The Daughters of Prince Ivan Baryatinsky

Prince Ivan Baryatinsky was one of the most influential nobles in Russia of the early 19th century. He was a wealthy landowner and the owner of several palaces throughout Russia and Europe. As the sole heir of his father, Prince Ivan inherited the vast fortune of his family. He first served in the Yekaterinoslav Hussars of the Russian Imperial Army as a young man, and he later distinguished himself as an astute diplomat and was made Russian ambassador first in London and then at the court of the King of Bavaria in Munich. While he was on a diplomatic service in London, he met and married an Englishwoman named Frances Mary Dutton, the daughter of Lord Sherborne. They had one daughter, Elizabeth, but Frances Mary died in 1807. Later that year, Prince Ivan was sent to Bavaria as the Russian ambassador and there he met and married a German countess, Maria Keller, with whom he had four sons and three daughters. It was a match made in heaven. Prince Ivan and the now Maria Feodorovna were a good-looking and generous couple, and enjoyed a successful marriage. Prince Ivan was especially interested in agronomics and applied the things he learned from his travels all over Europe in the development and management of his estates. Princess Maria Feodorovna, on the other hand, was a philanthropist. She was particularly involved in charity and other social causes. After their marriage, Prince Ivan built a magnificent palace complex in Kursk which he named "Marino" in honor of his first and second wives. In here, his children grew up and received an excellent education with special emphasis on Christian values. Thus, the Baryatinsky children will grow up to closely follow their parents' examples in philanthropy and social astuteness.

Princess Olga Ivanovna Baryatinsky,
Countess Orlova-Davydova 

Olga, born in 1814, was the eldest daughter of Prince Ivan and Maria Feodorovna Keller. She married Count Vladimir Petrovich Orlov-Davydov in 1832. Count Davydov was a scion of one of the most powerful noble families in Russia. He was a wealthy landowner and a philanthropist. He was educated in Britain and as a result, he acquired a great love for Britain and its culture. Olga and Davydov primarily lived in Orel and there Olga took interest in the welfare of the people. She was described to have possessed a wonderful character. Her simplicity and unassuming ways particularly in the way she treats peasants amazed courtiers and dignitaries. Like her mother, Olga had a developed social conscience. She and Davydov made it a point that charity must be a foremost importance in their life. They built schools, churches, hospitals and charitable institutions. The writer Aksarov who had the opportunity to see the couple's charitable work was surprised with their attitude towards ordinary people. He wrote that they "lead a living union with the Church, and not less than a living union with the Russian people", and that the "Russian village became a part of Olga's moral being". She was well-acquainted with peasant life and with the needs of the people both in general and in detailed. After her mother's death, Olga inherited the guardianship of the Community of the Sisters of Charity, which her mother founded. 

Princess Leonilla Ivanovna Baryatinsky, 

Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn

Born in 1816, Leonilla was the second daughter. The princess, like her brothers and sisters, was highly educated and cultured. When she was 16 years old, her mother brought her to St. Petersburg to be introduced to the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. She immediately became famous at the court for her attractive looks. She was described to be tall like a 'Lebanese cedar, slender, somewhat restrained and very serious, but beautiful from head to toe'. Her 'velvet eyes and sable eyebrows' gave her an 'Italian look'. In the spring of 1834, she became a maid-of-honor to the Empress. However, less than year after her appointment, the beautiful and cultured Leonilla married the Tsar's aide-de-camp, Prince Ludwig of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, who was also a widower. After their marriage, Leonilla and her husband left Russia and settled in their estate in Vilna, Lithuania. Prince Wittgenstein inherited a vast fortune from his first wife, which afforded him and Leonilla to lead a luxurious lifestyle. Following her mother's example, Leonilla was also interested in charity and founded several schools and hospitals for the poor. Although their marriage started happily, Leonilla and her husband soon drifted away from each other. She converted to Catholicism and fell into a sort of religious mania. She had an affair with a Frenchman while her husband settled in the wing of the castle with his German mistress. Before the the Prince's death in 1866, he and Leonilla were somewhat reconciled. "Thus ended", wrote the writer Smirnov, "this married life that started with feigned love, passed on for a short time in indifference, and then in friendship..." As a widower, she became a close friend of the Empress Augusta of Germany and tried to help her resolve a number of diplomatic issues to prevent the Franco-Prussian War. In the last 30 years of her life, Princess Leonilla lived in a villa at Ouchy, overlooking Lake Geneva. For many years, her homes has been a "bourne of crowned heads and imperial personages". One of her oldest friends is the Dowager Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, 94, who, until the outbreak of the war, would visit once a year. Until the last days of her long life, Leonilla, kept an excellent memory and a sober mind. She died in 1918 at the age of 102.

Princess Maria Ivanovna Baryatisnky,

Princess Kochubey

The youngest daughter of the family, Maria, was born in 1818 . Like her mother and her sisters, she was also a famous beauty at the Russian court. She also became a maid-of-honor to the Empress Alexandra and a close friend of the Empress's daughter, Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaievna. The Grand Duchess fondly remembers Maria in her memoirs:

"After the start of the Lent was the end of all celebrations. Only a few were invited to gather in the evening with Mama in the Green Room, where for the most part we read aloud. Among these guests were Princess Baryatinsky and her daughter Maria. Her shyness and modesty endeared her to me and soon we became friends. She was serious and deeply religious. The friendship between us was truly what I've always dreamed of: she ennobled our nature. We both were full of ideals according to our age... We are especially protective of our desires, thoughts and ideas from prying eyes. Maria Baryatinsky was blond with black eyebrows, her eyes if she sympathized with anyone, were full of warmth, which I have not seen in anybody, except for the Empress Maria Alexandrovna (wife of Emperor Alexander II), perhaps because I truly loved them both.

Maria Baryatinsky's hair was the same as mine. When she unravels her hair, it covered her knees. She plaits it into a twine three times around the head and fastened it with gold pin. I remember one birthday celebration of Papa in Peterhof. Despite the fact that Baryatinsky lived nine miles from there, she came with fresh flowers on her hair. Most of the flowers were still in bud, and during a dance, they were dispersed. The portrait by the famous artist Robertson captured her in all her charms while she was about to play the piano. In 1841, she married Mikhail Kochubey, and eighteen months later she is gone. She died of a fever... How short this friendship was! But this remains an indelible trace in my soul. Her sister Leonilla, the future Princess Wittgenstein. was also very attractive, but her beauty was of the earth, while Maria was like an angel. In Maria, I found an echo of myself, and this four-year friendship was just beautiful. "

After Maria's early death, her mother founded a shelter for poor women as a dedication to her.

Portraits of Prince Ivan Baryatinsky and Princess Maria Feodorovna nee Keller

A Polish Princess

Portrait of Princess Aniela Czartoryski nee Radziwill
by Elisabeth Vigee Lebrun

Princess Aniela Radziwill was born on 3 October 1781 in Vienna, the eldest daughter of prominent Polish-Lithuanian nobleman Michał Hieronim Radziwiłł and Helena Przeździecka. She was also the younger sister of Prince Anton Radziwill, husband of Princess Louise of Prussia.

Princess Aniela was one of the leading beauties of her time. By the time she was 16, she was starting to make a charming impression on every young man who made her acquaintance. Aniela's sister-in-law, Princess Louise of Prussia, the wife of her brother Anton, wrote about Aniela in her memoirs: "My sister-in-law had grown much prettier... Her noble features, her beautiful touching face won her a great deal of admiration." She had many admirers, one of them was the Comte Clary. There were talks of marriage between the two, but Aniela's family had to give up the idea when they learned that she and Prince Constantine Czartoryski, a Polish nobleman, had fallen in love with each other.

It was said that he had eyes for no one but Aniela, and he was very keen in marrying her. But the marriage did not take place immediately. Prince Constantin's mother was not enthusiastic about the match because of some old resentment between her and Aniela's mother. But Princess Czartoryski had a change of heart after she met Aniela.

Constantin and Aniela were married in 1802 in Nieborow, and soon after the wedding, the portrait painter Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun was tasked to paint a portrait of Aniela. "Her beauty matched the portrait they had drawn of her," wrote Princess Louise, "but the gentle and engaging expression of her features, the rather melancholy look in her eyes, the expressive tones of her voice - especially when she sang - everything threw a charm over her face such as I have never known in anyone else." Constantin and Aniela settled in Pulawy where they enjoyed a happy married life.

Aniela had always had a delicate health, and she became constantly ill the years after her marriage. Unfortunately, only six years after her wedding, she succumbed to an illness and died, leaving her husband with two small children, Eudoxia and Adam.

The Girl Who Swallowed a Glass Piano

Princess Alexandra of Bavaria was born on August 26, 1826, the fifth daughter of the eccentric King Ludwig I of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. Ever since she was a child, Alexandra had been suffering from psychological problems. She was so obsessed with cleanliness (a case of obsessive-compulsive disorder) that she insisted on only wearing white clothes. In her early 20s, her eccentricities intensified. One day, she was observed walking awkwardly sideways down the corridors and through the doors in their palace. When she was asked by her family, she told them that she had swallowed a glass grand piano. Apparently at this time, Alexandra was suffering from delusion. This made her convinced herself that she had swallowed a grand piano made of glass when she was a child, and she was walking sideways through doors because the piano was still inside her and she was afraid of getting stuck. Despite her mental and emotional issues, Alexandra was an intelligent woman and could boast many literary accomplishments. She lived her life to the fullest, She was also a beauty; her portrait was painted by Joseph Stieler for her father's Gallery of Beauties.

Princess Alexandra and her delusion was the subject of a BBC Radio program, The Glass Piano written by Deborah Levy.

Royal Portrait: Princess Margaret

Today is her 82th birthday! 

Portraits of The Princess Margaret

Princess Margaret has always struck me as a very lovely young woman. I just love her large, piercing blue eyes, her dazzling smile, and her beautiful coloring. She was very elegant and glamorous. No wonder she was a fashionable figure during the 1950s, and was always named as one of the best-dressed women at that time. This beautiful princess is indeed the embodiment of elegance and charm. It is just kind of sad that she spent the last days of her life in isolation and loneliness.

Princess Zinaida Yussupova

Princess Zinaida Yusupova was the greatest Russian heiress of her day. She was famed not only for her dazzling beauty and wealth, but also for her intellect and the lavishness of her hospitality.

Her family, the Yusupovs, were immensely wealthy. They owned many properties throughout Russia, among these were the Arkangelskoie Estate (with its paper and textile factories), and sixteen sumptuous palaces in St. Petersburg, Moscow, the Crimea, France, Germany, and Britain. They also possessed a huge and valuable collection of paintings, sculptures, and jewelries.

Being the only the surviving child of Prince Nicholas Borisovich Yusupov and Countess Tatiana Ribeaupierre, Zinaida solely inherited the vast properties of the Yusupovs. As a young woman, she had numerous suitors, among them the Crown Prince of Bulgaria, but she married Count Felix Sumarokov-Eston, an officer of the Russian Imperial Guard. They had two sons, Nicholas and Felix, the latter would eventually gain fame as the man who murdered Rasputin.

Below is an excerpt from Prince Felix Yusupov's memoirs about his mother.

Joan of Kent: The First Princess of Wales

Joan of Kent,
Countess of Kent and Lady Wake of Liddell
Countess of Salisbury,
Princess of Wales
(Modern portrait by Stephen Warde Anderson)

"The most beautiful woman in all England, and the most loving.”

-Jean Froissart, Medieval Chronicler

In modern times, the British courtesy title Princess of Wales has become synonymous to style, beauty and charm. The most well-known bearer of this title was the late Lady Diana Spencer, and she was the epitome of that title. There were over forty kings who occupied the British throne since William of Normandy conquered England in 1066, but the women who held the title Princess of Wales - a title reserved only for the wife of the heir to the throne - were only ten. Eight of them eventually became Queens Consort, but the remaining two were never crowned because they were predeceased by their husbands.

Joan of Kent was one of those two who never became Queen, and she was the first woman to become Princess of Wales. She was the consort of Edward, Prince of Wales or known famously as "The Black Prince", son of King Edward III. Joan was known in history as "The Fair Maid of Kent", a nickname that later historians ascribed because of her immense beauty. She was of royal blood, a Plantagenet, through her father, and because of her royal descent and beauty, she was a much sought-after bride. She was born around 1328, the third child of Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent (a son of King Edward I) and Lady Margaret Wake of Liddell.

During Joan's lifetime, three important historic events occurred: the Hundred Years' War, the Black Death, and the Peasants' Revolt. The backdrop of her story was the Hundred Years' War, the age when the Plantagenet monarchs of England claimed the throne of France and made many attempts to secure it. The Black Death reduced the able-bodied people of England, thus causing labor shortage. And finally, the Peasants' Revolt, a consequence of the Black Death.

When Joan was two years-old, tragedy struck her family. King Edward II was murdered at the instigation of his wife, Queen Isabella. Joan's father, a younger brother and a supporter of the king, began investigating the circumstances of his murder. This greatly infuriated Queen Isabella, and arranged to have Edmund charged with treason. Soldiers seized Arundel Castle and held Edmund's wife and children prisoner. Edmund was later executed, leaving a total of three children to his wife.

When the new king, Edward III became aware of the injustice done to his uncle, he banished his mother Queen Isabella to Anglia. The new queen, the virtuous Philippa of Hainault, set out to make amends, and arranged for the Kent Family to be brought to court so that the Joan and her siblings could be raised with their royal cousins. Joan was given a governess, Catherine Montague, Countess of Salisbury. The Countess and her husband the Earl were a very enterprising couple, and raised an ambition to wed Joan to their son and heir William. However, Joan had other ideas. At the age of twelve, she had fallen in love with Thomas Holland, a steward in the Salisbury household and a man eight years her senior. They contracted a secret marriage, without royal consent. The following year, Thomas Holland went overseas to fight in one of the many campaigns of Hundred Years' War. With Thomas absent, the Saliburys forced Joan to marry William. Joan later claimed she was afraid that disclosing her previous marriage would lead to Thomas's execution for treason on his return, and so did not disclose it. She may also have become convinced that the earlier marriage was invalid.

When Thomas returned from France he could do little to reclaim his wife, and he soon went off again serving with Edward, the Black Prince. Meanwhile, back at court, Joan was now Countess of Salisbury, since her father-in-law had died in 1347. She was a great favorite of Edward III and Queen Philippa. But Thomas Holland had not forgotten Joan. Now wealthy and influential, he appealed to the Pope to arrange Joan's divorce from Salisbury. The Pope decided in favor of Sir Thomas's claim and Joan was returned to him. She had no children by her previous marriage to Salisbury, but with Holland she soon became a mother of five.

Her cousin the Black Prince stood as godfather to her two children, and gave his cousin "Jeanette" a silver cup. By 1353, Joan became the Countess of Kent after the death of her brother. She inherited a substantial property, but her happy marriage with Sir Thomas ended in his death in December 1360.

Joan, now thirty-two years old, was a very sought-after prize. Suitors flocked around the beautiful and wealthy widow, but she was uninterested. By this time, she had her eyes only to her cousin, Prince Edward, to whom she shared a strong attachment ever since they were children. When Edward knew that she was in love with 'somebody', he entreated her to identify the object of her affection. Joan then revealed that she was in love with him, and Edward, who had been in love with her for quite a long time, asked his parents' consent for marriage. Although the King and Queen liked Joan, they were not pleased with Edward's choice. Queen Philippa was especially concerned about Joan's reputation and her flighty disposition. But Edward was adamant that if he was to marry, he would only marry Joan, his true love. Finally, the King and Queen acquiesced, a papal dispensation was sent (because of consanguinity), and Edward and Joan were married on October 10, 1361 at Windsor Castle.

The Black Prince owned several residences but Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire was his favorite. There the newly-weds went to stay, but not to long. The Prince was anxious to return to France to secure more territory. In February 1362, Edward and Joan sailed for France accompanied by her children. They set up their home in Bordeaux, and two years later Joan gave birth to a son they named Edward. The Black Prince was delighted. Another son was added in family on January 1367 and they named him Richard. Once assured that Joan had recovered, the Prince set out for the south, to check an advance over the Pyrenees by a Spanish army.

Edward and Joan appeared to be a very loving couple. Before Edward left for the south, the couple "very sweetly embraced and take farewell with kisses." And on his return, they went on an informal walkabout: "The Princess came to meet him, bringing with her her first born son...very sweetly they embraced when they met together. The gentle prince kissed his wife and son. They went to their lodging on foot, holding each other by the hand."

Upon his return to Bordeaux, the Prince was far from well. His health grew steadily worse after the death of the little six year-old prince Edward. The parents were grief-stricken with the loss, and decided to sail back to England. As he became increasingly ill, the Prince fretted over the succession, suspicious that his brother John of Gaunt would claim the throne on the death of the King. Edward feared that his son Richard might be set aside by John of Gaunt. Meanwhile, Joan did not involve herself in politics, but she showed no small skill when the future of her son might be in jeopardy.

Edward the Black Prince died in June 1376, when Richard was only nine years-old. One year later, King Edward III died, and Richard became King of England. Early in his reign, the young King faced the challenge of the Peasants' Revolt. The Lollards, religious reformers led by John Wyclif, had enjoyed the protection of Joan, but the violent climax of the popular movement for reform reduced the feisty Joan to a state of terror, while leaving the King with an improved reputation. As the power behind the throne, the now Dowager Princess of Wales was well-loved for her influence over the young king, She maintained a cordial relationship with her brother-in-law John of Gaunt for the sake of her son, and was supportive of her new daughter-in-law, Richard's wife, Anne of Bohemia.

Joan then retired to Wallingford, but she did not remain uninvolved. Richard was a peaceloving, artistic youth, clearly lacking the warlike qualities necessary in a successful 14th century monarch. These were present in John of Gaunt, and Joan felt compelled to continue as peacemaker between the young King and his grasping uncle. At the end of her life, Joan was disturbed by a quarrel between her two sons, Richard II and his half-brother John Holland. This eventually lead to a reconciliation between the two, thanks to the effort of their mother. But the strain proved too much for the Dowager Princess of Wales, now fragile at the age of fifty-seven, and died in August 1385 in her castle at Wallingford. According to her will, she was buried not near the Black Prince, but beside her first husband, Sir Thomas Holland, Earl of Kent, at Church of the Grey Friars at Stamford.

Joan of Kent, the first Princess of Wales, was a strong character who exercised considerable influence in the years after the Black Prince died. She was a Plantagenet and an heiress, and through her children by Thomas Holland, the ancestress of many English aristocratic families.

From Princess to Poverty: Elizabeth of Hungary

Princess Elizabeth of Hungary,
Landgravine of Thuringia
Painting by Edmund Blair Leighton

One of the most beloved saints of the Catholic Church is Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. Born a Hungarian princess and died in profound poverty at the age of 24, she is an inspiration to many and one of the influential women of the Middle Ages. Through her daughter Sophia, Duchess of Brabant, she is the ancestress of the House of Hesse and almost all royal houses throughout Europe.

Rebel Princess: Mary Rose Tudor

Princess Mary Rose Tudor,
Queen of France,
Duchess of Suffolk

"Nature never formed anything more beautiful." ~ Erasmus

Princess Mary Rose Tudor, the youngest and the favorite sister of England's Henry VIII, was widely considered one of the most beautiful princess of her time. Lively and energetic, she led a rather tempestuous life and the story of her romance with her brother's best friend inspired many novels and movies. Henry's eldest daughter, the future Mary I, and the warship Mary Rose, were named after this princess.

Mary was the baby of the Tudor family. She was the youngest child of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York to survive childhood and she was born on March 18, 1496 in Richmond Palace. As a child, she was particularly close to her brother Henry and shared with him an exuberance for spectacle. She was the star of the court and she loved dancing, masques and parties. When she was 14, her father died. The young princess, who was praised for her clear complexion and long reddish-blond hair, enjoyed an unprecedented freedom at court. In the next five years after her father's death, she spent her time virtually unchaperoned in her brother's court, her brother openly encouraging her to participate in every event.

In 1507, when Mary was only 11, she was betrothed to Charles of Castle, the future Holy Roman Emperor. Charles was the nephew of Mary's sister-in-law, Catherine of Aragon, and the marriage was planned for May 1514. However, changes in the political alliances of the European powers meant this wedding didn't take place. Mary was apparently pleased with this, since she probably had no desire to marry a boy four years younger.

As a child, she had developed an attachment to the charming, attractive, robust and athletic Charles Brandon, her brother's best friend. In 1514, she was 19 years old, stunningly beautiful and willful. Her feelings for Charles Brandon had developed into love. Everyone at court knew of her affection. However, Cardinal Wosley negotiated a peace treaty with France and Henry VIII informed her sister that she must marry the widowed King of France. Louis XII was a man in his fifties, with gout and pock-marked face, and Mary was young and at the height of her beauty. Certainly, it was not a pleasing prospect for her. She was crying and sulking; she didn't want to marry Louis, but as a princess she would do her duty. She had her eyes only for the handsome Charles Brandon and he was obviously attracted to the princess. Mary told her brother that after the marriage was over, she would be free to marry the man of her choice. It was an extraordinary demand for any woman at that time, but Henry loved his sister and he agreed.

Mary believed her brother's promise and married Louis XII by proxy at the Greenwich Palace on August 13, 1514. She enjoyed herself at her wedding festivities and its attendant celebrations. She was given a splendid trousseau, marvelous jewels sent from France, and all the honors due to the Queen of France. All contemporary accounts remarked on her great beauty which made her husband all the more eager to see her.

After less than two months, Mary traveled to France. She was described by the Venetian ambassador as "tall, slender and grey-eyed, possessing an extreme pallor". She wore her glorious red-gold hair flowing loose to her waist. After days of travelling, she reached Abbeville and finally met her husband. They were married in that city, followed by weeks of celebration.

Throughout her marriage, Mary remained a complacent wife, biding her time. But her marriage lasted only for 82 days. Louis XII died suddenly on December 31, 1514. Despite his ill health, he had been notably 'active' during his marriage and this may have contributed to his demise. Now a widow, Mary was put in a strict seclusion in the Palace of Cluny for 40 days while they waited to see if she was with a child. She felt alone and terrified. But this gave Mary time to plan. She knew Charles Brandon would be among the contingent sent to France to escort her back to England. She had heard rumors that her brother intended for her to marry a Spanish prince, so she knew she would have to take matters into her own hands to be with the man she wanted. Luckily for Mary, she had an ally in Francis, the new king.

When Charles arrived in Paris, Francis confronted him about his feelings for Mary. Charles then met with Mary herself, where she told him about her plan. She wanted to marry him, but if he didn't feel the same, she would enter a convent rather than be married off for the second time to a man she didn't love. Charles gave in, even though he knew that his King would be very upset at the turn of events.
In the small chapel of the Palais de Cluny, Mary Tudor did the unimaginable for most princesses, she married the man she chose and defy one of the most powerful Kings in Europe. When Henry found out about the marriage, he was furious and blamed Mary for their impetuous decisions. But Mary was his favorite sister and Charles was his dearest friend. After some time, Henry's anger subsided and couple were forgiven. Mary and Charles were married publicly, with the King and Queen in attendance.

The couple lived an essentially happy and quiet life in Westhorpe Hall in Suffolk. Their first child was a son, Henry, who was named after the King. Their second was a daughter who was named Frances, a female version of the name of the King of France - who helped bring their marriage. Their third child was a daughter, Eleanor.

Good friends with her sister-in-law, Catherine of Aragon, Mary supported her against the King during his "great matter" and rejected her former maid-of-honor Anne Boleyn.

Mary's health began to fail in 1533. She died at the relatively early age of 38 in the spring of 1534. Her husband was not with her as he was arranging Anne Boleyn's coronation as Queen. While her brother ordered requiem masses for her, he showed no other signs of mourning. Her husband didn't even attend her funeral, although it was considered to be a marvelous affair. She is buried at the church of St. Mary, in Bury St. Edmonds in Suffolk.

Mary Tudor was an extraordinary woman who had the guts and determination to defy a powerful and sometimes even "feared" King and brother to follow her heart and marry the man she loved. She was brave and felt secure in her love for her older brother. Probably, in my opinion, she was the only Tudor who was completely satisfied with her life - albeit a struggle to achieve.

Further reading:

Mary Tudor, The White Queen by Walter C. Richardson
Henry VIII: King and Court by Alison Weir