He didn’t just circulate it, he ordered, funded, and supported it’s creation. The author was the ultra-nationalist, fascist, Pavel Krushevan who was Imperial official and a Black Hundredist.

He basically laid the groundwork for 20th century anti-semitism, Jewish eradication, and the creation of Zionism.

Shorty after the Protocols were sent out, the Tsar propagandized the murder of the small boy (he was obviously killed by a family member as the police determined within the first day along with a confession from said family member) despite that the tsar and Krushevan spread the lie that it was blood libel. This directly caused the Kishinev Progrom which exterminated a large number of Jews and stripped tens of thousands of their property and belongings.