Under pressure from the protesting masses, the troops of the Petrograd garrison and the Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies, Nikolai signed an act of abdication. The emperor hoped that his decision would save the country from chaos, but the situation only worsened. The Provisional Government was unable to take control of the crumbling state, and soon the Bolsheviks appeared on the scene, promising the people "peace, land and bread".

After being arrested at Tsarskoye Selo and moved to Yekaterinburg, Nikolai and the Triumvirate were taken into custody at the Ipatiev House. The house was a closely guarded facility surrounded by a high fence that isolated its occupants from the outside world. Inside the house, conditions were far from comfortable. On the first floor were living quarters for Nikolai and his cronies. The space was cramped, the furniture and belongings were minimal, and the windows were boarded up to prevent the prisoners from seeing what was happening outside.

On the night of 17 July they were awakened and told that they were being moved to a safe place because of the threat posed by approaching white troops. With few belongings, they were taken to a semi-basement room without chairs.

You were one of Nikolai's closest soldiers. After his abdication, you were recruited into the firing squad. Standing here now, armed with a rifle, you didn't realise how it had come to this. But you saw the incomprehension and fear in Nikolai's brown eyes.

Everyone took their places against the wall. And then the head of the guard, Yakov Yurovsky, announced that the Soviet authorities had decided to shoot. Yakov didn't have time to finish, and Nikolai didn't have time to say a word before the shooting started.