Jim Hercules

[BobG]

In the Tsarskoye Selo Watercolour Book, the Ethiopian guards are shown in the Zubov wing of the Catherine Palace on page 54 outside the Great Chinese Hall and in greater detail on page 64 outside the dressing room of Tsarevich Alexander Nokolaievich.  Both watercolors were done by Hau in 1850.  This would indicate they served a greater function than just outside the Imperial Suites.
Bob G

[Mike]

What is most fascinating, one not necessarily needed to belong to the African race to be appointed a Palace Arap! Since they were receiving higher salaries that other palace servants and were accordingly entitled to higher pensions, it was not unusual for some especially distinguished stoker or floor-polisher to be promoted to a Palace Arap just before retirement. Such "white negroes" proudly displayed their retirement titles - accompanied with typically Russian names - on their door plates, to a great astonishment of innocent passerbyes.

[Alexandra]

Hello to everybody,

I have been interested to find out more about these gentlemen ever since I first read about Mr Jim Hercules [p.123 in my copy of Massie's *Nicholas and Alexandra*]. Now, for the life of me, I cannot recall where I read this, but I think he was from North Carolina. The Imperial children apparently loved guava jelly, which he would bring back from his visits home to share with them! He had been an employee of Alexander III. What I would really like to know is what became of him after 1917: does anybody know?

Thanks, and best wishes,

Katherine Alexandra M. Hines

[Belochka]

Hello to everybody,

I have been interested to find out more about these gentlemen ever since I first read about Mr Jim Hercules [p.123 in my copy of Massie's *Nicholas and Alexandra*]. Now, for the life of me, I cannot recall where I read this, but I think he was from North Carolina. Katherine Alexandra M. Hines

Hi Alexandra,

C. Benagh, in her fairly recent book An Englishman in the Court of the Tsar @ p 49, claims that the Afro- American Jim Hercules journey home to Florida from where he returned annually, bearing gifts to the Imperial children.

In all probability he was dismissed from his appointment, as were most of the staff at the Alexander Palace when the Provisional Government came to power, and was free to return home to the States and live in relative obscurity.

[Robert_Hall]

There was a brief mention of at least one of them living on the streets of Petrograd, in worn palace livery. Waiting to find a way back home. I am trying now to remember & find the book I read that in !
Obviously they would be difficult to miss, so I think they did make it home eventually.
Robert

[Robert_Hall]

I know I just repeated what I had already said, but I am really still trying to find the reference !

[Greg_King]

There was, I think, an earlier post or thread about all of this.  Penny Wilson arguably knows more about this subject than anyone I've encountered, having done research on these men for 10 years, and recently undertaken research in archives of the Imperial Court on them as well, which has revealed a wealth of material.  It's still on-going but hopefully things can be finalized and she will present the research in an article in Atlantis Magazine next year.

Greg King

[BobAtchison]

I have a original picture of Jim from Tsarskoe Selo in civilian garb but I am keeping it for our book!

[Penny_Wilson]

Anyone know what happened to him during the revolution,and afterwards?

The last time we can definitely place him anywhere was at Stavka at the time of the abdication.  He pretty much drops out of sight then -- at least insofar as can be independently confirmed.  There are occasionally passing mentions of one of the "Court Negroes" being spotted here or there -- but none that can be specifically identified as Jim Hercules.  The closest we come to a later sighting is in 1924, when a diplomat at the US Embassy saw a tall black man that he thought he recognized as Jim (from the days before the revolution when this man had attended Court functions and made Jim's acquaintance) walking in the streets in a tattered Court uniform.  This diplomat ordered his driver to turn around and follow Jim, but by the time this was done, Jim -- if it was him -- had disappeared.

(I think I posted this before -- if I'm forgetting anything here, it's because I'm at work and away from my notes...)

[rskkiya]

All I know of him is that he used to take his vacation back home in the US and bring the children gauva jeely back as presents. From all I have read he was devoted to the family.

As far as I know, the "gauva jelly" question is correct - it was a novelty much priced by the Grand duchesses.

rskkiya

[David_Pritchard]

Should the guava jelly for the grand duchesses have been made by Jim Hercules' family in the US and he brought it back to Saint Petersburg, it would be a good guess that Jim's family lived in Florida somewhere on the penninsula south of Bradenton on the west side and south of Fort Pierce on the east side. Guava trees die off when the temperature falls below 26 F and strawberry guava trees die off when the temperature falls below 27 F. Of course the fruit is destroyed by frost at 32 F so it would be safe to say that to have regular large amounts of guava for jelly making, one would need to have an orchard from Palm Beach County south on the east coast and Lee County south on the west coast of Florida.

DAP

[RealAnastasia]

As far as I know, the "gauva jelly" question is correct - it was a novelty much priced by the Grand duchesses.

 rskkiya

rskiyya is absolutely RIGHT. The issue "guava jelly" could be found in "Nicholas and Alexandra" by Robert K. Massie. This historian is not known as a devoted to made up stuff. All he states in his books is true.

RealAnastasia

[GrandDuchess_Lo]

Can anyone post/link his pic???

[Forum Admin]

Sorry, but Bob's photo of him is being saved for the book.

[pentetorri]

Until those books are published and we can finally see a picture of Jim, I think this is the kind of uniform he wore. A small picture is seen at the bottom, unfortunately hardly visible. Hope some other members who are not publishing books may have a picture of Jim or the others "Africans" and share them with us.