Who is ”old Jack”?

Here are the missing photos of Sebran's postcard and a quote from my reply. 



"Alexandra is wearing a very smart long line sheath of soft chiffon over satin with very little ornamentation except for the Empire lace bodice.  Alix has accentuated the modern simplicity of her gown with that fabulous oversized necklace and dramatic diadem.  Of course her gown avoids the radical lines of the current hobble skirt craze, an outline that she so chided Lily Dehn for wearing.  Remember how she made Lily run in her hobble skirt and teased her when it proved impossible?  But Alexandra has achieved an up to date elegance while avoiding extremes. "   



"To dear old 'Jack', wishing you a Merry Xmas & every happiness in the New Year 1912.
fr. yr. loving old Alix. "

I recently came across a book that contains letters from Prince Henry of Prussia. In it, he refers to German sailors as "jacks". Could this perhaps be involved--especially given Alexandra's known fondness for the sailors on the Standart, etc...? I know it seems a bit personal but thought I'd put it out there. Perhaps a family nickname for one of the many royal sailors even that Alix was related to?

Excellent insight.
Of course, British sailors were known as "jack tars", and that must be the origin of Henry's useage. Perhaps it was a name for Ludwig B. or one of his sons? - Or even for Henry himself?

Ditto....I was also thinking that there is food for thought about Alix's farewell too.  It seems very much like the kind of family farewell that we have become so used to in Alix's  wartime correspondence. 

I think that we have always thought that Old Jack could be Louis of Battenberg, however, there is not proof anywhere else that Alix would have called her brother in law -   "Old Jack".

Then, of course, there is her other brother in law - Prince Henry of Prussia - who is now in contention as a "jack" and therefore perhaps "Old Jack"

And there is Admiral Jackie Fisher who was a friend of Queen Alexandra and Prince Louis (until Prince Louis was let go from being First Sea Lord because of this German ancestry) and whom Alix would probably have know from her time at Queen Victoria's court while she was a young girl visiting her grandmother and therefore perhaps seeing the then Princess of Wales, Alexandra and some of her friends.

I suppose that the secret might be found in Alexandra's correspondence somewhere.  Another letter or card perhaps where she refers to "Old Jack" or "Old Jack" has written to her.

Somehow, I doubt the connection to the Standardt.  As close as the Imperial Family was to the sailors and officers, it just doesn't seem plausible to me that Alexandra would use an English or German "nickname" for a Russian sailor or ending with "your loving old Alix".  That sounds more like family or close family retainer, like a governess or confidante.

Someone she knew when she still was ALIX and not after she became Alexandra the Empress.

Thank you for listing the possibille Jacks.

For what it's worth: Alexandra herself put "Jack" in inverted commas, which leads me to suspect that "Jack" wasn't the addressee's usual nickname. So the chance of finding another reference to Jack in her correspondence may be slim.

What still convinces me that "jack" must be an old friend or old family friend from her youth, is that Alexandra signs "from your loving old Alix".

That would seem like a long time friendship a close friendship and a friendship that at least began when she was still Alix and not Alexandra of Russia.  If she was already Alexandra when the friendship began, then it must have been close enough over time for the "old Jack" to know her well enough to call her Alix.

And "old Jack" could still have been a woman as nicknames were not gender specific in Victorian times.  Princess Maud Wales was called Harry.

It has been a while since I last visited this thread. I'm really glad to see al the the new posts and suggestions. Thank you very much for them.

It must be remembered that the postcard once belonged to Princess Viktoria of Prussia (1866-1929). It is impossible though to say how she came across it.
Do you think there is any possibility that Alix was addressing Vicoria when writing "To dear old 'Jack'"? Did the two cousins know each other well?

I must say that I find the suggestion of Grandduchusella very interesting. Maybe Alix was writing to her cousin Prince Henry of Prussia, and maybe the postcard somehow ended up with his sister Victoria. Did Henry and Victoria get along well?

'Did Henry and Victoria get along well?'

I think so. Henry and Irene seem to have been on good terms with most people - one reason why the Kaiser often sent Henry to represent him abroad. Specifically, they were visiting Louis and Victoria on the Isle of Wight just before WW1 broke out and had to get home in a hurry.

Ann

Every time I read or re read a book on Alexandra, I now pay special attention to the names listed for her friends and acquaintances.

I keep hoping that there will be some mention of a person to whom the nickname of "Old Jack" could apply.

Perhaps the mystery is solved!

The was recently a card on ebay that contained a message from Princess Victoria "Moretta" of Prussia. On it she signed, 'from her loving Old Jack'. I almost died when I saw it! The card was written in English as well, just like this old mysterious one. Also for New Year's wishes, like this card. Don't ask me why she signed it this way--perhaps that is still a mystery to be unravelled.

It looks like a solution, but we still don't know why she would call herself "Old Jack".  Also, who is this card sent to?  It looks like Harrina but then leads us to - Who is Harrina?  I don't ever remember reading about anyone with that name or nickname.

I struggled with Tarrina or Carrina or Xarrina. Who ever it is - it is a "she" because it says "From her loving Old "Jack."

Any other thoughts?

"Harrina" is Princess Irène of Prussia née Hesse - it is a reference to her husband Heinrich's "anglomanic" nickname Harry.

Cool.

I guess the mystery is now solved. Irene would have been Moretta's sister in law?

It took time but was worth the wait.

Thanks everyone! ...the thicket of nicknames among the royals can be daunting! Often they are based on a private joke and so a mystery to others from the start . Learning " who"  is a victory...the deeper mystery is the "why" . But just learning the who of a nickname is an achievement! Congratulations

I see what you mean. We now know that Harrina is Irene of Prussia nee Hesse, but we still don't know why Moretta was "old Jack".

That would be nice to find out.

Perhaps 'old Jack' was a piece of spoof Englishness to go with 'Harrina'?

But family nicknames casn have some crazy logic. At times I called my mother Pel. Back in WW2 the RAF had a flight safety magazine which featured the misadventures of a certain Pilot Officer Prune - the idea was that whatevert Prune did was the way not to do it ('I always land with my undercarriage up', and so on). This spawned a slim volume about Prune's ancestors and their roles in great events. I got hold of a copy when I was about 14 and can still quote chunks of it. One ancestor was an 18th century dandy named 'Beau' Prune, whose father, 'Pelham Prune, had known and greatly admired the famous Beau Nash, of Bath. When Beau Prune was 21, his father took him to see the aged Beau Nash, who inspected him in silencve for some time, said "Demme, Pel, what is it?" and died six months later.' I was rather taken with 'Demme Pel' and used it with my mother, but nobody else.

Ann

...This spawned a slim volume about Prune's ancestors and their roles in great events....

The comic opportunities this would afford seems endless! LOL