DEAREST MAMA . . . DARLING NICKY Letters Between Emperor Nicholas II and his Mother Empress Maria Feodorovna 1879-1917. Written between the years 1879, when Nicky was a little boy, and 1917, after his abdication, this collection of letters are a revelation of the personalities of the Emperor and his Empress mother. They were never part of the imperial archives but the cherished possession of both correspondents, carried with them wherever they went. At the outbreak of the revolution, the letters were confiscated by the Soviets. From some five hundred letters, more than 200 have been selected and translated from the French and Russian. They have particular bearing on the Tsar’s relatives in England, Germany, Italy and Greece; on political personages in Russia, and their Romanov relatives. All of their family but Uncle Willie, the German Emperor, found a place in their affections. To them, he was always an exhibitionist, dangerous in his national ambition. Uncle Bertie, Aunt Alix, Georgie, May, and Granny—respectively King Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, King George V, Queen Mary and Queen Victoria—emerge as human beings, minus crowns and ermine. The correspondence sheds considerable light on Nicholas II’s character, family affairs, and politics, especially in regard to the 1905 Revolution. The preface provides an interesting assessment of the correspondence and its historical significance. Unlike his diaries, these letters are essential human documents of great historic importance, and in the case of the Tsar, will alter many preconceived notions of his character, and the negative assessment which has persisted for more than a century. NOTE: Dearest Nicky, Darling Mama was originally published in England in 1937, under the title The Letters of Tsar Nicholas and Empress Marie; they were published in the United States in 1938, under the title The Secret Letters of the Last Tsar. Out of print for decades, this is the first edition of this title published in nearly 90 years! Engelstalig, 23x15cm, paperback. 244 pagina's, met meer dan 200 letters.