Princess Milica of Montenegro
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| Princess Milica | |||||
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| Grand Duchess Militza Nikolaevna of Russia | |||||
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| Born | 14 July 1866 Cetinje, Montenegro | ||||
| Died | 5 September 1951 (aged 85) Alexandria, Kingdom of Egypt | ||||
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| House | Petrović-Njegoš | ||||
| Father | Nicholas I of Montenegro | ||||
| Mother | Milena Vukotić | ||||
Princess Milica Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro, also known as Grand Duchess Militza Nikolaevna of Russia, (14 July 1866 – 5 September 1951) was a Montenegrin princess. She was the second eldest daughter of King Nicholas I Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro and his wife, Queen Milena. Milica was the wife of Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia, the younger brother of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia, whose wife was Milica's sister, Princess Anastasia of Montenegro.
Life
[edit]Milica and her sister, Anastasia, were invited by Alexander III of Russia to be educated at the Russian Smolny Institute, which was a school for "noble maids".[1]
Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia and Princess Milica were married on 26 July 1889 in Saint Petersburg. He was younger son of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich the Elder and his wife and cousin, Duchess Alexandra of Oldenburg. Milica was the first princess to marry in to the Imperial family who was already an Orthodox and did not need to convert in order to marry. She was described as well educated, intelligent and arrogant, and the opposite of her introverted spouse. Milica was an honorary doctor on alchemy in Paris.
Both sisters were socially influential at the Russian Imperial Court. Milica and Anastasia were both ambitious on behalf of their husbands, and attempted to gain influence with the Empress and through her on the Emperor. Their machinations were reviled by most imperial family members and the rest of the royal court. Nicknamed jointly "The Black Peril”, “The Crows”, and “The Cockroaches” the sisters were both observant Russian Orthodox Christians and deeply interested in the occult. They introduced the Imperial Family to the mystic Philippe Nizier-Vashod (usually referred to merely as "Monsieur Philippe") and then to strannik Grigori Rasputin.[2] In 1909 however, the sisters lost their influence with the Empress.
Milica and her spouse spent a lot of time abroad because of Peter's fragile health. During the First World War, they lived in the Crimea. From Yalta in the Crimea, Anastasia and her husband escaped Russia in 1919 aboard a British battleship, HMS Marlborough. They settled in Italy, living with her sister Elena, Queen of Italy and when the Italian monarchy was abolished in 1947 she left for Alexandria, Egypt, where she died on 5 September 1951. Both she and her husband, Grand Duke Peter of Russia, were buried in St. Michael the Archangel Church, Cannes, France.[citation needed]
Children
[edit]Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia and Princess Milica were married on 26 July 1889 in Saint Petersburg. The couple had four children:
- Princess Marina Petrovna of Russia (1892–1981), married Prince Alexander Nikolayevich Galitzine (1885-1974) and didn't have issue.
- Prince Roman Petrovich of Russia (1896–1978), married Countess Praskovia Dmitrievna Sheremeteva (1901-1980) and had issue.
- Princess Nadejda Petrovna of Russia (1898–1988), married Prince Nicholas Vladimirovich Orlov and had issue.
- Princess Sofia Petrovna of Russia (born and died 3 March 1898); buried in the convent cemetery in Kyiv by her grandmother, Grand Duchess Alexandra Petrovna, who was a nun there.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ Perry, John Curtis (1999). The Flight of the Romanovs: A Family Saga. New York: Basic Books. p. 107. ISBN 9780786724864.
- ^ Radzinsky, Edvard. Rasputin: The Last Word. London, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2000, pp. 59-67.
- ^ https://www.genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00006729&tree=LEO
External links
[edit]- The Njegoskij Fund Public Project: Private family archives-based digital documentary fund focused on history and culture of Royal Montenegro.
| International | |
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| National | |
- 1866 births
- 1951 deaths
- 20th-century Montenegrin people
- Petrović-Njegoš dynasty
- People from Cetinje
- Princesses of Montenegro
- Russian grand duchesses by marriage
- 20th-century Russian people
- Emigrants from the Russian Empire
- Immigrants to Egypt
- 20th-century Montenegrin women
- Daughters of kings
- Daughters of princes regnant