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For more than a century Grigori Rasputin has been called the “Mad Monk,” referred to as a mystic and explored as a key figure in the last ruling days of the Tsars in Russia. What’s the real story? Historian Douglas Smith, author of five books on Russia and key figures, has turned his attention to the famous Rasputin for his fifth book, Rasputin: Faith, Power, and the Twilight of the Romanovs. Our speaker, on December 6, closes our Russia Series with an examination of a powerful figure in Russian history who was murdered a hundred years ago. Smith is an award-winning historian and translator who, in the past 30 years, has made many research trips to Russia. In his latest book, Smith wrangled his research together to present a portrait of a complex “man of God” described as a “voice of peace, loyal subject, adulterer, drunkard.” And, yet, with all those modern attributes, he died due to an enduring, old-fashioned Russian method: political intrigue. Rasputin’s death launched an industry: Speculation about his death and his death, his influence and his detractors launched books, movies and plays. Smith’s previous book was the prize-winning Former People: The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy. “Former people” was the term used to refer to individuals and families who’d lost their social status and influence in the wake of the revolution that removed the Tsars from leadership of Russia. The author served as a Russian interpreter for President Reagan, worked as a Soviet affairs analyst for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is an award-winning scholar.