Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , later Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia (25 November 1876 – 2 March 1936), was the third child and second daughter of
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Alfred (Alfred Ernest Albert; 6 August 184430 July 1900) was the sovereign duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1893 to 1900. He was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was known as the Duke of Edinburgh from ...
, and of
Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. She was a granddaughter of
Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
and also of
Emperor Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finlan ...
.
Born a
British princess
The use of the title of Princess of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is entirely at the will of the Monarch, sovereign as expressed in letters patent. Individuals holding the title of princess are styled "Royal Highness, ...
, Victoria spent her early life in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and lived for three years in
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, where her father served in the Royal Navy. In 1889 the family moved to
Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
, where Victoria's father became the reigning duke in 1893. In her teens Victoria fell in love with her first cousin
Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia
Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia (russian: Кирилл Владимирович Романов; ''Kirill Vladimirovich Romanov''; – 12 October 1938) was a son of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia, a grandson of Emperor Al ...
(the son of her mother's brother,
Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia) but his faith,
Orthodox Christianity
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Chur ...
, discouraged
marriage between first cousins. Bowing to family pressure, Victoria married her paternal first cousin,
Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine in 1894, following the wishes of their grandmother,
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
. The marriage failed – Victoria Melita scandalized the royal families of Europe when she divorced her husband in 1901. The couple's only child,
Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, died of typhoid fever in 1903.
Victoria married Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich in 1905. They wed without the formal approval of Britain's King
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.
The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...
(as the
Royal Marriages Act 1772
The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo 3 c. 11) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard against marriages t ...
would have required), and in defiance of Russia's Emperor
Nicholas II. In retaliation, the Tsar stripped Kirill of his offices and honours, also initially banishing the couple from Russia. They had two daughters and settled in Paris before being allowed to visit Russia in 1909. In 1910 they moved to Russia, where Nicholas recognized Victoria Melita as Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna. After the fall of the Russian monarchy in 1917 they escaped to
Finland (then still part of the
Russian Republic
The Russian Republic,. referred to as the Russian Democratic Federal Republic. in the 1918 Constitution, was a short-lived state which controlled, ''de jure'', the territory of the former Russian Empire after its proclamation by the Rus ...
) where she gave birth to her only son in August 1917. In exile they lived for some years among her relatives in Germany, and from the late 1920s on an estate they bought in
Saint-Briac
Saint-Briac-sur-Mer (, literally ''Saint-Briac on Sea''; ; Gallo: ''Saent-Beriac''), is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine Department in Brittany in northwestern France.
Population
Inhabitants of Saint-Briac-sur-Mer are called ''briacins'' in Fr ...
in Brittany. In 1926 Kirill proclaimed himself Russian emperor in exile, and Victoria supported her husband's claims. Victoria died after suffering a stroke while visiting her daughter
Maria
Maria may refer to:
People
* Mary, mother of Jesus
* Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages
Place names Extraterrestrial
* 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877
* Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
in
Amorbach (Lower Franconia).
Early life
Victoria was born on 25 November 1876 in
San Anton Palace in
Attard
Attard ( mt, Ħ'Attard) is a town in the Central Region of Malta. Together with Balzan and Lija it forms part of " the Three Villages" and has been inhabited since the Classical Period. It has a population of 12,268 as of 2021. Attard's trad ...
,
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, hence her second name, Melita. Her father, who was stationed on the island as an officer in the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
, was
Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh
Alfred (Alfred Ernest Albert; 6 August 184430 July 1900) was the sovereign duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1893 to 1900. He was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was known as the Duke of Edinburgh from 1 ...
, the second son of
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
. Her mother was
Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna, the only surviving daughter of
Alexander II of Russia and
Marie of Hesse.
![The Duchess of Edinburgh with her children](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/The_Duchess_of_Edinburgh_with_her_children.JPG)
As a grandchild of the British monarch, she was styled ''Her Royal Highness'' Princess Victoria of Edinburgh. Within her family, she was always known as "Ducky". At the time of her birth, she was 10th in the
line of succession to the British throne
Succession to the British throne is determined by descent, gender, legitimacy and religion. Under common law, the Crown is inherited by a sovereign's children or by a childless sovereign's nearest collateral line. The Bill of Rights 1689 a ...
. The princess was christened on 1 January 1877 at San Anton Palace by a Royal Navy chaplain. Her godparents included her paternal grandmother
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
, who was represented by a proxy.
[Yvonne's Royalty Home Page — Royal Christenings](_blank)
, uniserve.com; accessed 22 March 2014.
After the Duke's service in Malta was over, they returned to England, where the family lived for the next few years. They divided their time between Eastwell Park, their country home in
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, and
Clarence House
Clarence House is a royal residence on The Mall in the City of Westminster, London. It was built in 1825–1827, adjacent to St James's Palace, for the Duke of Clarence, the future king William IV.
Over the years, it has undergone much exten ...
, their residence in London facing
Buckingham Palace. Eastwell, a large estate of 2,500 acres near
Ashford, with its forest and park was the children's favorite residence. In January 1886, shortly after Princess Victoria turned nine, the family left England when her father was appointed commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean naval squadron, based on Malta. For the next three years, the family lived at the
San Anton Palace in Malta, Victoria's birthplace.
The marriage of her parents was unhappy. The Duke was taciturn, unfaithful, prone to drinking and emotionally detached from his family. Victoria's mother was independent-minded and cultured. Although she was unsentimental and strict, the Duchess was a devoted mother and the most important person in her children's lives. As a child, Victoria had a difficult temperament. She was shy, serious and sensitive. In the judgment of her sister Marie: "This passionate child was often misunderstood."
[Sullivan, p. 37] Princess Victoria Melita was talented at drawing and painting and learned to play the piano. She was particularly close to Marie. The two sisters would remain very close throughout their lives. They contrasted in appearance and personality. Victoria was dark and moody while Marie was blonde and easy-going.
Although she was one year younger, Victoria was taller and seemed to be the older of the two.
Youth in Coburg
![The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha with his family](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/The_Duke_of_Saxe-Coburg_and_Gotha_with_his_family.jpg)
As a son of Queen Victoria's deceased husband,
Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the consort of Queen Victoria from their marriage on 10 February 1840 until his death in 1861.
Albert was born in the Saxon duch ...
, Victoria Melita's father was in the line of succession to
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, links=no ), was an Ernestine, Thuringian duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present- ...
, the sovereign German duchy ruled by Albert's elder brother,
Ernest II, until his death in 1893. Prince Alfred became
heir presumptive
An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question.
...
to the duchy when his older brother, the Prince of Wales (later
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.
The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...
), relinquished his
Saxon succession rights in favour of his younger brothers. Alfred and his family therefore moved to
Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
in 1889. Their mother immediately began attempting to "Germanise" her daughters by installing a new governess, buying them plain clothing, and having them confirmed in the German
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
church, even though they had previously been raised as
Anglicans
Anglicanism is a Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia ...
. The children rebelled and some of the new restrictions were eased.
The teenage Victoria was a "tall, dark girl, with violet eyes ... with the assuredness of an Empress and the high spirits of a
tomboy
A tomboy is a term for a girl or a young woman with masculine qualities. It can include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and actively engage in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men. W ...
," according to one observer. Victoria had "too little chin to be conventionally beautiful," in the opinion of one of her biographers, but "she had a good figure, deep blue eyes, and dark complexion." In 1891, Victoria travelled with her mother to the funeral of her maternal aunt
Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna of Russia
Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark ( el, Αλεξάνδρα); – ), later known as Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna of Russia (russian: Алекса́ндра Гео́ргиевна), was a member of the Greek royal family and of the ...
. There Victoria met her first cousin
Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich. Although the two were deeply attracted to each other, Victoria's mother was reluctant to allow her to marry him because the Russian Orthodox faith forbids the marriage of first cousins. She was also suspicious of the morality of the Romanov men. When her teenage daughters were impressed by their handsome cousins, their mother warned them that the Russian grand dukes did not make good husbands.
Soon after her sister Marie was married to
Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania, a search was made for a suitable husband for Victoria. Her visit to her grandmother
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
at
Balmoral Castle in the autumn of 1891 coincided with a visit by her cousin
Prince Ernest Louis of Hesse, heir apparent to the grand ducal throne of
Hesse and by Rhine
The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...
. Both were artistic and fun loving, got along well and even shared a birthday. The Queen, observing this, was very keen for her two grandchildren to marry.
Grand Duchess of Hesse
![Ernstludwigandvictoriamelitahesseandbyrhine](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Ernstludwigandvictoriamelitahesseandbyrhine.jpeg)
Eventually, Victoria and Ernst bowed to their families' pressure and married on 19 April 1894 at
Schloss Ehrenburg in
Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
. The wedding was a large affair, with most of the royal families of Europe attending, including Queen Victoria, the
Empress Frederick
Victoria, Princess Royal (Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa; 21 November 1840 – 5 August 1901) was German Empress and Queen of Prussia as the wife of German Emperor Frederick III. She was the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdo ...
,
Kaiser Wilhelm II
, house = Hohenzollern
, father = Frederick III, German Emperor
, mother = Victoria, Princess Royal
, religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United)
, signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg
Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...
and the
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
. Victoria became Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine, Ernest having ascended the throne in 1892.
[Sullivan, p. 126] Her wedding is also significant since at the same time the official engagement of the future
Tsar Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in Reforms of Russian orthography, pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of ...
to Ernst's younger sister,
Alix
''Alix'', or ''The Adventures of Alix'', is a Franco-Belgian comics series drawn in the ligne claire style by Jacques Martin. The stories revolve around a young Gallo-Roman man named Alix in the late Roman Republic. Although the series is re ...
, was proclaimed. Together Victoria and Ernst had two children, a daughter,
Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, whom they nicknamed Ella, born on 11 March 1895, and a stillborn son, born on 25 May 1900.
Victoria and Ernst proved incompatible. Victoria despaired of her husband's lack of affection towards her, while Ernst devoted much of his attention to their daughter, whom he adored. Elisabeth, who physically resembled her mother, preferred the company of her father to Victoria.
[Sullivan, pp. 217–218] Ernst and Victoria both enjoyed entertaining and frequently held house parties for young friends. Their unwritten rule was that anyone over thirty "was old and out." Formality was dispensed with and royal house guests were referred to by their nicknames and encouraged to do as they wished. Victoria and Ernst cultivated friends who were progressive artists and intellectuals as well as those who enjoyed fun and frolic. Victoria's cousin
Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark
Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark ( el, Νικόλαος; 22 January 1872 – 8 February 1938), of the Glücksburg branch of the House of Oldenburg, was the fourth child and third son of King George I of Greece, and of Queen Olga. He was kn ...
remembered one stay there as "the jolliest, merriest house party to which I have ever been in my life."
Victoria was, however, less enthusiastic about fulfilling her public role. She avoided answering letters, put off visits to elderly relations whose company she did not enjoy, and talked to people who amused her at official functions while ignoring people of higher standing whom she found boring.
[Sullivan, p. 152] Victoria's inattention to her duties provoked quarrels with Ernst. The young couple had loud, physical fights. The volatile Victoria shouted, threw tea trays, smashed china against the wall, and tossed anything that was handy at Ernst during their arguments.
[ Victoria sought relief in her love for horses and long gallops over the countryside on a hard-to-control stallion named Bogdan. While she was in Russia for the coronation of ]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 Polan ...
, Victoria's affection for Kirill was also rekindled. She enjoyed flirting with him at the balls and celebrations that marked the coronation.
Divorce
Her marriage to Ernst suffered a further blow in 1897, when Victoria returned home from a visit to her sister Queen Marie of Romania and reportedly caught Ernst in bed with a male servant. She did not make her accusation public, but told a niece that "no boy was safe, from the stable hands to the kitchen help. He slept quite openly with them all." Queen Victoria was saddened when she heard of trouble in the marriage from Sir George Buchanan, her chargé d'affaires, but refused to consent to her grandchildren's divorce because of their daughter, Elisabeth. Efforts to rekindle the marriage failed and, when Queen Victoria died in January 1901, significant opposition to the end of the marriage was removed.
Ernst, who had at first resisted the divorce, came to believe it was the only possible step. "Now that I am calmer I see the absolute impossibility of going on leading a life which was killing her and driving me nearly mad," Ernst wrote to his elder sister Princess Louis of Battenberg. "For to keep up your spirits and a laughing face while ruin is staring you in the eyes and misery is tearing your heart to pieces is a struggle which is fruitless. I only tried for her sake. If I had not loved her so, I would have given it up long ago."[Sullivan, p. 208] Princess Louis later wrote that she was less surprised by the divorce than Ernst was. "Though both had done their best to make a success of their marriage, it had been a failure ... eir characters and temperaments were quite unsuited to each other and I had noticed how they were gradually drifting apart."[ The divorce of the reigning Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Hesse caused scandal in the royal circles of Europe. Tsar Nicholas wrote to his mother that even death would have been better than "the general disgrace of a divorce."
]
After her divorce, Victoria went to live with her mother at Coburg and at her house in the French Riviera. She and Ernst shared custody of Elisabeth, who spent six months of each year with each parent. Elisabeth blamed Victoria for the divorce and Victoria had a difficult time reconnecting with her daughter. Ernst wrote in his memoirs that Elisabeth hid under a sofa, crying, before one visit to her mother. Ernst assured the child that her mother loved her too. Elisabeth responded, "Mama ''says'' she loves me, but you ''do'' love me." Ernst remained silent and didn't correct the child's impression.
Elisabeth died at age eight and a half of typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
during a November 1903 visit to Tsar Nicholas II and his family at their Polish hunting lodge. The doctor advised the Tsar's family to notify the child's mother of her illness, but it is rumored that the Tsarina delayed in sending a telegram. Victoria received the final telegram notifying her of the child's death just as she was preparing to travel to Poland to be at her bedside. At Elisabeth's funeral, Victoria removed her Hessian Order, a medallion, and placed it on her daughter's coffin as a final gesture "that she had made a final break with her old home."[Sullivan, p. 224]
Remarriage
After Victoria's divorce from Ernst, Grand Duke Kirill, whom Victoria had seen on all her subsequent visits to Russia, was discouraged by his parents from trying to keep a close relationship with her. Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna told Kirill to keep Victoria as his mistress and marry someone else.
A few months later, war broke out between Russia and Japan. As a senior member of the navy, Kirill was sent on active service to the front in the Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
. His ship was blown up by a Japanese mine while entering Port Arthur and he was one of the few survivors. Sent home to recover, the Tsar finally allowed him permission to leave Russia and he left for Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
to be with Victoria. The narrow escape from death had hardened Kirill's determination to marry Victoria. "To those over whom the shadow of death has passed, life has a new meaning," Kirill wrote in his memoirs. "It is like daylight. And I was now within visible reach of fulfillment of the dream of my life. Nothing would cheat me of it now. I had gone through much. Now, at last, the future lay radiant before me."
The couple married on 8 October 1905 in Tegernsee
Tegernsee is a town in the Miesbach district of Bavaria, Germany. It is located on the shore of Lake Tegernsee, which is 747 m (2,451 ft) above sea level. A spa town, it is surrounded by an alpine landscape of Upper Bavaria, and has an ...
. It was a simple ceremony, with Victoria's mother, her sister Beatrice, and a friend, Count Adlerburg, in attendance, along with servants. The couple's uncle Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia (russian: Алексе́й Алекса́ндрович; in St. Petersburg – 14 November 1908 in Paris) was the fifth child and the fourth son of Alexander II of Russia and his first wife Maria Alex ...
was invited, without being told the reason, but did not arrive until after the ceremony. Tsar Nicholas II responded to the marriage by stripping Kirill of his imperial allowance and expelling him from the Russian navy. The Tsarina was outraged at her former sister-in-law and said she would never receive Victoria, "a woman who had behaved so disgracefully", or Kirill. The couple retired to Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, where they purchased a house off the Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées (, ; ) is an avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, long and wide, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc de Triomphe is l ...
and lived off the income provided by their parents.
Victoria, who had matured as she entered her 30s, decided to convert to the Russian Orthodox Church
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
in 1907, a decision that thrilled both her mother and her husband.[Sullivan, p. 247] Three days later the first of their three children, Maria Kirillovna, was born. She was named after both her grandmothers and nicknamed "Masha".[ Their second daughter, Kira Kirillovna, was born in Paris in 1909. Victoria and Kirill, who had hoped for a son, were disappointed to have a girl, but named their daughter after her father.
]
Grand Duchess of Russia
Nicholas II reinstated Kirill after deaths in the Russian imperial family promoted Kirill to third in the line of succession to the Russian throne. Kirill and Victoria were allowed in Russia, Victoria was granted the title of Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna, and in May 1910 the couple arrived in St Petersburg. The new grand duchess enjoyed entertaining at evening dinners and lavish balls attended by the cream of Saint Petersburg society. Victoria had an artistic talent that she applied to home decoration in her several elaborate residences, which she arranged attractively. She decorated, gardened, and rode and also enjoyed painting, particularly watercolors.
Victoria fit in within the Russian aristocracy and the circle of her mother-in-law Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna. As French was frequently spoken in high circles, Victoria never completely mastered the Russian language. Although she was a first cousin of both Nicholas II, on her mother's side, and to Empress Alexandra, on her father's side, the relationship with them was neither close nor warm. As Kirill became a keen auto racer, the couple often took trips by car; a favorite pastime was traveling through the Baltic provinces. Victoria dreaded the long Russian winter with its short days, and she traveled abroad, frequently visiting her sister Marie in Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
and her mother in the south of France or in Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
. Victoria and her husband had a close relationship with their daughters, Maria and Kira. The family was spending the summer of 1914 on their yacht in the Gulf of Finland and were in Riga when the war broke out.
War
During World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Victoria worked as a Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...
nurse and organized a motorized ambulance unit that was known for its efficiency.[Sullivan, p. 288] Victoria frequently visited the front near Warsaw and she occasionally carried out her duties under enemy fire. Kirill, for his part, was also in Poland, assigned to the naval department of Admiral Russin, member of the staff of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich, commander in chief of the Russian army. Kirill and Victoria had always shared their relatives' distaste for the Tsar and Tsarina's friendship with the ''starets
A starets (russian: стáрец, p=ˈstarʲɪt͡s; fem. ) is an elder of an Eastern Orthodox monastery who functions as venerated adviser and teacher. ''Elders'' or ''spiritual fathers'' are charismatic spiritual leaders whose wisdom stems from Go ...
'' Grigori Rasputin. The Tsarina believed Rasputin healed her son of his hemophiliac attacks with his prayers. Victoria told her sister, Queen Marie of Romania, that the Tsar's court was "looked upon as a sick man refusing every doctor and every help."
When Rasputin was murdered in December 1916, Victoria and Kirill signed a letter along with other relatives asking the Tsar to show leniency to Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia (russian: Великий Князь Дмитрий Павлович; 18 September 1891 – 5 March 1942) was a son of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, a grandson of Tsar Alexander II of Russia and a ...
, one of those implicated in the murder. The Tsar denied their request. Twice during the war Victoria visited Romania, where her sister Marie was now queen, volunteering aid for war victims. Victoria returned to Saint Petersburg in February 1917. Kirill had been appointed commander of the Naval Guards, quartered in Saint Petersburg, so he could be with his family for some time. Although publicly loyal to the Tsar, Victoria and Kirill began to meet in private with other relatives to discuss the best way to save the monarchy.
Revolution
At the end of the "February Revolution" of 1917, Tsar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate and political turmoil followed. Victoria wrote to Queen Marie of Romania in February 1917 that their home was surrounded by a mob, "yet heart and soul we are with this movement of freedom which at the time probably signs our own death warrant ... We personally are losing all, our lives changed at one blow and yet we are almost leading the movement." By March 1917, the revolution had spread all over Petrograd (Saint Petersburg).
Kirill led his naval unit to the Provisional Government
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or ...
on 14 March 1917, which was obliged to share headquarters with the new Petrograd Soviet
The Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies (russian: Петроградский совет рабочих и солдатских депутатов, ''Petrogradskiy soviet rabochikh i soldatskikh deputatov'') was a city council of P ...
, and swore loyalty to its leadership, hoping to restore order and preserve the monarchy. It was an action which later provoked criticism from some members of the family, who viewed it as treason. Victoria supported her husband and felt he was doing the right thing. She also sympathized with the people who wanted to reform the government. Kirill was forced to resign his command of the Naval Guards, but nevertheless his men remained faithful and they continued to guard Kirill and Victoria's palace on Glinka Street. Close to despair, Victoria wrote to her sister Marie of Romania that they had "neither pride nor hope, nor money, nor future, and the dear past blotted out by the frightful present; nothing is left, nothing."
Anxious for their safety, Kirill and Victoria decided that the best thing to do was to leave Russia. They chose Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
as the best possible place to go. Although a territory of the Russian Empire, Finland possessed its own government and constitution, so in a way it would be like being in Russia and not being at the same time. They had already been once invited to Haikko, a beautiful estate, near Porvoo
Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...
, a small town on the south coast of Finland, not far away from Helsinki. The Provisional Government permitted them to leave, though they were not allowed to take anything of value with them. They sewed jewels into the family's clothing, hoping they would not be discovered by the authorities.
Exile
After two weeks in Haikko, the family moved to a rented house in Porvoo
Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...
where, in August 1917, Victoria gave birth to Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia
Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia (russian: Владимир Кириллович Романов; 21 April 1992) was the Head of the Imperial Family of Russia, a position which he claimed from 1938 to his death.
Early life
Vladimir was bo ...
, her only son and the heir to the dynasty. The family remained in Finland, a former grand duchy under Russian rule, which had declared its independence in December 1917. They hoped that the White Russians would prevail. They gradually ran out of supplies and had to beg for help from family. In July 1918, Victoria wrote to her first cousin, Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden, begging her to send baby food so she could feed Vladimir. She was alienated from England because she felt her English relatives had not done enough to help the Romanovs.
She pleaded with her cousin, 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 ...
, to help the White Russians retake the country. In a letter to the King, Lord Acton
John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton, 13th Marquess of Groppoli, (10 January 1834 – 19 June 1902), better known as Lord Acton, was an English Catholic historian, politician, and writer. He is best remembered for the remark he w ...
, the British minister in Helsinki, noted the toll the revolution had taken on Victoria. She "looked aged and battered and has lost much of her beauty, which is not astonishing considering all that she has gone through."
After more than two years living under strained conditions, in the autumn of 1919 Victoria and Kirill left Finland and went to Germany. In Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
they were reunited with Victoria's mother and the family group moved to Zurich in September 1919. With the death of Victoria's mother, she inherited her villa, Chateau Fabron in Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
and her residence in Coburg, the ''Edinburg Palais''. In the following years the exiled family divided their time between these two places.
While in Germany, Victoria showed an interest in the Nazi Party
The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...
, which appealed to her because of its anti-Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
stance and her hope that the movement might help restore the Russian monarchy. She attended a Nazi rally in Coburg in 1922. She was likely unaware of the most sinister aspects of the Nazi Party.
Claims to the Russian throne
Kirill suffered a nervous breakdown in 1923 and Victoria nursed him back to health. She encouraged his dreams of restoring the monarchy in Russia and becoming tsar. At Saint-Briac
Saint-Briac-sur-Mer (, literally ''Saint-Briac on Sea''; ; Gallo: ''Saent-Beriac''), is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine Department in Brittany in northwestern France.
Population
Inhabitants of Saint-Briac-sur-Mer are called ''briacins'' in Fr ...
Kirill, aware of the murders of Tsar Nicholas II and his only son, officially declared himself the Guardian of the Throne in 1924. Victoria went on a trip to the United States in 1924, hoping to raise American support for restoration of the monarchy. Her efforts evoked little response, due to the isolationism prevalent in the United States during the 1920s. She continued in her efforts to help Kirill restore the monarchy and also sold her artwork to raise money for the household.[Sullivan, p. 379]
By the mid-1920s, Victoria worried over the prospects of her children. Maria, her eldest daughter, married the head of one of Germany's mediatized Mediatization or mediatisation may refer to:
* German mediatisation
German mediatisation (; german: deutsche Mediatisierung) was the major territorial restructuring that took place between 1802 and 1814 in Germany and the surrounding region by ...
families, Karl, Hereditary Prince of Leiningen on 25 November 1925, Victoria's 49th birthday. Victoria was at her daughter's bedside when she gave birth to her first child, Emich Kirill, in 1926[Sullivan, p. 377] (later father of claimant to the Russian throne, Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen
Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen (german: Karl Emich Nikolaus Friedrich Hermann Prinz zu Leiningen; russian: Карл Эмих Николаус Фридрих Герман цу Лейнинген; born 12 June 1952), also known by his Orthodox Russi ...
).
In the mid-1920s, the German government established relations with Moscow and the presence of Kirill and his wife, pretenders to the Russian throne, became an embarrassment.[Van der Kiste, p. 163] Although the Bavarian government rejected pressures to expel the Russian claimant, Kirill and Victoria decided to establish their permanent residence in France. In the summer of 1926 they moved to Saint-Briac
Saint-Briac-sur-Mer (, literally ''Saint-Briac on Sea''; ; Gallo: ''Saent-Beriac''), is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine Department in Brittany in northwestern France.
Population
Inhabitants of Saint-Briac-sur-Mer are called ''briacins'' in Fr ...
on the Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
coast, where they had spent their summer vacations. The remoteness of Brittany provided both privacy and security. They bought a large house on the outskirts of the town and gave it a Breton name, ''Ker Argonid'', Villa Victoria. The resort town of Saint-Briac was a favorite spot for retired British citizens who wanted to live well on a limited income. Victoria made friends among the Britons as well as the French and other foreign residents of the town. Though at first her manner could seem haughty, residents soon discovered that Victoria was more approachable than her husband. Their friends treated them with deference, curtsying or calling them by their imperial titles. They lived a secluded country life, finding it more agreeable than at Coburg.
Victoria was exceedingly protective of her son Vladimir, upon whom her hopes for the future rested. She would not let him attend school because she was worried about his safety and because she wanted him to be brought up as Romanov grand dukes were prior to the revolution. Instead, she hired a tutor for him. She also refused to let him be educated for a future career. In return for her devotion, Vladimir loved and respected his mother. "We adored our parents and their love for us was infinite," Vladimir wrote after their deaths. "All the hardships and bitterness we had to endure in the years were fully covered by our mutual love. We were proud of (them)."
Last years
In Saint-Briac, during the summer, Kirill played golf and he and Victoria joined in picnics and excursions. They were part of the social life of the community, going out to play bridge and organizing theatricals. During the winter Victoria and her husband enjoyed visiting nearby Dinard
Dinard (; br, Dinarzh, ; Gallo: ''Dinard'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department, Brittany, northwestern France.
Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a holiday destination, and this ...
and invited friends home for parties and games. However, it was rumored in town that Kirill went to Paris "for the occasional fling". Victoria, who had devoted her life to Kirill, was devastated when she discovered in 1933 that her husband had been unfaithful to her, according to correspondence of her sister Marie of Romania. She kept up a façade for the sake of her children, including her teenage son Vladimir, but was unable to forgive Kirill's betrayal. Victoria suffered a stroke soon after attending the christening of her fifth grandchild, Mechtilde of Leiningen, in February 1936. Family and friends arrived, but nothing could be done. When her closest sister reached her bedside Victoria was asked if she was glad Marie had come, to which Victoria haltingly replied, "It makes all the difference." However, she "shuddered away from Kirill's touch," wrote Marie. She died on 1 March 1936. Queen Marie eulogized her sister in a letter after her death: "The whole thing was tragic beyond imagination, a tragic end to a tragic life. She carried tragedy within her – she had tragic eyes – always – even as a little girl – but we loved her enormously, there was something mighty about her – she was our Conscience."
Victoria was buried in the ducal family mausoleum at ' in Coburg
Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...
, until her remain
were transferred
to the Grand Ducal Mausoleum
The Grand Ducal Burial Vault (Russian: Великокняжеская усыпальница) is the purpose-built mausoleum of the Grand Dukes and Duchesses of Russia in the Peter and Paul Fortress. The Neo-Baroque domed structure is frequently ...
of the Peter and Paul Fortress in Saint Petersburg on 7 March 1995. Her husband was intensely lonely after her death. The marriage of their daughter, Kira, to Louis Ferdinand, Prince of Prussia
Louis Ferdinand, Prince of Prussia (german: Louis Ferdinand Victor Eduard Adalbert Michael Hubertus Prinz von Preußen; 9 November 1907 – 26 September 1994) was a member of the princely House of Hohenzollern, which occupied the Prussian and G ...
, in 1938 was a bright spot for Kirill, who saw it as the joining of two dynasties. However, Kirill died just two years after his wife. Kirill, though he had been unfaithful, still loved and missed the wife he had depended so much upon and passed his remaining years writing memoirs of their life together. "There are few who in one person combine all that is best in soul, mind, and body," he wrote. "She had it all, and more. Few there are who are fortunate in having such a woman as the partner of their lives – I was one of those privileged."
Archives
Victoria Melita's letters to her sister Alexandra are preserved in the Hohenlohe Central Archive (Hohenlohe-Zentralarchiv Neuenstein) in Neuenstein Castle in the town of Neuenstein, Baden-Württemberg
Neuenstein is a town in the Hohenlohe district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 12 km southwest of Künzelsau, and 27 km east of Heilbronn.
The 16th century castle, home to H.S.H. the prince of Hohenlohe-Oehringen, is ...
, Germany.
Honours and arms
Honours
* :
** CI: Companion of the Order of the Imperial Crown of India
** VA: Dame of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert, 1st Class
** GCStJ: Dame Grand Cross of the Venerable Order of St. John
** RRC: Member of the Royal Red Cross
The Royal Red Cross (RRC) is a military decoration awarded in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth for exceptional services in military nursing.
Foundation
The award was established on 27 April 1883 by Queen Victoria, with a single class of Mem ...
* : Dame of the Order of Louise
The Order of Louise (German: ''Luisen-Orden'') was founded on 3 August 1814 by Frederick William III of Prussia to honor his late wife, the much beloved Queen Louise (''née Luise Auguste Wilhelmine Amalie, Herzogin zu Mecklenburg-Strelitz''). ...
, 1st Class
** Ernestine duchies
The Ernestine duchies (), also known as the Saxon duchies (, although the Albertine appanage duchies of Weissenfels, Merseburg and Zeitz were also "Saxon duchies" and adjacent to several Ernestine ones), were a group of small states whose num ...
: Dame of the [''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Hessen'' (1900), Genealogy p. 2]
** Hesse and by Rhine
The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...
:
*** Dame of the Order of the Golden Lion, in Diamonds, ''19 April 1894''
*** Dame Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order
The Ludwig Order (german: Großherzoglich Hessischer Ludwigsorden), was an order of the Grand Duchy of Hesse which was awarded to meritorious soldiers and civilians from 1807 to 1918.
History
The order was founded by Louis I, Grand Duke of Hesse ...
, in Diamonds, ''25 November 1898''
*** Medal of the Order of Philip the Magnanimous
The Order of Merit of Philip the Magnanimous (german: Verdienstorden Philipps des Großmütigen) was an order of chivalry established by Louis II, Grand Duke of Hesse on 1 May 1840, the name day of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, in his honour to a ...
* : Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of Romania
* :
** Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St. Catherine, ''November 1894''
** Cross of St. George
The Cross of Saint George (russian: Георгиевский крест, Georgiyevskiy krest) is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was initially established by Imperial Russia where it was officially known as the Decoration of ...
* : Dame of the Order of Queen Maria Luisa
The Royal Order of Noble Ladies of Queen Maria Luisa is an Order created by King Charles IV of Spain by royal decree on April 21, 1792, at the request of his wife, Queen Maria Luisa, to reward noble women who distinguished themselves for their s ...
, ''31 October 1913''
British arms
As a male-line grandchild of the British monarch, Victoria Melita bore the royal arms, with an inescutcheon
In heraldry, an escutcheon () is a shield that forms the main or focal element in an achievement of arms. The word can be used in two related senses. In the first sense, an escutcheon is the shield upon which a coat of arms is displayed. In the s ...
for Saxony, the whole differenced by a label
A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...
of five points argent
In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...
, the outer pair bearing hearts gules, the inner pair anchors azure, and the central point a cross gules. In 1917, the inescutcheon was dropped by royal warrant. Her arms from that point on are duplicated in the arms of Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy.
Ancestry
Notes
Bibliography
*Van der Kiste, John. ''Princess Victoria Melita,'' Sutton Publishing, 1991,
*Maylunas, Andrei and Sergei Mironenko. ''A Lifelong Passion: Nicholas and Alexandra: Their Own Story,'' Doubleday, 1997,
*Perry, John Curtis and Constantine Pleshakov. ''The Flight of the Romanovs'', Basic Books, 1999,
*Sullivan, Michael John. ''A Fatal Passion: The Story of the Uncrowned Last Empress of Russia,'' Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
, 1997,
* Zeepvat, Charlotte. ''The Camera and the Tsars: A Romanov Family Album,'' Sutton Publishing, 2004,
External links
*, by Jesus Ibarra.
, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Victoria Melita Of Saxe-Coburg And Gotha, Princess
1876 births
1936 deaths
People from Attard
Duchesses of Holstein-Gottorp
British princesses
Russian grand duchesses by marriage
House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (United Kingdom)
Princesses of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Grand Duchesses of Hesse
British women in World War I
Anti-communists from the Russian Empire
German anti-communists
White Russian emigrants to France
White Russian emigrants to Germany
White Russian emigrants to Finland
White Russian emigrants to Switzerland
Members of the Royal Red Cross
Companions of the Order of the Crown of India
Ladies of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert
Ladies of Justice of the Order of St John
Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Romania)
Burials at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Saint Petersburg