A Russian document boldly signed by Czar Nicholas II (1868-1918), the last Russian Emperor, on April 25, 1914. The document is displayed to the right of a high-quality photo reproduction of an Imperial portrait photograph of Nicholas II and Tsarevich Alexei, ca. 1913, possibly etched on metal. Both the document and the image are matted and framed behind glass in a fancy rosewood finished frame with marbleized maroon matting. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity from R&R Enterprises Autograph Auctions (Amherst, New Hampshire.)

The document is printed in Cyrillic and is not translated. The docket at the bottom of the page is dated April 25, 1914 (we believe that the date of 1911 provided on the R&R COA was an oversight.) Expected wear including light overall toning, isolated foxing, and a few gentle wrinkles, else near fine. Not examined out of the frame. The sight size of the document is 8.125" x 13.5" while the overall size of the frame is 21" x 20" x 1."

April 1914 was only two months before the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo, the spark that blew up the Balkan powder keg. The assassination was perpetrated by members of the Serbian terrorist organization the Black Hand, and would lead to the chain reaction of declarations of war underpinning the European alliance system. Nicholas II put Russian armed forces on high alert on July 25, 1914 and ordered general mobilization on July 30, 1914. Germany declared war on the Russian Empire on August 1, 1914 and the Austro-Hungarian Empire followed suit five days later.

Nicholas II personally led Russian forces as Commander-in-Chief after September 1915. It is estimated that approximately 1.7 million Russians were killed during the conflict, further destabilizing the czar's tenuous grip on the Empire. Nicholas II was forced to abdicate following the February Revolution of 1917. In July 1918, the last Czar of all the Russias, along with his immediate family and a few of his most devoted servants, were executed by Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg, Russia.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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