Czar Nicholas II was the last emperor of Russia. He ascended to the throne upon the death of his father, Alexander III, in 1894, but he was not crowned Czar until the traditional year-long period of morning had passed in May, 1896 (Tsar 1). Though he was an emperor with the best intentions, Nicholas II was a weak ruler who was dominated by others, including his wife. His policies were firmly based on the autocratic ones of his father. His wife, Alexandra, bore him five children of whom only one was male. Alexis, the son, was a hemophiliac and Nicholas and Alexandria were prone to become vulnerable to all kinds of religious fanatics and quacks in an attempt to find a cure for their son. One of these was the infamous Siberian monk Grigory Rasputin, who many believe dominated Nicholas in terms of policy. Under Nicholas’ reign, autocracy, oppression and police control were the order of the day. Because of this totalitarian approach, terrorist acts grew during his leadership. One of his biggest opponents, Vladimir Lenin, directed a socialist movement against him, one which would lead to the Bolshevik Revolution and the institution of Communism in Russia. Unlike many Czars before him, Nicholas and Alexandra were deeply in love, even though Alexander III only reluctantly approved his marriage to the unpopular German princess. He felt his wife should be someone who would make a much better political alliance than did Alexandra. Nicholas II was well-intentioned, but he was an ineffective leader in many respects. He felt it was up to him to make all decisions with regard to Russia and his communication style made him appear indecisive and autocratic:
He was extremely polite and disliked confrontation. Nicholas felt it was his duty to rule Russia as well as reign. This meant that he would have to make all the decisions for the country with brief input in the form of reports from the ministers that served him. He would not me...