Peter Ermakov

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Peter Ermakov was a Russian military commissar assigned at the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg and charged with guarding the deposed Tsar Nicholas II and his family. According to historians Greg King and Penny Wilson, Ermakov was one of the main executioners and right hand of chief executioner Yakov Yurovsky. Ermakov was very intoxicated on the night of the murders. According to the account by King and Wilson, Ermarkov was the most bloodthirsty of the executioners. According to various reports, he was among the many men who shot at the former Tsar, who was already dead by the time firing began. His next target was Empress Alexandra, who was unable to finish the sign of the cross before she was shot dead. After momentarily stopping the firing due to the large amounts of rifle smoke, the executioners were ordered to finish off the Tsar's Children and remaining servant Anna Demidova. Ermarkov is reported to have delivered the killing blow to Grand Duchess Olga and severely wounded Grand Duchesses Marie and Anastasia.