Russian Royalty. Born at the Peterhof Palace outside St. Petersburg, the third child and second son of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaievich and his wife Grand Duchess Olga Feodorvna. His education was through private tutors, and he was considered by his parents to be considerably less than gifted. He made his career in the military, achieving the rank of colonel as a young man. He suffered several failed suits in pursuit of a bride, most notably Mary of Teck, and several unsuitable affairs. In 1891 he fell in love with Sophie von Merenberg, and they were secretly married shortly after. The marriage was considered morganic and illegal under Imperial statute. He was deprived of his military rank and of his position as adjutant at the Imperial Court. He was banished from Russia, and blamed for his mother's subsequent collapse and fatal heart attack; he was not allowed to attend her funeral. During the course of their exile, largely in France and England, his wife was granted the title of Countess Torby by her cousin the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. During the First World War, he was denied permission to return to Russia to serve with its armed forces. After the fall of the Russian royal family, his finances fell into decline, and his personality became extremely prickly, his son-in-law referred to him as 'crazy.' The 1927 death of his wife apparently mellowed his temper, however, and less than two years later, the Grand Duke contracted influenza and died in London at age sixty-seven. He was buried with his wife in Hampstead Cemetery.
Russian Royalty. Born at the Peterhof Palace outside St. Petersburg, the third child and second son of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaievich and his wife Grand Duchess Olga Feodorvna. His education was through private tutors, and he was considered by his parents to be considerably less than gifted. He made his career in the military, achieving the rank of colonel as a young man. He suffered several failed suits in pursuit of a bride, most notably Mary of Teck, and several unsuitable affairs. In 1891 he fell in love with Sophie von Merenberg, and they were secretly married shortly after. The marriage was considered morganic and illegal under Imperial statute. He was deprived of his military rank and of his position as adjutant at the Imperial Court. He was banished from Russia, and blamed for his mother's subsequent collapse and fatal heart attack; he was not allowed to attend her funeral. During the course of their exile, largely in France and England, his wife was granted the title of Countess Torby by her cousin the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. During the First World War, he was denied permission to return to Russia to serve with its armed forces. After the fall of the Russian royal family, his finances fell into decline, and his personality became extremely prickly, his son-in-law referred to him as 'crazy.' The 1927 death of his wife apparently mellowed his temper, however, and less than two years later, the Grand Duke contracted influenza and died in London at age sixty-seven. He was buried with his wife in Hampstead Cemetery.
Bio by: Iola
Family Members
Siblings
Advertisement
See more Romanov memorials in:
Records on Ancestry
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
