By 1916, Grand Duke Andrei joined other members of his family in political intrigues against the Empress who was in charge of the government in Saint Petersburg while Nicholas II was away at Russia's war military headquarters. In December 1916, the Assassination of Rasputin, in which Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich and Prince Felix Yusupov took part, divided the Romanov family further. Grand Duke Andrei joined many of his relatives in asking for clemency for the culprits. As Andrei's ambitious mother intrigued against Empress Alexandra, Nicholas II ordered the Grand Duchess to leave Saint Petersburg for a time. After a short personal interview with Nicholas II, on 16 January 1917, Grand Duke Andrei left for Kislovodsk, a spa resort town in the Caucasus. He arrived there on January 21. His mother followed him a month later, claiming health reasons. Andrei Vladimirovich and his mother were in Kislovodsk when Nicholas II was forced to abdicate at the outbreak of the February revolution.