The End of the Romanov Dynasty

On March the 2nd, 1917, two representatives of the Duma, arrived in Pskov to receive Nicholas’ II abdication. That was the end of the Romanov Dynasty. The video follows the events from the February Revolution 1917 until the murder of the Romanov family and the discovery of their remains, in 1991.

One of the main features of this video is the film with V. Shulgin, one of the two Duma members who met Tsar Nicholas II and received from him his abdication statement. Shulgin related the story in 1957, after Stalin’s death, in a film that was shot in the very same train compartment where they met Nicholas II and received his abdication.

This video is produced as part of the project for the book "The Romanov Royal Martyrs”, which is an impressive 512-page book, featuring nearly 200 black & white photographs, and a 56-page photo insert of more than 80 high-quality images, colorized by the acclaimed Russian artist Olga Shirnina (Klimbim) and appearing here in print for the first time.


Explore the book HERE »

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In a Slight to E.U., U.K. Says Not All Ambassadors Are Equal

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Just weeks into its official break from the bloc, Britain is refusing to grant the bloc’s ambassador the same status as other top diplomats.

BRUSSELS — For all the complications and wounded feelings Brexit has introduced in the relationship between the European Union and its erstwhile member, Britain, this week saw the addition of a diplomatic spat reminiscent of a similar argument initiated by former President Donald J. Trump.

So far, at least, Britain is refusing to grant the European Union ambassador the same diplomatic status as other ambassadors.

The British argument is that the European Union is an international federation, not a nation state, and should receive the same treatment as other international organizations, further down the diplomatic ranking. There is also the suspicion that the British government is trying to embarrass Brussels and contrast its own status as a nation state with the confederation it chose to leave. » | Steven Erlanger | Thursday, January 21, 2021

The Last of the Romanovs | Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna

The extraordinary story of Tsar Nicholas’ sister and her journey from the palaces of St. Petersburg to death in obscurity above a barbershop in Toronto. A life full of passion and love, set at the backdrop of an entire century. She was raised at the Gatchina Palace outside Saint Petersburg. Olga was her father’s favorite, but Tsar Alexander III died when she was only 12. After the Russian Revolution, Olga escaped to Denmark with her second husband and their two sons, in February 1920, where they lived as farmers. Finally, in 1948, she relocated with her immediate family to a farm in Campbellville, Ontario, Canada. At the end of her life and afterwards, Olga was widely labeled the last Grand Duchess of Imperial Russia.

This video is produced as part of the project for the book "The Romanov Royal Martyrs”, which is an impressive 512-page book, featuring nearly 200 black & white photographs, and a 56-page photo insert of more than 80 high-quality images, colorized by the acclaimed Russian artist Olga Shirnina (Klimbim) and appearing here in print for the first time.

President Biden's Full Inaugural Address

Biden Prepares Ambitious Agenda Even as He Cleans Up Trump's Mess

THE GUARDIAN: Analysis: The new administration faces no shortage of obstacles to progress – but Biden is setting his sights high nonetheless

The last time a Democratic president took control of the White House, the wreckage he inherited was so great, there was little else his incoming team could prioritize.

Twelve years ago, Barack Obama’s blunt-spoken chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, liked to describe the Republican legacy – a financial crisis, deep recession and two wars – as a giant shit sandwich wrapped in a red ribbon.

Recovering from the economic crisis of George W Bush’s final year would require most of the Obama team’s focus in their first two years, when they controlled both sides of Congress with large majorities. Obama handed over his signature campaign issue – winding down the war in Iraq – to his vice-president to manage.

Now that former vice-president takes over the presidency with even more wreckage to sift through.

Joe Biden must overcome a pandemic, rebuild an economy, tackle racist insurrectionists and the ex-president who incited them, and reassert American leadership across a distrustful world. Somehow he must do all that while also confirming his senior officials in a Senate with no working majority. » | Richard Wolffe | Wednesday, January 20, 2021

Stricter Rules and Tougher Controls as Germany Extends Lockdown | DW News

Germany extends its lockdown until at least mid-February, with stricter rules on mask-wearing as part of tougher controls to curb new variants of Covid-19. Although the country has been reporting a drop in new infections, German leaders hope further restrictions can slow the spread of more transmissable coronavirus variants that have emerged in other countries. The government is imposing new rules that include the wearing of higher-quality masks and more people working from home.

Biden Gets Emotional Talking about His Journey to White House

President-elect Joe Biden gave an emotional speech in Delaware before he departs for Washington ahead of his inauguration tomorrow.

A Message from First Lady Melania Trump

The Financial Minefield Awaiting an Ex-President Trump

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Baseless election fraud claims and the Capitol riot have compounded already-looming threats to his bottom line. And the cash lifelines he once relied on are gone.

Not long after he strides across the White House grounds Wednesday morning for the last time as president, Donald J. Trump will step into a financial minefield that appears to be unlike anything he has faced since his earlier brushes with collapse.

The tax records that he has long fought to keep hidden, revealed in a New York Times investigation last September, detailed his financial challenges:

Many of his resorts were losing millions of dollars a year even before the pandemic struck. Hundreds of millions of dollars in loans, which he personally guaranteed, must be repaid within a few years. He has burned through much of his cash and easy-to-sell assets. And a decade-old I.R.S. audit threatens to cost him more than $100 million to resolve. » | Russ Buettner and Susanne Craig | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Farewell Address of President Donald J. Trump

This man is delusional! He won’t be missed! Farewell! And good riddance! – Mark

Biden Administration 'To Declassify Report' into Khashoggi Murder

THE GUARDIAN: Decision would mean US could assign blame for death on to Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman

The Biden administration will declassify an intelligence report into the murder by the Saudi government of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to Avril Haines, who has been nominated to serve as director of national intelligence.

The decision means that the US is likely to officially assign blame for Khashoggi’s brutal murder to the kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Khashoggi, a Washington Post journalist and US resident who wrote critical columns about the Saudi crown prince, was murdered by Saudi agents inside the Saudi consulate in Turkey in October 2018.

While media reports have said that the US intelligence community determined with a medium to high degree of confidence that Prince Mohammed ordered the killing, that assessment has never officially been stated. The crown prince has denied he ordered the murder. » | Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

The Nazi Officer's Wife

The Nazi Officer's Wife: How One Jewish Woman Survived the Holocaust is a 1999 autobiography by Austrian-born Edith Hahn-Beer. Written with the help of Susan Dworkin, the book's first edition was published by Rob Weibach Books and William Morrow and Company. A documentary film based on the source material and starring Hahn-Beer herself was released in 2003.

«La violence n'est jamais la solution» : Melania Trump publie une vidéo d'adieu

LE FIGARO: La première dame s'apprête à quitter la Maison-Blanche et n'a qu'à peine évoqué son mari.


Vous pouvez lire l’article ici »

Brexit Was a Typically English Revolution – One That Left the Elites Unharmed

THE GUARDIAN: Our ruling class is expert in maintaining a myth of continuity, and absorbing supporters from the ranks of the aggrieved

Jacob Rees-Mogg’s star has waned since his glory days leading backbench rebellions against Theresa May. He is on TV less, playing to smaller crowds. I caught him the other week on the BBC Parliament channel telling the Commons that fish unable to reach EU markets were “better and happier” because Brexit makes them more British.

Watching his performance, I recalled the perennially startling fact about Rees-Mogg: he is younger than Kylie Minogue (also Noel Gallagher and Damon Albarn, but Minogue is the more arresting comparator for some reason).

No one expects politicians and pop stars from the same generation to sound and dress alike, but how many people realise that the artist known to fans as Moggy is of Kylie’s generation? His style implies something ancient, but that is the point. It is a look, tailored for an audience – just like any theatrical costume. Except his stage is parliament. » | Rafael Behr | Tuesday, January 19, 2021

The Last Christmas of the Romanovs

Christmas 1917 would be the last for the Romanov family. Isolated from the world, exiled in Siberia, they lived the joy of the feast of love, distributing gifts to the members of their staff that they had made themselves. Under house arrest and closely guarded, they were able to organize a traditional Christmas that was in many ways their closest family holiday.

Democracy Now! Top US & World Headlines — January 19, 2021

President Trump: The 24 Final Hours in the White House | DW News

Washington has become a fortress city of roadblocks and barricades, and the FBI is vetting all 25,000 people providing security for President-elect Joe Biden's upcoming inauguration. Rehearsals of the ceremony are taking place in a city that now resembles a ghost town.

Le nouveau président de la CDU, un choix rassurant pour l’Allemagne et l’Europe

LE MONDE: Editorial. En choisissant de porter Armin Laschet, fidèle de la chancelière Angela Merkel, à la tête de leur parti, les conservateurs allemands réaffirment leur ancrage dans une ligne européenne et centriste.

Editorial du « Monde ». Quinze ans après l’élection d’Angela Merkel à la tête du gouvernement allemand, le congrès de l’Union chrétienne-démocrate (CDU), vendredi 15 et samedi 16 janvier, avait un parfum d’adieu : « Selon toute vraisemblance, c’est mon dernier congrès en tant que chancelière », y a déclaré Mme Merkel, qui s’est engagée à quitter le pouvoir après les élections législatives du 26 septembre.

Si elle s’apprête à tourner la page des années Merkel, la droite allemande n’entend toutefois pas rompre avec le « merkélisme ». Armin Laschet, 59 ans, le nouveau président de la CDU, est un fidèle de la chancelière, dont il a toujours soutenu la politique, y compris quand elle se heurta à de vives critiques dans le parti, comme en 2015, lors de la crise des réfugiés. » | Éditorial | lundi 18 janvier 2021

Covid-19 : la lourde responsabilité de Donald Trump dans l’hécatombe américaine

LE MONDE: Editorial. Le bilan de 400 000 morts apparaît comme la conséquence de ce mélange d’arrogance, de cynisme, de mépris pour les scientifiques et de mensonge caractéristique de la personnalité du président américain.

Editorial du « Monde ».Il y a tout juste quatre ans, Donald Trump promettait devant le monde abasourdi de « mettre fin au carnage américain ». A la veille de quitter la Maison Blanche, le président républicain laisse derrière lui un pays en lambeaux, parcouru de divisions rarement égalées, secoué par des violences politiques inédites et, surtout, ravagé par une pandémie galopante et, par endroits, totalement hors de contrôle.

Sa gestion de la crise sanitaire, marquée tour à tour par l’indifférence, le déni, les mensonges et l’instrumentalisation politique, laisse les Etats-Unis face à un bilan unique au monde : près de 400 000 morts en onze mois, 23 millions de personnes contaminées. A son actif demeureront seulement les efforts financiers déployés pour permettre la découverte rapide d’un vaccin. » | Éditorial | Samedi 16 janvier 2021

Tunisia Protests: Hundreds Arrested as Clashes Continue

BBC: Police in Tunisia say they have arrested more than 600 people as a fourth night of violent protests saw protesters return to the streets.

On Monday, crowds of mainly young demonstrators again gathered in the centre of the capital, Tunis, throwing stones and petrol bombs at police.

Security forces responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Tunisia faces severe economic problems and a third of its young people are unemployed.

The economic crisis has worsened under the pandemic.

The latest unrest comes almost exactly 10 years since the Tunisian revolution ushered in democracy and triggered the Arab Spring revolts across the region. However, hopes that this would bring more jobs and opportunities have been disappointed.

Outside Tunis, clashes were reported on Monday in the cities of Kasserine, Gafsa, Sousse and Monastir. » | Tuesday, January 19, 2021