The court environment of Nicolas II is the subject of intense attention of several generations of historians. There are many valuable sources on this span of the Russian history. Materials of the Provisional interrogative commission established by the Provisional government are among the most interesting among these sources. On the grounds of these materials the author traces influence of various country groups on the domestic and foreign policies of the last Russian emperor. The author considers several serious issues of the Nicolas II reign including the issue of Rasputin’s infiltration into the emperor’s closest circle and the issue of attempts to make a separate peace in the World War I.

The article deals with the creation and activities of the «Holy retinue» which was the secret organization of the court Russian aristocracy. According to the conventional story, its aim was to defend the Emperor’s family and to fight «revolutionary false doctrines». However, the analysis of this body’s activities and prospects set forth by the body’s members demonstrates that in fact the body was set up to carry out the political control over the secret services. The author points out the similarity of the «Holy retinue» and the ideological counterintelligence inside the KGB of the USSR. The author thinks that the issues he raised in respect of the «Holy retinue» history, relationships between the KGB and the Soviet Communist Party’s elite cannot but be a subject of interest for the contemporary Russian politicians.