Elisabeth of Sachsen-Altenburg (1865–1927)
Elisabeth Auguste Marie Agnes von Sachsen-Altenburg (born January 25, 1865 in Meiningen , † March 24, 1927 in Leipzig ) was a princess of Sachsen-Altenburg and by marriage under the name " Elisabeth Moritzowna " Grand Duchess of Russia .
Life
Elisabeth was the second daughter of Prince Moritz von Sachsen-Altenburg (1829-1907) from his marriage to Auguste (1843-1919), daughter of Duke Bernhard II of Sachsen-Meiningen . She received the usual princess education with an emphasis on religion, French language, classical literature and piano playing.
During her youth, Elisabeth traveled all over Europe to visit relatives. In 1882 she met her cousin, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinowitsch Romanow, who was visiting Altenburg and immediately there were discussions about marriage. Her groom, who wrote under the pseudonym KR, dedicated a few poems to his bride.
On April 27, 1884 married Princess Elizabeth in Saint Petersburg Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov (1858-1915), the second son of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich Romanov and Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Altenburg , a cousin of Elizabeth's father. As a result of the marriage, she took the name Elisabeth Moritzowna ( Russian Елизавета Маврикиевна, Jelisaweta Mawrikijewna ). In the family circle she was called " Mawra ". Despite her husband's homosexuality and Elizabeth's refusal to accept the Russian Orthodox faith, the marriage was initially considered happy. Elisabeth, mentally not up to her husband and not sensitive to any of his interests, ensured that the relationship would soon cool down.
The untimely death of Oleg († 1914) and her husband († 1915) plunged Elisabeth into mourning. During the October Revolution , their sons Ivan, Konstantin, and Igor were captured by the Bolsheviks and brought via Yekaterinburg to Alapayevsk , where they and other family members were murdered by the Cheka on July 18, 1918 . Gabriel, who had also been arrested, finally managed to leave the country through his wife's connections. Her brother-in-law, Dmitri , was shot dead at the Peter and Paul Fortress in 1919 .
In October 1918, Swedish diplomats were given permission to take Grand Duchess Elisabeth Moritzowna with her grandchildren and two of her children, Georg and Vera, on board the Swedish ship Angermanland. Via Tallinn to Helsinki and via Mariehamn to Stockholm - there she accepted the invitation of the Swedish royal couple, Gustav V and Viktoria von Baden , to live first in Stockholm and later in Saltsjöbaden .
In 1920 Elisabeth moved to Germany via Belgium, where she later set up her retirement home with her brother Ernst in Altenburg . Elisabeth died of cancer after a long illness and was buried in the Duchess Agnes Memorial Church in Altenburg, her remains were transferred to the Herzog Ernst burial site in Trockenborn-Wolfersdorf in 1939
progeny
Elisabeth had the following children from their marriage:
- Ivan (1886-1918)
- ⚭ 1911 Princess Elena of Serbia (1884–1962)
- Gabriel (1887–1955)
- ⚭ 1. 1917 Antonia Nesterovskaya (1890–1950)
- ⚭ 2. 1951 Princess Irina Kurakina (1903–1993)
- Tatjana (1890–1979)
- ⚭ 1911 Prince Konstantin Bagration-Moukhransky (1889–1915)
- Constantine (1891-1918)
- Oleg (1892-1914)
- Igor (1894-1918)
- Georg (1903-1938)
- Natalia (* / † 1905)
- Vera (1906-2001)
literature
- Olga Barkowez, Fyodor Fedorow and Alexander Krylow: German Princesses in Russia. Verlag Edition Q, 2001, ISBN 3-86124-532-9 .
- Robert K. Massie : The Romanovs. The last chapter. Droemer, 1998.
- Roman Romanow: At the court of the last tsar. Piper, 2007.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Elisabeth of Saxony-Altenburg |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Elisabeth Auguste Marie Agnes Princess of Saxe-Altenburg; Romanow, Elisabeth Moritzowna |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Princess of Saxony-Altenburg, by marriage Grand Duchess of Russia |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 25, 1865 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Meiningen |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 24, 1927 |
| Place of death | Leipzig |