In 1918, the year the family was murdered, Alexander traveled to Berlin and tried to get the help of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, who was a cousin of Nicholas's; in this attempt, the duke tried to persuade Nicholas to agree to a plan based on German help. Alexander was in favor of spiriting the family away to Berlin, but Nicholas refused, causing rumors that Wilhelm's government was considering "kidnapping the Tsar and his family and bringing them to Germany". Empress Alexandra insisted she "would rather die in Russia than be rescued by the Germans". In the end, nothing came of these plans, as monarchist groups could not decide whether or not to restore Nicholas or his son Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich.