Princess Tatiana Yusupova, younger sister of Zenaida Yusupova

[Svetabel]

Little Tatiana Nikolayevna's miniature.



Poor girl died of typhoid in 1888, there is her sculpture (as an Angel) in the Yusupovskiy Palace on Moika in St-Petersbourg.

[ashanti01]

Tatiana was twenty-two at the time of her death, does anyone know if she had any suitors? Isn't twenty-two a little old for her not to be married or engaged for the times?

Also, I wonder why there isn't many pictures of her out there. She died in 1888 so she must have known Nicholas and maybe Felix, not sure if she died before or after his birth, but wouldn't there by family pictures?

[Annie]

We have already discussed this topic,if you trawl back, you may find the answer behind the Princesses death in 1888.

Where?  Not in this thread.

I'm still shocked that she was younger, I'd always seen that she was older. I'm also surprised that she was still alive when Felix was born, but no mention of her is made in his memoirs, though older and less recently deceased relatives were. I'm also wondering why Sandro didn't mention her. He had a big crush on Zenaida, and mentions it in his book, but this sister was exactly his age, and looked something like Zenaida, yet he never mentions liking her, or her at all! Could it be she had some kind of 'problem' that kept her out of the public eye? This is strange.

[Svetabel]

I'm still shocked that she was younger, I'd always seen that she was older. I'm also surprised that she was still alive when Felix was born, but no mention of her is made in his memoirs, though older and less recently deceased relatives were. I'm also wondering why Sandro didn't mention her. He had a big crush on Zenaida, and mentions it in his book, but this sister was exactly his age, and looked something like Zenaida, yet he never mentions liking her, or her at all! Could it be she had some kind of 'problem' that kept her out of the public eye? This is strange.

I have the same question. Tatiana is a mystery as if she never lived . Only guess coud be she was very sickly and delicate and wasn't able to mix in society. Her mother Princess Tatiana was delicate in health and Tatiana-younger possibly inherited her weak constitution..and by the way possibly Tatiana-younger had some mental problems as her parents were almost close relatives - just my thought but as a variant...

[Annie]

Thanks, I'm glad I'm not the only one. A mental problem, that's what I was thinking too  Or she could have had some kind of health issue that caused her to slowly waste away or be less than 'normal.' It's very strange we don't see pictures of her after she was beyond childhood, you never see pictures of Zenaida and her together as you would OTMA or other sisters. It really seems odd that here's almost no mention of her anywhere while Zenaida is always shown and mentioned as a very famous social butterfly.  It would be interesting to find out the true story, even if it's sad.

[ashanti01]

It's very sad indeed, that there is no information or pictures to give us more insight into this forgotten Yussupov.

[ashdean]

I think everyones imaginations are working overtime here....Felix did not mention his aunt as he was only a year old when she died...so he had no memories of her...As for mental illness..well it was true her parents shared ONE mutal grandparent (Tatiana Engelhardt) but the odds for being retarded etc are not a huge in that closeness of kinship...I think it is just fair to say that Tatiana was naturally frail (perhaps consumptive)and lived a rather quiet sheltered life before her early death..

[Taksa]

ashanti01

my scanner doenst still work so I took a picture of the photo again. I hope you dont mind.

[ashanti01]

Taska,

Thank you so much for posting the picture! She was a very lovely young girl! I've never seen a picture of her as a young woman, so I'm totally excited about this right now. 

[gugussey]

There is also a memorial  statue of Tatiana in the Moika palace.  It depicts Tatiana as a winged angel, clutching flowers. The face is very much like that in the photo just posted.  Although Felix was just a baby when his aunt died, he does mention many other family members who lived and died before he was born, so it is peculiar that he doesn't devote a word to his beloved mother's sister.

[ashdean]

There is also a memorial  statue of Tatiana in the Moika palace.  It depicts Tatiana as a winged angel, clutching flowers. The face is very much like that in the photo just posted.  Although Felix was just a baby when his aunt died, he does mention many other family members who lived and died before he was born, so it is peculiar that he doesn't devote a word to his beloved mother's sister.

One of the reasons could be he wanted to dramatise his mother being the sole heiress to the vast family fortune....the fact she had a sister and a brother Boris who had died in extreme infancy might have made it all les dramatic....
Zenaida must have talked about her sister at times....Meriel Buchanan mentioned her (in passing) and she knew Zenaida well in 1921 in Rome.

[gugussey]

 Also it's known that Zenaide commenorated her sister's death annually in a small family service.  So Felix could not have been unaware that he had had  an "aunt".

[Taksa]

Taska,

Thank you so much for posting the picture! She was a very lovely young girl! I've never seen a picture of her as a young woman, so I'm totally excited about this right now. 

not at all.))
yes she was quite pretty.

[Annie]

Thanks for the picture, she was lovely,and it's nice to see Zenaida kept her memory alive. It is strange Felix didn't mention more about her in his book since he did discuss other dead relatives.

Since her hair is down in the picture, I guess we can assume she was less than 17. This may be the last image of her in good health,for all we know. Could it be she developed some kind of health or mental issue after that age? I know I am speculating again, but I can't get over how this lovely Yussoupov girl isn't spoken of in anyone's stories! I especially wonder about it because of Sandro, he was the same age as this sister, yet he only spoke of having a crush on Zenaida. Does this mean she wasn't in public view often? And if so why? And what killed her at such a young age? It is strange a girl of that status and beauty would not have had suitors. So many sad questions. I want to know more about this girl. I wonder if we'll ever know Maybe that is the last pic of her in good health and this is why Zenaida loved it so much.

Another guess could be she was weakened by some fever, like scarlet fever. This was common in those days, and is what caused Helen Keller to go blind and deaf, Mary Ingalls to go blind, and Queen Alexandra of England and Princess Alice (daughter of Victoria Milford-Haven) to go partially deaf. It also caused "Beth", the sister of "Jo" in Little Women, to pass away. This was of course based on a true story. Louisa May Alcott's sister got a weakened heart from the fever, and became more or less a bedridden invalid for the last few years of her life, then she finally passed away, very young. It could have been something like that.

[ashdean]

Thanks for the picture, she was lovely,and it's nice to see Zenaida kept her memory alive. It is strange Felix didn't mention more about her in his book since he did discuss other dead relatives.

Since her hair is down in the picture, I guess we can assume she was less than 17. This may be the last image of her in good health,for all we know. Could it be she developed some kind of health or mental issue after that age? I know I am speculating again, but I can't get over how this lovely Yussoupov girl isn't spoken of in anyone's stories! I especially wonder about it because of Sandro, he was the same age as this sister, yet he only spoke of having a crush on Zenaida. Does this mean she wasn't in public view often? And if so why? And what killed her at such a young age? It is strange a girl of that status and beauty would not have had suitors. So many sad questions. I want to know more about this girl. I wonder if we'll ever know Maybe that is the last pic of her in good health and this is why Zenaida loved it so much.

Another guess could be she was weakened by some fever, like scarlet fever. This was common in those days, and is what caused Helen Keller to go blind and deaf, Mary Ingalls to go blind, and Queen Alexandra of England and Princess Alice (daughter of Victoria Milford-Haven) to go partially deaf. It also caused "Beth", the sister of "Jo" in Little Women, to pass away. This was of course based on a true story. Louisa May Alcott's sister got a weakened heart from the fever, and became more or less a bedridden invalid for the last few years of her life, then she finally passed away, very young. It could have been something like that.

It must be remembered that Zenaida's parents spent a great deal of time out of Russia..in the search for cures (perhaps for both Tatiana's not just the mother) and Sandro might not have known the younger sister as she was in Switzerland etc while Zenaida was brought up more in Russia as a temporary ward of the Imperial court and later as a married woman.I am sure Zenaida was devoted to her sister and felt great grief at her untimely death, after all with the death of her own father in 1891 her own close family were totally gone..no wonder she indulged her children !!!