In July 1918, in the final days of the Russian Revolution, Tsar Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra, their five children, and four loyal attendants were executed in the basement of a house in Yekaterinburg. The killings brought a violent and final end to more than three centuries of Romanov rule in Russia.

In this episode of Coffee Meets Murder, we examine the downfall of the Romanov dynasty, the political chaos that led to their imprisonment, and the decisions that sealed the family’s fate. From secret orders and hurried executions to the decades-long mystery surrounding their remains, this is the story of how an empire collapsed—and a family was erased.

Listener discretion is advised.