question about a letter

[Queen_Missy]

What "nieces" are referred to in this letter?

Olga Nikolaevna to Olga Alexandrovna
21 June 1917

My darling, dear Godmother,

Am terribly touched by your sweet letter and heartfelt words. I wanted to have a heart?to?heart talk with you when you were with us in Kiev, but there wasn't the opportunity.

Poor Mama is terribly bored; can't at all get used to the new life and the circumstances here, although on the whole we can all be grateful that we will be together and in the Crimea. So horribly sad to think about our dear nieces and their parents and about our homeland. Little Dolls!! Now it's doubly hard for you, my darling Aunt Olga. May God preserve you.

A kiss to you and Mitia. Love you sincerely and with all my heart.

Your loving Goddaughter,
Olga

[Forum Admin]

I have no doubt that our users Helen Azar and Nick Nicholson will have the answer for you.

[wakas]

About this letter, see here:

Another letter mistakenly attributed to Grand Duchess Olga Nicholaevna:

In Steinberg's "Fall of the Romanovs", p. 154, is a letter purportedly from Grand Duchess Olga Nicholaevna to her aunt, Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna.

However, an examination of the original manuscript in GARF shows that it is actually in Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna's handwriting, and it was written to her aunt and godmother, the Dowager Queen of the Hellenes, Olga Constantinovna.

Grand Duchess Olga Nicholaevna's godmother was Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna, whom she would never have address as "Godmother", but rather, as "Grandmother".

Once the true author of this letter has been established, the contents make much more sense.

"Mama" = Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna, with whom Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna was planning to flee to the Crimea soon.

"Nieces and their parents" = NAOTMAA

And Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna had written "matrosiki" (sailors), *not* "matroshki" (dollies)!

It was a cry from her heart over the role that their beloved sailors were playing in the revolutionary events. Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna knew that Queen Olga would share her intense grief, since they both were patrons of the Russian navy and very fond of its sailors.

For the record, the archivists at GARF agreed with the above analysis. They have now moved this letter from Grand Duchess Olga Nicholaevna's file to that of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna.

Hope that helps.