Question by [email protected]: What were some distinct differences between Rasputin and Ivan The Terrible?
How were they different and and how were they similar?
Answers and Views:
Answer by mac1hull
Ivan the Terrible was the Tsar of all the Russias.
Rasputin was an alcoholic mad Orthodox monk.
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Delin Colon says
The gossip about Rasputin being a 'mad man', a drunk and a womanizer was perpetrated by the highly anti-semitic aristocracy who deeply resented and felt threatened by Rasputin's advocacy of equal rights for the severely oppressed Jews of tsarist Russia. A new well-documented book, "Rasputin and The Jews" ( http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1461027756 ) shows Rasputin to have hated bigotry, inequity and violence. The post-Revolutionary Extraordinary Commission found no evidence of promiscuity, and even found him to be quite a humanitarian.
It must be remembered that Tsar Nicholas II did more to undermine the Romanov dynasty than anyone. In addition, the Romanovs were responsible for the torture and slaughter of entire villages of Jews in regular raids called 'pogroms'. Rasputin never harmed nor killed a single soul.
Any money that went into his hands was immediately given to the poor who lined up at his door for help. Sometimes the money he was given was used to bribe officials into allowing Jews to attend university, live outside the ghetto (The Pale of Settlement, where they were confined), or practice certain occupations. He had no use for money.
In addition, the gossip regarding alcohol and sex came from an extremely decadent society known for their mistresses, venereal diseases, and consumption of alcohol. The aristocracy demanded a lifestyle of Rasputin that they themselves never lived up to. Read about it in "Raputin and The Jews".
Gawaine R says
They were both Russian and charismatic, but Ivan the Awful was a sadist on a grand scale and was a complete monster.
Rasputin actually did have a healing touch, even at a distance. He was a complete drunk and sexually abused almost every woman who came his way, but he was protected by the Romanovs because he kept healing Alexi. Rasputin also urged the Romanovs to stop persecuting Jews, and he helped Jews (for a fee, but this was at a time when most people only wanted to rob them and kill them).
He was much less sinister than the public thought, but his presence in the royal family was a national scandal and undermined the credibility of the Romanov dynasty.
eight says
here are two links that will help you out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasputin http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_The_Terrible