#prince gavriil konstantinovich

[loiladadiani]

Princes in sailor suits

Even today, once in a while, we’ll see a little boy (or girl) walking down the boardwalk on a beach, or playing by a lake, wearing a little sailor suit. Of course, they are not the uniforms they used to be. But they are still just as flattering and still out there.

Here are several pictures of young princes wearing their sailor suits: Tsarevich Alexis; Prince Lennart of Sweden, son of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the younger and Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Sodermanland; Prince John, youngest son of George V and Queen Mary; Prince George of Greece and Denmark; George Donatus and Louis, sons of Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse; Prince Feodor Alexandrovich, son of the daughter of Tsar Alexander III, Xenia Alexandrovna, and Grand Duke Alexander; Prince Ioann and Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich and between them, Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark.

And to cap the post, two of our present royalties, looking their handsomest wearing sailor suits.

[adini-nikolaevna]

“Grandmother [Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna] was buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress next to my grandfather, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich. On his other side lies Grand Duchess Alexandra Nikolaevna, his beloved sister. Grandfather had requested that he be buried beside her.”

— Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich of Russia

[graceofromanovs]

GODPARENTS OF PRINCE GAVRIIL KONSTANTINOVICH

Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich was born on 15 July 1887 in the Grand Bedroom of Empress Maria Feodorovna at Pavlovsk Palace, Saint Petersburg. The second son of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia and his German-born wife Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna, he was christened on 8 August at 1:30 pm at a private church of Pavlovsk. His godparents were:

ALEXANDER III, EMPEROR OF RUSSIA - his father’s first cousin was named as one of his many godparents. He was highly reactionary in domestic affairs and reversed some of the liberal reforms of his father, Alexander II. He was most likely present at his young cousin’s christening.

GEORGE I, KING OF GREECE - his uncle, the husband of Queen Olga Konstantinovna, was one of his godparents. Born a Danish prince, he was elected king by the Greek National Assembly, when he was only 17. His reign of almost 50 years (the longest in modern Greek history) was characterized by territorial gains as Greece established its place in pre–World War I Europe.

GRAND DUCHESS ALEXANDRA IOSIFOVNA OF RUSSIA - his paternal grandmother, born a German princess, was listed as one of his godparents. Married to Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich of Russia in 1848, she was considered a beautiful woman, but plagued by insecurity. Within the family, she was later known to be a formidable character.

GEORGE II, DUKE OF SAXE-MEININGEN - his maternal great-uncle, was the penultimate Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, reigning from 1866 to 1914. He was likely present, having been named as one of his young nephew's godparents.

ERNST I, DUKE OF SAXE-ALTENBURG - a paternal great-uncle named as a godparent of the young prince, was the reigning Duke of Saxe-Altenburg from 1853 until 1908. He was of a retiring disposition and he took little active part in running the country, of which he ruled for fifty-five years.

GRAND DUCHESS VERA KONSTANTINOVNA OF RUSSIA - one of his paternal aunt, Vera was known in royal circles as an eccentric both in appearance and behaviour. She was named as one of Gabriel's godparents, and was present at the christening. Although she kept in touch with her Romanov relatives, visiting Russia many times, she identified more closely with her adopted country, Württemberg.

GRAND DUKE DMITRI KONSTANTINOVICH OF RUSSIA - his paternal uncle, and his favourite, was also one of his godparents. He followed a military career, and was religious. He never married, and was one of several Romanov relatives executed by a firing squad at the walls of Peter and Paul Fortress during the Russian Civil War.

MARIE FRIEDRIKE, DOWAGER DUCHESS OF SAXE-MEININGEN -  his maternal great-grandmother was one of his godparents. Born a Princess of Hesse-Kassel, she married the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, with whom two children (seventeen years apart) were born.

PRINCESS AUGUSTA OF SAXE-MEININGEN - his maternal grandmother was absent at her grandson's christening, of whom she was named as one of his godparents. In 1862, she married Prince Moritz of Saxe-Altenburg, and bore him five children.

GEORG, PRINCE OF SCHAUMBURG-LIPPE - the husband of his maternal aunt, was also absent at the young prince's christening but was named as one of his numerous godparents. He ruled the small Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe within the German Empire from 1893 to 1911.

Source

[romanovsonelastdance]

Why didn't Prince Vasili get a St. Andrew at baptism like his brothers?

I don't have a definitive answer, but I have a theory.

As backstory, I mentioned in a post the other day that Xenia's children (aside from Vasili) received the Order of St Catherine (Irina) or the Order of St. Andrew (the boys) at baptism. This was normally the case with Grand Dukes/Duchesses (OTMAA got them at baptism, for example) but unusual for Princes and Princesses, who usually got them when they 'came of age,' usually around 16-21. Princes Ioann and Gavriil Konstantinovich both got theirs in 1907, when Ioann was 20-21 and Gavriil was 19-20.

I back this up with a list on the Russian wikipedia page of everyone who received a St. Andrew and what year (there's one for St Catherine, too). Andrei - 1897 Feodor - 1899 (he was born in Dec 1898) Nikita - 1900 Dmitri - 1901 Rostislav -1902 Vasili -- not on the list! At first I thought it was mistake, but then I read that when Vasili was born, he was weak and sickly and they were worried he might not survive so he was baptized right away. If that's true, my thinking is that because he was already baptized, there was no formal baptism ceremony, so no official occasion for him to receive his St. Andrew. I don't know why Nicholas II didn't just give him one at some other time, but I suspect had there not been a revolution he would have gotten one eventually when he came of age, if not sooner.

Here's the St. Catherine list, btw. It's in Russian but your browser can probably translate it for you!

[the-last-tsar]

Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich with his two oldest sons, the Princes Ioann and Gavriil Konstantinovich; c. 1880′s.

(source: Instagram)

[aw-laurendet]

Konstantinovichi Edit Emperor Nicholas I (1796-1855) = Princess Charlotte of Prussia (1798-1860) | +-- Grand Duke Constantine Nicholaevich (1827-1892) = Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Altenburg (1830-1911) | +-- Grand Duke Nicholas Konstantinovich (1850-1918) | = Nadedja Alexandrovna von Dreyer (1861-1929) | | | +-- Prince Artemy Nikolaevich Iskander (1883-1919) | | | +-- Prince Alexander Nikolaevich Iskander (1889-1957) | = Olga Rogowska (1893-1962), div. | | | +-- Prince Kyrill Alexandrovich Iskander (1915-1992) | | | +-- Princess Natalja Alexandrovna Iskander (1917-1999) | = Nikolai Dostal | | = Natalja Khanykova (1893-1982) | +-- Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna (1851-1926) | = HM King George I of Greece (1845-1913) | +-- Grand Duchess Vera Konstantinovna (1854-1912) | = Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1846-1877) | +-- Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (1858-1915) | = Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg (1865-1927) | | | +-- Prince Ioann Konstantinovich (1886-1918) | | = Princess Helen of Serbia (1884-1962) | | | | | +-- Prince Vsevelod Ivanovich (1914-1973) | | | = Lady Mary Lygon (1910-1982) cr. Princess Romanovskaya-Pavlovskaya div. | | | = Emilia de Gosztonyi (1914-1993) cr. Princess Romanovskaya, div. | | | = Valli Knust (1930-2012) cr. Princess Romanovskaya-Knust | | | | | +-- Princess Ekaterina Ivanovna (1915-2007) | | = Ruggero, Marchese Farace di Villaforesta (1909-1970) | | | +-- Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich (1887-1955) cr. Grand Duke of Russia | | = Antonia Nesterovskya (1890-1950) | | = Princess Irina Kurakina (1903-1993) | | | +-- Princess Tatiana Konstantinovna (1890-1979) | | = Prince Konstantin Bagration-Mukhransky (1889 -1915) | | = Alexander Korochenzov (1877-1922) | | | +-- Prince Konstantine Konstantinovich (1891-1918) | | | +-- Prince Oleg Konstantinovich (1892-1914) | | | +-- Prince Igor Konstantinovich (1894-1918) | | | +-- Prince Georgi Konstantinovich (1903-1938) | | | +-- Princess Natalia Konstantinovna (1905-1905) | | | +-- Princess Vera Konstantinovna (1906-2001) | +-- Grand Duke Dimitri Konstantinovich (1860-1919) | +-- Grand Duke Vyacheslav Konstantinovich (1862-1879)

[loiladadiani]

Romanov Family Group: From left to right: 1. Grand Duchess Elizabeta Mavrikievna, wife of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich; 2. Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg (Olga Alexandrovna's first husband); 3. Empress Alexandra Feodorovna; 4. In front, with a cigar and white sideburns: Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich; 5. Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna; 6. Emperor Nicholas II; Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich; 7. (with hand over the head of one of Konstantin Konstantinovich's children) I do not recognize him; 8 and 9 are the two elder sons of Konstantin Konstantinovich, Prince John (in back) and Prince Gavril (in front) and 10. This could be Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich, but I am not 100% sure.

The Importance of Family

The Romanov dynasty went on for as long as the different branches of the Romanov family stayed together and interacted with each other. Whoever was Tzar at the time would act as the head of the family politically and personally and would act as the referee in the inevitable family squabbles.

After the assassination of Tsar Alexander II, security measures around the Romanovs tightened; Alexander III's life took place away from his people, but the Romanov's family life seemed to go on somehow, and even if Alexander III was not a social animal, his wife Minnie was. We still have photographs from his hunting trips, the trips to Finland, and the reunions with Minnie's family, and we still see Mikhailovichi, Konstantinovichi, and Vladimirovichi in those photos. There were frequent outings to opera and ballet during the season, and there were balls. Minnie danced away (one of her favorite partners was Alexis, Sacha's brother.)

When Nicholas II succeeded to the throne, security around him became even tighter as political unrest grew. Alexandra and Nicholas were deeply private individuals who preferred spending time with each other and their children; the combination of factors not only alienated the Tzar further from his people but also pushed him away from the rambunctious members of his extended family. Without the Tzar and Tzarina at the center, court life ceased to exist. An "alternate court" emerged around Grand Duke Vladimir and his wife, Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the Elder (Miechen), which caused more harm than good. We still see family photos, but during Nicholas' reign they are mostly of the children, the Imperial Couple, and a few very close court associates and staff.

Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolayevich, the younger son of Nicholas I and the only one left alive by the time Nicholas became Tzar, was considered a patriarchal figure of respect in the family. Once he died, the get-togethers among the different branches of the Romanov dwindled to a minimum. There was one morganatic marriage after another, resignations from important positions, etc. The dynasty was falling apart at an accelerated pace at the worse possible moment.

[adini-nikolaevna]

Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich of Russia.

[romanovsonelastdance]

The family of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia.

Back row: Princess Tatiana, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, Grand Duchess Elizaveta Mavrikievna, Prince Ioann.

Front row: Prince Gavriil, Prince Igor, Prince Oleg and Prince Konstantin.

[graceofromanovs]

Prince Ioann Konstantinovich and Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich, early 1900s.

The eldest and second son of poet Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia. As boys, the brothers were often frail and sick and they spent their childhood together living at Oreanda in the Crimea, where the temperate climate improved their healths. Despite their opposing personalities, the brothers — Ioann, the meek and quiet one, and Gavriil, the sociable one — forged a strong sibling relationship that was to last until Ioann’s untimely death in 1918.

[graceofromanovs]

Male members of the Romanov dynasty and their Leuchtenberg & Oldenburg relatives in 1912: Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich, Prince Ioann Konstantinovich, Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich, Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich, as well as the tsar’s brother-in-law Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg.

[romanovsonelastdance]

Antonina Rafailovna Nesterovskaya, wife of Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich.

[graceofromanovs]

Members of the Romanov dynasty at the unveiling of the Statue of Tsar Alexander III in Moscow, 1912.

From left to right: Prince Igor Konstantinovich, Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich, Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich, Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich, and Grand Duke George Mikhailovich. I am unsure who is the man standing behind Igor (I am assuming it’s one of the Mecklenburg-Strelitz or Leuchtenberg relations), but you can see OTMA (somewhat hidden) standing behind Gavriil and Peter N, and Tsarevich Alexei between the two Peters (x).

[graceofromanovs]

Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich and his tutors, 1890s.

[graceofromanovs]

Portrait of Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich (x), 1910s.

[graceofromanovs]

Grand Duke Dmitri Konstantinovich with his nephews Prince Ioann Konstantinovich and Prince Gavriil Konstantinovich, 1890s.

Dmitri was a much loved uncle of the children of his brother Konstantin, with whom he would happily play and ride for hours. Gavriil later remembered him, as a "wonderful, kind person" who was almost a second father and wherever they saw him, they ran across the room, jumping up to hug him and wrap their arms around his neck. Dmitri Konstantinovich also loved to tease the children and played practical jokes on them.