The Scandalous Mrs. Blackford

[Pegschalet]

I haven't read Prince Michael's book.  The story has already been written by an American author.  It's called "The Scandalous Mrs. Blackford" by Harnett T. Kane with Victor Leclerc.  Published in 1951  It is told from her side of the story.  "The fabulous story of an American woman's empire-shaking love affair with the Grand Duke Nicholas of Russia.  It looks like it was well researched.  Victor Leclerc is a pseudonym for a well known Russian  scholar and lecturer.  He heard the story from descendants of the old Russian court circle who remembered how she had shocked and charmed St. Petersburg.  Her journal was suppressed but a few rare copies existed.  Mr. Leclerc found it at the New York Public Library among the books which no one under 18 was allowed to read. Mrs. Blackford came from Old Philadelphia society (ala Princess Grace) and the newspapers of the time were filled with her exploits.  She was just "Scandalous" and the papers loved her. 

She published an account in 1875 in Paris "Le Roman d'une Americaine in Russie under penname Fanny Lear.  A few copies that exist have 20 pages torn out by the Belgian police under pressure from the Russian GOvt.  Her book includes letters from her lover, the Tsar's nephew.
I enjoyed the story and it was a quick read. Interesting from the Americain point of view which is unusual in Romanov stories.  A good addition to your library.   Pretty reasonable on Amazon link:
 http://www.amazon.com/scandalous-Mrs-Blackford-Harnett-Thomas/dp/B0007E4NUC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267372534&sr=8-1

Has anyone read this book?
 
« Last Edit: February 28, 2010, 08:59:26 AM by Pegschalet »   Logged 
 

[Alixz]

I haven't read the book, I do remember hearing about Fanny Lear.  I just can't remember where.

Perhaps it was in another book but I remember that she shook up Russian and European society.

[kmerov]

I haven't read the book, I do remember hearing about Fanny Lear.  I just can't remember where.

Perhaps it was in another book but I remember that she shook up Russian and European society.

Fanny Lear was the mistress of Grand Duke Nicholas Konstantinovich, and there is some info about her and her account in one of the Konstantinovichi threads. But yes, it was a great scandal at the time.

[Marlene]

Yes.  And I own the book.

I haven't read Prince Michael's book.  The story has already been written by an American author.  It's called "The Scandalous Mrs. Blackford" by Harnett T. Kane with Victor Leclerc.  Published in 1951  It is told from her side of the story.  "The fabulous story of an American woman's empire-shaking love affair with the Grand Duke Nicholas of Russia.  It looks like it was well researched.  Victor Leclerc is a pseudonym for a well known Russian  scholar and lecturer.  He heard the story from descendants of the old Russian court circle who remembered how she had shocked and charmed St. Petersburg.  Her journal was suppressed but a few rare copies existed.  Mr. Leclerc found it at the New York Public Library among the books which no one under 18 was allowed to read. Mrs. Blackford came from Old Philadelphia society (ala Princess Grace) and the newspapers of the time were filled with her exploits.  She was just "Scandalous" and the papers loved her. 

She published an account in 1875 in Paris "Le Roman d'une Americaine in Russie under penname Fanny Lear.  A few copies that exist have 20 pages torn out by the Belgian police under pressure from the Russian GOvt.  Her book includes letters from her lover, the Tsar's nephew.
I enjoyed the story and it was a quick read. Interesting from the Americain point of view which is unusual in Romanov stories.  A good addition to your library.   Pretty reasonable on Amazon link:
 http://www.amazon.com/scandalous-Mrs-Blackford-Harnett-Thomas/dp/B0007E4NUC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267372534&sr=8-1

Has anyone read this book?
 
« Last Edit: February 28, 2010, 08:59:26 AM by Pegschalet »   Logged 
 

[Greg_King]

Just saw this and since it's an area of interest....

The "well known Russian author" involved with The Scandalous Mrs. Blackford was Alexandre Tarsaidze. The book is a novel, as is Prince Michael of Greece's book. The book is, though, based heavily on Henrietta's own 1874 memoirs-the authors correctly state that few copies survived and many were seized and censored in Paris and in Brussels by authorities at the request of the Russian Government anxious to conceal the scandal over her relationship with Nicholas Konstantinovich. That said, almost everything in the book about Henrietta before she sets foot in Russia is fiction-Penny Wilson and myself (with the assistance of several generous and skilled researchers) have conducted extensive research on her life in Russia and in America and even obtained her brother-in-law's personal copy of her memoirs with her annotations. There is a huge amount of material-love letters, reports on Henrietta, etc., in Russia that has filled out the story quite a bit, but I'd only consider the sections dealing with her relationship with Nicholas Konstantinovich to be close to the truth-anything else is best read as fiction.

[Constantinople]

Are any of the facts that lead to the term scandalous elucidated?

[Greg_King]

Are any of the facts that lead to the term scandalous elucidated?

In the book Henrietta's life in the US is highly fictionalized (in real life, for example, she had a daughter, not a son, and the kid didn't die but was abandoned when her mother had to flee the country to avoid arrest for blackmailing a society gentleman in New York City-AND she may have killed her first husband) as is her time in Europe (she wasn't ever a courtesan in Paris), but when it gets to her affair with Nicholas Konstantinovich it pretty much follows, with some deviations, the story in her memoirs. This, of course, was rather self-serving-the unpublished letters between her and the Grand Duke make it pretty clear (as do reports commissioned by Alexander II) that Nicholas wasn't quite the idiot portrayed and knew he was being used. The entire incident over the theft of his mother's jewelry is largely fiction here, too-Henrietta obviously had no interest in giving the actual details which would have made her look even worse than she already did. But all of this aside, she WAS pretty scandalous both in the US and in Russia and after her expulsion from Russia she tried to blackmail the Italian Royal Family. Not quite the romantic figure in the novel.

[Constantinople]

To quote Mae West
She's the kind of girl who climbed the ladder of success wrong by wrong.

[rgt9w]

Mr. King,

Do you have plans to write a book on this subject? Is there an article or book that tells the factual story of Fanny Lear with the fictionalized parts?

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

In October 2007, Penny Wilson gave a lecture, at Arturo Beeche's conference, on this woman.  It was most interesting!!

Larry

[Pegschalet]

Thank-you Mr. King for your input.  It makes the story even more fascinating.  I actually read the book before I began my Romanov Obsession as I loved the author, Harnett T. Kane.  He was more known for his regional works about southern plantation culture.  I agree with all your points.  The book is definitely a novel about a true story. 

Are you planning a book?  The subject is compelling and the true story more amazing than the fiction.

[Greg_King]

Thanks. A book-yes, it's already about 80 percent done-but at what point it will go to a publisher I don't know. Penny and myself have done extensive research on it in the US, France, and in Russia where we found hundreds of unpublished letters between Henrietta and Nicholas that are really fantastic. It will depend on getting a publisher, though Henrietta's a fascinating character. Right now I'm doing a new book on Nicholas II's coronation with Janet Ashton that may be out later this year, but Henrietta will see the light of day sometime soon I hope as she is just too bizarre a person to ignore.

[rgt9w]

Mr. King,

Thank you for the information. I look forward to reading both books when they are published.

[newfan]

scroll down for a picture of Funny Lear

http://www.finebooksmagazine.com/issue/200912/auction-1.phtml