How Well Do You Know...Grand Duchess Elizabeth (Ella) of Russia?

How Well Do You Know...Grand Duchess Elizabeth (Ella) of Russia? (Answers will be available tomorrow)

 

1. On what feast day was Ella born in 1864?

 

2. After which saintly ancestor was she named?

 

3. When the rest of the family contracted diphtheria, with whom and where was Ella sent to stay?

 

4. After Ella had rejected the offer of marriage from her cousin, Wilhelm, whom did Queen Victoria want her to marry? 

 

5. Which celebrated beauty did Ella meet during her honeymoon in Ilinskoe, who became one of her closest friends until the Revolution?

 

6. How did Ella describe her cousin, Eddy (Prince Albert Victor), when she heard that Queen Victoria wished him to marry her sister, Alix?

 

7. According to the French Ambassador, which book did Serge forbid her to read?

 

8. For what minor affliction did Queen Victoria’s doctor, Sir James Reid, treat Ella during the Jubilee celebrations?

 

9. When Ella established her convent, whom did she appoint as chaplain and her chief spiritual advisor?

 

10. Where and with whom was Ella when she heard of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand?

 

11. Which two of her religious sisters accompanied Ella into Siberia in 1918?

 

12. Where is Ella buried? 

 

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Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna

As tomorrow, 23rd April, is the feast of St. George - patron of both England & Russia - I am running a special offer on the Kindle version of my novel, Most Beautiful Princess, based on the life of Grand Duchess Elizabeth of Russia. For 24 hours from 8 a.m. P.S.T. the book will be available to American readers for just 99 cents - a saving of over $8 ; and, all being well, a similar reduction will be available for readers in the UK.

Beauty and Freedom

To quote Queen Victoria, "dear, lovely Ella" was thrown down a mine shaft on this date 92 years ago.

I believe Ella's - Grand Duchess Elizabeth's - whole life was dedicated to beauty and bringing beauty to the lives of those around her, by recognising the beauty in every individual being.

In these days of a throw-away society - or perhaps a post-throw-away society, as we become more aware of the beauty of the planet, of animals (Ella became a vegetarian, too), of Nature and craftsmanship - someone who exudes true beauty (not what passes for beauty in the shallow advertising of everyone appearing to look the same) still remains a bright light!

In memory of 'dear, lovely Ella' - an individual, murdered by the conformist bolsheviks on 18th July 1918.

A Little More of Ella's Childhood Christmas

(From The Life & Tragedy of Alexandra Feodorovna by Baroness Sophie Buxhoevden:

"Christmas was celebrated partly in the English and partly in the German way, and was a family feast in which all the household shared. A huge Christmas tree stood in the ballroom, its branches laden with candles, apples, gilt nuts, pink quince sausages, and all kinds of treasures. Round it were tables with gifts for all the members of the family. The servants came in and the Grand Duchess gave them their presents. Then followed a family Christmas dinner, at which the traditional German goose was followed by real English plum pudding and mince pies sent from England. The poor were not forgotten, and Princess Alice had gifts sent to all the hospitals. Later, the Empress continued the same Christmas customs in Russia."