A Tale of Two Sisters

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

This is the tragic story of two sisters.

Two beautiful Russian princesses who lived fairy tale lives.

Until one fateful day in 1918.

The Best of Times

To be a princess in Victorian-era Europe meant you were born with a silver spoon and you joined a set of elites—life’s lucky lottery winners.

Endless balls and parties, changing from one costume to the next.

Life was a dream, a fairytale.

Ball in Honour of Alexander II by Mihály Zichy, 1864
Ball in Honour of Alexander II by Mihály Zichy, 1864

Theatre, ballet, opera, concerts, sporting events, afternoon tea.

Such a hectic social calendar and so little time.

Performance at the Bolshoi Theater by Mihály Zichy (1827 - 1906)
Performance at the Bolshoi Theater by Mihály Zichy (1827 – 1906)

Wealthy noble suitors professed their love, proposed, and showered you with the finest gifts.

Ball at the Noble Assembly in 1913 by Dmitry Kardovsky
Ball at the Noble Assembly in 1913 by Dmitry Kardovsky

These were halcyon days enjoyed by the few. The best of times.

The Worst of Times

Being poor in 19th-century Europe was not something to be recommended.

To be a peasant in Russia was about as harsh as it could get.

But life was a game of chance and if you were that unfortunate, you were not alone.

Busy Time for the Mowers by Grigoriy Myasoyedov, 1887
Busy Time for the Mowers by Grigoriy Myasoyedov, 1887

Ninety-Five percent of Russians were poor peasants who owned no land.

They paid high rents to landlords who just happened to be members of the ruling aristocracy.

Living in little more than mud huts in villages cut off from the world, the illiterate peasants worked the land to scrape a living to survive and pay their rent.

Peasant Children by .Vladimir Yegorovich Makovsky, 1880
Peasant Children by .Vladimir Yegorovich Makovsky, 1880

When the Industrial Revolution came to Russia, poverty followed the people from the countryside to the cities.

Factories were dark, dirty, and dangerous.

Low wages and long hours kept the former peasants in their place and they were drawn to speeches by men with ideas on changing the world and the promise of a better life.

Vladimir Lenin at the Rally of Putilov Plant Workers in May 1917 by Isaak Brodsky
Vladimir Lenin at the Rally of Putilov Plant Workers in May 1917 by Isaak Brodsky

Against this backdrop were born two sisters—Princess Elisabeth, born 1864, and Princess Alix, born 1872.

They were part of a large noble German family of seven children.

The Hessian family in May 1875 (clockwise from far left)—Ella, Grand Duke Ludwig holding Marie, Alice, Victoria, Irene, Ernie and Alix in the center
The Hessian family in May 1875 (clockwise from far left)—Ella, Grand Duke Ludwig holding Marie, Alice, Victoria, Irene, Ernie and Alix in the center

But there was something connecting Elisabeth and Alix in particular.

It was as though they were marked by the hand of fate.

Four of the Hesse sisters (left to right)—Irene, Victoria, Elisabeth and Alix, 1885
Four of the Hesse sisters (left to right)—Irene, Victoria, Elisabeth and Alix, 1885

Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine

Portrait of the Grand Duchess Elizabeth, 1896
Portrait of the Grand Duchess Elizabeth, 1896

Known as “Ella” within her family, Princess Elisabeth was named after St Elizabeth of Hungary, a princess herself and greatly venerated Catholic saint and patroness of the Third Order of St. Francis.

St Elizabeth, who was married at 14 and widowed at 20, built a hospital to serve the sick and became a symbol of Christian charity after her death just 4 years later.

The story of St Elizabeth would strangely touch the life of Princess Ella.

Stained glass from the Minorite Church (the Transfiguration Cathedral) of Cluj, representing St. Elizabeth of Hungary
Stained glass from the Minorite Church (the Transfiguration Cathedral) of Cluj, representing St. Elizabeth of Hungary

Growing up, she lived a modest life by royal standards, even though her father was from one of the oldest and noblest houses in Germany and her mother was Queen Victoria’s daughter.

She swept floors, cleaned her own room, and even accompanied her mother to care for soldiers at a nearby hospital when war broke out between Austria and Prussia.

Ella was charming and kind and considered to be one of the most beautiful of all the princesses in Europe.

Princess Elisabeth of Hesse, 1887
Princess Elisabeth of Hesse, 1887

Frequently visiting his Hessian relatives and not failing to notice Ella’s beauty was her elder cousin, the young man who would later become the German Kaiser Willhelm II.

Writing and sending her numerous love poems, he fell in love with her and proposed in 1878.

One cannot help wondering how her life would have been different had she accepted.

Wilhelm II. Emperor of Germany, 1888
Wilhelm II. Emperor of Germany, 1888

Ella’s heart was eventually won by Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia—a choice her grandmother Queen Victoria did not approve of.

We must always listen to our grandmothers because they know things that we do not.

But such is young love.

Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia and Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, 1883
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia and Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, 1883
Everyone fell in love with her from the moment she came to Russia from her beloved Darmstadtone of Sergei's cousins.

They were married in June 1884 and at the wedding, fate also struck her little sister when she met 16-year-old Nicholas, the future Tsar Nicholas II.

Residing in one of the Kremlin palaces and a summer home outside of Moscow, they lived happily, hosting frequent parties.

Ella encouraged the young Nicholas to pursue her sister Alix, again much to the dismay of Queen Victoria, who somehow had a sixth sense for what was coming.

Grandmothers know.

Then on a cold February morning of 1905, Ella’s husband Sergei was assassinated inside the Kremlin by a Socialist-Revolutionary.

Sergei had previously rounded up 20,000 Jews and evicted them from their homes for no reason and without warning.

Devoutly religious, Ella herself prophesized that “God will punish us severely”.

It was just the beginning.

Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna as a nun after her husband's death, 1918
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna as a nun after her husband’s death, 1918

Consumed with sadness and guilt, Elisabeth became a devout nun.

Selling her possessions in 1909, she worked tirelessly for several years, helping the poor and sick in Moscow, often in the worst slums.

In 1916, Ella saw her sister for the last time.

The Murder of Elisabeth

It was July, 1918 when Lenin ordered the arrest of Elisabeth.

She spent a few days with other prisoners from Russian noble families before they were all carted to a small village with an abandoned mineshaft 66 ft deep.

Elisabeth was first.

She was beaten and hurled down the shaft.

Then the others followed and a hand grenade was thrown down to kill them, but only one man died.

According to one of the murderers, Elisabeth and the others survived the fall and after the grenade was tossed down, he heard Elisabeth and others singing a hymn.

Down went a second grenade and finally, brushwood shoved into the entrance and set alight.

After the revolution, her convent erected a statue of Elisabeth in the garden. It read simply:

To the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna: With Repentance.

Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine

Sixth child among seven and the fourth daughter, Alix was nicknamed “Sunny” by her mother and “Alicky” by her British relatives so as to distinguish her from her aunt, Princess Alexandra of Denmark who would become Queen of England as the wife of Edward VII.

Princess Alix of Hesse, 1881
Princess Alix of Hesse, 1881

Blossoming into a beautiful young woman with sparkling blue eyes and red gold hair, she was Queen Victoria’s favorite granddaughter.

The Queen had her in mind to marry Edward Prince of Wales’s eldest son, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale, thus securing her a future position as Queen of England.

What is it about grandmothers just knowing what is best for us?

A very different course of events awaited Alix as she was destined to marry Nicholas, the last Tsar of Russia.

Alexandra Fedorovna by A.Makovskiy (1903)
Alexandra Fedorovna by A.Makovskiy (1903)

Alix fell in love with Nicholas in 1889 and Nicholas wrote in his diary:

It is my dream to one day marry Alix H. I have loved her for a long time, but more deeply and strongly since 1889 when she spent six weeks in Petersburg. For a long time, I have resisted my feeling that my dearest dream will come true.
Alix of Hesse and Nicholas II of Russia, 1894
Alix of Hesse and Nicholas II of Russia, 1894

Nicholas had to propose twice because at first Alix did not want to convert to Russian Orthodoxy but was assured by her sister Elisabeth that it was very similar to her German Lutheranism.

After their engagement, Alix returned to England and was joined by Nicholas where they became godparents of the boy who would become the first British monarch to voluntarily abdicate the throne—King Edward VIII.

The last Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, spouse of Nicholas II
The last Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, spouse of Nicholas II

When Tsar Alexander III died in 1894, he left Nicholas as the new Emperor of Russia.

It was a whirlwind for Alix—she became Empress on her wedding day.

Shy and nervous, she was disliked from the beginning by the Russian people who saw her as cold and curt.

It set in motion a serious of events that would profoundly change the course of history.

Tsar Nicholas II with his family, Empress Alexandra, daughters Olga, Tatjana, Maria, Anastasia and son Alexej
Tsar Nicholas II with his family, Empress Alexandra, daughters Olga, Tatjana, Maria, Anastasia and son Alexej

Despite producing five beautiful daughters, the Russian people frowned upon her distaste for Russian culture and her inability to produce a male heir to the throne until Alexei, her little ‘sunbeam” arrived in 1904.

By this time, she had isolated herself from the Russian court, doting on her son and becoming a recluse.

She believed in the divine right of kings that it was not necessary to seek the approval of the people.

In a letter to her grandmother, Queen Victoria, her aunt wrote of her:

Alix is very Imperious and will always insist on having her own way; she will never yield one iota of power she will imagine she wields…Alix's aunt, German Empress Frederick

It was this thinking and her unwillingness to embrace her people that sealed her fate and that of her entire family.

The Murder of Alix

Dangerously weakened by World War I, Imperial Russia’s government could not bear the financial burden.

Mass hunger became the norm for millions of Russians who refused to accept it any longer and turned on their monarchy.

The entire family became prisoners in their own palace.

The provisional government hoped their foreign relatives might take them in.

Nicholas’s first cousin, George V of Great Britain, refused to offer the family asylum because the public sentiment was turning against royalty.

France was reluctant to accept them because the war with Germany was still raging and Alix was seen as a German sympathizer.

Hope abandoned the Romanovs.

The Bolsheviks seized power and moved the family to a more remote location.

It was Tuesday, 16 July 1918, a date that passed by peacefully without incident.

Nicholas walked with his daughters at 4 o’clock in the small garden.

Alix and Nicholas played cards until 10:30 and then retired to bed.

In the morning, everything changed.

Nicholas was shot in the chest several times and a bullet entered the left side of Alix’s skull just above her ear, exiting from the right side.

Their children were executed in a similar manner.

And that was the end of that.

Elisabeth and Alix were no more.

Two sisters caught up in the winds of change.

Two beautiful princesses whose lives were cut short because ideas changed.

And so it goes.

Why?

It is the oldest question known to mankind.

The mysteries of this world are often unfathomable.

But one thing is for certain.

The same question will continue to be asked until we find ways to live together in peace.

40 Views Inside the Winter Palace of Imperial Russia

During the 18th century, a marked change occurred in European royal architecture. The need for austere fortified residences subsided and a period of building great classical palaces began.

From the Winter Palace, the Tsar ruled 1/6th of the earth’s landmass and over 125 million people.

continue reading …

The present palace is the fourth iteration, the first being the brainchild of Peter the Great. Like many European sovereigns, he was inspired by Louis XIV’s Versailles, and wanted to build a modern city with palaces that followed western fashions.

Peter the Great’s aspirations for the Winter Palace were not to rival Versailles in size or splendor—that honor would fall to the Peterhof Palace—but to build a modest palace that reflected enlightened thinking.

The same, however, could not be said for his successors, who went about enlarging the palace and, when Anna Ivanovna came to power in 1730, she moved into the neighboring Apraksin Palace, which forms the core of the present Winter Palace.

From 1762, Catherine the Great put her mark on the palace by building the three large adjoining palaces, known collectively as the Hermitage. As an avid collector of art, Catherine needed the extra space, and amassed such an extensive art collection that to this day, it is the largest in the world.

But it was Tsar Nicholas I who, following a great fire that raged for three days in 1837, was largely responsible for the present day appearance and layout of the Winter Palace—just one part of the huge Hermitage Museum complex.

Aerial view of Winter Palace with Palace Square and surrounding buildings for comparison
Aerial view of Winter Palace with Palace Square and surrounding buildings for comparison

Comprising 1500 rooms, 117 staircases, 1,945 windows and 1,786 doors, the principal façade of this green-and-white baroque palace is twice as long as Buckingham Palace’s public façade (shown superimposed).

Buckingham Palace superimposed onto the Winter Palace
Buckingham Palace superimposed onto the Winter Palace

Join us as we take a tour of the Winter Palace of the 19th century, complete with it exquisite baroque Rococo-inspired rooms.

Jordan staircase, 1865
Jordan staircase, 1865
The Malachite Room, 1864
The Malachite Room, 1864
The Guardroom, 1863
The Guardroom, 1863
The Grand Church, 1860
The Grand Church, 1860
The Field Marshal's Hall, 1851
The Field Marshal’s Hall, 1851
The Drawing-Room, 1871
The Drawing-Room, 1871
Click to continue with more stunning images of inside the Winter Palace
The Cathedral inside the palace, 1865
The Cathedral inside the palace, 1865
The Boudoir of Grand Princess Maria Alexandrovna, 1850
The Boudoir of Grand Princess Maria Alexandrovna, 1850
The Boudoir of Empress Maria Alexandrovna, 1861
The Boudoir of Empress Maria Alexandrovna, 1861
The Boudoir of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1870
The Boudoir of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1870
The Billiard Room of Emperor Alexander II, 1850
The Billiard Room of Emperor Alexander II, 1850
The Bedchamber of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1858
The Bedchamber of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1858
The Bedchamber of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1869
The Bedchamber of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1869
The Bathroom of Grand Princess Maria Alexandrovna, 1850
The Bathroom of Grand Princess Maria Alexandrovna, 1850
The Bathroom of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1869
The Bathroom of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, 1869
The Armorial Hall, 1862
The Armorial Hall, 1862
The Apollo Hall, 1861
The Apollo Hall, 1861
The Antechamber of Tsesarevich Alexander Nikolayevich, 1860
The Antechamber of Tsesarevich Alexander Nikolayevich, 1860
The Alexander Hall, 1860
The Alexander Hall, 1860
Study, 1837
Study, 1837
RThe Crimson Cabinet, the study of Maria Alexandrovna, 1860
RThe Crimson Cabinet, the study of Maria Alexandrovna, 1860
Pompei Dinner Hall, 1873
Pompei Dinner Hall, 1873
Peter the Great (Small Throne) Room, 1862
Peter the Great (Small Throne) Room, 1862
Mil-gallery by Hau, 1861
Mil-gallery by Hau, 1861
Interiors of the Winter Palace. Nichlas Hall, 1866
Interiors of the Winter Palace. Nichlas Hall, 1866
His Majesty Own staircase (October Staircase), 1860
His Majesty Own staircase (October Staircase), 1860
Hermitage Library by Alexey Tyranov, 1827
Hermitage Library by Alexey Tyranov, 1827
Golden Drawing Room, 1860
Golden Drawing Room, 1860
Galereja, 1812
Galereja, 1812
Concerthall, 1860
Concerthall, 1860
Classroom, 1836
Classroom, 1836
Avantsalle, 1860
Avantsalle, 1860
Armorial Hall of the Winter Palace by A.Ladurner, 1834
Armorial Hall of the Winter Palace by A.Ladurner, 1834
The Fieldmarshals' Hall in the Winter Palace
The Fieldmarshals’ Hall in the Winter Palace
The Winter Garden, 1870
The Winter Garden, 1870
The White Hall, 1864
The White Hall, 1864
The white drawing room in the North-Western Risolite (Alexandra Fedorovna suite), 1860
The white drawing room in the North-Western Risolite (Alexandra Fedorovna suite), 1860
The Throne Room of Empress Maria Fiodorovna, 1831
The Throne Room of Empress Maria Fiodorovna, 1831
The Small Church inside the palace, 1861
The Small Church inside the palace, 1861
The Rotunda, 1833
The Rotunda, 1833

A Snuffbox From Russia with Love

The stories from history are all around us. Take this image of a snuffbox from Russia for example. It is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Arts’ collection of public domain images.

What we know from the labeling is that the images are of Empress Maria Feodorovna, her son Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich, and her daughter-in-law Elena Pavlovna.

We also know it was created circa 1823 by Anthelme François Lagrenée, a French painter of miniatures whose work has fetched at auction in excess of $20,000 for single portrait miniatures and $80,000 for larger works.

Snuffbox with portraits of Empress Maria Feodorovna, her Son Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich, and her daughter-in-law Elena Pavlovna, c. 1823
Snuffbox with portraits of Empress Maria Feodorovna, her Son Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich, and her daughter-in-law Elena Pavlovna, c. 1823

It is indeed beautifully crafted, but what story does it tell? Let’s find out, shall we?

Maria Feodorovna (1759 – 1828) née Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg (pictured center) was the second wife of Tsar Paul I of Russia—son and successor to Catherine the Great.

The circumstances surrounding her betrothal to Paul I read almost like a soap opera.

In 1773, Catherine the Great started to look for a suitable wife for her son Paul. Sophie Dorothea was one of several German Princesses under consideration. But not yet fourteen years old, a marriage to Sophie would have to wait a few more years. The older Wilhelmina Louisa of Hess-Darmstadt was chosen instead.

Wilhelmina Louisa of Hess-Darmstadt and Paul I of Russia
Wilhelmina Louisa of Hess-Darmstadt and Paul I of Russia

Paul decided on the good-looking Wilhelmina to be his wife just two days after her arrival in Russia. She changed her religion and her name—becoming Natalia Alexeievna. The wedding was a grand spectacle and the vivacious Natalia lit up the Russian court.

But there were cracks beneath the surface. She started an affair with a charming navy commander named Andrei Razumovsky—the very man she had flirted with on the ship sent by Catherine to bring her to Russia. What made it worse was that the whole court knew of her infidelities. And worse still, the man was Paul’s best friend.

As if that wasn’t enough, when Catherine tried to banish Andrei from court, and Paul protested—knowing nothing of the affair—Natalia announced she was pregnant. Catherine didn’t care whose child it was—all that mattered was that there was a Russian heir.

Everything changed on 15 April 1776 when Natalia went into labour. She delivered a stillborn son and died soon after. Many at court thought she could have been saved had surgeons performed a Caesarian.

And so Maria Feodorovna, now seventeen, came back into the picture as front-runner for Paul’s second wife. But her life had changed. She was engaged to Natalia’s brother, Prince Louis of Hesse.

Maria Feodorovna, portrait by Alexander Roslin
Maria Feodorovna, portrait by Alexander Roslin

For Catherine the Great, such issues were mere trifles. She knew Louis was in debt up to his eyeballs and simply paid him off. They didn’t call her “great” for nothing.

Paul and Sophie met for the first time at a state dinner in Berlin, arranged by Frederick the Great of Prussia. With Catherine the Great and Frederick the Great working on this together, how could anything go wrong?

Catherine the Great of Russia and Frederick the Great of Prussia
Catherine the Great of Russia and Frederick the Great of Prussia

Sophie knew that Paul was the serious kind and so had swotted up on her geometry. Oh yes, she skipped the small talk and went straight for the geometry. And it worked like a charm!

Paul wrote to his mother, “She is tall, shapely, intelligent, quick-witted, and not at all shy.” Sophie wrote to a friend that she was “madly in love“, adding, “I am more than content … never, dear friend, could I be happier.”

Their love grew deeper as the months passed. She wrote to Paul in a love letter, “I cannot go to bed, my dear and adored Prince, without telling you once again that I love and adore you madly.”

The happy couple were married on 26 September 1776. Sophie took the name “Maria Feodorovna” and the title Grand Duchess of Russia styled Imperial Highness.

A few months after the birth of their ninth child in 1798 (yes, ninth!—families were big in those days), Catherine the Great died. Maria was now Empress Consort of All the Russias.

Portrait of Grand Duchess Marie Fyodorovna (1759-1828). Late 1790s.
Portrait of Grand Duchess Marie Fyodorovna (1759-1828). Late 1790s.

If you think Russian palaces are beautifully decorated, you can thank Empress Feodorovna’s impeccable taste. She personally guided the furnishing of Gatchina, Tsarskoe Selo, the Winter Palace, and the Hermitage.

Drawing room in the Third Reserved Apartment of the Winter Palace, St Petersburg, Russia
Drawing room in the Third Reserved Apartment of the Winter Palace, St Petersburg, Russia

She adored the arts and supported them generously. She also established the first schools for women, as well as numerous charitable organizations.

According to soap opera rules, when life gets this good, something has to go wrong, doesn’t it?

And so it did.

Paul started seeing another woman, Catherine Nelidova—one of Maria’s ladies-in-waiting. It deeply wounded Maria because the woman had been her friend. But Paul assured her that the relationship was nothing more than a friendship. After a couple of years, Maria accepted his word—especially since Paul was growing increasingly neurotic.

But when Paul became infatuated with the nineteen-year-old beauty Anna Lopukhina shortly after the birth of their tenth son, Michael, in 1798, Maria saw red. Anna was from one of Russia’s oldest noble families—the same family that Paul’s first wife had belonged to.

Catherine Nelidova (left) and Anna Lopukhina (right)—two mistresses of Paul I
Catherine Nelidova (left) and Anna Lopukhina (right)—two mistresses of Paul I

Now … we know what you’re thinking, but when you’re the Emperor of Russia, looks don’t matter. By all accounts, Paul wasn’t a handsome man. In fact, many thought him plain ugly. The accomplished painter Madame Vigee-Lebrun described his physical appearance as lending itself to caricature.

But what he lacked in looks, he made up for in charm. Dowager Countess Lieven said he had “good manners” and that “his politeness to women” proclaimed him “a prince and a gentleman.”

Just three years later, when Paul was in his bedchamber in the newly built St Michael’s Castle, he was brutally murdered.

St Michael's Castle. Image credit Panther
St Michael’s Castle. Image credit Panther

It was a time in Russia when it was dangerous to upset the nobility. Paul had done just that with a set of reforms and policies that made enemies. A band of officers stormed his bedchamber and tried to force him to sign his own abdication. When he resisted, he was stabbed, strangled, and trampled to death. His own son, the 23-year-old Alexander, who was next in line for the thrown was in the building. In a rude awakening, the assassins shouted to him, “Time to grow up! Go and rule!

But it is the dashing officer in the left of our snuffbox image that we turn to next. Sporting a rather modern hairstyle even by today’s standards, this is Maria’s youngest son, Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich.

Michael married his first cousin once removed, Princess Charlotte of Württemberg, who just happens to be the attractive young lady portrayed in the image on the right side of our snuffbox.

Elena Pavlovna of Württemberg by anonymous (Hillwood museum)
Elena Pavlovna of Württemberg by anonymous (Hillwood museum)

So here we have the possible reason for the creation of our exquisite snuffbox. The title provided by the Metropolitan Museum of Art describes Elena Pavlovna as the daughter-in-law of Maria Feodorovna, with a creation date c. 1823. Grand Duke Michael and Elena were married on 20 February 1824, so it could have been a wedding gift, either from Maria herself or from someone close to Maria who would have known she likely instigated the arranged marriage.

Was the marriage of Michael and Elena a happy one?

Michael was 26 and Elena 17 when they got married. He had been impressed by her beauty, poise, and intelligence at a dinner party two years prior. They lived in comfort at the Mikhailovsky Palace in St Petersburg—when you’re Russian royalty, even as the youngest of ten children, you get a nice pad!

Mikhailovsky Palace in St. Petersburg in the 19th century
Mikhailovsky Palace in St. Petersburg in the 19th century

But again there were cracks under the surface. Michael’s only passion was the army and their marriage wasn’t a happy one.

They had five children—in those days, large families were common because of the expectation that some might die young.

And so it was for Michael and Elena.

Their first child, Grand Duchess Maria Mikhailovna, died at 21; their second child, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mikhailovna, died during childbirth at age 18; their fourth child, Grand Duchess Aleksandra Mikhailovna of Russia, died at 14 months old, and their fifth child at 17 months.

Both Michael and Elena outlived four of their five children. Only their third child, Grand Duchess Ekaterina Mikhailovna, outlived both her parents, living to the comparatively old age of 66.

There are stories all around us …

The Luxurious Waterfront Mansion of a 19th-Century Russian Banker

Alexander_Baron_Stieglitz

Just how wealthy were bankers in the 19th century?

Judge for yourself as we look at the waterfront mansion of Baron von Stieglitz—governor of the State Bank of the Russian Empire under Emperor Alexander II.

The English Embankment—named after the British Embassy and English church located there—was one of the most fashionable streets in all of Saint Petersburg, Russia.

It was here in 1859 that Baron von Stieglitz commissioned prominent architect Alexander Krakau to design a magnificent mansion in the Renaissance Revival  style.

English Embankment in Saint Petersburg by Eduard Gaertner, 1835
English Embankment in Saint Petersburg by Eduard Gaertner, 1835

Besides owning several manufacturing enterprises, von Stieglitz financed a railroad from St Petersburg to Moscow and secured loans to help fund the Russian Crimean War effort.

In the 1870’s, von Stieglitz started to give back to the society that had led to his good fortune. He donated funds to a museum and established a school for Technical Drawing.

After his death in 1884, the mansion went to his adopted daughter,  Nadezhda Polovtsova. She was the illegitimate daughter of Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich—a cousin of Emperor Alexander II’s youngest son, Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich (1860-1919).

Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich with his first wife Princess Alexandra.
Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich with his first wife Princess Alexandra.

Nadezhda sold the property to the Treasury, but it was soon back in the hands of royal acquaintances when it was purchased for Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich on his marriage to Princess Alexandra of Greece.

The mansion may have held happy memories for von Stieglitz, but for Pavel Alexandrovich, it was the beginning of a series of tragedies.

Princess Alexandra died during the birth of their second child. And when the Bolsheviks came to power, Pavel was arrested, had all property confiscated, and was summarily shot.

A tragic ending in the story of a grand building.

Italian painter Luigi Premazzi (1814 – 1891) captured the lavishly decorated interiors in a series of stunning watercolor paintings.

The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: the Concert Hall, 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: the Concert Hall, 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Dining-room, 1869
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Dining-room, 1869
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Library. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Library. 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Blue Drawing-Room. 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Blue Drawing-Room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Dining-room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Dining-room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Drawing-Room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Drawing-Room. 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Golden Drawing-Room. 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Golden Drawing-Room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Main Study. 1869
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Main Study. 1869
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Study of Baroness Stieglitz. 1870
The mansion of von Stieglitz: The Study of Baroness Stieglitz. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Supper-room. 1871
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: The Supper-room. 1871
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: White Drawing-Room. 1870
The Russian mansion of von Stieglitz: White Drawing-Room. 1870

Today the mansion sits abandoned and decaying, waiting for an investor to restore it back to its former glory.

The Romanov family and the Ghosts of Alexander Palace

Alexander Palace was the favorite residence of the last Russian Emperor, Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov—Tsar Nicholas II.

Nicholas was born there on 18 May 1868. His father, then Tsarevich Alexander, recorded the event in his diary,

God sent us a son whom we named Nicholas. What a joy it was! It is impossible to imagine. I sprang to embrace my darling wife, and she instantly became cheerful and was terribly happy. I had been weeping like a child but suddenly my heart became light and cheerful.

But after the Russian Revolution of 1917, it would become a prison for Nicholas and his family.

Alexandrovsky Palace in Tsarskoe Selo. Credit Florstein
Alexandrovsky Palace in Tsarskoe Selo. Credit Florstein

When Nicholas II inherited the Russian throne from his father, who died at just 49, he was not ready for the huge responsibility. He told a close friend,

I am not prepared to be a tsar. I never wanted to become one. I know nothing of the business of ruling.

He quickly married Princess Alexandra Feodorovna and the couple had their first child, Olga, in 1895.

Portraits of Nikolai II and Alexandra Fedorovna by Alexander Vladimirovich Makovsky - 1903
Portraits of Nikolai II and Alexandra Fedorovna by Alexander Vladimirovich Makovsky – 1903.

The following year, at his formal coronation, thousands of people were trampled to death as the crowd of 100,000 rushed to get a share of free food and beer.

Nicholas was advised to attend a gala with the French ambassador that same evening—a bad omen as the city mourned its dead and saw him as uncaring.

By 1901, Alexandra had given him another three daughters—Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia. Then in 1904, she gave birth to their only son Alexei. That same year, Japan attacked Russia.

Nicholas’s mismanagement resulted in multiple defeats and the loss of the Russian fleet. In 1905, a large but peaceful demonstration ascended on St Petersburg to appeal to Nicholas for improved working conditions.

Troops fired on the crowds and over 1000 were killed. It would be called “Bloody Sunday”.

Artistic impression of Bloody Sunday in St Petersburg, Russia
Artistic impression of Bloody Sunday in St Petersburg, Russia

The family moved from the official residence of the Winter Palace in St Petersburg to the safer confines of Alexander Palace. They remodeled much of he interior and added modern conveniences like telephones, an elevator, and a screening booth for watching movies.

Over the course of WWI, Russia endured major losses on the war front and suffered abject poverty and high inflation at home. The Russian public laid the blame squarely on the monarchy.

On 15 March 1917, Nicholas II abdicated the throne and was placed under house arrest, initially at Alexander Palace.

Czar Nicholas II and family gardening at Alexander Palace during internment at Tsarskoe-Selo, 1917.
Czar Nicholas II and family gardening at Alexander Palace during internment at Tsarskoe-Selo, 1917.

What did those last months feel like for the Romanovs? Did Nicholas even believe they were in danger? Alexei’s tutor, Pierre Gillard wrote,

In their spare time, free from studies, the Empress and her daughters were engaged in sewing something, embroidering or weaving, but they were never idle…They cleaned paths in the park from snow, chopped ice for the cellar, cut dry branches or old trees, storing firewood for the future winter. With the arrival of the warmer weather, the entire family worked on an extensive kitchen-garden.

In August 1917 they were transferred out of their beloved palace. Less than a year later, the entire family would be brutally executed. If their ghosts could choose, they would have returned home to the beautiful Alexander Palace.

The ghost of Alexandra in her dressing room.
The ghost of Alexandra in her dressing room.
The Ghost of Nicholas II in his Study.
The Ghost of Nicholas II in his Study.
The ghost of Anastasia knitting in her mother's bedroom.
The ghost of Anastasia knitting in her mother’s bedroom.
The ghosts of the Tsar's children in the Maple Room.
The ghosts of the Tsar’s children in the Maple Room.
The ghosts of the Romanovs in the grounds of Alexander Palace.
The ghosts of the Romanovs in the grounds of Alexander Palace.

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