Anastasia: A Century's Mystery

too sick to see him. Her and her sister’s heads were shaved so that the hair would not fall out during the illness, and Anastasia, still a tomboy at heart, would later claim that she liked the idea -- partially. For photographs, she would keep her hat on. But once, as the ever-faithful Gilliard tried to take a picture of all the girls together, by a motion from Olga all of them removed their hats, and, in spite of Gilliard’s protests, insisted that they be photographed convict-style.

In a letter smuggled to a friend from Tobolsk, Anastasia would describe another humorous incident concerning the same issue. The English is her own:

My dear friend,
I will describe to you [how] we traveled. We started in the morning and when we got into the train I went to sleep, so did all of us. We were very tired because we did not sleep the whole night. The first day was hot and very dusty. At the stations we had to shut our window curtains that nobody should see us. Once in the evening I was looking out we stopped near a little house, but there was no station so we could look out. A little boy came to my window and asked: 'Uncle, please give me, if you have got, a newspaper.' I said: 'I am not an uncle but an aunty and have no newspaper.' At the first moment I could not understand why did he call me 'Uncle' but then I remembered that my hair is cut and I and the soldiers (which were standing next to me) laughed very much. On the way many other funny things happened, and if I shall have time I shall write to you our travel farther on.
Goodbye. Don't forget me. Many kisses from us all to you my darling.
Your Anastasia."

Anastasia would also cause a commotion once during captivity, when, as the Tsar was reading aloud to the family, a servant entered suddenly in a state of great agitation and announced that the Commandant requested an immediate interview with the Tsar. The latter thought something very serious must have happened in Petrograd, but when the guards entered they explained that they had been summoned by a comrade who, from the park, had noticed signals with red and green lights from the room in which the family were sitting.

General amazement

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