Sinaida Alexandrovna Volkonskaya

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Portrait of Sinaida Volkonskaya (1792–1862)

Sinaida Alexandrowna Wolkonskaja ( Russian : Зинаи́да Алекса́ндровна Волко́нская, born December 14, 1792 in Dresden ; † January 24, 1862 in Rome ) was a born princess Belosselski-Belosersky , Russian court lady , poet and singer . She founded a literary salon and also worked as a composer .

Origin and family

Sinaida Alexandrovna Volkonskaya came from the princely noble family Beloselski-Beloserski. Her father was the Russian ambassador to Dresden Alexander Mikhailovich Belosselski (1752-1809), who was married to Barbara Jakowlewna Tatishcheva (1764-1792) in his first marriage. She was the third daughter from this marriage and was born in Dresden during her father's diplomatic activities. In 1810 she married the Russian general Prince Nikita Grigorjewitsch Volkonsky (1781-1844), whose brother was the Decembrist Prince Sergei Grigoryevich Volkonsky (1788-1865). Her son was the future Russian privy councilor Alexander Nikititsch Volkonsky (1811-1878).

Life

Sinaida Alexandrovna Belosselsky-Belosersky lost her mother at an early age, so her father took over the upbringing. She learned French , English and Italian and came to the Russian Empire for the first time at the age of 17 . Together with their father, they settled in Saint Petersburg . Her father died after a short time and she was left alone in Saint Petersburg at a young age. By marrying the emperor's aide and later General Nikita Grigorievich Wolkowski (1781-1844) it came as maid of honor at the Russian tsar in the immediate circle of people of Tsar Alexander I. At the express wish of the Tsar she traveled in 1813 with a retinue of Saxony and moved then to Prague . She worked as an informant for the Russian tsar and corresponded with him. After the victory over Napoleon I , she went to Paris and met the Austrian and Prussian monarchs there . She returned to Russia in 1817 and took on the education of her son Alexander (1811-1878).

Villa Wolknsky in Rome

In 1820 the Jesuits were forced to leave the Russian Empire and since Sinaida had close contacts with the Jesuits and had converted to Catholicism , she also left her homeland in 1820. She lived in isolation and devoted herself to literature , her first book "The Four Stories" was published in Russian in French. She inherited the Villa Wolkonsky in Rome from her father , established herself there and opened an art salon. In 1822 she returned to Saint Petersburg and continued her literary and musical work, in a very short time she gained an important reputation throughout Russia.

Gravestone of Zinaida Volkonskaya in Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio a Trevi

After the death of Alexander I, the uprising of the Decembrists followed and since her brother-in-law Sergei Grigoryevich Volkonsky (1788–1865) belonged to this group, she herself had converted to Catholicism, she no longer enjoyed the affection of the new Tsar Nicholas I, the tsar referred to her as a traitor to the homeland. She evaded possible imprisonment and moved to Rome in 1829, never to enter Russia again. She experienced a profound spiritual change, worked as a writer and benefactor for young humanities scholars. She dealt with Catholic theological topics and deepened her Catholic faith. In this phase of life she resembled a missionary and the Volkonsky villa became the center of the Russian Catholics. In the last years of her life, she took a monastery vow and gave considerable sums of money for the upkeep of churches and monasteries as well as charitable causes.

literature

  • Ceuvers choisies de la Princesse Zénéide Volkonsky, née Princesse Beloselsky, Paris et Carlsruhe, Typographie de W. Hasper, Imprimeur de la Cour - Carlsruhe, 1865 [4]
  • Maria Fairweather, Robinson, 2000, The Pilgrim Princess: A Life of Princess Zinaida Volkonsky [5]
  • André Trofimoff, La Princesse Zénaïde Wolkonsky; de la Russie impériale à la Rome des papes. Rome, Staderini, 1966 [6]
  • Nadejda Gorodetzky, Zinaida Volkonsky as a Catholic, The Slavonic and East European Review, Vol. 39, No. 92 (Dec., 1960), pp. 31–43 [7]

Web links

Commons : Sinaida Alexandrovna Volkonskaya  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Papers of Russian poet Zinaida Aleksandrovna Volkonskaia including her poetry, drawings, correspondence, diary entries, and notes . Entry on: Harvard Library, Hollis for Archival Discovery [1] , accessed July 25, 2019
  2. ↑ Fyodor Bruni was successful around 1825 with his first painting of Princess Zinaida Wolkonski as Tancredi from the opera by Gioachino Rossini . The original is now in the Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg. Fyodor Bruni. Ticino artists in Europe 13. – 19. Century, Biographies [2] , accessed July 25, 2019
  3. ^ Zinaida Alexsandrovna Volkonskaia collection of music manuscripts . Entry on: Harvard Library, Hollis for Archival Discovery [3] , accessed July 25, 2019


personal data
SURNAME Volkonskaya, Sinaida Alexandrovna
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Волко́нская, Зинаи́да Алекса́ндровна (Russian)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Russian princess and lady-in-waiting
DATE OF BIRTH December 14, 1792
PLACE OF BIRTH Dresden
DATE OF DEATH January 24, 1862
Place of death Rome