The proof of the poet's immortality is interest in his descendants. Scientists have counted 58 branches in Pushkin's family tree. It is clear that there is no possibility and sense to list all the names. It would be a volume the size of a phone book. Let's dwell on a separate direction. How did a whole branch of the Pushkin family end up in Britain?
The youngest daughter of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin is Natalya Alexandrovna Pushkin.
Wiesbaden. End of the 60s of the XIX century. Ball at the palace of Prince Nicholas of Nassau.
The beauty reigns at the ball, the wife of the prince Countess Merenberg. She is the youngest daughter of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin - Natalia Alexandrovna Pushkin. Yes, yes - the daughter of the great poet.
From a letter to P. V. Nashchokin dated May 27, 1836:
"My dear Pavel Voinovich, I arrived at my dacha on the 23rd at midnight and on the threshold learned that Natalya Nikolaevna had safely given birth to her daughter Natalya a few hours before my arrival."
Thus, by the hand of the great poet, the message about the birth of his daughter entered history.
When the poet was killed in a fatal duel, Tasha was 8 months old.
Promotional video:
After the tragedy, the widow took the children to her estate "Linen Factory". And seven years later she remarried to General Lanskoy. He raised her children and loved them as his own.
At the age of 16, Natalie fell passionately in love with the son of Count Alexei Fedorovich Orlov, a general, confidant of Emperor Nicholas I, chief of the gendarmes. Orlov's right hand was Leonty Dubelt. The son of Dubelt fell in love with Natalya Alexandrovna. It turned out as in "Woe from Wit": "she to him, and he to me." What Count Orlov and his deputy Leonty Dubelt, masters of political investigation, who had become skilled in intrigue, secrets of detective work and the technology of informing, came up with, was doomed to success. Despite the reciprocity of feelings, it did not even come to an engagement.
With grief and to spite everyone, Natalya Alexandrovna married Dubelt Jr. Mikhail Leontyevich Dubelt turned out to be an inveterate gambler, and he had a foolish temper. The dowry received for his wife did not last long. Despite the birth of three children, the rift between the spouses was constantly widening. For a long time, her husband did not give Natalie a divorce, he pursued her even abroad. But in 1862, they finally got an official divorce.
Back in 1856, Natalya Alexandrovna met the German prince Nikolai Wilhelm of the Nassau dynasty, brother of the reigning Duke of Nassau, Adolf. A representative of the Duchy of Nassau attended the coronation celebrations. A new emperor, Alexander II, ascended the throne. The Prince and Natalia danced all night. A novel arose, which led to marriage in 1861. This union was unequal. Entering into a morganatic marriage, Nikolai of Nassau had to renounce the throne forever, and Natalya Alexandrovna could not bear her husband's surname and be called Your Highness. One of her contemporaries wrote to Dostoevsky: "It is so strange to see the brainchild of our demigod married to a German. She is still beautiful … She is very courteous, and her German husband is a good-natured, extremely good-natured gentleman …"
Natalia, Countess von Merenberg, spent more than forty years of her life in Wiesbaden. She still appreciated everything Russian and understood her father's outstanding role in Russia. Contemporaries described her in old age as "a tall, prominent lady with brown hair and blue eyes."
The daughter of Pushkin died in 1913 in the house of her daughter, Countess de Torby. Estates' prejudices persecuted the spouses even after death. When the Prince of Nassau died, the widow learned that she herself would be denied the right to be buried next to her husband in the ancestral crypt. The last will of the freedom-loving countess - to burn her remains and scatter the ashes over the prince's grave - was fulfilled on May 20, 1913.
IN RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ROMANOVS
In the marriage of Natalya Alexandrovna Pushkina and the Prince of Nassau, two girls and one boy were born. Pushkin's grandchildren: Countess Sophia Merenberg, Countess Alexandrina Merenberg (married Massimo Elia, who sent, as we remember, the manuscript from Argentina) and Count Georg von Merenberg (grandfather of Countess Clotilde, who found the manuscript).
Natalya Alexandrovna - Pushkin's youngest daughter dreamed of a brilliant game for her daughters. And it happened. It is not surprising, because all three generations of the female half of the Pushkin family were beauties. Natalya Nikolaevna Goncharova and her daughter Natalya Aleksandrovna Pushkina (went to her grandmother Nadezhda Osipovna, who was called "the beautiful Creole") were reputed to be recognized beauties. And the granddaughter of the great poet, Sophia Merenberg, Countess de Torby, was also a beauty. She was called one of the most beautiful women of her time.
Sofia Merenberg and Grand Duke Mikhail Mikhailovich Romanov.
At the morganatic marriage of the Prince of Nassau, the oddities of fate did not end. The marriage of Sofia Merenberg and Grand Duke Mikhail Mikhailovich Romanov - a story where love and politics are closely intertwined - caused a scandal throughout Europe. Their offspring, in which the blood of the Romanovs and Pushkins was mixed, will be deprived of the rights of members of the imperial family. The title of Counts de Torby will be awarded to them by the uncle of the bride, the Grand Duke Adolphus of the Nassau family.
Speaking of the Nassau dynasty: it has not disappeared, and now it rules in the Duchy of Luxembourg.
Irony of fate: the Pushkin family linked their lives with the Romanov family. Those who rotted Pushkin, exiled, were not allowed out of the country, could have prevented the fatal duel, but did not. And the poet himself once in his youth predicted a bloody end to the Romanovs ("Autocratic villain! I hate you, your throne, your death, the death of children I see with cruel joy"). As the saying goes, "comments
are unnecessary."
Mikhail Romanov.
What was Mikhail Romanov - one of the many offspring of the Imperial family?
He was the grandson of Nicholas I from his last, seventh, son Mikhail. Was born in 1861. He was educated at home in Tiflis, as his father was the governor in the Caucasus. “He loved military service and felt great in the ranks of the Life Guards Jaeger Regiment. His good-natured appearance, noble heart and dancer's abilities made him a favorite of the St. Petersburg big world. Very soon "Mish-Mish" became a common favorite of the St. Petersburg salons ", - this is how Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich Romanov wrote about his brother. He was the husband of Nicholas II's own sister, Grand Duchess Xenia.
Emperor Alexander III refused to recognize this morganatic marriage. He telegraphed the bride's uncle (Sophia), Duke of Nassau Adolf: "This marriage, contracted in defiance of the laws of our country … will be considered in Russia as invalid and irrelevant." For Pushkin's granddaughter, the path to Russia was closed for a long time.
Sofia Merenberg.
They have lived in Cannes for many years. And in 1910 they moved to England at the Kenwood estate. This manor house, surrounded by a magnificent park, is now a museum.
In 1908, Grand Duke Mikhail Mikhailovich published in London an autobiographical novel “Never say Die”, dedicated to his wife, where he condemned the rules according to which “no king can marry for love”.
And yet, despite all the prejudices, class obstacles and the inevitable troubles associated with them, love won.
Mikhail and Sophia with their daughters Anastasia and Nadezhda.
18 years after his expulsion, in 1909, Nicholas II returned to Mikhail Romanov the rank of colonel and the rank of adjutant wing. And in 1912, the Grand Duke arrived in Russia after more than 20 years of absence.
During the First World War 1914-1918, while living in Great Britain, Mikhail Romanov was the Chairman of the committee in London, through which various military orders were carried out for the Russian Army, he often met with King of Great Britain George V. 15 (28) November 1916 the great the prince warned his relative Nicholas II:
“I have just returned from Buckingham Palace. George (King George of England) is very upset by the political situation in Russia. Intelligence service agents are usually very knowledgeable, predicting a revolution in Russia in the near future. I sincerely hope, Nikki, that you will find it possible to meet the people's just demands before it is too late. As is known from history, the warnings of a relative sounded a voice crying in the desert.
From the marriage of Romanov and Sophia de Torby, which lasted more than 39 years, three children were born. One of the daughters of the Grand Duke Mikhail Mikhailovich and Sophie de Torby, Nadezhda, by marrying the Marquis Milford Haven, will link her fate with the English royal house, the other - Zia (Anastasia), by marrying the industrialist Sir Harold Werner, will become one of the richest women England.
Nadezhda and her husband George Mountbatten, future Marquess of Milford Haven.
Already a marquis.
LADY ZIA - THE WAY UP
Since the Pushkins became related to the Romanovs, all further descendants, in addition to the blood of Abram Hannibal and Alexander Pushkin, carry the genes of the Romanov imperial family.
Nada (far left) and Zia (far right, with lorgnette) at the opening of the parliamentary session.
Since the Pushkins became related to the Romanovs, all further descendants, in addition to the blood of Abram Hannibal and Alexander Pushkin, carry the genes of the Romanov imperial family.
The most prosperous branch of Pushkin's descendants is the English. Among the descendants of the great poet in British high society, the Countess Anastasia de Torby, married Lady Zia Werner, was a very noticeable figure. Lady Zia de Torby was born in 1892 in Wiesbaden, where her parents lived at the time.
Natalya Nikolaevna's dream of a "brilliant party" for her daughters came true in the third and fourth generations of Pushkin's granddaughters and great-granddaughters. Pushkin's descendants intermarried with noble people more than once.
Lady Zia.
Lady Zia made her dream come true. It was with her that the descendants of the poet began to climb up the aristocratic ladder. It was she, who was the last in the family to speak Russian, who would be destined to connect "the present century and the past century", faithfully honor the traditions of the Russian imperial house, turning her country estate into a kind of historical museum.
The young Countess de Torby was said to have married the richest bachelor in the British kingdom. Baronet Harold Augustus Werner was the son of renowned diamond and financial tycoon Julius Werner. The wedding took place in the court church of St James's Palace. And on September 1, 1917, two months after the wedding, King George V presented her with a truly royal gift. By a special decree, he equated Lady Zia, as the eldest daughter of Countess de Torby and Grand Duke Mikhail Romanov, in all civil rights with the daughters of English peers.
Zia and Harold Werner's family.
And later in life, she always had the best and most expensive: the Luton Hu estate, comparable in size and wealth to Windsor Palace, racehorses, the best in Britain, the collection of paintings and bronzes no worse than in the neighboring Rothschild estate, etc. …
The fourth generation of Pushkin's descendants is closely associated with the historic Luton Hu estate. What among collectors and historians bears the name of the Werner collection was priceless antiques. The castle contained collections of Faberge, museum bronze and majolica of the Renaissance, medieval Limoges enamels, Islamic ceramics, carved bone from Byzantium.
The estate with a magnificent park and lake was called something between the British Museum and the fashionable Ritz Hotel. Queen Eli-Covenant II and Prince Philip, as well as members of the royal families of many European states, have repeatedly stopped at Werner Castle. The Werner family was also bequeathed to the unique archive of the Englishman Gibs, the last educator of the Tsarevich and the Grand Duchesses. It was probably not very comfortable to live among this museum luxury, at least no one was surprised when, in 1950, the Werners decided to open Luton Hu to the general public. They did this not only for mercantile reasons (the luxury tax was becoming more and more unbearable for the English aristocrats), but rather it was a symbolic gesture in memory of their only son and heir who died in North Africa during World War II.
Harold Werner passed away in 1973, briefly survived by Lady Zia. But during the four years that she was the sole owner of the estate, she prepared an exposition of two "Russian rooms" - a kind of museum of Russian culture in Great Britain. In these rooms were a copy of Pushkin's ode "Liberty" made by an unknown person, a copy of the pencil drawing "Children of Pushkin", 1841, gold medals cast in honor of Pushkin in 1899 and 1937. And also copies of famous portraits of Pushkin and Natalya Nikolaevna, a marble bust of Countess Natalia Merenberg, photographs of Pushkin's descendants and other rarities.
Hall of the Romanovs.
Lady Zia was the founder of that dynasty of noble and wealthy English aristocrats, which will be discussed below. Moreover, when in 1961 Lady Zia visited Russia for the first and only time in her life, she was surprised that for some reason no one was interested in her crowned ancestor Nikolai Pavlovich, whose portrait in white leggings was prominently displayed in Luton Hu, but everyone accepted and greeted her, first of all, as the great-great-granddaughter of the great poet. After this historic visit, Lady Zia's eldest daughter, Lady Kennard, urgently ordered a Pushkin bust to Mikhail Anikushin.
In the twenties of the XX century, Lady Zia supported her father, Grand Duke Mikhail, who, like all the Romanovs, lost his fortune as a result of the revolution.
Lady Zia had three children.
George Michael Alexander (1918-1942), captain of the Lancers Regiment, was killed in North Africa during World War II.
Her two daughters Georgina (born 1919) and Mayra (born 1925) are in good health.
One could tire readers endlessly with an abundance of relatives and their titles. We'll confine ourselves to Lady Zia's sister, Nadia Mountbatten.
JORDINA KENNARD & MYRA BUTTER
Georgina, daughter of Lady Zia, married Joseph Phillips during World War II, and when he died, she was married to Sir Arnold Kennard. So she's Lady Kennard now.
From Major Phillips, she gave birth to four girls and one boy - the sixth generation of Pushkin's descendants.
About the oldest Georgina, it remains to be said that she is a close friend of the royal couple and the mother of two duchesses.
Dzhorzhina is the eldest daughter, Myra is the youngest.
Our Russian journalists met with Lady Zia's second daughter and left a description, calling her a Scottish great-granddaughter.
By her marriage, she made the descendants of Pushkin related to the noble Scottish clan of the Butters. Lady Myra Butter was born in 1925 in Edinburgh, Scotland and raised there. Her Scottish husband David Henry Butter is from a family of large Scottish landowners. He fought during the Second World War in North Africa and Italy and was wounded.
The motto of the Butters clan is Diriget deus (Latin "God will indicate").
Lady Butter, like her sister Georgina, has four daughters and one son. One of the daughters, Marilyn Davina Butter, married a noble Scotsman, the seventeenth Earl of Dalhousie from the Ramsay clan. And the Ramsay clan is one of the oldest clans in the lowlands of Scotland. Known since the 12th century. Their motto is "Through work and prayer", which in Latin sounds like Ora et labora.
Lady Butter's second daughter, Rose Georgina, married Prince Alexander Golitsyn. And now, by a whim of fate, when the Golitsyn family is staying in the small Scottish town of Pitlochry with their grandmother, Russian names are heard: Nadezhda, Sasha and Anastasia. Lady Butter admitted to the Russian correspondent that she likes Russian names, and also added words that can be considered prophetic: “Russia is the most wonderful country in the world, it has everything. It's only a matter of how these people will dispose of everything."
I would like to believe the old Scottish lady.
SIXTH GENERATION
One of the most paradoxical subjects in the posthumous Pushkinian is the fate of the poet's descendants, in which the blood of the Pushkins and Romanovs converged. All current English Pushkins are noble aristocrats, are related to the royal family.
What distinguishes the current descendants of Pushkin? Imperturbable politeness, tall stature, careful precision in the choice of words. Aristocratic bearing, flexible thinness, the habit of keeping your back straight. “Aristocracy is a mentality,” Princess Tatiana Vasilchikova-Metternich, the embodiment of the Russian aristocracy abroad, loved to repeat.
Lady Georgeena had two daughters who married dukes and became duchesses. Talking to Russian journalists, they stretched out their hands for a handshake, offering to address easily: Sasha and Natasha. In fact, the address to the Duchess is "Your Grace" (Your Grace).
Alexandra Duchess of Abercorn.
Natalia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster, godmother to Prince William.
The eldest daughter of Lady Jorjina and granddaughter of Lady Zia - Duchess Alexandra Anastasia Phillips, lives in Northern Ireland, on the estate. Married the 7th Duke of Abercorn. The Duchess of Abercorn is the eldest of Pushkin's great-great-grandchildren. For twenty-four years she has been the chairman of the Pushkin Prize (not to be confused with the Pushkin Foundation), which she herself founded with her own money. Together with her aunt, Lady Myra Butter, for school children. Since 1987, there have been annual Pushkin Prize literary competitions. They provide an opportunity for young Scots, as well as residents of St. Petersburg, to show their literary abilities and write an essay. Moreover, it is not necessary that Pushkin himself or his works become the topic, it is important to show imagery and originality of thinking. Every year the winners from Scotland will travel to St. Petersburg,and the young winners from St. Petersburg - to Scotland. The meaning and purpose of this award is to encourage young talents, awaken their imagination, and support in the development of world literature. The name of Pushkin is just an excuse to seek high poetry, and the title of Duchess of Abercorn is like a pass to the higher spheres. Every summer at her estate in Northern Ireland, at the invitation of the Duchess, children-prize-winners, winners in the competition for the best essay, come. Duchess Sasha shared her connection at the genetic level with her great ancestor in an interview: “The spirit of freedom and a sense of responsibility are what we inherited from our Russian ancestors. We have learned about inner freedom and continue to learn from Pushkin, responsibility in fulfilling our duty to society - from the Romanovs. " See how everything is connected. Even at the genetic level. Most of all I admire in Pushkin his warm heart, his passionate thirst for love, his genial ability to embody this love in words. In modern times, especially here in England, such a storm of feelings is unthinkable."
There are four sisters in total. Middle sister-lady Fiona Mercedes Barnett is married to James Barnet from the oldest Scottish family. She has two boys and a girl. Among the guests of honor were the Queen Mother, Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh and Lady Zia at her wedding.
Natallia on the eve of the wedding.
The youngest of four sisters Natalia Aisha Phillips Natalie, Duchess of West Minster.
The Westminster family is fabulously wealthy and distinguished. Their holdings stretch from Mayfair, the most expensive area of London, to Scotland and Wales. It is believed that they have more real estate than the queen herself, and the family's personal wealth is estimated at sixth in the UK. She is the godmother of Korelev's grandson, Prince William (second place among the pretenders to the throne).
Lady Zia's granddaughter Lady Marita Crowley is the most creative person of all Pushkin's descendants. She wrote lyrics for Demis Rusos, author of the libretto for the opera The Poet and the Tsar, as well as the play Song from the Cage about Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. For 26 years she has been the head of the Pushkin Foundation. She spoke about the meaning of her activities related to the propaganda of the work of her great ancestor in an interview with Russian journalists. As well as about her understanding of the meaning of the poet's work: "… he exists beyond all categories. His amazing sense of inner freedom and, of course, fantastic command of the word. Of course, I cannot fully appreciate this, it is almost impossible to adequately translate his poems. attempts have been made several times. By the way, this is one of the important aspects of the activities of our foundation - the creation of new Pushkin translations,and Ted Hughes is, in my opinion, the best of today's interpreters of Pushkin. "Marita spoke about the unique facsimile edition of the Pushkin House manuscripts in eight volumes, carried out under the patronage of Prince Charles.
The sixth generation of Pushkin's descendants, Lady Zia's great-grandsons, are closely associated with the historic Luton Hu estate. Lady Marita Crowley recalls her childhood: “The house in Luton Hoo was huge. He was served by 60 servants, 20 gardeners looked after the park and flower beds. It was a real estate where we children spent our holidays and where we always came for Christmas.
House in Luton Hu.
Christmas tree, gifts, children's balls - everything is as it should be. It even had its own house church. At first it was Anglican, and in 1989, my brother (Nicholas Phillips) built an Orthodox chapel here in memory of our Russian ancestors, where he collected personal icons and relics of the imperial family. On holidays a Russian priest came. Services were arranged, which attracted all Orthodox London. At some point, Luton Hu became very Russian, similar to the old Russian estates, which we only read about in novels.
New Year's decoration in Luton Hu.
Grandma Zia spoke with a Russian accent. I remember that for sure. She also spoke French and German. But always with a Russian accent. As I understand now, this was chic. Although she was born in Germany and lived all her life in England, her Russian origin, plus her kinship with the Russian Imperial House, gave her a special identity. She was very strict and domineering. We children were afraid of her and shuddered every time at the mere sound of her voice. The order established by her was strictly observed. For example, all clocks in the house had to be set five minutes ahead of GMT so that no one was ever late. If dinner was scheduled for a quarter to seven, then be sure that at ten minutes before the butler will close the dining room doors, and it is useless to knock or make excuses - you are left without supper.
And this is still the lightest punishment …"
The story of Luton Hu is directly related to the tragic fate of its last owner, Nicholas Phillips. He was found in his garage choking on exhaust fumes from a car. What made this handsome and noble man in a little over forty years old to commit suicide?
A squat, gloomy-looking house with Doric columns in Luton Hoo went after the death of her grandmother, Lady Zia, her eldest grandson, Georgina's only son, Nicholas Phillips.
Georgina's son is Nicholas Phillips.
Is it possible in our time to exist in private ownership of such estates? Maintaining them at the proper level and paying taxes is a big problem. Luton's heir Hu Nick Phillips conceived an investment project to turn a loss-making estate into a profitable enterprise. For this, extensive restoration of the mansion was carried out, the living rooms were converted into meeting rooms. Luton Hu was supposed to become a kind of business center for wealthy business people who fly to London to combine their typical English leisure - hunting, golf, horseback riding and doing business, fortunately, Heathrow Airport is very close.
With the support of his godfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, Nicholas took out a large bank loan with a view to future profits. But the 1991 crisis came. The businessmen preferred to stay in the City of London rather than Luton Hoo. Neither tourists nor shooting historical action films brought significant income. By the way, one of the most successful English films of the 90s, Four Weddings and a Funeral, was filmed here. The economy is in recession. Property prices have dropped. Land, which in 1989 was valued at £ 100 million, three years later was worth only 6 million. Nicholas Philips turned to the husbands of his sisters for help - the Duke of Abercorn and the Duke of Westminster. But without waiting for an answer from his relatives, under pressure from bankers-creditors, he committed suicide. Left behind is his wife Lucy Chernin and two young children.
The estate was put up for sale. The initial cost is £ 25 million. Potential contenders named the Crown Prince of Kuwait, American billionaire Bill Gates and even the famous Hollywood couple Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, who had their eye on property during the filming of Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut. After years of intense search for a buyer, the estate was sold for £ 10 million.
Part of Luton Hu, namely the castle, was acquired by the company that owns the Elite Hotel chain of luxury hotels. The luxurious hotel, which is called the Luton Hu Hotel, with 144 rooms, opened its doors to the oligarchs on October 1, 2007.
A park with greenhouses, a lake and other properties are still awaiting transformation.
The fate of the Werner collection is interesting. For 50 years, they were transferred to the branch of the Historical Museum, which is located at the Ranger`s House in southeast London, next to Greenwich Park. Together with the collection, the costumes of the Russian nobility, historical photographs, and the Faberge collection were included there.
The sale of Lutton Hoo ended a whole chapter in the history of the English aristocratic family and the end of one of the Pushkin's museums in Western Europe.
CONCLUSION
Now the great-grandchildren of Lady Zia and the Marquise of Nada are getting married, divorcing, giving birth to heirs, the gossip chronicles write about them, the paparazzi are hunting them:
The eldest daughter of the Duke of Westminster, Tamara, got married in 2004; the queen and her husband, Princes William and Harry attended the wedding.
Dan Snow and Edwina Grosvenor, the youngest daughter of the Duke of Westminster (married in 2010, quietly without guests and lavish ceremonies).
Ivar Mountbatten's wedding - the great-grandson of Hope, the Marquise of Milford Haven.