Other Current and Recent Members of the Extended Romanov Family

[lashinka2002]

Artice about Xenia's grandson


Romanov to return to Russia

October 14 2002




Prince Alexander Romanov, Great-grandson of Tsar, Alexander III, 1929-2002

Prince Alexander Romanov, who has died aged 72, was a great-grandson of Tsar Alexander III of Russia and the first member of the imperial family to return to Russia after the 1918 revolution.

The trip took place in 1961. As a British subject living in England and working in London, Prince Alexander was able to obtain a visa to join a group of tourists with a special interest in art and architecture. He went first to Moscow, landing at an airfield on land which had belonged to his mother's cousins, the Sheremetyevo family.

When he visited the Kremlin, he was struck by how then president Nikita Khrushchev lived but a stone's throw from the crowns and coronation robes of the Romanovs on display in the old armoury. He also visited the country estate to which his uncle by marriage, Prince Felix Youssoupoff, was banished after the murder of Rasputin.

A great lover of pre-18th-century icons, Alexander was disappointed that Moscow had only "commission shops where people bring some of their miserable possessions to be sold".


Alexander then visited St Petersburg, which reminded him of "a stage from which the actors had long departed, or a ballroom after the music had stopped and the dancers had gone".

He felt acutely that he did not belong; yet many of the Russian people, learning who he was, inquired in genuine ignorance as to the fate of the emperor and his family, and were surprised to be told that they had perished.

The visit was not entirely without controversy. Grand Duke Vladimir, the soi-disant head of the Russian imperial house, fired off an angry letter claiming that Alexander was the child of a morganatic marriage, who should be called Prince Romanovsky; that he was therefore not a member of the imperial house, nor in any sense an heir of the tsar.

Prince Alexander had a particular interest in his family's history, due to the many years he spent with his grandmother, Grand Duchess Xenia, at Wilderness House, Hampton Court. She filled his mind from an early age with vivid descriptions of life at the imperial court.

Alexander, the youngest son of Prince Nikita Romanov and his wife, Maria Woronzow-Dasch-
kow, was born in Paris.

His father was the third son of Grand Duke Alexander of Russia and his wife, Xenia, the elder of two sisters of the last tsar of Russia, Nicholas II.

Alexander's elder brother, Nikita Romanov, became a historian who co-wrote the life of Ivan the Terrible in 1975. The young Alexander spent his early years in England, and became a British citizen in 1938. But the outbreak of World War II found him stuck in France with his parents; unable to return to Britain, they took him to Rome, where they had relatives.

In 1942 his mother reported that he was at school cleverer than his elder brother and "very quiet in movements and mind". He already spoke five languages and was working hard at geography, history and philosophy. Tall for his age, he was also, according to his mother, "kind by heart, punctual, tidy and very affectionate".

The family then moved to Czechoslovakia.

Alexander returned to Britain in 1945, before attending Columbia University, New York. In 1953 he became the constant companion to his grandmother, Grand Duchess Xenia, at Wilderness House, a grace and favour residence lent to her by King George VI.

Alexander remained with her until her death in 1961, and was a constant source of light relief to her, even coping with the sinister Mother Martha, a Russian Orthodox nun who had moved in with the grand duchess and all but controlled access to her.

Alexander was present when the author James Pope-Hennessy came to visit the grand duchess in 1957 to prise from her some memories of Queen Mary for his authorised biography.

Pope-Hennessy observed a "tall, pallid youth with a permanent smile", but the visit was not an unqualified success, since Mother Martha contrived to terminate the proceedings just as the author and the grand duchess were relaxing into an interesting conversation.

During these years Alexander helped his grandmother raise funds for a new Russian Orthodox Church in Exile, after their church in Buckingham Palace Road was demolished.

In 1955 he presided over a "bachelors' ball" at the Hyde Park Hotel, in which bachelors reciprocated hospitality extended to them during the season.

After Xenia's death, Alexander had to move out of Wilderness House and he began to divide his time between New York and London. In 1971 he married a beautiful Sicilian jewellery designer, Donna Maria (Mimi) de Niscemi, who survives him.

When in New York, they were much feted, Alexander enjoying parties almost as much as the long hours he spent alone in the New York Public Library delving into many aspects of history.

[rchainho]

Member of royal Romanov family to attend church service to commemorate Nicholas II

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20050715/40913249.html

[Warren]

We have a Romanov Prince living here in Sydney: Prince Michael Andrejevitch (b 1920).
.

[Layla1971]

Originally Posted by Warren

We have a Romanov Prince living here in Sydney: Prince Michael Andrejevitch (b 1920).
.

Warren, is that the same Michael Andrejevitch that was mentioned as being the real head of the Imperial Family, that is if Maria Vladimirovna was excluded from succession?:)

[Warren]

Originally Posted by Layla1971

Warren, is that the same Michael Andrejevitch that was mentioned as being the real head of the Imperial Family, that is if Maria Vladimirovna was excluded from succession?:)

Yes, he is the eldest son of the eldest son of Grand Duchess Xenia and Grand Duke Alexander.
.

[Layla1971]

Originally Posted by Warren

Yes, he is the eldest son of the eldest son of Grand Duchess Xenia and Grand Duke Alexander.
.

Do you know why he lives here?
An Australian wife or something?

[Warren]

Originally Posted by Layla1971

Do you know why he lives here?
An Australian wife or something?

All his three marriages took place in Sydney. He's been here for quite a while and maintains a very low profile. He is getting on in years now.
.

[Layla1971]

Originally Posted by Warren

All his three marriages took place in Sydney. He's been here for quite a while and maintains a very low profile. He is getting on in years now.
.

I found out on the web, but then I read it in a post above, that his wives were Esther Murphy, Shirley Grammond and then, Giulia Crespi.

Were they Australian or English?
If you know, what did he do for a career in Australia?

I don't know where to find info on him, when I tried searching it always only listed his mother or his ancestors of the same name.:)

[Warren]

Originally Posted by Layla1971

his wives were Esther Murphy, Shirley Grammond and then, Giulia Crespi.
Were they Australian or English? If you know, what did he do for a career in Australia?

The first two were born in Australia (Horsham, Victoria and Brisbane, respectively). That's all I know, except that Prince Michael lives in Double Bay.
Perhaps he crossed paths with Marie Christine von Reibnitz?
.

[Layla1971]

Originally Posted by Warren

Perhaps he crossed paths with Marie Christine von Reibnitz?

Maybe I'm thinking of a different person, but is this the same Marie Christine von Reibnitz that is married to Prince Michael of Kent?
It can't be because they live in England, so if I'm wrong (most likely!), who were you referring to?

[Warren]

Originally Posted by Layla1971

Maybe I'm thinking of a different person, but is this the same Marie Christine von Reibnitz that is married to Prince Michael of Kent?
It can't be because they live in England, so if I'm wrong (most likely!), who were you referring to?

The one and the same. She lived in Double Bay with her mother and brother for a time. She went to school (Kincoppal?) in Sydney. She was here for a school reunion a couple of years ago. A private visit.
.

[Jil]

I would like to know more info on the branch of the Romanovs (Romanovsky-Ilyinsky) that reside in Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.A. I found out about this family when I attended an exhibit of Romanov things at a museum in Cincinnati this past Winter.

Here is what I know about this family.
There was this Prince Dimitri (1891-1942) that was related to the Tsar. I think he was a cousin. Prince Dimitri got involved with helping to murder Rasputin. The Tsar exiled him from Russia. He went to America and married a wealthy lady named, Audrey Emery (1904-1971). Her family had some kind of company in Cincinnati, Ohio. This is how the family got to Ohio. Prince Dimitri and his wife had a son named, Paul Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1928-2004). The museum showed a video of Paul with his family visiting Russia several years ago. Some how, Paul and his wife later moved to Palm Beach, Florida and became the mayor of that town! Paul had the following children that I believe still live in Cincinnat, OH:
(1) Prince Dimitri Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1954- )
(2) Princess Paula Maria Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1956- )
(3) Princess Anna Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1959- )
(4) Prince Michael Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1961- )

*It is interesting to note that this family was saved from the fate of the other Romanovs because of the involvement in a crime! I guess you can say in this case that crime did pay!

Here is a link to an article on the death of Paul Romanovsky-Ilyinsky in 2004.

http://www.alexanderpalace.org/palace/ilyinsky.html

I found an article about one of Prince Paul Romanovsky-Ilyinsky's sons-Prince Michael Philip Romanovsky-Ilyinsky.

The article is titled: "Growing Up Romanov in Cincinnati".
Here is a link to the article:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.d...0322/1025/Life

[jacksoncorners]

Can anyone tell me about Olga Iosifovna Rogovskaya?

Alexander Nikolaievitch Prince Iskander (1889-1957) married May 5 1912 Olga Iosifovna Rogovskaya (1893-1962). Alexander and Olga were later divorced,
their two children were:
Kyrill Aleksandrovitch Prince Iskander (1914-1992)
Natalya Androssov Iskander Romanov (1917-1999)

[morhange]

According to Paul Theroff's Online Gotha, Princess Catherine of Russia died on March 13, 2007 in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Catherine, born on July 25, 1915 was the second child and only daughter of Prince Ioann (Ivan) Konstantinovich of Russia and Princess Helen of Serbia. Her older brother, Vsevelod, died in 1973.

Catherine married, in 1937, Ruggero, Marchese Farace di Villaforesta (1909-1970) They had three children, Nicoletta (widowed with two children, Eduardo [(married with a son, Federico] and Alexandra [married with a son, Santiago]) Fiametta (married, with two children from her first marriage Victor [married with a son, Matias] and Sebastian [married], and a son from a second marriage, Alessandro) and Marchese Giovanni (married with two children, Alessandro and Yann).

Catherine was the last member of the Imperial Family to be born before the Russian Revolution and the fall of the dynasty, and was the last surviving uncontested dynast of the Imperial House of Russia.

[Benjamin]

And here is a picture of the last imperial princess of the blood, Ekaterina Ioannovna († 13 Mar 2007 in Uruguay). With her death the Imperial House of Russia consists of only three persons: GDss Maria, Dowager GDss Leonida (who is said to be in poor health), & GD Georgiy.

[Russophile]

One of her grand, or great grandsons just died. He took his life, I believe. In New York. Many are not living very grandly. Peter would know more. He keeps in touch with their families.

[Jason R Maier esq]

Originally Posted by Russophile

One of her grand, or great grandsons just died. He took his life, I believe. In New York. Many are not living very grandly. Peter would know more. He keeps in touch with their families.

And wasn't that not too long after his father died?

[Russophile]

Originally Posted by Jason R Maier esq

And wasn't that not too long after his father died?

Indeed. He was his father's caregiver. I suspect that colored his thinking and choice. Sad. I heard he was a really nice guy.