Catherine Yurievskaya
Encyclopedia
Princess
Catherine Alexandrovna Yurievskaya (9 February 1878 – 22 December 1959) (Russian
: Екатерина Александровна Юрьевская, Ekaterina), was the natural
daughter of Alexander II of Russia
by his mistress, later his wife, Catherine Dolgorukov
. In her own family she was known as Katia. In 1880, she was legitimated by her parents' marriage.
After her father's assassination
in 1881, her mother brought her up in France
, and she was married there in 1901, having two sons, but was widowed in 1910. Her second marriage was during the Great War
, in Russia
, and she suffered hardships during the ensuing Russian Civil War
. In the 1920s she became a professional singer. In 1932 she settled in England
on Hayling Island
, where she died in 1959.
, on 9 September 1878, while her mother was still the mistress
of Czar Alexander II. When she was two, her parents' morganatic marriage
on 6 July 1880 brought about her legitimation, so that she gained the title of Svetlost, or Serene Highness
.
Her father was assassinated in March 1881, when she was three, and she lived therafter with her mother, brother George
and sister Olga, who settled together in France
.
and others on the French Riviera
. In 1891, she bought a house in Nice
which she called the Villa Georges, in the boulevard Dubouchage. In France the family was able to afford some twenty servants and a private railway carriage.
On 18 October 1901 Catherine married at Biarritz
Prince Alexander Vladimirovich Baryatinsky (1870–1910). They had two sons, Andrei (born in Paris
on 2 August 1902, died 1931) and Alexander (born at Pau, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
, on 24 March 1905). In Paris they lived at number 6, Place des États-Unis
. Baryatinski died in 1910, at the age of thirty-nine.
Catherine's brother George died, after a long illness, on 13 September 1913 in Marburg
, Hesse
, and was buried at St Elizabeth's, Wiesbaden
.
On 6 October 1916, at Yalta
, Catherine married secondly Prince Serge Platonovich Obolensky
(1890–1978), son of General Platon Sergeievich Obolensky. At the time of the Revolution of 1917 she was still in Russia, and it was later reported that she had "walked for miles without food during the Revolution, suffering great hardship". Her new husband, Obolensky, fought in the White Army
during the Russian Civil War
.
Catherine's mother died in 1922, leaving only her house in Nice, the Villa Georges. The family's other houses, in Paris, Neuilly
, and Biarritz had been sold at a loss over the years. The same year, Obolensky left Catherine for Alice Astor
, the daughter of John Jacob Astor IV
. After divorcing him in 1923, Catherine became a professional singer, with a repertoire
of some two hundred songs in English
, French
, Russian
and Italian
.
, Hampshire
, which she chose for its climate, as she suffered from asthma
. On 29 November 1934 she attended the wedding at Westminster Abbey
of her great-niece Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark to Prince George, Duke of Kent
. For many years she was supported by an allowance from Queen Mary
, the widow of King George V
, but after the Queen's death in March 1953 she was left almost penniless and began selling her possessions.
She went to live in a nursing home
on Hayling Island and died there on 22 December 1959. She was buried on 29 December in the churchyard of St Peter's, Northney
, with an Anglican
funeral. Only two members of the family attended her funeral, her former husband Serge Obolensky
and her nephew, Prince Alexander Yurievsky (1901–1988), the son of her brother George. She was also survived by her son Alexander and by her grand-daughter Elena Bariatinsky (1927–1988), who had been married a few months before her grandmother's death and was in France.
In 1961, a woman in Bramley
, Yorkshire
, named Olga Maria, claimed to be Catherine's natural daughter, but no more is known of her.
Knyaz
Kniaz, knyaz or knez is a Slavic title found in most Slavic languages, denoting a royal nobility rank. It is usually translated into English as either Prince or less commonly as Duke....
Catherine Alexandrovna Yurievskaya (9 February 1878 – 22 December 1959) (Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Екатерина Александровна Юрьевская, Ekaterina), was the natural
Legitimacy (law)
At common law, legitimacy is the status of a child who is born to parents who are legally married to one another; and of a child who is born shortly after the parents' divorce. In canon and in civil law, the offspring of putative marriages have been considered legitimate children...
daughter of Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
by his mistress, later his wife, Catherine Dolgorukov
Catherine Dolgorukov
Princess Ekaterina Mikhailovna Dolgorukova , also known as Catherine Dolgorukova, Catherine Dolgoruki, or Catherine Dolgorukaya, , was the daughter of Prince Michael Dolgorukov and Vera Vishnevskaya...
. In her own family she was known as Katia. In 1880, she was legitimated by her parents' marriage.
After her father's assassination
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
in 1881, her mother brought her up in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and she was married there in 1901, having two sons, but was widowed in 1910. Her second marriage was during the Great War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and she suffered hardships during the ensuing Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. In the 1920s she became a professional singer. In 1932 she settled in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on Hayling Island
Hayling Island
-Leisure activities:Although largely residential, Hayling is also a holiday, windsurfing and sailing centre, the site where windsurfing was invented....
, where she died in 1959.
Early life
Catherine was born at St Petersburg, RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, on 9 September 1878, while her mother was still the mistress
Mistress (lover)
A mistress is a long-term female lover and companion who is not married to her partner; the term is used especially when her partner is married. The relationship generally is stable and at least semi-permanent; however, the couple does not live together openly. Also the relationship is usually,...
of Czar Alexander II. When she was two, her parents' morganatic marriage
Morganatic marriage
In the context of European royalty, a morganatic marriage is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husband's titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage...
on 6 July 1880 brought about her legitimation, so that she gained the title of Svetlost, or Serene Highness
Serene Highness
His/Her Serene Highness is a style used today by the reigning families of Liechtenstein and Monaco. It also preceded the princely titles of members of some German ruling and mediatised dynasties as well as some non-ruling but princely German noble families until 1918...
.
Her father was assassinated in March 1881, when she was three, and she lived therafter with her mother, brother George
Prince George Alexandrovich Yurievsky
Prince George Alexandrovich Yuryevsky was the natural son of Alexander II of Russia by his mistress Catherine Dolgorukov. The marriage of George's parents' eight years after his birth, on 6 July 1880, resulted in the legitimation of their three surviving children, so that George gained the style...
and sister Olga, who settled together in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
France and Russia
Catherine's mother took a house in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and others on the French Riviera
French Riviera
The Côte d'Azur, pronounced , often known in English as the French Riviera , is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France, also including the sovereign state of Monaco...
. In 1891, she bought a house in Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
which she called the Villa Georges, in the boulevard Dubouchage. In France the family was able to afford some twenty servants and a private railway carriage.
On 18 October 1901 Catherine married at Biarritz
Biarritz
Biarritz is a city which lies on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast, in south-western France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers....
Prince Alexander Vladimirovich Baryatinsky (1870–1910). They had two sons, Andrei (born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
on 2 August 1902, died 1931) and Alexander (born at Pau, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques is a department in the southwest of France which takes its name from the Pyrenees mountains and the Atlantic Ocean.- History :...
, on 24 March 1905). In Paris they lived at number 6, Place des États-Unis
Place des États-Unis
The Place des États-Unis is a public space in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France, about 500 m south of the Place de l'Etoile and the Arc de Triomphe....
. Baryatinski died in 1910, at the age of thirty-nine.
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
, Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
, and was buried at St Elizabeth's, Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden is a city in southwest Germany and the capital of the federal state of Hesse. It has about 275,400 inhabitants, plus approximately 10,000 United States citizens...
.
On 6 October 1916, at Yalta
Yalta
Yalta is a city in Crimea, southern Ukraine, on the north coast of the Black Sea.The city is located on the site of an ancient Greek colony, said to have been founded by Greek sailors who were looking for a safe shore on which to land. It is situated on a deep bay facing south towards the Black...
, Catherine married secondly Prince Serge Platonovich Obolensky
Serge Obolensky
Sergei Platonovich 5th Knyaz Obolensky-Neledinsky-Meletzky was a Russian Prince and Vice Chairman of the Board of Hilton Hotels Corporation....
(1890–1978), son of General Platon Sergeievich Obolensky. At the time of the Revolution of 1917 she was still in Russia, and it was later reported that she had "walked for miles without food during the Revolution, suffering great hardship". Her new husband, Obolensky, fought in the White Army
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
.
Catherine's mother died in 1922, leaving only her house in Nice, the Villa Georges. The family's other houses, in Paris, Neuilly
Neuilly
Neuilly is a common place name in France, deriving from the male given name Nobilis or Novellius:...
, and Biarritz had been sold at a loss over the years. The same year, Obolensky left Catherine for Alice Astor
Ava Alice Muriel Astor
Ava Alice Muriel Astor was the daughter of John Jacob Astor IV and Ava Lowle Willing and sister of Vincent Astor.-Early life:...
, the daughter of John Jacob Astor IV
John Jacob Astor IV
John Jacob Astor IV was an American businessman, real estate builder, investor, inventor, writer, lieutenant colonel in the Spanish-American War and a member of the prominent Astor family...
. After divorcing him in 1923, Catherine became a professional singer, with a repertoire
Repertoire
Repertoire may mean repertory, a system of theatrical production and performance scheduling, but may also refer to:* Musical repertoire* Repertoire Records, a German record label specialising in 1960s and 1970s pop and rock reissues...
of some two hundred songs in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
and Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
.
England
In 1932, Catherine bought a house called 'The Haven' on Hayling IslandHayling Island
-Leisure activities:Although largely residential, Hayling is also a holiday, windsurfing and sailing centre, the site where windsurfing was invented....
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, which she chose for its climate, as she suffered from asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
. On 29 November 1934 she attended the wedding at Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
of her great-niece Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark to Prince George, Duke of Kent
Prince George, Duke of Kent
Prince George, Duke of Kent was a member of the British Royal Family, the fourth son of George V and Mary of Teck, and younger brother of Edward VIII and George VI...
. For many years she was supported by an allowance from Queen Mary
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
, the widow of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, but after the Queen's death in March 1953 she was left almost penniless and began selling her possessions.
She went to live in a nursing home
Nursing home
A nursing home, convalescent home, skilled nursing unit , care home, rest home, or old people's home provides a type of care of residents: it is a place of residence for people who require constant nursing care and have significant deficiencies with activities of daily living...
on Hayling Island and died there on 22 December 1959. She was buried on 29 December in the churchyard of St Peter's, Northney
Northney
Northney is a village on Hayling Island in the borough of Havant in the county of Hampshire, England. It is on the north coast of the island, east of where the A3023 meets the shore of the island and north of North Hayling. Hayling Island marina is nearby....
, with an Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
funeral. Only two members of the family attended her funeral, her former husband Serge Obolensky
Serge Obolensky
Sergei Platonovich 5th Knyaz Obolensky-Neledinsky-Meletzky was a Russian Prince and Vice Chairman of the Board of Hilton Hotels Corporation....
and her nephew, Prince Alexander Yurievsky (1901–1988), the son of her brother George. She was also survived by her son Alexander and by her grand-daughter Elena Bariatinsky (1927–1988), who had been married a few months before her grandmother's death and was in France.
In 1961, a woman in Bramley
Bramley, Rotherham
Bramley is a village and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England, situated roughly 4 miles from central Rotherham and 8 miles from Sheffield city centre. Bramley is bordered by Wickersley, Sunnyside, Ravenfield and Hellaby...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, named Olga Maria, claimed to be Catherine's natural daughter, but no more is known of her.