Kenwood House front with extensions 2005

A ball was held at

Kenwood House Kenwood House (also known as the Iveagh Bequest) is a former stately home in Hampstead, London, on the northern boundary of Hampstead Heath. The house was originally constructed in the 17th century and served as a residence for the Earls of Mans ...

, London, by

Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia (Russian: Михаил Михайлович; 16 October 1861 – 26 April 1929) was a son of Grand Duke Michael Nicolaievich of Russia and a grandson of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. He was raised in the ...

on 11 June 1914. The ball was held in honour of Michael's daughters

Anastasia Anastasia (from el, Ἀναστασία, translit=Anastasía) is a feminine given name of Greek origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning " resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, where it was the mo ...

and Nadejda and marked the

coming-out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

of the latter, who was aged 18. It was attended by a large number of British and foreign nobility, including

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

and Queen Mary, and was one of the last big social events before the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. The night featured a dinner and dance demonstration by Maurice Mouvet and Florence Walton. The latter was the first

royal command performance A Royal Command Performance is any performance by actors or musicians that occurs at the direction or request of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom. Although English monarchs have long sponsored their own theatrical companies and commis ...

by American dancers; Mary specifically requested a demonstration of the controversial

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

as she had not seen one before. A ball after the dinner was attended by 2,000 members of society and was accompanied by a Viennese orchestra.

Background

was occupied by

. He was a great-great-grandson of Russian ruler

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...

and a second cousin of the then tsar

Nicholas II Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pol ...

. Michael had lived in exile in Western Europe, and particularly the United Kingdom, since marrying Countess

Sophie of Merenberg Countess Sophie Nikolaievna of Merenberg, Countess de Torby (1 June 1868 – 14 September 1927), was the elder daughter of Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau and his morganatic wife, Natalia Alexandrovna Pushkina (who had been granted the title ...

in 1891. The

morganatic marriage Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...

had been conducted in Italy without the permission of his parents and was illegal under Russian law. Michael rented Kenwood House from 1910, for £2,200 a year. He was active in the London social circuit and held many parties and balls there. The 11 June 1914 ball was intended to mark the

of Michael's 18-year-old daughter Countess Nadejda de Torby (known as Nada) and was given in her name and that of her 22-year-old sister Countess

Anastasia de Torby Lady Anastasia Mikhailovna Wernher (' Countess Anastasia Mikhailovna de Torby; 9 September 1892 – 7 December 1977) was a German-born Russian-British aristocrat and thoroughbred racehorse owner. She was the elder daughter of Grand Duke Micha ...

(known as Zia). The ball was one of the last big social events before the outbreak of the

and was attended by nobility from European states that would be enemies within the following weeks.

Dinner

In preparation for the event the grounds and driveways of Kenwood Hall were illuminated and the rooms decorated with flowers and ferns. The event began with a dinner attended by numerous distinguished guests. The principal guests were

and Queen Mary. They were met at the house's north entrance by Michael whilst the other guests were greeted by Countess Torby in the Adam's Room. The presence of the king and queen required a larger than usual number of Metropolitan Police officers (as well as the entire Palace Police contingent) due to a heightened threat of

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to member ...

action. Other royal guests at the dinner included Princess Henry of Battenberg, Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein and Admiral Prince Louis of Battenberg. Other attendees included the Duchess of Marlborough, the

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...

and Duchess of Sutherland, the

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particu ...

and Countess of Leicester, the

and Countess of Mar and Kellie, the

and Countess of Derby and their daughter Lady Victoria Stanley, the

and Countess of Essex, the

and Countess of Granard, the

Earl Howe Earl Howe is a title that has been created twice in British history, for members of the Howe and Curzon-Howe family respectively. The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was in 1788 for Richard Howe, but became extinct on his ...

Viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicia ...

and Viscountess Curzon,

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage ...

and Lady Nunburnholme,

Lord Herbert Vane-Tempest Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or a ...

, Lady

de Trafford The de Trafford Baronetcy, of Trafford Park in the County Palatine of Lancaster is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Background The creation of Trafford: In April 1016, King Cnut Sweynson of Norway and his army swept North-West ...

, Lady Desborough, Lord Annaly, former prime minister

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, (, ; 25 July 184819 March 1930), also known as Lord Balfour, was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As foreign secretary in the ...

, Charles Cust and the Honorable Basil Fitzherbert. Foreign attendees included Grand Duchess Anastasia of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and the Marquis of Soveral. All of the guests were seated at a single long table during the dinner.

Dance exhibition

After dinner there was a demonstration of dancing by married couple Maurice Mouvet and Florence Walton. The pair became the first American dancers to appear in a performance by royal command. The

, a relatively new dance, had been performed in Paris since around 1910 and had been danced in London since 1912, though it was opposed by the press due to its supposed immorality. The dance gained popularity over the following two social seasons and it was originally scheduled to be performed at the Kenwood House ball. It was rumoured at the time that Mary had banned the dance at the Royal Court and it was removed from the programme. Mouvet and Walton completed a number of other dances and Mary indicated disappointment that a tango was not demonstrated as she had never seen one before. The couple then performed an impromptu seven-minute dance for the queen. In deference to the audience Walton chose not to wear the usual tango attire of a slit-sided skirt and performed in an ankle-length dress with a small train, that she held in her hand as she danced. The performance demonstrated the tango figures of ''El Paseo'', ''La Marcha'', ''El Corte'', ''Paseo con Golpe'', ''La Media Luna'', ''Las Tijeras'', ''La Rueda'' and ''El Ocho''. A typical selection for the period, when the dance was not yet formalised and dance styles varied widely between different performers. Mary indicated that she was delighted by the tango demonstration, though it was noted that George V showed little reaction to any dance except for a grotesque solo dance by Mouvet. The dance demonstration lasted for around 45 minutes, longer than scheduled, and led Mouvet and Walton to be late for a performance that night at London's

Alhambra Theatre of Variety The Alhambra was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built originally as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...

Ball

That evening some 2,000 people attended a ball at Kenwood House. Attendees included the peers the

and Duchess of Roxburghe (who also brought with them a large party that had dined at their house), the

and Duchess of Rutland and her daughter Lady Diana Manners, the

and Duchess of Manchester and their son Lord Charles Montagu, Katherine, dowager Duchess of Westminster, Constance, Duchess of Westminster, the

and Duchess of Wellington, the

Marquess A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman ...

and Marchioness of Salisbury and their daughter Lady Mary Cecil, the

and Marchioness of Crewe and the

and Countess of Lonsdale. It was also attended by the prime minister

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom ...

, the speaker of the House of Commons James Lowther and his wife and daughter, the German ambassador Karl Max, Prince Lichnowsky, the Italian ambassador the Marquis Guglielmo Imperiali and the Spanish ambassador Alfonso Merry del Val. The orchestra, brought from Vienna, was sited in the house's

orangery An orangery or orangerie was a room or a dedicated building on the grounds of fashionable residences of Northern Europe from the 17th to the 19th centuries where orange and other fruit trees were protected during the winter, as a very lar ...

and supper was served in a marquee on the south terrace. The marquee, which overlooked the lake, was decorated with coloured draperies and gold mouldings. During the ball a tango was danced.

Later events

The ball was one of the last major social events put on by Michael. He lost his fortune, derived largely from a mineral water plant in Georgia, to the Bolsheviks during the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

. He became dependent on an allowance from the diamond magnate and British Army officer Sir

Harold Augustus Wernher Major-General Sir Harold Augustus Wernher, 3rd Baronet, (16 January 1893 – 30 June 1973) was a British military officer. Life and career He was the second son of Sir Julius Wernher, 1st Baronet, and his wife, Alice Sedgwick Mankiewicz. He rea ...

, who had married Zia in 1917. He was forced to relinquish the lease on Kenwood House that same year. The coming-out ball for Zia and Wenher's daughter Georgina in 1937 was also attended by the reigning monarch,

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

(son of George V and Mary). Nada had married Prince George of Battenberg in 1916. Michael's wife died in 1927 and he died in 1929.

References

{{reflist 1914 in the United Kingdom Balls in the United Kingdom June 1914 events