems awfully hypocritical, don't you think?"

"For crying out loud, it was an honest mistake!" Amethyst cried. "Seriously, we've had enough Gems dragging her name through the mud, and now humans who barely know a thing about her are getting in on it too?!"

"Out of all you three, I think I found you the most obnoxious." Francis declared to Amethyst. "But thankfully, that will no longer be a problem." He then turned to his two lackeys. "Gentlemen?"

"Oh, you guys are gonna love this!" Lennie snickered as he rubbed his ratlike hands together and pulled off a tarp revealing a pair of medieval torture devices, a garrote, and a rack, both modified with Gem technology and reserved for his foes. "Dug these out of some old ruins in England years ago, and we've been using them ever since! Hook them up, Milton!"

"Ooh, you're gonna have so much fun!" Milton said as Bane was forcibly sat down at the garrote while the Gems were hooked up to the rack. "Can I do the chair thingy, can I boss?"

"Yes, you can do the "chair thingy," Milton." Von Bowling chuckled as his massive minion began turning the wheel on the back of the garrote, slowly beginning to crush Bane's neck bones. "And as for you, Lennie, start turning the rack."

"With pleasure!" Lennie laughed evilly as he slowly began pulling Lapis and Amethyst both ways on the rack, eagerly awaiting their oncoming demise. "This is for what you did to us in Los Diego!"

"Do they honestly think they can torture us like this?" Lapis gave Amethyst a wry smirk while forming some vines made of water to help free herself.

"I got a better idea." Amethyst replied while shapeshifting into a mouse and leaping onto Lennie's head before she began pulling at his hair, thus manipulating von Bowling's henchman like a puppet.

"Hey, what's going on?!" Lennie yelled as he struggled to free himself from the mouse's grasp, only to be puppeteered to shove Milton away from the garrote and save Bane from a gruesome death. "Someone stop this filthy rat!"

"That's far enough, Amethyst!" Francis yelled as he pulled a gun on the purple Gem, but Bane quickly smacked it out of the mastermind's hands. "Someone, stop them!"

"We'd love to stay and chat, but we got a world to save." Bane declared as he and his Gem sidekicks raced to save Garnet, Pearl, Bismuth, and Peridot while the alarms began sounding.

--

"PRISONERS HAVE ESCAPED, I REPEAT, PRISONERS HAVE ESCAPED!" the intercoms bellowed throughout the facility while Black Rutile was making a deal with Pavel and Leo. "REMAIN CALM. THE SITUATION WILL BE PROMPTLY DEALT WITH!"

"Well, it seems that our friends have made their grand escape." Black Rutile proclaimed. "No need to worry though, I already got everything I need here, now to leave the rest to you."

"But how, girlie?" Pavel asked the Rutile. "You barely did anything!"

"Anything that you saw." Black Rutile responded. "In case you didn't know, I helped build the nuclear missiles that should be launching right about now. I was going to wait until the Gems confessed after enough agonizing torture, but it seems we have no time to waste now." She then pulled out a remote and pressed a big red button on it, ordering the missiles to start launching.

--

"Blast, 00014 escaped already?!" The Sickle cursed as he and Konstantin watched Bane, Lapis and Amethyst escape through the security cameras installed around the headquarters. "Forget torturing our prisoners into confessing; let us launch the missiles now and blame them for it!"

"Oh, already?" Rasputina complained as the Gems were about to reach their breaking point. "But I'm having so much fun!"

"All right, Lapis!" Peridot cheered as she yelled in agony. "I knew she could do it!"

"Wait, did she just say missiles?" Pearl asked as the four Gems discovered three large missiles emerging from behind them.

"That is right, fools!" The Sickle declared proudly. "You forced me to watch as my home was reduced to a giant pile of nothing! Now let's see how you like it happening to you!" As the crime lord laughed evilly, a sizeable holographic screen appeared and started depicting the distance between his lair and Little Homeworld. Just then, however, he was suddenly punched out of the way by a giant fist made of water as Lapis raced to save the other Gems while Bane tangled with Rasputina, and Amethyst tried her best to stop the missile launch.

"Come on, how do any of these buttons work?!" Amethyst cried as she started mashing at the console, which somehow caused a pop-up to appear. "To halt missile launch, press any key." She read. "Well, where the heck's the any key?!"

"You can do that later, Amethyst; we must stop him!" Garnet cried as the Gems were freed from Rasputina's torment through her being distracted by fighting Bane.

"You're a traitor to your species, 00014!" Rasputina proclaimed. "You have sold us all out to these infernal mineral maidens, and you will pay for it!"

"And I will not allow such hateful rhetoric towards my friends!" Bane replied before he grabbed Tina's grimoire and tossed it away from her before knocking her out cold with a single punch. "Guess that old black magic couldn't save you this time."

"Hey, Bane, over there!" Bismuth yelled while pointing at The Sickle climbing onto one of the missiles as they began takeoff. "What do we do now?"

"Easy. I can just use my water powers to keep them from flying." Lapis suggested plainly, but Bane had other ideas.

"No Gems, I think this shall be mine to take." Bane declared calmly. "I don't care if it means I perish in the process, just as long as my friends are safe from harm."

"B-Bane, are you serious?" Lapis stuttered as the secret agent made his decision to sacrifice himself for the greater good, but Bane immediately calmed her down with a gentle stroke of her hair.

"It's a shame it had to come to this, but I'm only a man." Bane replied. "You Gems seem to have all the time in the world, and then some. Be well, my friends."

"You are doing a truly noble deed, Mr. Jones." Garnet saluted the spy. "We'd love to make you an honorary Crystal Gem if we could."

"I'd be much obliged." Bane replied to Garnet. "But save the knighting for later." He then turned around and raced to the missile The Sickle was clinging onto as it took off, leaving the Gems behind at the villain's secret base.

--

"Come on, where is it?" Bane muttered as he tried burning through the missile's exterior with the laser on his watch. "The controls must be here somewhere!"

"Going somewhere, Mr. Jones?" Nikolay asked the agent while looming behind him. "I'm afraid you might be too late to stop this missile, but if you'd like, I'd be happy to beat the living daylights out of you."

"No thank you, Mr. Sidorov." Bane replied coolly. "I think I'll die another day." He then presented the razor-rimmed derby hat given to him by G and tossed it straight at The Sickle's neck with the intent to either slice open his neck or even decapitate him, but instead, the hat bounced off of him before returning to Jones' hands. Jones then threw the hat again, this time aiming for Nikolay's arms. Again, no use.

"Hmph, hats off to you, Mr. Jones." The Sickle smirked before he grabbed the hat in mid-air and tossed it back at Jones, managing to leave a scar on his cheek. "If you are done throwing your wonderful toys at me, then bring it on!"

"With pleasure." Bane scowled as he put up his dukes and engaged in a brutal, no-holds-barred fistfight with The Sickle as the missiles soared through the sky. The two of them seemed to be evenly matched, with Bane's years of spy training up against Nikolay's life on the streets of Kazan and experience in the criminal underworld of Russia. However, every time he got a chance to take a breather, Bane continued searching for a way to disarm the missiles and save Little Homeworld.

"Come on, come on!" Bane yelled as he once again tried cutting through the missile to find its source after briefly knocking The Sickle off his feet. Luckily, he was able to find some wires beneath that he was quickly able to cut, allowing him complete control of the missile he was on. "I knew you'd pull through, G."

"You fool, what have you done?!" The Sickle roared angrily. "You could've been a hero to your species, but instead you betray humankind for those Gems! Why, why do you do this?!"

"Because it's my God-given duty to defend the world!" Bane replied sternly. "And the Gems happen to live on that world too!" With his presumed final act of heroism, Bane's watch immediately took control of the missile. It began steering it off its course, flying it straight at the other two rockets so The Sickle could finally be defeated once and for all, with Bane dragging the crime lord with him kicking and screaming to the great beyond. "Goodbye, my friends."

"NYEEEEEET!" The Sickle screamed in horror as all three missiles collided with each other, causing a fiery explosion that seemingly killed the two men and ending The Sickle's menace once and for all, but at a great cost. However, the shape of a flying car soared away from the explosion immediately afterward.

--

"NOOOOO!" Amethyst screamed in horror as the Crystal Gems watched Bane Jones seemingly die, sacrificing himself to save them all. "You had so much to live for! You can't just die like that!"

"Just calm down, Amethyst. He did the right thing regardless." Lapis said mournfully as she and Peridot wrapped Amethyst in a comforting hug, unaware that a certain someone had just landed.

"Now, who did the right thing, might I ask?" Bane smirked playfully as he stepped out of his Tormenta, to the Gems' delight at his survival. "Probably not The Sickle. He just had too much of an explosive temper."

"Holy cow, you're alive!" Bismuth cheered. "But how?"

"Rumbakini Tormenta, of course." Bane said while patting his car like a loyal pet. "Had to call it up in case something awful happened."

"Well, we're all glad you made it." Amethyst wiped some tears off her face before hugging the agent's legs. "Come here, big guy!"

"Still, it's a darn shame that The Sickle died before he could try to make amends with us." Pearl said, mourning how they didn't get a chance to change the Russian mastermind and perhaps save him from death. "But then again, I guess that's life. Sometimes you can't always get what you want."

"HOLD EVERYTHING, YOU FOOLS!" a disheveled Francis von Bowling yelled as he stood alongside Rasputina, Lennie, Milton, Konstantin, Pavel, and Leo, all yearning for revenge. "You may think you won after offing The Sickle, but you still forgot about us! Rasputina, ready your spells!"

"With pleasure!" Rasputina agreed before cracking open the grimoire and preparing one final spell. "With this spell declared, let these animals be snared!"

"Oh no you don't!" Bane declared and pulled out the derby hat one last time. This time, however, he successfully managed to get a hit and turn the spell against Rasputina and Francis before transforming them into an owl and a frog. "Someone call animal control. We got a wild pair on the loose."

"Oh man, oh geez!" Lennie yelled while holding the owl that was once his boss in his hands. "Milton, we gotta get the hell outta here! Grab the book and find a spell to save us!"

"But I don't know any magics." Milton replied with a shrug just as the Russian police stormed The Sickle's base and had both groups of henchmen arrested along with their transformed superiors.

"Looks like we're going to prison again, boys." Konstantin glumly proclaimed while the officers slapped handcuffs on the trio of assassins.

"I can't go back to jail; I can't handle any more abuse!" Pavel screamed in terror like a little girl.

"Oh, put a cork in it!" Leo yelled angrily while the head of the Russian Police stepped forward to meet the Gems.

"The Crystal Gems, am I correct?" the head officer said. "Are you the ones that stopped The Sickle?"

"Well, it was really Bane Jones who did it, but we helped. But why do you ask?" Lapis answered.

"I am asking because we wish to honor you after learning what you did." The officer replied. "Let bygones be bygones so we can start fresh!"

"Really, after all the prejudice you heaped onto us, now you want to say sorry?" Bismuth asked. "Listen here, buddy, we appreciate your sincerity, but it's gonna take a long while for everything to be forgotten about."

"We understand, miss." The officer said. "But please understand that not all Russians are against you. We just didn't speak up until now. Anyways, please come to Saint Petersburg with us so we can honor your deeds."

"Well, if you say so." Lapis agreed reluctantly.

"Whoo, party time!" Amethyst celebrated as the group left The Sickle's headquarters behind. However, none of them had a clue that Rasputina's grimoire was left behind in the building, with no one even considering bringing it along as evidence.

--

A few hours later, as the Crystal Gems were hailed as heroes for stopping World War III and Bane Jones was honored for his heroics, the spellbook was never moved from where it landed on the floor. Suddenly, however, the silhouette of Black Rutile approached the book, and she picked it up to read some of its pages herself.

"Hm, let's see what I can use from this book." Black Rutile purred to herself as she skimmed through the book. "Eye of Agamotto? No. Jewel of Four Souls? No. The Phoenix Gate? Maybe. Planispheric Disk? What good could that do?" Despite all the powerful artifacts that could aid in Black Rutile's cause, there was one in particular that she was very interested in. "Hm, what could this be?"

Black Rutile discovered a page detailing a mysterious amulet that the book dubbed the Seer to the Void, a jet-black stone wrapped in gold that was able to access planes of existence beyond mortal comprehension. "Planes of existence, huh?" With an evil smirk, Black Rutile closed the book and stored it inside her gem before she pulled out a communicator. "Black Rutile to Aquamarine, come in Aquamarine. Pardon my absence; I've just been away for a while. And what I've got for when I come home is sure to excite."

--

Say goodbye to this two-parter, and hello to our biggest hint towards the future of Little Homeworld Life! That's right, the mysterious jewel that Black Rutile has discovered will be the key to her traveling of other dimensions, but where it is shall remain a mystery for now. But now that the Crystal Gems know what she has planned, how long will it be before they decide to react? Probably a while because next up, we got a pair of holiday specials to end the season. First off, we have a Treehouse of Horror-style Halloween special right on the day of Halloween itself, and as our season finale, we got a big Christmas special too! See you all then!

#steven universe #steven universe future #fanfiction #steven universe alternate future #little homeworld life #lapis lazuli #amethyst #garnet #pearl #peridot #bismuth #bane jones #francis von bowling #the sickle #rasputina #black rutile

[graceofromanovs]

GODPARENTS OF GRAND DUKE DMITRI PAVLOVICH

Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich was born on 18 September 1891 at Ilyinskoe, Moscow. He was the only son of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia from his first marriage to his Danish-born wife Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark (Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgina). He was christened on 10 November in Moscow. His godparents were:

ALEXANDER III, EMPEROR OF RUSSIA - his paternal uncle was named as one of his numerous godparents. He was highly reactionary in domestic affairs and reversed some of the liberal reforms of his father, Alexander II. He was absent at his nephew's christening.

KING CHRISTIAN IX OF DENMARK - his maternal great-grandfather, the Danish King was among his many godparents. His initial unpopularity at the start of his reign, and the many years of political strife, where the king was in conflict with large parts of the population, his popularity recovered towards the end of his reign, and he eventually became a national icon due to the length of his reign. He was absent at the christening of his Russian great-grandchild.

QUEEN OLGA OF GREECE - his maternal grandmother, a Romanov by birth, was another of his godparents. In 1867, she married King George I of Greece (born a Danish prince), and had many children. As Queen, she was a popular figure and became involved in social and charitable work.

SOPHIE, CROWN PRINCESS OF GREECE - A Prussian-born princess, and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, Sophie was named as one of Dmitri's godparents. She was his aunt-by-marriage, having married his maternal uncle Crown Prince Constantine in 1889. She later became Queen consort upon the death of King George I in 1913. As Crown Princess, and later Queen, she became involved in the assistance to the poor, following in the footsteps of her mother-in-law, Queen Olga.

GRAND DUCHESS ALEXANDRA IOSIFOVNA OF RUSSIA - his maternal great-grandmother, born a German princess, was listed as one of his godparents. Married to Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich of Russia in 1848, she was considered a beautiful woman, but plagued by insecurity. Within the family, she was later known to be a formidable character.

GRAND DUCHESS ELIZABETH FEODOROVNA OF RUSSIA - his aunt-by-marriage, also a German princess and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, was one of Dmitri's godparents. In 1884, she married his uncle Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich. Elizabeth had a role in Dmitri's upbringing, whom he formed a  very strong bond with. She became famous in Russian society for her dignified beauty and charitable works among the poor.

GRAND DUKE MICHAEL NIKOLAEVICH OF RUSSIA -  his great-uncle (paternal) and also great-great-uncle (maternal) was listed as one of his godparents. A soldier for most of his adult life, he enjoyed a favourable relationship with the three last Emperors of Russia - his brother Alexander II; nephew Alexander III; and great-nephew Nicholas II.

PRINCE GEORGE OF GREECE AND DENMARK - his maternal uncle was amongst his numerous godparents. He served as high commissioner of the Cretan State during its transition towards independence from Ottoman rule and union with Greece.

Source

#dmitri pavlovich #romanovs #godparents

[steliosagapitos]

~ "An emerald and diamond brooch, early 19th Century, made for Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, Collection Kremlin Moscow. The brooch is centred by a large emerald within open foliate shaped collet set old cut diamond surround, mounted in gold and silver The emerald is slightly damaged and scratched at the surface due to wearing, emerald is a quite soft gemstone with many inclusions trapped inside during the gem’s formation. Emerald was the birthstone of Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, born on May 8 in 1779 in Tsarskoe Selo, Russia. He was a son of emperor Paul I. He was the virtual ruler of the Congress Kingdom of Poland between 1815 and 1830. He was educated by a Swiss tutor under the supervision of his grandmother, the empress Catherine the Great. At the age of 20 Konstantin participated in the Russian campaign in Italy against Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799 and was present at the Russo-Austrian defeat at Austerlitz in 1805. He took part in the Russian campaigns of 1807, 1812, 1813, and 1814 against Napoleon. After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Poland became a constitutional Kingdom with the emperor of Russia as its king, which was Konstantin. Although Konstantin organized the Polish army, he failed to win its support, and he also alienated the Parliament and the general populace with his harsh reigning. In 1830 he was taken completely by surprise when a Polish insurrection broke out in Warsaw. Because of his utter failure to grasp the situation, the Polish army passed over to the side of the rebels, and, as the revolution wore on, Konstantin showed himself as incompetent as he was lacking in judgment. He did not live to see the uprising suppressed, for he died of cholera in June 1831." ~

[joseandrestabarnia]

Bryullov Alexander (1798-1877) RETRATO DE LA CONDESA E.A. VORONTSOVA Y LA PRINCESA E.M. GOLITSYNA 1825 Tamaño - 43,4 x 34,1 Material - cartón Técnica - acuarela, lápiz de grafito, pincel Número de inventario - Inv.4597 Recibido del Fondo del Museo Nacional. 1920

A finales de 1824 A.P. Bryullov, mientras estaba en Nápoles, recurrió al género del retrato en acuarela. Creó su propio tipo de imagen, que se puede llamar pinturas de retratos. Ligeros y refinados en color, combinaron orgánicamente las características de esplendor e intimidad. En Nápoles, el artista ejecutó una serie de los llamados "retratos de terraza", en los que las modelos aparecen sentadas o de pie en poses relajadas en una terraza abierta con vistas al golfo de Nápoles y al Vesubio. Entre ellos, uno de los mejores es un retrato emparejado de la condesa Ekaterina Artemyevna Vorontsova (1780–1836) y la princesa Elena Mikhailovna Golitsyna (1776–1855).

Vorontsova fue la dama de honor de la Gran Duquesa Anna Feodorovna, esposa del Gran Duque Konstantin Pavlovich. Después de su divorcio, Anna Fedorovna se instaló en Suiza en el castillo de Elfenau. La condesa Vorontsova, quien hasta el final de su vida mantuvo un sentimiento de afecto por la Gran Duquesa, la visitaba a menudo. En los viajes por Europa, Vorontsova siempre estuvo acompañada por una amiga cercana, la princesa E.M. Golitsin.

El trabajo de retratos cautivó al artista como profesional y marcó su camino posterior en el arte. Bryullov se convirtió no solo en un famoso arquitecto, sino también en un brillante maestro del retrato en acuarela.

Información e imagen de la web de la Galería Tretyakov.

#art

[pwlanier]

Unknown artist "Portrait of Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich." The end of the 18th century.

Iron, oil. It's iron. Diameter 11 cm.

Without a signature.

Litfund

#russian auctions are fun #russian art

[adelardd]

ᴋᴏɴsᴛᴀɴᴛɪɴ ᴘᴀᴠʟᴏᴠɪᴄʜ ᴡᴀs ᴀ ɢʀᴀɴᴅ ᴅᴜᴋᴇ ᴏꜰ ʀᴜssɪᴀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ sᴇᴄᴏɴᴅ sᴏɴ ᴏꜰ ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ ᴘᴀᴜʟ ɪ ᴀɴᴅ sᴏᴘʜɪᴇ ᴅᴏʀᴏᴛʜᴇᴀ ᴏꜰ ᴡʀᴛᴛᴇᴍʙᴇʀɢ. ʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴇɪʀ-ᴘʀᴇsᴜᴍᴘᴛɪᴠᴇ ꜰᴏʀ ᴍᴏsᴛ ᴏꜰ ʜɪs ᴇʟᴅᴇʀ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴀʟᴇxᴀɴᴅᴇʀ ɪ's ʀᴇɪɢɴ, ʙᴜᴛ ʜᴀᴅ sᴇᴄʀᴇᴛʟʏ ʀᴇɴᴏᴜɴᴄᴇᴅ ʜɪs ᴄʟᴀɪᴍ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʜʀᴏɴᴇ ɪɴ 1823. ꜰᴏʀ 25 ᴅᴀʏs ᴀꜰᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴀʟᴇxᴀɴᴅᴇʀ ɪ, ꜰʀᴏᴍ 19 ɴᴏᴠᴇᴍʙᴇʀ 1825 ᴛᴏ 14 ᴅᴇᴄᴇᴍʙᴇʀ 1825 ʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ᴋɴᴏᴡɴ ᴀs ʜɪs ɪᴍᴘᴇʀɪᴀʟ ᴍᴀᴊᴇsᴛʏ ᴋᴏɴsᴛᴀɴᴛɪɴ ɪ ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ ᴀɴᴅ sᴏᴠᴇʀᴇɪɢɴ ᴏꜰ ʀᴜssɪᴀ, ᴀʟᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜ ʜᴇ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ʀᴇɪɢɴᴇᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴀᴄᴄᴇᴅᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʜʀᴏɴᴇ. ʜɪs ʏᴏᴜɴɢᴇʀ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ɴɪᴄʜᴏʟᴀs ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴛsᴀʀ ɪɴ 1825. ᴛʜᴇ sᴜᴄᴄᴇssɪᴏɴ ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴏᴠᴇʀsʏ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴇxᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴄᴇᴍʙʀɪsᴛ ʀᴇᴠᴏʟᴛ.

#konstantin pavlovich #the decembrist revolt #the decembrist #the decemberists #Alexander pavlovich #alexander 1 #19 century #historical #história #histoire #history #union of salvation #aesthetics #aesthetic #moodboard #Константин Павлович #Александр 1 #декабрист #декабристы #союз спасения #эстетика #мудборд #ру #русский tumblr #русский тамблер #история россии #русская история #история