Part 1: Chapter 2 Summary and Analysis

Nicolas was close to his brother George. He always wrote down the jokes his brother told and saved them. When George came down with tuberculosis, he was sent to the Caucasus with servants. Nicholas was raised at the palace at Gatchina located twenty-five miles outside St. Petersburg, where his father preferred to live. The children lived a Spartan existence, in spite of the opulence of the nine hundred-room palace. They bathed in cold water, and often went hungry due to court protocol that required that they were not served until after the other guests and had to leave when their father did. They ate better when they dined without their parents.

Nicholas was educated by a series of tutors in various subjects, including dance. The most important tutor was Constantine Petrovich Pobedonostsev, who became lay head of the Church...