teatimeatwinterpalace:June 13, 1918 – Execution of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich and his secret

teatimeatwinterpalace: June 13, 1918 – Execution of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich and his secretary Nicholas Johnson. Michael enjoyed relative freedom for many weeks, and was undoubtedly relieved to know that Natalia and the children either had or would soon escape. It was reported that Michael had many supporters in Perm and its environs, waiting to help him. He resided in a hotel along with his long-time secretary, Nicholas Johnson, who many thought was an Englishman. Not that it would help him, but Johnson was a Russian. Also ith Michael in Perm were his chauffeur, Borunov, and his valet, Chelyshev.  According to the latter, on the night of June 12, 1918, a band of gangster-like Bolsheviks entered the grand duke’s hotel room and asked him to ready himself for transefer to “a safe place”. The Bolsheviks included one Gavril Myasnikov, Andrei Markov, and three others. When Michael protested, and tried to call the local Bolshevik leader who had kept promising his continued freedom, his phone lines were cut. He dressed, and was grabbed by the collar and put into a conveyance, along with his secretary Nicholas Johnson. The manner in which the grand duke was taken away from the hotel left little doubt in the mind of Chelyshev about what awaited Michael. The grand duke had for many years suffered from ulcers, and he was prevented from taking his medications or any other personal items, such as clothing, with him.  One can only imagine what went trhought the minds of the two friends as they left Perm. The were driven outside of the city and into a forested area near the Motovilikhia factory. Reportedly per killers, Nicholas Johnson was shot immediately after getting out of the carriage. One reporrt indicates that Michael, after first ebing wounded and then trying to run away, ran toward his friend with his arms outstretched, only to be shot dead. A few of the murderers reportedly came back the following day to bury Michael and Johnson, but the exact site of their grave is unknown. Their murders were the first in an orgy of Romanov murders that took place between June 1918 and January 1919. In all seventeen members of the Imperial Family were murdered during this time. It is impossible not to recognize the dynastic significance of these brutal acts. -- source link

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