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Grigory Efimovich Rasputin,
alias Novykh.
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Born in 1868
in the village of Pokrovskaya
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in the district of Tyumen,
in Tobolsk Guberniya.
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No known signs of insanity
in his family.
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Nicknamed "Snotnose"
by his boyfriends.
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Started drinking at the age of 15.
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Mixed-up in brawls and scandals,
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involved in illegal assemblies
of a sect called "The Flagellants".
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Twice convicted
and sentenced to be whipped.
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At the age of 27, suddenly
became an itinerant preacher,
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calling himself the "Holy Starets".
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Visited many monasteries
in Siberia and Central Russia
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and made pilgrimages to
Mount Athos and Jerusalem.
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By the turn of the century,
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rumors about the Siberian prophet
and faith-healer reached the capital,
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and he soon appeared there himself.
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He was welcomed into the salons
of the aristocracy,
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and it wasn't long before he was
received at the Imperial palace.
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Within a short time, Rasputin
acquired tremendous influence.
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In the past, numerous prophets,
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clairvoyants, hypnotists,
healers, believers in the occult,
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all had their place
in court circles.
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They usually turned up
in times of trouble,
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in years of spiritual
or ideological crisis.
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But never before in Russia's
history had any one person
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held as much influence
as Grigory Rasputin.