Chapter 1: The Coup
Born To Rule
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A Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Romanov Timeline
Chapter I: The Coup
December 7th, 1741, Winter Palace, Saint Petersburg
—
A Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Romanov Timeline
Chapter I: The Coup
December 7th, 1741, Winter Palace, Saint Petersburg
Elizaveta gazed out on the palace square from her window. The morning sun had risen, and the snow that had filled the square was beginning to melt in the heat of the day. She allowed herself to relax, or at least as much as she could in her dress. The day had been won, and the Brunswickers removed. Ostermann was arrested and she had seen the young Anna off to Riga. And while Münnich was still removed from Saint Petersburg she was sure her agents would reach him before he could get word of the coup. Yes, she had finally triumphed, and now Russia was hers and hers alone.
Elizaveta allowed herself to sit at her desk and recline in her chair. The night had been long and her body was strained from the stresses of managing the coup. She felt herself begin to doze off somewhat, but was interrupted by a loud knocking at her doors.
“You may enter!” the Empress shouted, straightening herself in her seat.
The tall doors came open, and a group of soldiers came rushing through. At the head of them was Razumovsky. Elizaveta was glad to see him again and he was carrying an infant in his arms as he approached her.
“My lady,” Razumovsky said, taking a knee and raising the child above his head, “May I present to you the Emperor of all Russia.”
Elizaveta rose from her chair and saw the small child gazing at her, his face twisted in fear of the strange people around him. She immediately snatched him from the hands of Razumovsky, and cradled the boy in her own arms.
“There there my sweet child, you are not to blame for any of this.” Elizaveta said, rocking the young Ivan in her arms.
She raised her head and turned back to Razumovsky and his men. All refused to make eye contact with her, instead glancing around at the room and out the window.
“My dear soldiers, tell me, what has gone awry? Is it Münnich?” Her tone shifted to a more serious pitch.
Razumovsky raised himself and glanced at the other soldiers, all of whom nodded to him in agreement. “News has arrived from Kiel Empress. Your nephew, the Duke of Holstein, has passed of smallpox.”
Elizaveta stopped rocking the infant Ivan. “When did news arrive of his death?”
“We learned of it over a week ago.” Razumovsky winced, “We chose not to tell you lest it might cause you to delay the coup.”
Elizaveta stared at the ground in shock. Her nephew, the son of her sweet sister Anna, gone. The future of Russia and her family, gone. She felt tears build up in her eyes and her sense of victory fade away. She felt lost, the last member of her family passing off and leaving her alone in the world.
“Tsaritsa,” one of the soldiers said, “the child must be your heir.”
She stared at the infant in her arms. He had calmed, his face no longer filled with fear, but instead staring at her with wide eyes. This little German bastard, who she had put so much effort into removing, was destined to succeed her. Elizaveta didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry at the thought of it.
“Empress I know you may not be privy to the idea but you must accept it.” Razumovsky said. “There is no one else to follow you save him and Katerina, and we cannot return to lawless anarchy.”
Elizaveta slumped back into her chair, Ivan in her arms. She had won the battle, but it seemed as the war was lost.
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Welcome to Born to Rule! The central Point of Divergence here is the death of the Duke of Holstein, Karl Peter, future Peter III of Russia, shortly before the 1741 Russian Coup. This leaves the Empress Elizabeth without an heir, and forced to keep her grand-nephew Ivan VI as her successor. This central idea around this timeline is essentially if Ivan VI got a chance to rule, rather than spending the entirety of his short and miserable life a prisoner. I hope you all enjoy.
