Letters Written by Nicholas II Sell For a Record Price

Letters by the last Russian Tsar written during World War I sold for a record $130,000 at a Swiss auction house. They were initially estimated to fetch in the region of $15,000 but a private Russian collector paid nearly ten times the price to acquire the historical documents.

The letters were sold by Prince Nicholas Romanov, a second cousin of the late Tsar and one of the claimants of the headship of the House of Romanov. In a statement released by the Prince, he said: “It gives me great pleasure to know that these documents have been purchased by a single bidder who is keen on history. The fact that he is Russian makes it doubly satisfying. Of course I am sorry to part with them, but I am 90. I have taken a decision which means that before the festivities of next year for the centenary of the family, perhaps these letters will get in the hands of a historian or biographer or somebody who’s writing something. I am not capable of doing that nor have I the time and I should have started doing it much before.”

The previously unpublished signed letters of Nicholas II were written at the beginning of the Great War; they reflect his thoughts on the conflict and his deep concern for the well-being of his army. The sale also included Faberge silverware and photographs of the Russian imperial family, some with personal hand-written notes.

Filed under Historical Royals, Russia
Tagged Auction, Correspondence, Nicholas II of Russia, Prince Nicholas Romanovich, World War I.

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