Just to put this out there...Romanov style!

Yes, that´s right. Even more so - why wouldn´t Maria smoke when everybody else in the family did?

Yes, that´s right. Even more so - why wouldn´t Maria smoke when everybody else in the family did?

Makes sense that she smoked then 

Smoking was not only common in that time, it was prescribed by doctors to calm the nerves and, specifically in woman to lose weight.

True, even Alexandra had her special French cigarettes for her nerves.


But I think we're covering well trodden ground now...

What do leap years do to the different calenders when comparing them? Would everyone's NS birthday be bumped up for the year, like Olga's would be November 17?

This might be a stupid question, but math is simply beyond me.

What do leap years do to the different calenders when comparing them? Would everyone's NS birthday be bumped up for the year, like Olga's would be November 17?

This might be a stupid question, but math is simply beyond me.

Finally! Someone like me!

Grand Duchess Olga wanted to visit the USA

At least, this is what the Los Angeles Times reported on June 8, 1913. The paper's account, based on cables from Europe, stated that Grand Duchess Olga 's travel plans were to include Washington, Newport and New York in "a few months." The newspaper erroneously described Olga as the heir presumptive (due to the "rather delicate heir apparent." Even in 1913, newspapers could not get their royal succession facts right!
Olga was "exceedingly anxious to visit America," but that her mother "stoutly opposes the idea, which simply enhances the determination of her daughter to put it into execution."
Although Prime Minister Witte was said to support the idea, as he believed that Olga's visit would "help materially to improve Russian-American relations," apparently strained during the William Howard Taft administration.
Utter tosh. Nicholas and Alexandra would never have allowed their eldest daughter to travel alone (although she would have a large retine with her), prior to arranging a marriage for their daughter. Young and unmarried daughters of the Russian emperor did not get on ships to travel to the US to fly the flag to improve Russo-American relations.

Copied from "Life"
On January 6, 1901, the Los Angeles Times published an article: "Czar's Children All Girls; Throne without an Heir." To be specific, the Russian throne did have an heir, Grand Duke Michael, who was Nicholas II's youngest brother. But in 1901, there was no direct male heir. It was not yet known that the Empress Alexandra was pregnant with her fourth child, a daughter, Anastasia, who was born in June. According to this article, which featured a new sketch of the three young Grand Duchesses, Nicholas apparently said when Olga was born "Had our baby been a boy, he would have belonged to the nation, but our little Olga belongs to us."

The writer makes a comment, now seen to be wistful, "Although the little Grand Duchesses can never hope to inherit the throne, they can be pretty sure of becoming queens if they grow up." If they grow up. How prescient. According to this article, Queen Victoria, "who is the greatest royal matchmaker in Europe," had earmarked one of the grand duchesses as a future spouse for six-year-old Prince Edward of York (the future Edward VIII.) At the time this article was published, Queen Victoria had only three weeks left to live.

The article also noted that the Czarina was a first cousin to Kaiser Wilhelm II, "whose boys will be looking for suitable princesses before long."

Although it is unlikely that Nicholas II would ever have considered changing the succession laws to primogeniture, U.S. and British newspapers speculated that the law would be changed to allow for Grand Duchess Olga to succeed her father "in the event of the death" of her younger brother. This was reported in 1903, as well, a year before Alexis' birth. This was reported in the LA Times in November 1908.

Women had the right to succeed, but only after all of the men in the family.

In 1911, there were reports that Olga was going to marry Prince Boris -- the future King Boris III -- of Bulgaria, and that the engagement would be announced on November 15th. The Washington Post's article, which was written by the Marquise de Castellane, noted that Olga's chief regret would be to leave her younger brother to whom she was devoted. The engagement was approved by Russia, "but Bulgaria's defiance of Russia has shattered it. The Grand Duchess is said to heartbroken."

A year later, the Los Angeles Times and other papers reported that Nicholas II was about to announce the date for the marriage between Olga and Grand Duke Dimitri Pavlovich. Dimitri was Nicholas' first cousin. "The wedding is to be a very brilliant affair, to be followed by a state ball at which the elite of Russian and foreign society will be present. It is in every respect a love match."

Pure fiction, perhaps. In 1914, it was reported that Dimitri was going to renounce his imperial rights in order to marry Miss Alice Durham, a young American woman, whom he met at a St. Petersburg ice rink.

A headline in the New York Times on November 9, 1914, stated "Marriage of Czar's Daughter and Roumania's Heir May Affect the War." The proposed marriage had been announced, according to the paper, the previous March, between Olga and Crown Prince Carol of Roumania. Earlier there also had been rumors that Carol was going to marry Olga's sister, Tatiana. In 1913, news reports linked Tatiana with the Prince of Wales: "Gossip has it that the heir to Great Britain's throne is very much in love with Princess (sic) Tatiana, second daughter of the Czar of Russia.

Another Romanov cousin, Grand Duke Boris, the son of Grand Wladimir Alexandrovitch and Grand Duchess Marie Pavlovna, pursued Olga. Alix wrote to Nicholas on January 28, 1916: "Oh could but our children be equally blessed in their married lives - the idea of Boris is too unsympathetic and the child would, I feel convinced, never agree to marry him and I should perfectly well understand her.

Tragically, the Grand Duchesses never got married. They were murdered with their parents, siblings and loyal servants in July 1917. It is unlikely that Tatiana and Carol would have had a happy marriage, but at least, she would have survived the Revolution. The same could be said if the stories about Olga and Boris or Olga and King Alexander of Serbia (who was said to be fond of her). As Queen of Bulgaria, she may have been able to do something to secure her family's release.

There were also stories of romances with soldiers. Tatiana had become close to Dimitri Malama, an officer in the Life Guards Regiment. In 1916, Alexandra wrote to her husband after seeing Malama for the first time in more than a year: "Looks flourishing more than a man now, and adorable boy still. I must say, a perfect son-in-law he wld. have been. Why are foreign Pces. not as nice!" However, much Alix liked Malama, he would not have been a suitable husband for a Grand Duchess. Nor would Olga be allowed to develop a relationship with another officer, Pavel Voronov.

The war changed their lives. Marital opportunities came and went. The family grew closer, became more inclusive. By 1917, it was too late to find husbands for the two oldest Grand Duchesses. Nicholas had lost his throne, the family was under arrest, and in the next year, they would all be dead.




Posted by Marlene Eilers Koenig at Monday, July 21, 2008 3 comments
Aimone and Olga
Are they? Or aren't they? That is the question? Will they continue to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous speculation? They are not the most public of couples -- and they have been engaged for three years now. Prince Aimone of Savoy-Aosta, Duke of Apulia, and Princess Olga of Greece have been together for three years now. But there has been no movement toward arranging a wedding. Aimone, 40, and Olga, 35, have lived together in Russia, where Aimone works. Late last year, they attended the baptism of one of Aimone's relatives. I was sent photographs from this event but due to copyright restrictions (and family privacy), I cannot publish the photos. I can say, however, that Aimone and Olga came to the celebrations, as a couple.
Yes, Olga's biological clock is ticking away but perhaps she and Aimone are happy with the status-quo. Why do they need to marry? Is it perhaps because Aimone is the last male in line to the former Italian throne, as well as the only heir to the Aosta title? Is it because their marriage would be seen by royal watchers as a true dynastic alliance. Princess Olga is the younger daugher of Prince Michael of Greece (who ceased to be a Greek dynast when he married Marina Karella in 1965. ) Aimone's cousin, Emamuele Filiberto, is married to a French actress, and they have two daughters. (Princess Clotilde is young enough to have another child.)
Perhaps -- and this is speculation on my part -- Aimone and Olga have no real interest in a "dynastic marriage." There is no throne to inherit.
The Duke of Aosta, who now considers himself as head of the Italian royal family, would certainly announce an end to the engagement on his official website. Perhaps they are happy to live together!

You must excuse the last part which is about Greece...but anyway

maria petrova and kostya tszy in the russian show ice age skating as Nicholas II and Anastasia [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6q0TgHso6I/url]

Great find.  Now I'm going to try and find a skating ring down here in the warm ole South and learn how to do stuff like that.  Now let's see, Google "skating rings in Atlanta, Georgia", nearest skating ring: Cincinnati, Ohio. 

It is not wery difficult to learn some figure skating elements if you are not afraid to fall. I am skating for 4 years (not professionally) and it is a great pleasure.

[other]

Do we have any other Georgian peaches on here who can tell me where to find a skating ring?  If you are a Georgian (from the state, not country), please tell me!

This reminded me a big pair during I world war  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXK7QYnqUc0
 and some other songs of magical Pelagea   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqdPvcOH3GQ
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twBDnkSZabo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UO8KasFa_OA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8a_xLu1Msw
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHF1mFqGDgk

"http://i639.photobucket.com/albums/uu120/bednayaliza/nicky.jpg"