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Once a Grand Duchess: Xenia, Sister of Nicolas II
This biography of Xenia, sister of Nicholas II gives a new angle on the Romanov story and provides new information on relationships within the family after the Revolution. Important new letters and photographs are also included.
358 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 25, 2002
174 people are currently reading
780 people want to read
About the author
John van der Kiste
168 books51 followersJohn Van der Kiste, British author, was born in Wendover, Buckinghamshire, on September 15, 1954, son of Wing Commander Guy Van der Kiste (1912–99). He was educated at Blundell's School, Tiverton, where he briefly formed a rock band Cobweb with fellow pupil Miles Tredinnick, later vocalist with new wave band London and subsequently playwright and scriptwriter, and read Librarianship at Ealing Technical College, where he edited the librarians’ student magazine.
He has worked for several years in public and academic libraries, but is best known as a writer. His first book, Frederick III, appeared in 1981, and since then he has published over twenty historical biographies, as well as books on local history, true crime, rock music, a novel and a play. He is also a contributor to Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Guinness Rockopaedia, and has produced articles on historical, musical and art subjects in national and local journals, including Illustrated London News, Royalty Digest, European Royal History Journal, Best of British, BBC History Magazine, Record Collector, Antique Collector, This England, The Independent, and Gibbons Stamp Monthly. He has reviewed books and records for the press, written CD booklet notes, and between 1991 and 1996 edited the 70s rock fanzine Keep on Rockin.
In 2002 he was a consultant for the BBC TV documentary 'The King, the Kaiser and the Tsar', first screened in January 2003.
He married professional musician and teacher Kim Graham (née Geldard) in 2003 and lives in Devon.
He has worked for several years in public and academic libraries, but is best known as a writer. His first book, Frederick III, appeared in 1981, and since then he has published over twenty historical biographies, as well as books on local history, true crime, rock music, a novel and a play. He is also a contributor to Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Guinness Rockopaedia, and has produced articles on historical, musical and art subjects in national and local journals, including Illustrated London News, Royalty Digest, European Royal History Journal, Best of British, BBC History Magazine, Record Collector, Antique Collector, This England, The Independent, and Gibbons Stamp Monthly. He has reviewed books and records for the press, written CD booklet notes, and between 1991 and 1996 edited the 70s rock fanzine Keep on Rockin.
In 2002 he was a consultant for the BBC TV documentary 'The King, the Kaiser and the Tsar', first screened in January 2003.
He married professional musician and teacher Kim Graham (née Geldard) in 2003 and lives in Devon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
June 14, 2021
John Van der Kriste has written a fabulous biography in his work about the life of Grand Duchess Xenia Romanova. His incredible research for this book has paid off brilliantly because his use of the primary resource documents which surrounded her life truly helped bring Xenia into clear focus both as a historical figure, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, and as a deeply complex person. Perhaps the biggest tribute I can give van der Kriste is that by his book's end (and Xenia's death), I was truly saddened much as I would be by the death of a friend. I came to feel that I knew this woman, a person of great personal dignity and grace, yet who also had her share of weaknesses and foibles, and who was saddled with family tragedy that is almost impossible for us to fathom. While as a member of the Imperial elite in Russia, she was a person of distinction who lived the life of a wealthy heiress and who certainly had too much idle time for her own good. Yet, with the Revolution, events brought on in part because of her own son-in-law (who murdered Rasputin), her life and that of her extended family, and all Russians changed forever. Her subsequent tribulations, which lasted the remaining 43 years of her life, longer than she had lived in Russia, truly showed the strength she learned from the hardships of her life. While Xenia isn't a well-known or pivotal figure in Russian history, her story will be of great interest to anyone delving more deeply into the Imperial history of turn-of-the-20th century Russia. You'll come to know Grand Duchess Xenia and I believe, appreciate her depth, and determination as a result.
January 2, 2020
A very interesting book on a very underrated royal. When I suddenly had the idea to look for a book on Xenia, as she’d frequently been mentioned in books about various other Romanovs, this was the only book I could find-but it’s a good one, painting a picture of a full life from imperial splendor into exile. Although dry in some parts, with some quotes formatted oddly and lots of names thrown in that weren’t always clear, I thought this was a solid tribute to a very interesting woman, who has gone through history largely unnoticed. It provides a new view of the Revolution and filled in some gaps in my knowledge. A good book to start the year off with.
March 1, 2011
Unfortunately I am very disappointed by this book which reads like an almost 300 page traffic report... truly... an account of who visited whom, at which palace, who joined and left the party, who was absent, where the different people went to when the party dismantled... very dull.
The excerpts from diaries and letters are tiny snippets that have not been used well and do not liven up what is mostly a history of the never ending movements of the various royal families of Europe.
Many of the paragraphs contain sentences that have no relation to each other, many times I thought a good point or interesting piece of information was about to be divulged only to find the next sentence was on a completely different subject! For example a paragraph which told of Xenia growing alarmingly thin and of the family concern for her... is finished by saying a certain person visited her.... one thinks ah, here comes an opinion by this person on Xenia's health or a revelation of fact... but no... the authors simply wanted to tell us this person visited... it had nothing to do with the rest of the paragraph at all!
I am a frequent reader of non fiction and history books, I am accustomed to reading even the most difficult of this genre, and can say that this is not a difficult read (except for the obstacle of boredom), its just not a very interesting one. A shame since I think the Imperial family had fascinating lives.
The excerpts from diaries and letters are tiny snippets that have not been used well and do not liven up what is mostly a history of the never ending movements of the various royal families of Europe.
Many of the paragraphs contain sentences that have no relation to each other, many times I thought a good point or interesting piece of information was about to be divulged only to find the next sentence was on a completely different subject! For example a paragraph which told of Xenia growing alarmingly thin and of the family concern for her... is finished by saying a certain person visited her.... one thinks ah, here comes an opinion by this person on Xenia's health or a revelation of fact... but no... the authors simply wanted to tell us this person visited... it had nothing to do with the rest of the paragraph at all!
I am a frequent reader of non fiction and history books, I am accustomed to reading even the most difficult of this genre, and can say that this is not a difficult read (except for the obstacle of boredom), its just not a very interesting one. A shame since I think the Imperial family had fascinating lives.
March 16, 2024
Grand Duchess Xenia should have had a charmed life. Raised in Romanov splendor as daughter and sister of the tsar, married for love, had a pile of sons. Everything a daughter should do, if only the Russian Revolution wasn't right around the corner. Focusing more strongly on Xenia's early life, both authors treat their subjects as familiar friends, blending formal names with family nicknames and bouncing about Europe at will. It feels true to life but is probably confusing to readers not as familiar with the time period and royal courts.
April 25, 2015
So I went on a John Van der Kiste kick--that's a sentence never written before.
He writes this minor biogs that are fun little romps through history. Not very deep. Nothing earth-shattering, but enough to give you ample cocktail hour chats about a subject that probably there aren't a lot of books to give those facts. Not that I've had a lot of chats about Xenia--but at times it's nice to know what the supporting cast of the drama that is history is doing.
Xenia is the sister of Nick II. She married for love and fell out quickly. For all of the prudery of Alexandra (Nick's wife), Xenia must have given her heart attacks. Xenia and her husband/cousin Alexandra did not stay true to each other, often living in separate countries for long stretches. Yet it was close enough long enough to have seven kids.
She also survived the Revolution, escaping with her mother (the Dowager Empress) to England. For the rest of her long life (living another 40+ years) in England in "grace and favor" residence. Basically, she lived off the royal family of England.
After the revolution, the book obviously drags because...there's not much to talk about. She took her allowance from the British Royal Family, supported her kids, and gave money away. You do kinda wonder why she never seemed to want a job. She just goes on. It's almost painful, not that she never did more--but that she never wanted more. It never seemed to occur to her that maybe she shouldn't be living free of charge on someone's estate. Or that maybe her kids shouldn't either.
So as a book, it's fine. I don't think anyone should read it, unless you have a driving ambition to know about Xenia.
He writes this minor biogs that are fun little romps through history. Not very deep. Nothing earth-shattering, but enough to give you ample cocktail hour chats about a subject that probably there aren't a lot of books to give those facts. Not that I've had a lot of chats about Xenia--but at times it's nice to know what the supporting cast of the drama that is history is doing.
Xenia is the sister of Nick II. She married for love and fell out quickly. For all of the prudery of Alexandra (Nick's wife), Xenia must have given her heart attacks. Xenia and her husband/cousin Alexandra did not stay true to each other, often living in separate countries for long stretches. Yet it was close enough long enough to have seven kids.
She also survived the Revolution, escaping with her mother (the Dowager Empress) to England. For the rest of her long life (living another 40+ years) in England in "grace and favor" residence. Basically, she lived off the royal family of England.
After the revolution, the book obviously drags because...there's not much to talk about. She took her allowance from the British Royal Family, supported her kids, and gave money away. You do kinda wonder why she never seemed to want a job. She just goes on. It's almost painful, not that she never did more--but that she never wanted more. It never seemed to occur to her that maybe she shouldn't be living free of charge on someone's estate. Or that maybe her kids shouldn't either.
So as a book, it's fine. I don't think anyone should read it, unless you have a driving ambition to know about Xenia.
November 2, 2019
This is a solid biography of a sympathetic Romanov grand duchess. For those unfamiliar with the wider history or who are new to Romanov biographies, this biography may prove overwhelming as there is very little attempt to clarify for the reader who is who - descriptions shift frequently from Christian names to family nicknames used for the same individual. For those who know about the final generation of Romanovs in Russia, this is unlikely to prove a problem and the portrait offered of Xenia is that of a gentle and kind woman who watched, with bewilderment and heartbreak, the disintegration of her homeland amid a terrible catalogue of bereavements.
June 23, 2021
One of the problems with Kindle books is that illustrative matter is poorly reproduced. In this book, it would have been helpful to be able to see the family tree they included, but alas! my Paperwhite Kindle reader just doesn't magnify maps or family trees, etc. This meant I sometimes lost track of who I was reading about, or just where they fitted into the family.
Xenia (Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia) was the daughter of Tsar Alexander III and Tsarina Maria Feodorovna (Princess Dagmar of Denmark). She was also the sister of the last Tsar, Nicholas II. She married her father's cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich (yes, it's one of those families), and they had seven children. This is where it begins to get a bit hard to follow. Family trees don't bother to list the children of the monarch's siblings, so there's no quick ready-reference should you forget who's who. In the end, I gave up!
Xenia's life was no bed of roses even in childhood, as the imperial family was already very unpopular and high security surrounded them, especially when travelling. In 1917 she moved, with part of her family, to the Ai-Todor estate in the Crimea, from where they heard of the murder of the Tsar and his family. Before that, her son-in-law, Felix Youssoupov, had been one of the murderers of Grigori Rasputin - a disconcerting embarrassment to say the least.
Xenia and her mother, the Dowager Empress Maria, with 16 other Romanovs, escaped from Russia in 1919, on the British warship HMS Marlborough, sent to collect them by King George V. They lived in exile for the rest of their lives, supported by the British royal family and by whatever other means they could find. An interesting point is that the famous Romanov jewels were not always the "goldmines" of legend - family members, ignorant of the ways of the world, were easy prey for speculators. Money, in fact, was a constant theme in the many letters exchanged by relatives.
All in all I found the book interesting enough, but could have done without the constant quotations from letters. This becomes tiresome after a while - a feature I've found in other biographies. A little more narrative and some clarifying of identities - especially if they haven't been mentioned for a few chapters - would have improved the book.
Xenia (Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia) was the daughter of Tsar Alexander III and Tsarina Maria Feodorovna (Princess Dagmar of Denmark). She was also the sister of the last Tsar, Nicholas II. She married her father's cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich (yes, it's one of those families), and they had seven children. This is where it begins to get a bit hard to follow. Family trees don't bother to list the children of the monarch's siblings, so there's no quick ready-reference should you forget who's who. In the end, I gave up!
Xenia's life was no bed of roses even in childhood, as the imperial family was already very unpopular and high security surrounded them, especially when travelling. In 1917 she moved, with part of her family, to the Ai-Todor estate in the Crimea, from where they heard of the murder of the Tsar and his family. Before that, her son-in-law, Felix Youssoupov, had been one of the murderers of Grigori Rasputin - a disconcerting embarrassment to say the least.
Xenia and her mother, the Dowager Empress Maria, with 16 other Romanovs, escaped from Russia in 1919, on the British warship HMS Marlborough, sent to collect them by King George V. They lived in exile for the rest of their lives, supported by the British royal family and by whatever other means they could find. An interesting point is that the famous Romanov jewels were not always the "goldmines" of legend - family members, ignorant of the ways of the world, were easy prey for speculators. Money, in fact, was a constant theme in the many letters exchanged by relatives.
All in all I found the book interesting enough, but could have done without the constant quotations from letters. This becomes tiresome after a while - a feature I've found in other biographies. A little more narrative and some clarifying of identities - especially if they haven't been mentioned for a few chapters - would have improved the book.
June 13, 2021
Interesting
…but dry. The genealogical diagrams in the front apparently were copied from handwritten notes and in the Kindle version were unreadable. I got a headache from trying to remember who was who, let alone whose nickname was what. If I hadn’t read a biography of Marie of Romania (Missy) I wouldn’t have remembered anybody’s! Pictures would probably have helped too; they usually do, as do maps, which were also lacking. Thus what could have been a truly interesting tale was just another slog through history.
…but dry. The genealogical diagrams in the front apparently were copied from handwritten notes and in the Kindle version were unreadable. I got a headache from trying to remember who was who, let alone whose nickname was what. If I hadn’t read a biography of Marie of Romania (Missy) I wouldn’t have remembered anybody’s! Pictures would probably have helped too; they usually do, as do maps, which were also lacking. Thus what could have been a truly interesting tale was just another slog through history.
August 3, 2020
I think so many of us, who reach for this sort of book, are kindred spirits: deeply interested in the Romanoff family, willing to pour over every family photo for additional understanding,and fascinated by contemporary personal narratives. This book offers so much of that and more.
Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia was the elder daughter / fourth child of Czar Alexander III of Russia, and sister of Czar Nicholas II (who would die in the revolution). She married a cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich ("Sandro") of Russia, and had seven children with him. More than that, thanks to generations of royal alliances, she was closely related to nearly every crowned head in Europe.
And that, for me, is brought home significantly by this book; although I knew that Queen Victoria managed to link her throne to most crowned heads, the photos of family reunions in Denmark, with royalty from Russia, England, Glucksborg, Mecklenburg, Greece and the host country casually posing together outdoors graphically shows how personal the relationships were and how deep, therefore, any betrayal would be perceived. (Note that photo #4 of Xenia and Princess Marie of Greece should be labelled the reverse; Xenia is on the right.)
With the help of Xenia's diaries and letters, we get a well-written depiction of life before Nicholas takes the throne, and her responsibilities as Grand Duchess, and after Nicholas is invested; the closeness between Xenia, her husband Sandro with the young Czar and his wife, and the splinters that start to form as Alexis, the heir, is born with hemophilia. I think most students of Russian history agree that Nicholas was woefully ill-suited for his role as Czar, tragically so during this time of civil unrest and war, but the family appears to have been united in blaming Alexandra, his wife, for many of his decisions (or lack thereof).
Having already read Xenia's husband's book, I also found it extremely interesting to get the reality check of what actually happened to Sandro, to their relationship, and to their children. It was a little difficult, in the last few chapters, to track the many royal names that were coming left and right; the authors provided three family trees but neglected to include nicknames so a crib sheet, when you're reading late at night, is handy.
Because Russian history has so many players - just following the revolution can give you a case of whiplash - it's important to have some background when you dive in, or you may be disappointed. And if you have no interest in history, or are looking for some sort of royal romp, this isn't your book, for sure. But if you already know the basics, and are looking for color, this book has it, clearly following Xenia's life from childhood to death, the family's escape from Russia, and their existence from riches to near penury. A truly fascinating read. My 241-page softcover came with 28 pages of black/white photos, sources, and an index.
Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia was the elder daughter / fourth child of Czar Alexander III of Russia, and sister of Czar Nicholas II (who would die in the revolution). She married a cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich ("Sandro") of Russia, and had seven children with him. More than that, thanks to generations of royal alliances, she was closely related to nearly every crowned head in Europe.
And that, for me, is brought home significantly by this book; although I knew that Queen Victoria managed to link her throne to most crowned heads, the photos of family reunions in Denmark, with royalty from Russia, England, Glucksborg, Mecklenburg, Greece and the host country casually posing together outdoors graphically shows how personal the relationships were and how deep, therefore, any betrayal would be perceived. (Note that photo #4 of Xenia and Princess Marie of Greece should be labelled the reverse; Xenia is on the right.)
With the help of Xenia's diaries and letters, we get a well-written depiction of life before Nicholas takes the throne, and her responsibilities as Grand Duchess, and after Nicholas is invested; the closeness between Xenia, her husband Sandro with the young Czar and his wife, and the splinters that start to form as Alexis, the heir, is born with hemophilia. I think most students of Russian history agree that Nicholas was woefully ill-suited for his role as Czar, tragically so during this time of civil unrest and war, but the family appears to have been united in blaming Alexandra, his wife, for many of his decisions (or lack thereof).
Having already read Xenia's husband's book, I also found it extremely interesting to get the reality check of what actually happened to Sandro, to their relationship, and to their children. It was a little difficult, in the last few chapters, to track the many royal names that were coming left and right; the authors provided three family trees but neglected to include nicknames so a crib sheet, when you're reading late at night, is handy.
Because Russian history has so many players - just following the revolution can give you a case of whiplash - it's important to have some background when you dive in, or you may be disappointed. And if you have no interest in history, or are looking for some sort of royal romp, this isn't your book, for sure. But if you already know the basics, and are looking for color, this book has it, clearly following Xenia's life from childhood to death, the family's escape from Russia, and their existence from riches to near penury. A truly fascinating read. My 241-page softcover came with 28 pages of black/white photos, sources, and an index.
January 28, 2021
What a Sweet Lady!
This was a fascinating book, well written and researched. If you like Russian and English royal history, you may well love this book. One caution mentioned by other reviewers...there is A LOT of family and many have the same names in addition to a myriad of nicknames as well as new names when they married a Russian Tsar For example, Alix of Hess, or Alecky or Princess Alexandra whose mother was Alice of Hess, and Queen Victoria's daughter. There is Ducky, Baby Bea, and Grasshopper. So, if you thought War and Peace had tons of characters, get ready for the same here. And the interrelationships among the zillions of cousins beggars belief. All the Grand Dukes completely confused me but I did find that reading Christina Croft's book Queen Victoria's Granddaughters and her other one about the grandsons beforehand helped make some sense of the British, German, and Danish sides. I finally got lost with Xenia's children and grandkids and their spouses. Anyway, what an extraordinary life growing up as Tsar Alexander III's and Tsarina Marie's daughter, aka Princess Dagmar of Denmark aka Minnie. Xenia was surrounded by loving family her whole life so one gets a very different picture of growing up royal. So nice, if a bit rarified. She was lucky to have escaped harm during the Russian Revolution and emigrated to Britain after WWI. Oh, and the jewelry. Sigh!
This was a fascinating book, well written and researched. If you like Russian and English royal history, you may well love this book. One caution mentioned by other reviewers...there is A LOT of family and many have the same names in addition to a myriad of nicknames as well as new names when they married a Russian Tsar For example, Alix of Hess, or Alecky or Princess Alexandra whose mother was Alice of Hess, and Queen Victoria's daughter. There is Ducky, Baby Bea, and Grasshopper. So, if you thought War and Peace had tons of characters, get ready for the same here. And the interrelationships among the zillions of cousins beggars belief. All the Grand Dukes completely confused me but I did find that reading Christina Croft's book Queen Victoria's Granddaughters and her other one about the grandsons beforehand helped make some sense of the British, German, and Danish sides. I finally got lost with Xenia's children and grandkids and their spouses. Anyway, what an extraordinary life growing up as Tsar Alexander III's and Tsarina Marie's daughter, aka Princess Dagmar of Denmark aka Minnie. Xenia was surrounded by loving family her whole life so one gets a very different picture of growing up royal. So nice, if a bit rarified. She was lucky to have escaped harm during the Russian Revolution and emigrated to Britain after WWI. Oh, and the jewelry. Sigh!
June 22, 2025
Provides a front-seat view from the sister of the Tsar and his family who were brutally killed by the Bolsheviks in 1918. The mother of Xenia (1875-1960) and her brother, the last Czar of Russia, was Dagmar (1847-1928 - renamed Marie Feodorovna when she married the man who became Czar Alexander III), a daughter of King Christian IX (1818-1906) of Denmark and his wife Louise of Hesse-Cassel (1817-1898). Dagmar's sister, Alexandra (1844-1925) was Princess of Wales, then Queen of the British Isles as she married the man who became Edward VII (1841-1910) after Queen Victoria died in 1901. There are quite a few marriages between Danish and Russian Royalty.
I think so many of us, who reach for this sort of book, are kindred spirits: deeply interested in the Romanoff family, willing to pour over every family photo for additional understanding, and fascinated by contemporary personal narratives. This book offers so much of that and more.
Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia was the elder daughter / fourth child of Czar Alexander III of Russia, and sister of Czar Nicholas II (who would die in the revolution). She married a cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich ("Sandro") of Russia, and had seven children with him. More than that, thanks to generations of royal alliances, she was closely related to nearly every crowned head in Europe.
I think so many of us, who reach for this sort of book, are kindred spirits: deeply interested in the Romanoff family, willing to pour over every family photo for additional understanding, and fascinated by contemporary personal narratives. This book offers so much of that and more.
Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia was the elder daughter / fourth child of Czar Alexander III of Russia, and sister of Czar Nicholas II (who would die in the revolution). She married a cousin, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich ("Sandro") of Russia, and had seven children with him. More than that, thanks to generations of royal alliances, she was closely related to nearly every crowned head in Europe.
September 24, 2023
I have always been fascinated by Grand Duchess Xenia the eldest daughter of Tsar Alexander III and Tsarina Maria Feodorovna because she has always been a sidenote in the biographies of her more iconic relatives.
John van der Kiste and Coryne Hall have managed to paint a vivid picture of a shy, graceful and loving Grand Duchess who donated most of her money to a wide range of charities. I found it remarkable that even after everything that Xenia and her family experienced, she never stopped loving her beloved Russia.
Once a Grand Duchess has definitely exceeded all of my expectations and there is only one point that I disagreed with; Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom did not stop her daughter Princess Victoria from marrying the man she loved, it was in fact King Edward VII who did not want his favourite daughter to marry a 'commoner.' Following the King's death in 1910, Queen Alexandra allowed Sir Arthur Davidson by making him her equerry, Victoria and Arthur had been in love for a very long time but when they were eventually able to get married they were both sadly too ill so it was decided that they could live together at Sandringham House with Queen Alexandra acting as a chaperone.
If you love the Romanov's then I highly recommend this book!
John van der Kiste and Coryne Hall have managed to paint a vivid picture of a shy, graceful and loving Grand Duchess who donated most of her money to a wide range of charities. I found it remarkable that even after everything that Xenia and her family experienced, she never stopped loving her beloved Russia.
Once a Grand Duchess has definitely exceeded all of my expectations and there is only one point that I disagreed with; Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom did not stop her daughter Princess Victoria from marrying the man she loved, it was in fact King Edward VII who did not want his favourite daughter to marry a 'commoner.' Following the King's death in 1910, Queen Alexandra allowed Sir Arthur Davidson by making him her equerry, Victoria and Arthur had been in love for a very long time but when they were eventually able to get married they were both sadly too ill so it was decided that they could live together at Sandringham House with Queen Alexandra acting as a chaperone.
If you love the Romanov's then I highly recommend this book!
December 3, 2024
This book was chalk full of details of what happened to the family when they escaped Russia, where they went, who they married, how they lived their lives, etc., stuff I never knew about. I know quite a bit about Nicholas II and his families demise but not of the ones that got away. Very interesting! Going even further into the subject and starting "The Resurrection of the Romanovs" by Greg King, about Anna Anderson and that whole mystery. A lot of the family in exile, including Grand Duchess Xenia, did not believe the imposter, which she turned out to be. I enjoy this author a lot and this is the third book of his I've read, with a few others I'm interested in.
April 24, 2022
Czar Nicholas II and his family having been assassinated rejuvenated my interest to discover more about that period of time. Xenia, the book, had an abundance of information regarding the entire Romanov royalty. Xenia's story is fascinating. She marries and has six children. As the Grand Duchess, she is respected. After the overtaking of Russia, she moves to England where she keeps in touch with royals from other countries. The British King & Queen assist her in many ways to keep her dignity.
August 20, 2021
Fabulous information for those interested in the tzarist revolutionary period
As a professor of Russian history I was thrilled with the information provided and the details. The documentation is impeccable. The footnotes are superb. I can’t say that I have ever seen a better presented and handled work in my years. A fabulously done piece.
As a professor of Russian history I was thrilled with the information provided and the details. The documentation is impeccable. The footnotes are superb. I can’t say that I have ever seen a better presented and handled work in my years. A fabulously done piece.
July 29, 2022
Very Moving Tragic Tale
This is the other half of the story. I have heard in numerous televisions shows about the death of the Russian royal family, but never heard anything about the relatives. I did not know that so many of the family were executed. My heart goes out to the surviving members of the family of the loss and displacement they suffered.
This is the other half of the story. I have heard in numerous televisions shows about the death of the Russian royal family, but never heard anything about the relatives. I did not know that so many of the family were executed. My heart goes out to the surviving members of the family of the loss and displacement they suffered.
March 17, 2019
A thorough biography, although some passages in the early portions are verbatim from Hall’s book on Empress Marie. It amazes me how nonchalant the imperials were about leaving Russia after the Bolsheviks took over. The British royals were very generous to Xenia and her extended family.
February 9, 2020
A fine, well-researched book.
I’d highly recommend this book. It was well-researched and an entertaining read. Much historical facts that cannot be found in any other resource. Again, I’d highly recommend it.
I’d highly recommend this book. It was well-researched and an entertaining read. Much historical facts that cannot be found in any other resource. Again, I’d highly recommend it.
July 9, 2020
I had always wondered what had happened to the Romanoffs after the revolution in Russia and this book meticulously answers all my questions. I enjoyed every page of this true story about the family that ruled Russia for 300 years.
December 7, 2020
Interesting Subject, Boring Book
I had high hopes for this book...unfortunately, the author did not engage me...while the dates and events were presented... the lack of context was disconcerting
I had high hopes for this book...unfortunately, the author did not engage me...while the dates and events were presented... the lack of context was disconcerting
January 13, 2022
history at its best
This book is a great way to gain insight into
What life as Russian royalty was like.
I found it fascinating, especially having visited many of the locations that are part of the narrative.
This book is a great way to gain insight into
What life as Russian royalty was like.
I found it fascinating, especially having visited many of the locations that are part of the narrative.
June 24, 2022
Quite an interesting read. It does read like a wikipedia article sometimes, and there are a few sentences added to the end of paragraphs that have no relevance at all. I would have liked a little more analysis and insight into Xenia and her children's' characters.
May 25, 2019
Fascinating story of GRand Duchess Xenia. An examination of her life is a welcome addition to the body of knowledge of the Romanov family.
January 31, 2020
Enjoyed this especially for the time Xenia spent in exile which I had previously known little about.
March 28, 2020
Interesting life
She !dad a fascinating life but keep track of the names to avoid confusion.
She witnessed quite a bit of history.
She !dad a fascinating life but keep track of the names to avoid confusion.
She witnessed quite a bit of history.
July 19, 2020
While a biography in name only the book really is only a collection of dates and names without any real narrative flow.
April 20, 2021
Wonderfully interesting subject, but needed further revision to make a cohesive and compelling read.
Read
May 3, 2021thought this was autobiography, but really a biography. Gives different viewpoint from her husband's book. For him the marriage was good, but for her it was not.
June 18, 2021
Good history of a tragic family
This book gives a nice conclusion to o e member of the imperial family. The family ties and connections are interesting
This book gives a nice conclusion to o e member of the imperial family. The family ties and connections are interesting
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