A. INVESTIGATION PLANAmong the greatest mysteries in Russian history is the influence of the mad monk Grigori Rasputin. During his tenure at the court between 1907 and 1916, Rasputin developed a complex relationship with the ruling Romanovs and leading ministers due to his mystical ability to treat the hemophilia of the sole heir to the throne, Tsarevich Alexei. The subject of this investigation is to analyze to what extent Grigori Rasputin's personal influence led to the fall of the Russian Empire. The analysis will examine Rasputin's relationship with those in positions of power, from the time Rasputin first treated Alexei to the final days of the Romanov dynasty. Statements by those who know Rasputin and historical analyzes of Rasputin's life will be analyzed to elucidate the extent of Rasputin's influence.B. SUMMARY OF EVIDENCE Tsar Nicholas II and his Tsarina, Empress Alexandra, had only one son, Tsarevich Alexei. However, Alexei had inherited a life-threatening genetic disorder, hemophilia B, from his great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, a sex-linked genetic disorder on the symptoms that generally remain hidden. unless it is contracted by a male (Fuhrmann 37; King 28). For Nicholas II, it was imperative that he have a son to succeed him in order to secure the throne. Alexei was Nicholas' only male heir, prompting Nicholas to protect his son at all costs. With no scientific cure for the genetic disease, Alexandra turned to religion, namely Grigori Rasputin, a poor, uneducated Siberian peasant, to protect her son. Presented as a holy man capable of healing, the mad monk Grigori Rasputin arrived for the first time in the capital Saint-Pierre. .... middle of paper ......V. Rasputin's reign: the collapse of an empire. Memoirs of MV Rodzianko. Trans. Catherine Zvegintzoff. Gulf Breeze, FL: Academic International, 1973. Print. Romanov, Alexandra Feodorovna. “Letters from the Tsaritsa to the Tsar from 1914-1917.” Letters to Tsar Nicholas II. 1914-1915. Russian History Websites. AlexanderPalace, org, and Web. April 6, 2014. .Romanov, Nicholas II. “Letters from the Tsar to the Tsaritsa 1914-1917.” Letters to Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. 1914-1917. Russian History Websites. AlexanderPalace, org, and Web. April 6, 2014. < .Romanov, Olga Nikolaevna. The diary of Olga Romanov: royal witness to the Russian revolution: with extracts from family letters and memoirs of the time. Trans. Helene Azar. Yardley, PA: Westholme, LLC, 2014. Print.