Grand Duchess Xenia and Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich, PART II

[ashanti01]

Besides, the names Andrei and Dmitri the rest of the children had pretty original names when compared to the rest of the family. I agree with Ashdean, it's best to stand out. Does anyone know why exactly they picked the names they did? Even Irina was a departure from the traditional family names for girls.

[Eric_Lowe]

St Irene was a saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church, she was an Brysantine Empress.

[Robert_Hall]

 Alexander was simply a cad. Xenia a snob. IMO.

[Eric_Lowe]

They were both born in the Russian Imperial Family.

[Robert_Hall]

So what ? That does not stop them from being a cad  and a snob.
 BTW, there are 5 St Irenes. The Byzantine empress is venerated by both the Western and the Eastern  Christian Churches.  She instituted a reconciliation and   was instrumental in  resolving the iconoclast heresy.

[amartin71718]

Alexander was simply a cad. Xenia a snob. IMO.

What makes you say that? I'm just curious because I don't know much about them.

[Robert_Hall]

OK, fair question.
  GD Alexander  ran around a lot, and left his wife to fend for herself with their boatlad of kids., whilst he came to America to sell his books and spout  ethereal messages from  "the outer world".
 Xenia,  doing only what she knew how to do, relied on the largess of her mother and the the RF of Britain.  At least her sister Olga tried to make her own way, away from all the court pretense and fallacy.
 That is my take on them.

[ashdean]

OK, fair question.
  GD Alexander  ran around a lot, and left his wife to fend for herself with their boatlad of kids., whilst he came to America to sell his books and spout  ethereal messages from  "the outer world".
 Xenia,  doing only what she knew how to do, relied on the largess of her mother and the the RF of Britain.  At least her sister Olga tried to make her own way, away from all the court pretense and fallacy.
 That is my take on them.

I think you are mainly right.Alexander & Xenia had however more or less seperated and he was not allowed to enter the UK even if they had wanted to be together again...so his life far apart from her not surpriseing.
I think Xenia was very adept at wheedling....she knew how to get around folk...as an old neighbour of mine used to say about her sister "when it came to putting on the poor mouth and turning on the tears...she was a professional" I think that also summed up Xenia.

[amartin71718]

How come Sandro wasn't allowed into the UK?

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

I didn't know Empress Irene was a saint...
I thought she was kind of a horrible person - gouging her own son's eyes out and usurping the throne.
I know she tried (along with the Pope) to reconcile the Orthodox & Roman churches and was a great admirer of Charlemagne, but she was awfully ruthless.
Anyway, if she's a saint, then I'm going out and buy myself a halo - a tarnished one, no doubt and worn slightly askew, but a halo non-the-less!!

I agree about Xenia being snobbish - she was always a Grand Duchess, but knew how to dawn 'her poverty dress' (that's an old saying from Poland)...

Larry

[Robert_Hall]

Larry, I think anyone who wore a cross was declared a saint in those days. She was a nasty piece of work though.
 Sort of gave credence to the Russian claim of Byzantine heritage.

[grandduchessella]

How come Sandro wasn't allowed into the UK?

The British Labour Government had immediately recognized the revolutionary government. I believe they made the decision to ban all Grand Dukes from entering the country so as not to upset relations.  I don't know how long the ban lasted. GD Cyril and GD Dimitri later entered the country--Dimitri might have been exempted from the ban to begin with.

Still, Xenia and Sandra had ample opportunity to spend time together in France.

[Robert_Hall]

I think there was more to it than that, GDElla.
 They were still officers in uniforms of a  defunct government. Which, as you said, the UK no longer recognised.
 Frankly, I do not think anyone knew what to do with them or what was even going on  with their status.
 The Allies just wanted Russia to stay in the war, at any cost.

[Eric_Lowe]

Which was stupid as once Lenin came back, he started the process to stop the war and make peace immediately with Germany. The Tsar and his family were friends of the allies but they were dumped as they were of little use after the revolution.

[rusmila]

Does GD Xenia Alexandrovna wrote memoars, and does anybody have link were I can read this(on Russian)?