Paul Gilbert

The Soviet Navy’s use of the Imperial Yacht “Standart” during WWII

Posted on December 14, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

PHOTO: the former Imperial Yacht Standart, refitted for wartime use during the Soviet years

It seems that royal yachts are today a thing of the past. In the Russian Empire, the last was the Imperial Yacht Standart of Emperor Nicholas II. A magnificent ship that survived its owner by more than 40 years and left it’s mark on Russia’s nautical history. Why was it renamed several times? Why was the luxury yacht converted into a warship? What combat missions did she perform during the Great Patriotic War? And why did Stalin dislike this ship?

PHOTO: Emperor Wilhelm II and Emperor Alexander III

Competition between two emperors

The history of the Imperial Yacht Standart began in Denmark at the Burmeister and Vine shipyard. On 29th August 1893, Alexander III, together with Empress Maria Fedorovna and Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich [future Emperor Nicholas II], arrived on the Imperial Yacht Polar Star in Copenhagen, where the Emperor ordered the construction of the ship.

“There was an unspoken competition between Emperor Alexander III and Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany. When Wilhelm built himself the ocean yacht Hohenzollern, Alexander III decided to outdo him with an even more splendid vessel,” claims the Russian marine writer Vladimir Shigin.

On 1st November [O.S. 20 October] 1894, Alexander III died. The sovereign never stepped on board the new yacht, however, he did manage to give her a name in honour of the first ship of the Russian fleet, and the beloved frigate[1] of his ancestor Peter the Great. Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich had no idea that he would inherit not only this ship, but the entire Russian Empire the following year. The new Emperor Nicholas II travelled to Copenhagen for the launching ceremony of the Imperial Yacht Standart on 21st March 1895.

In August 1907, Nicholas wrote to his mother, that ” . . . he [Wilhelm II] so much liked the Standart that he said he would have been happy to get it as a present and that after such a yacht he was ashamed to show the Hohenzollern.”

The Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna replied: “I am sure the beautiful lines of the Standart would be an eyesore to Wilhelm. Still, his joke about how happy he would be if the yacht were given him as a present was in very doubtful taste. “

“I hope he will not have the cheek to order himself one here, this would really be the limit, though just like him, with the tact that distinguishes him!”[2]

PHOTO: views of the elegant and state of the art Imperial Yacht Standart

Floating palace

On 8th September 1896, the Standart made its first trip [without sea trials] to England. The British called the yacht a “floating palace”. Black lacquered body, furniture made of fine wood, and embossed leather [instead of wallpaper], were used for its construction and interior decoration.

The state of the art Imperial Yacht had 3 masts, a displacement of 5480 tons, a length of 128 m, a width of 15.8 m, a draft of 6.6 m, a design speed of 22 knots, 24 boilers and 2 propellers. Armament – eight 47-mm guns. The sharp clipper-head bow of the Standart was decorated with a gilded double-headed eagle. The crew numbered 373 officers and sailors, for whom the Emperor knew each one by name.

On the main deck (above the engine room) were the imperial cabins. Each block of cabins for the Emperor, Empress and Empress Dowager consisted of a living room, bedroom and bathroom. The same deck housed the dining room, the saloon, the cabins of the grand dukes and princesses, the yacht officers and the ship’s wardroom. On the lower deck there were cabins for children of the imperial family, rooms for servants, crew quarters and showers. The same deck housed a radio room, dynamo enclosures, workshops and some storerooms. Below this deck, in the bow of the yacht, there was a cargo hold and a powder magazine, and in the stern – refrigerators for perishable provisions. For the crew, much better living conditions have been created than on previous Imperial yachts.

PHOTO: Pavel Dybenko and his common-law wife Alexandra Kollontai

What happened to Standart after the revolution?

In 1917, those very sailors, personally selected by Nicholas II, took part first in the February and then in the October Revolution. The central revolutionary organ of the Baltic sailors, Tsentrobalt[3], set up their headquarters in the former Emperor’s study. Not only did they loot the ship’s expensive wood and silk, they even took the Romanovs’ family silver. “The chairman of Tsentrobalt Pavel Dybenko and his common-law wife Alexandra Kollontai slept in Nicholas II’s bedroom. That is, they enjoyed all the benefits of the Imperial Yacht’s previous owners, the very same ones the Bolsheviks condemned and accused of living better than the common Russian people”, – writes Vladimir Shigin.

In the spring of 1918, the Standart took part in the Ice Campaign[4], following an order issued by Vladimir Lenin to save the Baltic Fleet from anti-Bolshevik forces.

In 1918, having lost its guards status and renamed March 18 (in memory of the first day of the Paris Commune), the yacht was mothballed and laid up for many years in the Military Harbour of Kronstadt.

Between 1933-36, the former imperial yacht was converted into a minelayer in Leningrad. By order of the commander of the Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea Lev Mikhailovich Haller (1883-1950) of 22nd January 1934, renamed Marty, after the French communist and secretary of the Comintern[5] – André Marty (1886-1956).

On 25th December 1936, Marty officially became part of the KBF[6]. The ship was equipped with the latest devices for laying 320 mines, powerful artillery weapons (four 130-mm main guns, seven 76.2-mm universal guns, three 45-mm anti-aircraft guns and two coaxial machine guns). New steam engines were installed, providing a speed of over 14 knots and a cruising range of up to 2,300 miles.

In 1938, the ship became the flagship of the Baltic Fleet’s barrage and trawling formation. In 1939, the ship laid mines off the coast of Finland, for which she received a commendation from the Military Council of the Baltic Fleet. In the summer of 1941, Marty’s crew won the Red Banner Challenge of the People’s Commissariat of the Navy .

PHOTO: the Standart was renamed after the French communist Andre Marty

Naval battles with the participation of Marty during the Second World War

The Marty entered combat duty on 23rd June 1941. On 25th June, while performing a combat mission, Marty sank an enemy submarine. In September of the same year, it repulsed a German air raid. The ship withstood bombardment of ten enemy bombers.

In early November 1941, the Marty took part in the evacuation of the defenders of the Hanko Peninsula. Despite the damage sustained by a mine explosion, Marty took on board and transported to Kronstadt 2,029 soldiers, 60 guns, 11 mortars, shells and food, and about 800 tons of cargo.

On 3rd April 1942, Marty was one of the first in the fleet to receive the honorary title of Guards Units[7]. The Marty was awarded the honour again in 1948.

In 1948, the very same French communist Andre Marty, whose name the ship bore, criticised both Stalin and the CPSU[8], in an article, published in the newspaper L’Humanité[9]. This was enough for the name of the Frenchman to be removed from all factories and ships, and a new name was chosen for the hero ship.

Traditionally, all mine layers in the Russian fleet, have been named after large Russian rivers or lakes. Thus Marty was renamed Oka, and was converted to a floating barracks. Under it’s new name, the former Imperial Yacht served in the Soviet fleet until the end of the 1950s,

PHOTO: A still from the Soviet film “Мичман Панин” [“Warrant Officer Panin“]. 1960

The film “Warrant Officer Panin“

The Oka embarked on its last voyage in the summer of 1960, when it was used as the auxiliary cruiser Elizabeth for the Soviet film “Мичман Панин“ [Warrant Officer Panin] [10]. The film sounded the Imperial hymn God Save the Tsar one can only imagine the parallels? Thanks to the creators of the film, the ship can be seen in detail, including the engine room and the partially preserved interior decoration of the ship.

After filming, the ship was sent to its home harbor at Libau [today, Liepāja in Latvia] in the Baltic, where during exercises it served as a target for the testing of anti-ship missiles. In the mid-1960s, the former grand and luxurious Imperial Yacht was dismantled for scrap. Thus, one of the most famous Russian ships sunk into history.

NOTES:

[1] The frigate Standart was the first ship of Russia’s Baltic fleet. Her keel was laid on 24th April 1703 at the Olonetsky shipyard near Olonets. She was the first flagship of the Imperial Russian Navy and was in service until 1727.

[2] Excerpted from Dearest Mama . . . Darling Nicky: Letters Between Emperor Nicholas II and His Mother Empress Maria Feodorovna 1879-1917, published privately in 2021.

[3] The Central Committee of the Baltic Fleet (Tsentrobalt) was a high-level elective revolutionary democratic body of naval enlisted men for coordination of the activities of sailors’ committees of the Russian Baltic Fleet.

[4] The Ice Campaign was an operation which transferred the ships of the Baltic Fleet of the Imperial Russian Navy from their bases at Reval [Tallinn], and Helsinfors [Helsinki] to Kronstadt in 1918.

The Campaign was carried out in difficult ice conditions in February-May 1918. As a result of the operation, 236 ships and vessels were rescued from capture by German and Finnish troops and redeployed, including 6 battleships, 5 cruisers, 59 destroyers, 12 submarines.

[5] The Communist International (Comintern), was an international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism, controlled by the Soviet Union. The Comintern resolved to “struggle by all available means, including armed force, for the overthrow of the international bourgeoisie and the creation of an international Soviet republic as a transition stage to the complete abolition of the state”

[6] The Red Banner Baltic Fleet ( KBF ) was an operational-strategic formation of the Navy in the armed forces of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War (1941-45).

[7] Guards units were elite units and formations in the armed forces of the former Soviet Union. These units were awarded Guards status after distinguishing themselves in service, and are considered to have elite status. The Guards designation originated during the Great Patriotic War of 1941–45, its name coming from the Russian Imperial Guard, which was disbanded in 1917 following the Russian Revolution.

[8] The Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

[9] L’Humanité is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organ of the French Communist Party.

[10] Click HERE to watch the film on YouTube [in Russian].

Why didn’t the “right” defend the monarchy in 1917?

Posted on December 14, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

PHOTO: Demonstration of the Black Hundreds in Odessa shortly after the announcement of the Manifesto on 17th October 1905[1]

The crisis of the Russian monarchy lasted more than a dozen years. It began during the Revolution of 1905-1907, which forced Nicholas II to make concessions, and ended in 1917, when he was forced to abdicate.

The February 1917 Revolution did not meet any organized resistance at all, neither from the Black Hundreds[2], nor from the military elite, nor from officials or the “moderate right”. Few of Russia’s military elite stood by Nicholas II, including Count Fyodor Arturovich Keller[3] (1857-1918); Alexander Pavlovich Kutepov[4] (1882-1930) and Commander of the Guard Cavalry Corps Huseyn Khan Nakhchivanski[5] (1863-1919) defended both their Emperor and the monarchy. In 1917, the conservative forces in Russia either left the political scene or were forced to “play by new rules.”

It is clear that by 1917 the Black Hundreds had greatly thinned out, were split and even in the Duma itself no longer had any particularly influence in the state of affairs. It is clear that the military could not leave the front and storm the insurgent Petrograd. It is clear that representatives of the military elite, industrialists, “moderate rightists”, even some monarchists like Vasily Vitalyevich Shulgin[6] (1878-1976) took an active part in the revolution itself.

Nevertheless, a number of features of “February” made the resistance of the pro-monarchist elements complicated and senseless. How so?

Circumstances led to a situation in which the Russian monarchists had to become “greater royalists than the Tsar himself.”

It was their belief, that as Nicholas II himself had abdicated the throne, it meant that he freed the rest of his supporters from any obligations to the monarch. Researcher A.A. Ivanov notes an important difference between the Revolution of 1917 and the Revolution of 1905:

“Taking into account past mistakes, the leaders of the liberal opposition managed to play the patriotic card, depriving the right of their main trump card – the monopoly on patriotism. Patriotic rhetoric allowed the liberal opposition (in contrast to the times of the first Russian revolution) to establish close contact with the highest ranks of the army and attract them to their side … thus, leading to the rapid defeat of the right in 1917.”

PHOTO: Meeting of the Local Council of the Orthodox Church in the Moscow Diocesan House, which existed from August 1917 to September 1918 (!). The Patriarch was elected in November 1917, already de facto under the Bolsheviks.

Following the example of the liberal opposition, the Bolsheviks also began using patriotic rhetoric to further their cause. Lenin would scream out slogans, such as “The Socialist Fatherland is in danger”, etc. Patriotism is a powerful tool, especially when used correctly and the right words are chosen.

Many future White generals in their memoirs write about the mistakes of the Provisional Government. And they themselves sometimes answer the question of why they didn’t intervene: they would have intervened, “had it not been for the war against the Germans, it’s impossible to turn it into a Civil War, and the Tsar had abdicated”.

Patriotic rhetoric and the formal “voluntary” abdication of the Emperor turned the hypothetical attempts of the right to change the situation into a rebellion against the will of the monarch, in a situation of war with an external enemy.

“The weakness and fragmentation of the monarchist forces, the self-elimination of the government, the “voluntary” abdication of the Tsar and the national character of the revolution, which met with the widest support in all strata of Russian society, deprived the political struggle for the restoration of autocracy … ” added A. A. Ivanov.

A few words must be said here about the Church[7]. After all, de facto, these are the main “pillars” of any monarchy – military power and religion. Russia has never been an exception in this regard. In 1917, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church promptly changed the texts of oaths (ordination to the clergy) and prayers (“now we pray for the Provisional Government”), their actions thus recognizing the new shift in power. Those who disagreed were dismissed (as in the army). They even recommended that monarchical literature be removed from the parishes.

There is also a point of view according to which the church was interested in February, since the fall of the monarchy allowed it to free itself from the “excessive tutelage of the state” (which will also later play against them, as in the case of the liberal opposition).

In any case, in 1917, both the military and civilian “right”, simply had nothing to rely on. Foreign policy, the balance of power, brute force, ideology – everything now worked against them …

NOTES:

[1] The Manifesto was issued by Nicholas II, under the influence of Sergei Witte (1849–1915), on 30 October [O.S. 17 October] 1905 as a response to the Russian Revolution of 1905. Nicholas strenuously resisted these ideas, but gave in after his first choice to head a military dictatorship, his first cousin once removed Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich (1856-1929), threatened to shoot himself in the head if the Tsar did not accept Witte’s suggestion. Nicholas reluctantly agreed, and issued what became known as the October Manifesto, promising basic civil rights and an elected parliament called the Duma, without whose approval no laws were to be enacted in Russia in the future.

[2] The Black Hundreds, was a reactionary, monarchist and ultra-nationalist movement in Russia in the early 20th century. It was a staunch supporter of the House of Romanov and opposed any retreat from the autocracy of the reigning monarch.

The Black Hundreds were founded on a devotion to Tsar, church and motherland, and lived by the motto: “Orthodoxy, Autocracy, and Nationality”. Despite certain program differences, all of the Black Hundreds organizations had one goal in common, namely their struggle against the revolutionary movement.

[3] Keller was military leader of the Russian Imperial Army and cavalry general. He was one of the leaders of the White movement in the South of Russia in 1918, a monarchist. He remained loyal to Nicholas II until the end of his life.

On 6th March 1917, Keller sent a telegram addressed to Nicholas II, in which he expressed indignation on behalf of the corps and himself against the troops that had joined the rebels, and also asked the Tsar not to leave the Throne.

The intercepted telegram came to the attention of General Mannerheim, who made an attempt to persuade Keller to submit to the Provisional Government, or, at least, to persuade him to refuse to influence his subordinates in this regard. However, the count did not make concessions, refused to swear allegiance to the Provisional Government, saying:

“I’m a Christian and I think it’s a sin to change my oath.”

[4] Kutepov was a Russian military leader, general from infantry (1920), pioneer, active participant in the White movement, and a devout monarchist. Between 1928-1930, he served as Chairman of the Russian General Military Union (ROVS).

During the February Revolution, Colonel Kutepov, who was on a short vacation in Petrograd , was the only senior officer who tried to organize effective resistance to the insurgents.

On 26th January 1930, Kutepov was kidnapped in Paris by Soviet intelligence agents. Documents about the circumstances, place and time of his death are still secret and inaccessible to historians.

[5] A Muslim by religion, Khan Nakhchivanski remained loyal to the Russian Orthodox emperor and refused to swear allegiance to the Provisional Government.

When in the winter of 1917 the February Revolution began in Petrograd, he sent a telegram to the headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief to offer Nicholas II the use of his corps for suppression of the revolt, but Nicholas II never received this telegram.

It is presumed by a number of historians that Khan Nakhchivanski was executed in February 1919 together with four Romanov Grand Dukes in the Peter and Paul Fortress. However the exact circumstances of Khan Nakhchivanski’s death and his burial place still remain unknown.

[6] Shulgin was a Russian conservative monarchist, politician and member of the White movement. Shulgin opposed the revolution, but he was opposed to the idea of an absolute monarchy in Russia. Together with Alexander Guchkov (1862-1936) he persuaded Nicholas II to abdicate the throne since he believed that a constitutional monarchy with Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich (1878-1918) being the monarch was possible, and that this or even a republic, if a strong government was established, would be a remedy for Russia. For the same reason he supported the Provisional Government and Kornilov’s coup. When all hope was lost he moved to Kiev where he participated in the White movement.

[7] Click HERE to read my article How the Orthodox Church supported the overthrow of the monarchy, published on 8th March 2020

Bust of Nicholas II planned for Achinsk

Posted on December 13, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

On 15-16 [O.S. 2-3] July 1891, Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich [the future Emperor Nicholas II], visited Achinsk on his journey across Siberia to St. Petersburg.

Achinsk is a city in Krasnoyarsk Krai, located on the right bank of the Chulym River near its intersection with the Trans-Siberian Railway, 184 kilometers (114 mi) west of Krasnoyarsk.

On 10th December, a planning committee met to discuss plans to install a bust-memorial of Nicholas Alexandrovich to mark his historic visit to the city 130 years ago.

“Nicholas II was not only a political leader, under which our country became one of the three most advanced countries in industrial production, but also became one of the spiritual centers of the world,” says Viktor Barykin, an Achinsk ethnographer, one of the members of the initiative group. “The bust should become a symbol of our spiritual unity and the reconciliation of all forces in the name of the future of Russia,” he added.

Having considered various options, the participants in the initiative group agreed that the bust must be made of bronze, and the pedestal must be granite. As Achinsk lacks the technical ability to fulfill such an order, specialists from Moscow will be consulted.

According to preliminary calculations, together with the pedestal, the work will cost about 900 thousand rubles [$12,300 USD]. It is unlikely that the city’s budget will be able to allocate that kind of money, therefore bringing the project to fruition will depend on the financial support of patrons and private donations. If every resident of Achinsk contributes at least 10 rubles, this will be enough. In the near future, a special account will be registered to which a person can make a donation for this good cause. The option of participation in the city program, which provides for the financing of initiative projects, is also being considered, but the application cannot be submitted until March of next year.

If all goes according to plan, the bust can be opened for the 340th anniversary of Achinsk, which will be celebrated in 2023. The bust is planned to be installed in Trinity Park, next to the Poklonny Cross on the site of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, where the future Emperor went to pray, and later destroyed by the the Communists in the 1930s.

A preliminary sketch of the proposed bust-monument has already been made: Nicholas II is depicted as a young man – that year when he visited Achinsk, he was only 23 years old.

“It should not be a monument for the sake of a monument,” – said the artist and Honorary Citizen of Achinsk Pavel Batanov, who was unanimously elected as the chairman of the initiative group. “First of all, the bust-monument should combine royalty, humanity, and holiness. The main thing is that it should be created at a high professional level.”

Eccentric sculpture of Nicholas II and his family unveiled in Yalta

Posted on December 10, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

PHOTO: Imperial Family monument in Yalta, by the sculptor Yuri Mayorov

On 1st October 2021, a new and yet eccentric sculpture to Emperor Nicholas II and his family was installed in Yalta, one which has raised the eyebrows of local residents and a wave of criticism and ridicule.

The monument by sculptor Yuri Mayorov, depicts the Imperial Family enveloped by the wings of an angel, was unveiled on the grounds of the former “Livadia” sanatorium, which is situated near the famous Imperial palace.

Yalta residents took to social media to share their negative opinions of the sculpture, describing the wings as a “strange toothy shell” and to associate it with a “plant-predator”, or the “armour of an armadillo”, or various vulgarities of the “Freudian” sense.

For some locals, the sculpture resembles a “cocoon” and reminiscent of the “xenomorph egg” from the movie “Alien”. Other critics, noted that the faces of the members of the Imperial Family look “dead and sketchy”, while others criticized the holes in the “angel’s” wings, because they resembled bullet holes,

PHOTO: detail of Grand Duchess Olga and Emperor Nicholas II

The sculptural composition was installed five meters from the monument to the participants of the Yalta Conference – Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt. The installation of the monument depicting the murdered members of the Imperial Family near that of a monument to Stalin seemed unethical to many.

The unusual sculpture was installed on the grounds of Kurort Livadia LLC, which owns the former Livadia sanatorium. The project and its installation is that of the White Eagle Monarchist Society.

The sculpture was paid for by businessman Konstantin Malofeev, a devout monarchist, who openly supports the restoration of monarchy in Russia. Unfortunately, he openly supports the claim of Princess Maria Vladimirovna and her son Prince George Romanov-Hohenzollern. Malofeev is the owner of the Tsargrad TV channel, and the Tsargrad LLC – the founder of the Livadia Resort company.

UPDATE: SCULPTURE DISMANTLED on 11th December

Earlier today, the controversial sculpture of the Imperial Family was dismantled and taken away from its location on the former “Livadia” sanatorium, situated near the famous Imperial palace.

“There was a wave of negativity in relation to our monument. People began to write that they would come and destroy it. To spare the monument from vandalism, we decided to move it to a safe place. It will be stored in a closed area, I don’t want to tell its location,” said Andrei Krupin, director of the educational center where the sculpture was installed.

The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Crimea noted that the sculpture caused controversy due to the poor quality of execution. At the same time, the Ministry of Culture said that it has nothing to do with the Livadia Palace.

‘Nicholas II. Portraits’ in FULL COLOUR!

Posted on December 10, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

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BOOK DESCRIPTION

Large format 8-1/2″ x 11″ hard cover and paperback editions, with 178 pages + 200 Colour and black & white photographs

SECOND EDITION, FEATURING 185 FULL COLOUR PHOTOS!

I am pleased to announce the publication of my latest book Nicholas II. Portraits, in both hard cover and paperback editions. This is my first hard cover book and my first book featuring full colour photographs.

Originally published in 2019, with 140 pages with 175 black and white photos, this new expanded edition features more pages and more photographs: 180 pages + more than 200 photos, including 185 FULL COLOUR and 30 black & white!

Nicholas II. Portraits explores a century of portraits of Russia’s last emperor and tsar, through the eyes of pre-revolutionary and contemporary Russian, and foreign artists.

This unique title – the first book of its kind ever published on the subject – features an introduction, as well as a series of short articles, and richly illustrated, including many full-page, with detailed and informative captions.

The cover features a portrait of Tsesarevich and Grand Duke Nicholas Alexandrovich (1889), the future Emperor Nicholas II, by the artist Baron Ernst Friedrich von *Lipgart (1847-1932).

* Lipgart painted a whole gallery of portraits of Nicholas II, my book features 10 of them – all in COLOUR!

The Emperor is depicted in the uniform of the Prussian 8th Hussar Regiment, of which he was appointed an Honourary Chief in 1889, his cape is decorated with the Royal Prussian Order of the Black Eagle.

The painting hung from 1890 to 1995 in the former dining room of Neuhaus Castle, directly opposite the portrait of Elector Clemens August of Bavaria. The officers of the 8th Hussar Regiment established a club for their meetings here and in the adjacent premises. The Prussian regiment was stationed at Neuhaus and Paderborn castle from 1851 to 1919. Following the end of World War I, the regiment was disbanded.

From the Collection of the Museum of the House of Bavarian History in Regensburg, Bavaria.

The articles include: Serov’s Unfinished 1900 Portrait of Nicholas II; A Nun’s Gift to Russia’s New Tsar. The Fate of a Portrait; Galkin’s Ceremonial Portrait of Nicholas II Discovered; among others!

Famous portraits and their respective artists are all represented, including Serov, Repin, Lipgart, Tuxen, Bakmanson, Becker, Bogdanov-Belsky, Kustodiev, and many others.

The last section of the book is dedicated to the works of contemporary Russian artists, who have painted outstanding portraits of Nicholas II since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

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Ganina Yama to host Alexander Palace exhibition

Posted on December 9, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

On 19th December 2021, the exhibition Alexander Palace – The Tsar’s Residence opens in the Museum and Exhibition Center – located in the Church of the Reigning Mother of God – of the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs in Ganina Yama.

The exhibition was prepared for the 225th anniversary of the opening of the New Tsarskoye Selo (later – Alexander) Palace, The palace has a long, eventful history, having served as the family home of the Russian Imperial family (from 1796 to 1917). Built for the grandson of Empress Catherine the Great, the future Emperor Alexander I, the palace was to become a favourite summer residence for Emperors Nicholas I, Alexander II, Alexander III and Nicholas II, for more than a century.

For Emperor Nicholas II and his family, however, the Alexander Palace, where he was born in 1868, became a permanent residence year-round [1]. It was here that the Imperial family began to spend Christmas in quiet surroundings, as opposed to noisy and bustling St. Petersburg. The Alexander Palace became the new Winter Palace during the last years of the monarchy in Russia.

PHOTO: early 19th century view of the Alexander Palace. Artist unknown

After the February Revolution, it was from the Alexander Palace in August 1917 that the Imperial family were sent into exile to Tobolsk in Siberia, and then to Ekaterinburg the following year, where they met their death and martyrdom.

Visitors to the exhibition will be presented with rare family photographs of the Tsar’s family from the Alexander Palace, as well as a number of interesting exhibits.

The exhibition will be open daily from 11:00 to 16:30. Free admission.

PHOTO: scale model of the Alexander Palace on display at the exhibition

NOTES:

[1] The Imperial family also maintained residences in Peterhof at the Lower Dacha, and in Crimea at the Livadia Palace

Obituary: Prince Andrew Andreevich Romanoff (1923-2021)

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

PHOTO: His Highness Prince Andrei Andreevich (1923-2021)

On 28th November, the head of the Romanov Family, His Highness Prince Andrei Andreevich, died in Inverness, California, at the age of 98.

Prince Andrew Andreevich was born on 21 January 1923 in London, England. He is the third child and youngest son of Prince Andrei Alexandrovich (1897–1981) and his first wife Princess Elizabeth Fabricievna, née Duchess of Sasso-Ruffo and Princess of San-Antimo. His godfather was the future King Edward VIII.

Prince Andrew belongs to the fourth branch of the Mikhailovich line of the House of Romanov. He is the great-great-grandson of Emperor Nicholas I and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in a straight male line.

Through his grandmother, Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna (1875-1960), he is a great-grandson of Emperor Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna. His grandfather was Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich (1866-1933). He was a grand-nephew of Emperor Nicholas II.

After Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh’s death in 2021, Prince Andrew became the oldest living descendant of King Christian IX of Denmark.

Andrei Andreevich was the last representative of the Romanov dynasty who received the traditional Russian pre-revolutionary education and knew the Russian language perfectly. Andrei Andreevich was the last of the descendants of the dynasty who met with the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna in 1927. The Empress was also present at the christening of Andrei Andreevich in 1923.

On the birthday of her great-grandson, Empress Maria Feodorovna wrote in her diary: “I received a telegram from Andryusha [Prince Andrei]. His son was born. Everyone is very happy about this.” Later, the Empress was present at the baptism of the baby, as evidenced by another entry in her personal diary: “… At 2:30 Olga came to take me, Xenia and Zina to Andryusha’s car for the christening of his little son Andrew. The ceremony took place at their home, where only family and loved ones gathered. The child is very cute. During the christening, Dmitry and I held him in our arms. He hardly cried and fell asleep right after it was all over. Minnie and her husband were there as well, so after the ceremony we sat and talked together. I gave Andrew a small silver bowl for the baby, and Alix, who also became his godmother, sent his mother a brooch.”

Prince Andrew Andreevich Romanoff was the eldest male descendant of the Russian Imperial Family, and a member of The Romanov Family Association, founded in 1979. He was recognized by many as the Head of the Russian Imperial Family. Andrew, like most Romanov descendants never recognized the illegimate claims of Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, Vladimir Kirillovich, nor Maria Vladimirovna, as “Head” of the non-existent “Russian Imperial House.”

PHOTO: Prince Andrei at his home in Inverness, California

Andrei Andreevich was the first of the Romanovs to visit Russia after the revolution – in December 1942 he served as a sailor on the British cruiser Sheffield and took part in the Arctic expeditions to deliver cargo to Murmansk [formerly Romanov-on-Murman].

In 1954, Andrei Andreevich received US citizenship. After retirement, he was fond of painting and photography. After the fall of the Soviet Union, he visited Russia several times, including the funeral for Emperor Nicholas II and members of his family at the SS Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, the reburial of his great-grandmother Empress Maria Feodorovna in St. Petersburg in 2006. The last time he visited Russia was in 2013, in the year marking the 400th anniversary of the House of Romanov.

Prince Andrew married three times. He was married firstly in San Francisco on 9 September 1951 to Elena Konstantinovna Dourneva (5 May 1927, Tokyo – 31 May 1992, Oakland). She was the only daughter of Konstantin Afanasievich Durnev (1896–1970) and Felixa Stanislavovna Zapalsky (1903–2002). They had one son before divorcing in 1959.

He was married secondly to Kathleen Norris (1 March 1935, San Francisco – 8 December 1967, San Francisco) in San Francisco on 21 March 1961. She was a granddaughter of American authors Kathleen Norris and Charles Gilman Norris. She died after pneumonia at 32. They had two children.

He was married thirdly on 17 December 1987 in Reno, Nevada, to the American artist Inez Storer (née Bachelin; born 11 October 1933, Santa Monica, California). She is a daughter of Franz Bachelin and Anita Hirschfeld. The couple lived in Inverness, California.

In recent years, Andrew Andreevich lived in a nursing home in San Anselmo, California. Prince Andrew is survived by his wife, Inez, his three sons Alexis (1953), Peter (1961) Andrew (1963) his granddaughter, Natasha Romanov, and his half-sister, Olga Romanov.

Memory Eternal! Вечная Память!

In 2017, I was presented with this copy of The Boy Who Would be Tsar. The Art of Prince Andrew Romanoff. It remains a treasured keepsake in my personal library. This 64-page autobiography is illustrated with family photographs and his artwork. Prince Andrew gives readers a glimpse life growing up in the guest house of Windsor Castle, where he spent his childhood with his sister and brother, granted to his family by King George V.

What was the colour of Nicholas II’s eyes?

Posted on November 28, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

“Eyes… Those eyes! Oh, that look! I will never forget.”
From the memoirs of Sergei Aleksandrovich Nilus (1862-1929)
– after meeting Emperor Nicholas II in person

Many people who met Nicholas II, whether friend or foe, testify to his overwhelming charm.

“With his usual simplicity and friendliness,” wrote his Prime Minister, Vladimir Kokovtsov. “A rare kindness of heart,” commented Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov. “A charm that attracted all that came near him,” wrote British Ambassador Sir George Buachanan. “Charming in the kindly simplicity of his ways,’ said his niece’s husband Prince Felix Yusupov. His cousin Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich wrote of “that clear, deep, expressive look that cannot fail but charm and enchant.”

The colour of Nicholas II’s eyes, however is the subject of dispute, by both those who met him in person and among contemoorary historians and biographers today.

His early biographer Sergei Oldenburg refers to his “large radiant grey eyes,” which “peered directly into one’s soul and lent power to his words”; Hélène Vacaresco who met Nicholas when he was Tsesarevich, also wrote of his “large grey eyes.” One of his most intimate cousins Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich, on the other hand, refers to the “beauty of his frank blue eyes.”

One of the most vivid descriptions of Nicholas II’s features was recorded by his tutor Nikolai Nikolayevich Obruchevm who wrote: “. . . The features of his beautiful elongated face, which often shone with a charming smile, were his blue eyes. All who had the honour of ever seeing the Emperor up close, were struck by the bottomless depth of these wonderful eyes, in which, as in a mirror, his beautiful soul was reflected. …”

More strangely Count Vladimir Nikolayevich Kokovtsov, who served as as the Prime Minister of Russia from 1911 to 1914, had the chance to stare into those eyes many times, writes that they were “usually of a velvety dark brown.” Perhaps he was colour blind?

The true colour of Nicholas II’s eyes is captured in Serov’s famous portrait, painted in 1900, the eyes are a grey-blue, matching the colour of his uniform.

Archpriest Lev Lebedev (1935-1998) writes: “The direct gaze of his deep grey-blue eyes, which often flashed with welcoming humour, penetrated into the very soul of his interlocutors, completely captivating people . . .”.

PHOTO: A very young and clean shaven Nicholas II,
taken when he was Tsesarevich and Grand Duke

Russian historian Konstantin Gennadievich Kapkov writes in his book Духовный мир Императора Николая II и его семьи [The Spiritual World of Nicholas II and His Family]: “The main thing that he inspired was awe, not fear. I think his eyes were the reason. Yes I’m sure it was his eyes, so beautiful were they. The most delicate blue shade, they looked straight in the face. With the kindest, tender and loving expression. How could you feel fear? His eyes were so clear that he seemed to open his whole soul to your sight.”

Charles Sydney Gibbes (1876-1963) – tutor to the Imperial Children – also reflects on Emperor Nicholas II’s eyes: ” . . . The main thing that he inspired was awe, not fear. I think his eyes were the reason. Yes, I’m sure it was his eyes, they were so beautiful. His eyes were so clear that it seemed that he opened his whole soul to your gaze. A simple and pure soul, which was not at all afraid of your probing gaze. No one else could look at you like that.”

A first hand account from the late Renee Beerman whose father was Lutheran Pastor in Tsarskoe Selo. When KR (Konstantin Konstantinovich) died, Pastor Beerman was invited to Pavlovsk to give spiritual comfort to the newly widowed Mavra. On the day of the remains of the late Grand Duke being removed from Pavlovsk Palace to the Peter and Paul Fortress, Renee, then aged fourteen went to the Palace with his father and waited outside the porch. The first person to exit the porch was the Tsar who paused and looked straight at the young man standing a few feet away. Renee Beerman recalled that ‘never in my long life did I ever again see such blue eyes’. [Thank you, Christine Martin]

4 NEW Romanov Titles for November 2021

Posted on November 28, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

I am pleased to offer 4 additional Romanov titles – published in November 2021 – available in PAPERBACK editions on AMAZON. Prices for paperback editions start at $12.99 USD. Each title offers a FREE “Look Inside” feature.

All of these titles are available from any AMAZON site in the world and are priced in local currencies: Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Japan, India, Brazil, Mexico and Australia.

NOTE: if you cannot locate a specific title in your preferred AMAZON site, please contact me by email [royalrussia@yahoo.com] and I will be happy to provide you with the respective link – PG

Please refer to the links provided below to view this month’s selection:

ROMANOV RELATIONS: VOLUME II
Compiled and Edited by Paul Gilbert

Paperback edition. 186 pages. Illustrated.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER

In this second volume of ‘Romanov Relations‘, we learn about several little known members of the Russian Imperial Family.

Volume Two contains the following four chapters:

(1) My Memories of Imperial Russia by Crown Princess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

(2) Grand Duke Alexis Alexandrovich: Child of Fortune Or A Victim Of The Monarch’s Will? by Zinaida Peregudova

(3) The Fall of the Romanovs by H. R. H. Viktoria Luise Princess of Prussia

(4) Last Days of Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich by Général Constantin Brummer

Romanov Relations will be enjoyed by readers who have an interest in the Romanovs and their legacy, as well as providing a useful reference to writers and historians as they continue to unravel the mysteries and dispel many of the popular held myths surrounding the Romanov dynasty.

BONES OF CONTENTION:
The Russian Orthodox Church & the Ekaterinburg Remains

by Paul Gilbert

Paperback edition. 206 pages. Illustrated.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Originally published in 2020, this NEW REVISED & EXPANDED EDITION features an additional 40 pages of new information and photos, complimented with 90 black and white photographs.

In May 2022, the Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, will convene in Moscow during which they will review the findings of the Investigative Commission and deliver their verdict on the authenticity of the Ekaterinburg Remains.

The reopening of the investigation into the death of Nicholas II and his family in 2015, caused a wave of indignation against the Russian Orthodox Church. This book presents the position of both the Moscow Patriarchate and the Investigation Committee.

This is the first English language title to explore the position of the Orthodox Church in Russia with regard to the Ekaterinburg remains. The author’s research for this book is based exclusively on documents from the office of the Moscow Patriarchate, as well as Russian media and archival sources.

This unique title features a revised and updated introduction by the author, plus 8 chapters, on such topics as the grounds for the canonization of Nicholas II and his family by the Moscow Patriarchate in 2000; comparative details of the Sokolov investigation in 1919, and the investigations carried out in the 1990s to the present; reluctance of the Moscow Patriarchate to officially recognize the remains as authentic; interesting findings of Russian journalist, producer and screenwriter Elena Chavchavadze in her documentary Regicide. A Century of Investigation; and the author’s own attempt to provide some answers to this ongoing and long drawn-out investigation for example: “Will Alexei and Maria be buried with the rest of their family?” and “Will the Imperial Family remains be reinterred in a new cathedral in Ekaterinburg?”.

Interviews with Vladimir Soloviev, Chief Major Crimes Investigator for the Central Investigate Department of the Public Prosecution Office of the Russian Federation and Archpriest Oleg Mitrov, a member of the Synodal Commission for the Canonization of Saints – BOTH key players in the Ekaterinburg remains case, reveal the political undertones of this to this ongoing and long drawn-out investigation.

The final chapter explores the Ekaterinburg Remains, whose fate now rests in the hands of the Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.

MEMORIES IN THE MARBLE PALACE
by Prince of the Imperial Blood Gabriel Constantinovich

Paperback edition. 338 pages. Illustrated.

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Born at Pavlovsk in 1887, Gabriel Constantinovich was the second son of the Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovich and the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna. He was a great-grandson of Emperor Nicholas I.

He was born into a privileged world, growing up in lavish luxury in some of the most magnificent of the Romanov palaces including the Marble Palace in St. Petersburg, the Constantine Palace at Strelna, Pavlovsk and the family’s country estate at Ostashevo.

His memoirs, published here for the first time in English, paint a magnificent portrait of the beauty and splendour of the Russian Court in its twilight years before the First World War.

Gabriel recalls many events at the Russian Court, which he describes in vivid detail: elaborate balls and lavish dinners, four royal weddings, the Coronation of Tsar Nicholas II, and the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty.

His memoirs also share many new anecdotes about his parents, his brothers and sisters, as well as those of his extended family. These included grand dukes and duchesses, princes and princesses. Gabriel paints a very sympathetic portrait of the last tsar, whom he held in very high regard.

His more solemn memories relive the personal pain he experienced at the death of his brother Oleg, his beloved father, and the horrors of World War One and his imprisonment.

He experienced the nightmare of the Revolution that was to engulf his beloved Russia. His release from prison and escape from certain death at the hands of the Bolsheviks is nothing short of a miracle, thanks to the efforts of his wife. Together, they fled to Finland and lived the rest of their lives in exile in Paris.

Gabriel’s memoirs are supplemented with excerpts from the diaries of his brother, Oleg, who perished in 1914, and his wife, Antonina Raphailovna Nesterovskaya, whom he married in 1917.

This is the story of a member of the Romanov dynasty who lived to tell his story of life at the Russian Court. Now, after more than half a century, his story may finally be read and appreciated in the English language.

DEAREST MAMA . . . DARLING NICKY:
Letters Between Emperor Nicholas II and His Mother Empress Maria Feodorovna 1879-1917

Paperback edition. 246 pages.

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Written between the years 1879, when Nicky was a little boy, and 1917, after his abdication, this collection of more than 200 letters are a revelation of the personalities of the Emperor and his Empress mother. They were never part of the imperial archives but the cherished possession of both correspondents, carried with them wherever they went. At the outbreak of the revolution, the letters were confiscated by the Soviets.

From some five hundred of them, Edward J. Bing has selected and translated from the French and Russian those which have particular bearing on the Tsar’s relatives in England, Germany, Italy and Greece; on political personages in Russia, and their Romanov relatives. All of their family but Uncle Willie, the German Emperor, found a place in their affections. To them, he was always an exhibitionist, dangerous in his national ambition. Uncle Bertie, Aunt Alix, Georgie, May, and Granny—respectively King Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, King George V, Queen Mary and Queen Victoria—emerge as human beings, minus crowns and ermine.

The correspondence sheds considerable light on Nicholas II’s character, family affairs, and politics, especially in regard to the 1905 Revolution. In the preface, R.H. Bruce-Lockhart provides an interesting assessment of the correspondence and its historical significance.

These letters are essentially human documents of great historic importance, and in the case of the Tsar, will alter many preconceived notions of his character, and the negative assessment which has persisted for more than a century.

Dearest Nicky, Darling Mama was originally published in England in 1937, under the title The Letters of Tsar Nicholas and Empress Marie; they were published in the United States in 1938, under the title The Secret Letters of the Last Tsar.

Click HERE to view 5 NEW Romanov titles published in October 2021

Click HERE to view 5 NEW Romanov titles published in September 2021

Click HERE to view 4 NEW Romanov titles published in August 2021

125th anniversary of the first voyage of the Imperial Yacht “Standart”

Posted on November 27, 2021 by Paul Gilbert

This year marks the 125th anniversary of the first voyage of the Imperial Yacht Standart [Shtandart].

It was on 8th September 1896 [after sea trials], that Emperor Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna first travelled by sea on board what many considered the “most perfect ship of her type in the world”. The Imperial couple were accompanied by their first-born child Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna.

The Imperial Yacht made its first long voyage to Europe stopping at Copenhagen (Denmark) – Plymouth (England) – Cherbourg (France), before returning to Kronstadt, its primary port.

The ship, built by special order at the Danish shipyard Burmeister & Wein, served the Imperial Family until 1914, when the Great War began, it was pressed into naval service. She was scrapped at Tallinn, Estonia, in 1963.

The hull of the yacht was made of riveted steel. The vessel had two decks – upper and main, as well as two platforms at the ends – fore and aft. In the middle section of the Standart, under the engine and boiler rooms, there was a second bottom, which was divided by watertight compartments.

The bow superstructure consisted of two tiers and had a navigating bridge. In the first tier of the bow superstructure, the navigator’s room and two cabins for the commanding staff were located. The second tier of the bow superstructure was the wheelhouse.

PHOTO: Emperor Nicholas II, on the deck of the Imperial Yacht ‘Standart’, colourized by Olga Shirnina [aka KLIMBIM], who consults with Russian historians and other experts to ensure the correct colours of the uniforms worn by Emperor Nicholas II

The large aft superstructure was finished with mahogany, it housed a dining room for official receptions seating up to 70 people, a study and the emperor’s reception room. The flat upper deck was lined with American teak planks. On the main deck were the imperial apartments, which included a common living room, separate offices and separate bedrooms of the Sovereign, Empress and Dowager Empress, dining room, salon, cabins of the Heir, cabins of the Grand Duchesses, officers of the yacht and the ship’s wardroom. The bow platform housed storerooms, workshops, showers and crew quarters, below there was a cargo hold and a powder magazine. On the aft platform there were playrooms for the Imperial children, rooms for servants, a radio room, showers, and below – refrigerator chambers for perishable provisions.

The yacht’s life-saving accessories included 2 large mahogany steam boats, 2 powerboats, 2 large 14 row boats, 2 10 row boats, 2 six-oared yales and 2 8-row boats.

The yacht was powered by steam-sailing, with 24 boilers and two steam engines with an indicator capacity of 6000 hp each, which rotated two bronze screws.

The armament of the yacht consisted of 8 single-barreled 47-mm Hotchkiss cannons, which were located in the bow of the upper deck on both sides.

On the 125th anniversary marking the first voyage of the Imperial Yacht, a model was recently donated to the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs Museum at Ganina Yama, near Ekaterinburg.

Other models of the Standart are on display in the Imperial Yacht Museum in Peterhof, which has a small room dedicated to the vessels; the Central Naval Museum in St. Petersburg; and at the Burmeister & Wain Museum at Copenhagen