Princess Zenaida and Count Felix - parents of Felix-jr, their family life

[missmoldavite]

This thread is most interesting. I am rather interested to know a little more about the heirs all but one dying before the age of 26...why was this? and was it true? and if true, what documents support this?.

PS How are we to know who the biological father was to young nicholas and felix.... hmmm. very interesting.

[Valmont]

I do not think the issue here is who the father was, but that she was pregnant when she got married,  that  could be the reason why her wedding was not as flamboyant as  a princess of her "rank" would have had..

[ashanti01]

I do not think the issue here is who the father was, but that she was pregnant when she got married,  that  could be the reason why her wedding was not as flamboyant as  a princess of her "rank" would have had..

Very true... if the Yussupovs considered themselves above the Romanovs then why wouldn't they have a flamboyant wedding to display thier lovely daughter and vast wealth??

[Annie]

I do not think the issue here is who the father was, but that she was pregnant when she got married,  that  could be the reason why her wedding was not as flamboyant as  a princess of her "rank" would have had..

Exactlly! There is not a question of paternity, and even if there were it wouldn't matter because the Yussupov line was the MOTHER'S family so the kids would still be heirs to the fortune regardless of who the father was.

[Annie]

Very true... if the Yussupovs considered themselves above the Romanovs then why wouldn't they have a flamboyant wedding to display thier lovely daughter and vast wealth??

That, to me, (along with the time frame and the ladder in front of the stomach pic) make me draw the 'pregnant when married' conclusion They would have wanted to put on a show to rival any royal wedding, if there was nothing to hide.

I also did not know that they thought of themselves as superior to the Romanovs, that's interesting and kind of funny!

[ashanti01]

I have read in several places where the Yussupov did believe themselves above the Romanovs.

So if this was the case why the simple low key wedding? Unless there was something they were trying to hide

[yusupovs_fan]

In the russian edition of Felix's memoirs (from the early 90s), there was a photo of Zenaida & Felix senior's wedding and she doesn't look pregnant there
Unfortunately I can't scan it, maybe someone else can send it?

[Martyn]

In the russian edition of Felix's memoirs (from the early 90s), there was a photo of Zenaida & Felix senior's wedding and she doesn't look pregnant there
Unfortunately I can't scan it, maybe someone else can send it?

It is one thing to be pregnant, or 'enceinte' in the parlance of the time, and another to look it.  It was perfectly possible for a lady of the time to be in such a condition and still look quite acceptable due to the efficacy of corsets and tight-lacing.
Though I don't think that anyone has established that Nicholas was born in 1882 and not 1883, have they?  Or have I missed something?

[Annie]

I was thinking about corsets too. Though I am someone who 'shows' early in pregnancy, I have known women personally who were still almost flat stomached well into their fifth or even sixth month then suddenly poofed out. The same person who posted here that it was 1883 is the same person who wrote the bio stating it was 1882, so I'm just as confused as ever. It does seem like something is ' fishy' and being hidden, as such hush-hush things were in Victorian times. The lack of hard proof makes me even more suspicious. Until I see real evidence I'm going by the numbers given by Felix in Lost Splendor, that his brother was 5 years older than him, and that he was turning 26 in 1908 (both add up to it being 1882)

[ashanti01]

If you have a slim figure and have a corest on, it wouldn't the that hard to hide your "condition"
But like Annie said, there are many woman who simply do not show until thier last months.
I had a friend who did not show until she was 7 months, even then it was a tiny bump.

I agree with you Annie, our best source so far is Felix himself

[Valmont]

Even thou Felix is not a very reliable source, I think it is the best source we have so far regarding this issue.

[helenazar]

This from the man who told his son he 'wasn't fit to breathe the same air as decent folk' for wearing girls' clothes?  

Hey, isn't that the way that always goes!    

What an interesting topic, and I don't think this qualifies as gossip since these people are part of history and we're just trying to figure out what kind of human beings they were.

One idea about the small wedding, I think I read somewhere that her parents did not approve of Zinaida's choice of a husband, and she had to rebel against them and put her foot down until they agreed to let her marry him. So maybe it had something to do with that...  

[Annie]

Her mother had already passed away in 1879 It was just her father, and he was not pleased with her choice at all. He wanted her 'on a throne' from what most books I've read said. He probably would have been happy with KR as a son in law, he was a high born Romanov Grand Duke, she was a bit old for Nicholas. I wonder if any Tsar would have considered a Yussoupov a good match?

[helenazar]

I've read said. He probably would have been happy with KR as a son in law, he was a high born Romanov Grand Duke...

 Yes, and even though Felix was of the nobility, he came from some illegitimate branch, if I remember correctly, so not as prestigous I suppose. Well, in any case, maybe this was the reason why Zinaida did not get a huge wedding? Or maybe it was due to both reasons, her being pregnant and because her father was not happy  with the choice of a husband. I am sure that if the former was also true, this fact would not have endeared Felix any more to his bride's father  .

[yusupovs_fan]

Annie:
I wonder if any Tsar would have considered a Yussoupov a good match?  

Well, Irina had to give up her succession rights due to her morganatic marriage, so the Yussupovs weren't considered equals. Although it seems that her family objected their marriage probably more because of his lifestyle and his non-royal backround didn't seem to be a problem.