Granny Alina (died 1969) was the foster grandmother of Gabriel Louis Duval, who claimed in his 2004 book ''A Princess in the Family'' that she might have been

Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and c ...

. (however photos of Granny Alina depict her looking like an older version of

Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (Maria Nikolaevna Romanova; Russian: Великая Княжна Мария Николаевна, 17 July 1918) was the third daughter of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna. H ...

.Maria Romanov and Granny Alina
/ref>) According to Duval, Granny Alina married a man named Frank Antonowitz and moved to South Africa, where they started a farrier business together. After Frank's death, she began a relationship with a Greek man named Harry Karadimas, with whom she shared a home. She lived with Duval's family from 1954 until her death in 1969. In his book, Duval claimed that Granny Alina told him she was a

princess Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subs ...

, that her family had been murdered during the Russian Revolution, and that she had been rescued. She did not want to talk about the rescue for fear of being sent back to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. Duval had her grave exhumed, but her remains were too decomposed to produce an accurate DNA profile. The story attracted some television news coverage in Australia and in the United States.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alina, Granny 1969 deaths Romanov impostors Year of birth missing Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia

See also

Notes