Who Was Afraid of the Dark Forces?

Name: Who Was Afraid of the Dark Forces?
Genre: Documentary

Revolutionary investigators try to separate Rasputin's real influence from propaganda, only to confront alleged bias inside their own inquiry.

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Transcript

The Thirteenth Section investigated the activity of the dark forces.
The Provisional Government formed its Extraordinary Commission on March 4th, 1917.
A special 13th Section was assigned to investigate the so-called dark forces.
In political jargon, the label included Rasputin, the tsarina, and people close to them.
Inside the section, investigators faced pressure to produce biased conclusions.
The Extraordinary Commission's interrogations continued from March 1917 until the Bolshevik coup in October.
Rasputin's life was surrounded by mystery and legend, and he became a frequent visitor to the Romanov family.
By 1912, Rasputin had risen in influence and was directly advising the czar.
Inside the Commission's inquiry room, unanswered questions about the dark forces hung in the air.
Vladimir Rudnev worked inside the section before alleging pressure toward patently biased actions.
Vladimir Rudnev resigned from the Thirteenth Section, citing attempts by Commission president Muravyov to incite him to patently biased actions.
By October 1917, the Bolshevik seizure of power ended the Commission's work.
After the revolution, Rasputin's published writings left public libraries for closed repositories.

While the dark forces inquiry struggled over truth and bias, a silent film was already turning Rasputin into an immortal screen villain.

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