Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich of Russia
Encyclopedia
Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich of Russia (20 January 1914 – 18 June 1973) was a great-great-grandson of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia
and a nephew of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia. He was the last male member of the Romanov
family born in Imperial Russia. He spent much of his life in exile in Great Britain
.
. He was born on 20 January 1914 at the Marble Palace
in St Petersburg. In a manifesto issued the next day, Tsar Nicholas II
decreed Vsevelod to be a Highness and a Prince of the Imperial Blood.
On 25 January the Emperor, along with his wife Alexandra and his mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, attended the Prince’s christening in service conducted in the chapel of the Marble Palace by the personal confessor of the imperial couple. Along with the boy’s grandmother grand duchess Elisabeth Mavriekievna, Nicholas II was appointed one of his godparents.
He spent his early years living with his parents in a suite of rooms in the northern wing of Pavlovsk
During the First World War, Vsevelod's father, Prince Ivan fought in the army and was decorated as a war hero, he was at the front when the Russian Revolution of 1917
started. Vsevelod's mother served as a nurse during the war, while Vsevelod and his sister Catherine were left in St Peterburg under the care of their paternal grandmother.
, and after the October Revolution
, Prince Vsevolod lived with his grandmother and some relatives, at Pavlovsk. For a time, they lived a precarious existence, and his grandmother was forced to secretly sell family heirlooms to provide for the family.
Four-year-old Vsevolod escaped to Sweden
aboard the Swedish vessel Ångermanland in October 1918 with his paternal grandmother, his sister Catherine, his uncle George, his aunt Vera
and his first cousins: Prince Teymuraz Constantinovich
and Princess Natalia Constantinovna Bagration-Mukhransky when they were permitted by the Bolsheviks to be taken by ship to Sweden
, via Tallinn
to Helsinki
and via Mariehamn
to Stockholm
, at the invitation of Queen Victoria of Sweden
. At Stockholm
harbor, they met Prince Gustaf Adolf
, who took them to the royal palace
.
, Vsevolod was reunited with his mother.
They moved to Paris and eventually went to live in Belgrade
with his paternal grandfather King Peter I of Serbia.
After his death in 1921 Vsevolod's uncle King Alexander
bought a Villa at Cap Ferrat
in the south of France for Vsevolod, his mother and his sister.
They eventually settled in England
.
Prince Vsevolod was educated at Eton
and Oxford
.
He spent much of his life in Great Britain
. On 31 May 1939, he married in London
Lady Mary Lygon (Madresfield Court 12 Feb 1910-Faringdon 27 Sep 1982); the marriage lasted until 1956, when it ended in divorce.
On 28 March 1956, he married a Hungarian woman, Emilia de Gosztoyi (Budapest 19 Apr 1914-Monte Carlo 9 Jul 1993); this union ended in divorce five years later.
In London on 8 June 1961, Vsevolod married again, this time to Valli Knust, (b.London 4 Apr 1930), a woman sixteen years his junior.
He sought and was granted morganatic titles for all three of these wives by Grand Duke Vladimir Kirilovich, head of the Imperial house in exile; no children were born of any of these unions.
At his death on 18 June 1973, in London, the male line of the Constantinovich branch of the Romanov family died out.
N.B. After the Russian revolution members of the Imperial family tended to drop the territorial designation “of Russia” and use the princely title with the surname Romanov.
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
and a nephew of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia. He was the last male member of the Romanov
Romanov
The House of Romanov was the second and last imperial dynasty to rule over Russia, reigning from 1613 until the February Revolution abolished the crown in 1917...
family born in Imperial Russia. He spent much of his life in exile in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
Early life
Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich was the eldest child of Prince Ivan Constantinovich of Russia and Princess Helen of SerbiaPrincess Helen of Serbia
Jelena Karađorđević or Princess Helen of Serbia was the daughter of King Peter I of Yugoslavia and his wife Princess Zorka of Montenegro. She was the elder sister of George, Crown Prince of Serbia and Alexander I of Yugoslavia...
. He was born on 20 January 1914 at the Marble Palace
Marble Palace
Marble Palace is one of the first Neoclassical palaces in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is situated between the Field of Mars and Palace Quay, slightly to the east from New Michael Palace....
in St Petersburg. In a manifesto issued the next day, Tsar Nicholas II
Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Prince of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until...
decreed Vsevelod to be a Highness and a Prince of the Imperial Blood.
On 25 January the Emperor, along with his wife Alexandra and his mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, attended the Prince’s christening in service conducted in the chapel of the Marble Palace by the personal confessor of the imperial couple. Along with the boy’s grandmother grand duchess Elisabeth Mavriekievna, Nicholas II was appointed one of his godparents.
He spent his early years living with his parents in a suite of rooms in the northern wing of Pavlovsk
Pavlovsk Palace
Pavlovsk Palace is an 18th-century Russian Imperial residence built by Paul I of Russia near Saint Petersburg. After his death, it became the home of his widow, Maria Feodorovna...
During the First World War, Vsevelod's father, Prince Ivan fought in the army and was decorated as a war hero, he was at the front when the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
started. Vsevelod's mother served as a nurse during the war, while Vsevelod and his sister Catherine were left in St Peterburg under the care of their paternal grandmother.
Revolution
During the Russian revolution, Vsevolod's father and two of his uncles Constantine and Igor were imprisoned by the Bolsheviks. They were killed at Alapaevsk, along with other Romanov relatives, in July 1918. During the chaotic rule of the Provisional GovernmentRussian Provisional Government
The Russian Provisional Government was the short-lived administrative body which sought to govern Russia immediately following the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II . On September 14, the State Duma of the Russian Empire was officially dissolved by the newly created Directorate, and the country was...
, and after the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, Prince Vsevolod lived with his grandmother and some relatives, at Pavlovsk. For a time, they lived a precarious existence, and his grandmother was forced to secretly sell family heirlooms to provide for the family.
Four-year-old Vsevolod escaped to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
aboard the Swedish vessel Ångermanland in October 1918 with his paternal grandmother, his sister Catherine, his uncle George, his aunt Vera
Princess Vera Constantinovna of Russia
Princess Vera Constantinovna of Russia, , was the youngest child of Grand Duke Constantine Constantinovich of Russia and his wife Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna. A great-granddaughter of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, she was born in Imperial Russia and was a childhood playmate of Nicholas II’s ...
and his first cousins: Prince Teymuraz Constantinovich
Teymuraz Bagration
Prince Teymuraz K. Bagration was a Georgian-Russian nobleman and an émigré in the United States where he served as President of the Tolstoy Foundation, a New York-based charitable organization....
and Princess Natalia Constantinovna Bagration-Mukhransky when they were permitted by the Bolsheviks to be taken by ship to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, via Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
to Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
and via Mariehamn
Mariehamn
Mariehamn is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city...
to Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, at the invitation of Queen Victoria of Sweden
Victoria of Baden
Victoria of Baden was a Queen consort of Sweden by her marriage to King Gustaf V of Sweden. She was politically active in a conservative fashion during the development of democracy and known as a pro-German during the First World War.-Birth:Princess Viktoria was born on 7 August 1862 at the castle...
. At Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
harbor, they met Prince Gustaf Adolf
Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden
Gustaf VI Adolf - Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf - was King of Sweden from October 29, 1950 until his death. His official title was King of Sweden, of the Goths and of the Wends. He was the eldest son of King Gustaf V and his wife Victoria of Baden...
, who took them to the royal palace
Stockholm Palace
The Stockholm Palace is the official residence and major royal palace of the Swedish monarch. . Stockholm Palace is located on Stadsholmen , in Gamla Stan in the capital, Stockholm...
.
Exile
In SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Vsevolod was reunited with his mother.
They moved to Paris and eventually went to live in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
with his paternal grandfather King Peter I of Serbia.
After his death in 1921 Vsevolod's uncle King Alexander
Alexander I of Yugoslavia
Alexander I , also known as Alexander the Unifier was the first king of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as well as the last king of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes .-Childhood:...
bought a Villa at Cap Ferrat
Cap Ferrat
Cap Ferrat is situated in Alpes-Maritimes département, in southeastern France. It is located in the commune of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat.Saint Hospitius lived here as a recluse during the sixth century...
in the south of France for Vsevolod, his mother and his sister.
They eventually settled in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Prince Vsevolod was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
He spent much of his life in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. On 31 May 1939, he married in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
Lady Mary Lygon (Madresfield Court 12 Feb 1910-Faringdon 27 Sep 1982); the marriage lasted until 1956, when it ended in divorce.
On 28 March 1956, he married a Hungarian woman, Emilia de Gosztoyi (Budapest 19 Apr 1914-Monte Carlo 9 Jul 1993); this union ended in divorce five years later.
In London on 8 June 1961, Vsevolod married again, this time to Valli Knust, (b.London 4 Apr 1930), a woman sixteen years his junior.
He sought and was granted morganatic titles for all three of these wives by Grand Duke Vladimir Kirilovich, head of the Imperial house in exile; no children were born of any of these unions.
At his death on 18 June 1973, in London, the male line of the Constantinovich branch of the Romanov family died out.
Title and style
- His Highness Prince Vsevolod Ivanovich of Russia
N.B. After the Russian revolution members of the Imperial family tended to drop the territorial designation “of Russia” and use the princely title with the surname Romanov.