What did King George the Vth do in England to help his Imperial Cousins

I have recently read a book that stated that it was George himself who worked to withdraw the invitation for the Romanovs to come to England because he alone was afraid of the consequences to his head. Only after the family was slaughtered did those around George work to make it seem like it was the politicians instead of him who left them in Russia. And yes when the situation did become obviously dangerous, England tried to help the family, but by then it was too late.

The book "The File on the Tsar" which I know is dated and dead wrong in parts so to speak. Does mention at least one plan to rescue the IF at Tobolsk that most likely had KGVs knowledge and approval.

From memory

The bulk of the allowances that George V paid to the Grand Duchess Xenia and the Empress Dowager would come from what then would have been regarded as private income. Certainly the property that she occupied seems to have been maintained at what now might be regarded public expense (althout at that time the board of public works would have had responsibility for all these occupied Royal buildings) - it seems that as a grace and favour resident even then it was practice for people to pay for any works done however the King made it explicit that he didn't want the Grand Duchess bothered with such matters and one assumes he picked up the costs.

Hi all,
From memory,
Prince Michael Andreevich told me that King George V privately supported his grandmother (GD Xenia) and family when he was a child, and as he and his siblings grew they had to make their way in the world, hence his training in aeronautics/aircraft, and moving to Australia after WW2.

He certainly did support the Grand Duchess during her remaining years in England after the revolution as did his son and grandaughter.

From memory

The bulk of the allowances that George V paid to the Grand Duchess Xenia and the Empress Dowager would come from what then would have been regarded as private income. Certainly the property that she occupied seems to have been maintained at what now might be regarded public expense (althout at that time the board of public works would have had responsibility for all these occupied Royal buildings) - it seems that as a grace and favour resident even then it was practice for people to pay for any works done however the King made it explicit that he didn't want the Grand Duchess bothered with such matters and one assumes he picked up the costs.
I also believe that initially Xenia rented a property for herself in London before George V eventually stepped in after her various financial problems and embarrasments - I think the best look at her life in exile is in the excellent "Once a Grand Duchess" which I heartily recomend to any who haven't already read it.
I know that later in the war the Grand Duke MIchael Alexandrovitch was still paying rent for the English Country house he'd rented whilst in exile before the war - he was apparently asked to stop sending money to the Princess Victoria for expenses with regard his English property. After the war his wife and son lived in England until she moved to France (where it was cheaper to live)
Grand Duke George Michaelovitch's wife (the former Princess Marie of Greece) remained in England throughout the war with her daughters.
Grand Duke Michael Michaelovitch and his morganatic wife were already living in England before the Revolution - their daughter's marriages saved them from financial ruin after the revolution though.
Grand Duke Dimitri Pavlovitch ended up in Britain after the war to the fury of the Foreign Office solely due to the independent view of the British Ambassador in Tehran.
I don't think there was any bar on Felix Yusupov visiting England (where he did have an apartment) he did visit as did his wife when they could afford too which wasn't often.

Xenia rented 28 Draycott Place, Chelsea, London at first.  Just discovered this tidbit. 

SW3, Sloane Square,  Chelsea Kensington,   PRICEY !, even then.

Just had a look at 28 Draycott Place on Google maps, the little man icon allows you to 'virtual walk' down the street and if you put the house number in it allows you see exactly which one is number 28. Thanks for that Robert , its still a very smart address but after a Palace in St Petersburg probably still felt like a come down.

I was reading in Frances Welch's new book 'The Romanov's at Sea' that GD Xenia planned to open and run a hotel in exile with her children and estranged husband as staff and that she even wrote to Nicholas about it who also thought it would be a good idea! bizarre.

If anyone is interested there is a house for sale on Draycott Place listed with Marsh&Parsons.co.uk it has 10 bedrooms and is on at the bargain price of £10.500 million or roughly $16.300 million dollars! the interior's have been modernised beyond recognition unfortunately.

Despite the financial problems of GD Xenia, she left quite a sizeable amount of money when she died. This, despite the fact that George V provided for her, and the fact that she was swindled and lost most of her jewellery. Her living expenses must have been quite substantial, as she had a large house to run, and sons who were probably not having an easy time. How she managed this I cannot imagine, as she was not, by all accounts, particularly good with money.
Her sister Olga, in comparison, was really poor, and I think more sensible in many ways than all the rest of her family. Poor Olga had a really hard time financially compared to her sister. I wonder if George V made any financial provision for her ? I dont think so.       

Apparently Xenia never spent a penny on herself and gave it all to her sons. I work in Chelsea, I will see if I can get a photo of number 28 Draycott Place!

If anyone is interested there is a house for sale on Draycott Place listed with Marsh&Parsons.co.uk it has 10 bedrooms and is on at the bargain price of £10.500 million or roughly $16.300 million dollars! the interior's have been modernised beyond recognition unfortunately.

They are very large properties! Such a shame when people modernise them beyond recognition, it shows no respect for the history of the property. If they want a modern house they should buy a modern property!

Well, not all her sons were having a hard time per se.  Her son Nikita was enrolled and studying at Christ College, Cambridge at the time.  The entire house at 28 Draycott was not yet divided up and she was renting the whole thing! Unimaginable at today's market prices.

Would she still have been there in 1921? If so when the 1921 census is eventually released it will be interesting to see who was living there with Xenia. I imagine she still had a retinue of servants!

There many reasons to modernise old houses.  One is that they are very costly to maintain and there are only many billionaires to go around. Breaking them up into  [expensive] flats makes economical sense. Also, plumbing, electricity, floors, etc. have to be updated.  And, to top all of that, there might have been war damage  during the Blitz. I do not know how much of Chelsea was hit.
  If Xenia had all this money, where did she get it from ? As mentioned, she was swindled out of her jewels, did she already have money in English banks ? Just curious. I know GD Alexander went on lecture tours in America but surely that did not bring in much of an income.

She was still there in 1921.  She was not there by 1925.