Morganatic marriages - cause or effect? What is a morganatic marriage: main characteristics, examples of misalliances in Russia and the world? Earthly marriage or heavenly marriage.

Morganatic marriage is a marriage between two people of different social status, which does not change during life together. The first mention of morganatic marriages appeared in the eighteenth century in Russian Empire. Even earlier they were mentioned in German countries. The concept itself morganatic marriage“both in Rus' and abroad had a negative character for one simple reason: the reigning houses and houses of high-ranking gentlemen should not have family ties with their servants and subjects of low social origin. In the history of the reign, there were often cases when the heir to the throne was deprived of the right to stand at the head of the kingdom, precisely because of his connection with the common people.

In our modern world, morganatic marriage is no longer the wildness that it was before. However, such a loyal attitude towards this type of marriage has not developed in all countries. For example, in Japan, Princess Sayako lost her title because of her marriage to a person who was not her equal in origin. And this story happened not as long ago as it might seem at first glance, but in 2005. Also, one of the countries that chose to honor the traditions of their ancestors in this matter is Switzerland.

Decembrist revolt

In Tsarist Russia, morganatic marriages were categorically prohibited and severely punished, including deprivation of the title to the throne and status in society. Moreover, the law clearly stated that the descendants of people who violated this law are deprived of the right to sit on the throne of the ruler. This law was adopted by Paul I, after ascending to the throne of the emperor. Therefore, every contender for the throne could not fail to comply with this law. And it was on this basis that the ruling Konstantin Pavlovich (son of Paul I) refused to inherit the throne to his brother Alexander Pavlovich (Alexander I), which led to the famous Decembrist uprising.

Some alliances of imperial blood with commoners

In 1820, Prince Konstantin married Countess Zhanetta Antonovna Grudzinskaya. But later she began to be called the princess.

In 1854, Duchess Maria of Leuchtenberg, who by that time had become a widow, married Count G.A. Strogany. Their children never became dukes, but bore the title of counts.

In 1878, Prince Nikolai married an ordinary girl, the daughter of a police chief. Their children together bore the titles of princes.

In 1880, Alexander II took Princess Dolgorukova as his wife, from which she received a high-ranking title.

Waiver of the law prohibiting morganatic unions

The first to abandon the law prohibiting morganatic marriages was Europe, which, by the way, was the first to introduce them. Today, many of the direct heirs to the throne enter into morganatic marriages. Marriages of heirs from Holland, Denmark, Spain, etc. are known. with girls who do not belong to their society and do not have royal blood. Unlike the Middle Ages, children born from such unions have the right to claim the throne. But in France, marriages between rulers and commoners were treated as ordinary unions. The concept of “morganatic marriage” never existed there. Likewise in Great Britain, there is only one known case of King Edward VIII abdicating the throne due to his marriage to a simple American woman.

In Germany, they might even have forgotten about their existing law banning morganatic marriages. Despite all German punctuality in observing the laws, Leopold I occupied the throne for several decades in a row. His mother was a baroness who did not belong to the royal family.

Material from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia

Morganatic marriage(the word “morganatic” is of unclear origin, according to one version, from it. Morgengabe- morning gift from the husband to the newlywed) - a marriage between persons of unequal status in which the spouse of a lower status does not receive the same high social status as a result of this marriage. Morganatic marriage is a special case of misalliance.

In Europe

The concept of morganatic marriage appeared in the legislation of German-speaking countries and the Russian Empire at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries in order to avoid marriages of members of the reigning houses with their own subjects. Monarchs and members of their families were required to marry exclusively with persons of equal kin, otherwise they lost the right to succession to the throne. The concept of “equality” was largely a fiction: not only members of the currently ruling dynasties were recognized as equal, but also representatives of numerous German families of princely and even count dignity, mediatized during the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806. The equality of the descendants of the rulers of other abolished states - be it the Dukes of Courland, the kings of Georgia or the Crimean khans - was in question.

The severity of prohibitions on morganatic misalliances in different countries varied significantly, and in France and Great Britain the concept of morganatic marriage was not known at all (although the British King Edward VIII chose to abdicate the throne after a scandalous marriage to the twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson). Even in Germany, if necessary, the ban on morganatic unions could be “forgotten”: for example, the throne of the Grand Duchy of Baden was occupied for several decades by Leopold I, whose mother was an ordinary baroness. If the morganatic union was sanctioned by the reigning monarch, then the unequal spouse, as a rule, was given an appropriate title (his serene prince, count, etc.), which was inherited by children born in the marriage.

By the beginning of the 20th century, a circle of morganatic descendants of monarchs and members of their families had formed in Germany, whose representatives sometimes married each other, and sometimes with crowned heads (in those countries where morganatic unions were not prohibited). Thus, Victoria Eugenia of Battenberg (from the Battenberg family, a morganatic branch of the House of Hesse) married the Spanish king Alfonso XIII and became queen. Other well-known morganatic families are the Hohenbergs (descendants of the Austrian heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand and Sophia Chotek) and the Merenbergs (descended from the marriage of Nicholas William of Nassau with N.A. Pushkina-Dubelt).

In Russia

In Russia, the ban on morganatic marriages was officially enshrined in the Law on Succession to the Throne, adopted after the accession to the throne of Paul I in order to exclude the possibility of transferring the throne bypassing the “legitimate” heir (as almost happened to him). Each subsequent monarch received power under the terms of this law, which made changing it virtually impossible. A member of the imperial family who entered into a morganatic marriage, without losing his right to the throne, lost it for his descendants from such a marriage. It is with this circumstance, in particular, that the refusal of Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich to inherit Alexander I is connected, which provoked the Decembrist uprising.

In the section “On the civil rights of Members of the Imperial House,” its first part was devoted to marriage: Article 139 stated that “the marriage of every person of the Imperial House requires the permission of the reigning Emperor, and a marriage performed without this permission is not recognized as legal.” The next article stated: “By the permission of the reigning Emperor, members of the Imperial House can marry both persons of the Orthodox faith and people of other faiths. It was especially emphasized that children born from a marriage for which there was no permission of the reigning emperor do not enjoy any benefits belonging to Members of the Imperial House.”

The dissolution of marriage was carried out “according to the provisions of the Holy Synod, with the approval of the Emperor.” This member was allowed “to enter into a new marriage when, for reasons of dissolution of the previous marriage, this is not contrary to the rules of the Church.”

According to Article 188 of the Basic Laws of the Russian Empire, “a person of the Imperial Family who has entered into a marriage with a person who does not have the corresponding dignity, that is, who does not belong to any reigning or sovereign House, cannot grant him the rights belonging to Members of the Imperial Family.”

By the Highest Decree of Alexander III of March 23, 1889, members of the Imperial House were prohibited from marrying people of unequal relationship. The power of the decree was somewhat weakened by the Personal Decree of Nicholas II of August 11, 1911, which prohibited them only for grand dukes and grand duchesses, allowing them for princes and princesses of imperial blood.

Article 188 denies the wife and children of a person of the Imperial House who entered into a unequal marriage the opportunity to be recognized as a member of the Imperial House - mainly for the person with whom the morganatic marriage was concluded, but the marriage was carried out in compliance with all church and state laws, with the permission of the reigning sovereign, which was actually done. According to the laws of the Russian Empire, the wife and children from a morganatic marriage did not have the right to bear the surname of their husband and father, and did not use either his title or his coat of arms.

In the 21st century

In modern Europe, the laws that once regulated morganatic marriages have been abolished. The heirs and heirs to the throne of Spain, the Netherlands, Monaco, Denmark and Norway can marry non-royal persons, but their children will nevertheless inherit the throne. The most significant country that maintained such legislation was Sweden (however, the restrictions did not apply to the reigning king).

A rare example of a modern morganatic marriage is the wedding of the Japanese princess Sayako, who married the "commoner" Yoshiki Kuroda in 2005. As a result, Sayako lost her princess title.

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Notes

Excerpt characterizing Morganatic marriage

- Goodbye, thank you very much. The Emperor will probably wish to see you,” he repeated and bowed his head.
When Prince Andrei left the palace, he felt that all the interest and happiness brought to him by the victory had now been abandoned by him and transferred to the indifferent hands of the Minister of War and the courteous adjutant. His whole mindset instantly changed: the battle seemed to him like an old, distant memory.

Prince Andrei stayed in Brünn with his friend, the Russian diplomat Bilibin.
“Ah, dear prince, there is no nicer guest,” said Bilibin, going out to meet Prince Andrei. - Franz, the prince’s things are in my bedroom! - he turned to the servant who was seeing Bolkonsky off. - What, a harbinger of victory? Wonderful. And I’m sitting sick, as you can see.
Prince Andrei, having washed and dressed, went out to the diplomat’s luxurious office and sat down to the prepared dinner. Bilibin calmly sat down by the fireplace.
Prince Andrei, not only after his journey, but also after the entire campaign, during which he was deprived of all the comforts of cleanliness and grace of life, experienced a pleasant feeling of relaxation among those luxurious living conditions to which he had become accustomed since childhood. In addition, after the Austrian reception, he was pleased to talk, at least not in Russian (they spoke French), but with a Russian person who, he assumed, shared the general Russian disgust (now especially vividly felt) for the Austrians.
Bilibin was a man of about thirty-five, single, in the same company as Prince Andrei. They knew each other back in St. Petersburg, but they became even closer on Prince Andrei’s last visit to Vienna together with Kutuzov. Just as Prince Andrei was a young man who promised to go far in the military field, so, and even more, did Bilibin promise in the diplomatic field. He was still a young man, but no longer a young diplomat, since he began serving at the age of sixteen, was in Paris, in Copenhagen, and now occupied a rather significant position in Vienna. Both the Chancellor and our envoy in Vienna knew him and valued him. He was not one of that large number of diplomats who are required to have only negative merits, not do well-known things and speak French in order to be very good diplomats; he was one of those diplomats who love and know how to work, and, despite his laziness, he sometimes spent the night at his desk. He worked equally well, no matter what the nature of the work was. He was not interested in the question “why?”, but in the question “how?”. What the diplomatic matter was, he didn’t care; but to draw up a circular, memorandum or report skillfully, accurately and gracefully - he found great pleasure in this. Bilibin's merits were valued, in addition to his written works, also by his art of addressing and speaking in higher spheres.
Bilibin loved conversation just as he loved work, only when the conversation could be elegantly witty. In society, he constantly waited for an opportunity to say something remarkable and entered into conversation only under these conditions. Bilibin's conversation was constantly peppered with original witty, complete phrases of general interest.
These phrases were produced in Bilibin’s internal laboratory, as if on purpose, of a portable nature, so that insignificant secular people could conveniently remember them and transfer them from living rooms to living rooms. And indeed, les mots de Bilibine se colportaient dans les salons de Vienne, [Bilibin’s reviews were distributed throughout Viennese living rooms] and often had an influence on so-called important matters.
His thin, emaciated, yellowish face was all covered with large wrinkles, which always seemed as cleanly and diligently washed, like fingertips after a bath. The movements of these wrinkles constituted the main play of his physiognomy. Now his forehead wrinkled in wide folds, his eyebrows rose upward, now his eyebrows went down, and large wrinkles formed on his cheeks. The deep-set, small eyes always looked straight and cheerful.
“Well, now tell us your exploits,” he said.
Bolkonsky, in the most modest way, without ever mentioning himself, told the story and the reception of the Minister of War.
“Ils m"ont recu avec ma nouvelle, comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles, [They accepted me with this news, as they accept a dog when it interferes with a game of skittles,] he concluded.
Bilibin grinned and loosened the folds of his skin.
“Cependant, mon cher,” he said, examining his nail from afar and picking up the skin above his left eye, “malgre la haute estime que je professe pour le Orthodox Russian army, j"avoue que votre victoire n"est pas des plus victorieuses. [However, my dear, with all due respect to the Orthodox Russian army, I believe that your victory is not the most brilliant.]
He continued in the same way in French, pronouncing in Russian only those words that he contemptuously wanted to emphasize.
- How? You with all your weight fell upon the unfortunate Mortier with one division, and this Mortier leaves between your hands? Where is the victory?
“However, seriously speaking,” answered Prince Andrei, “we can still say without boasting that this is a little better than Ulm...
- Why didn’t you take us one, at least one marshal?
– Because not everything is done as expected, and not as regularly as at the parade. We expected, as I told you, to reach the rear by seven o'clock in the morning, but did not arrive at five in the evening.
- Why didn’t you come at seven o’clock in the morning? “You should have come at seven o’clock in the morning,” Bilibin said smiling, “you should have come at seven o’clock in the morning.”
– Why didn’t you convince Bonaparte through diplomatic means that it was better for him to leave Genoa? – Prince Andrei said in the same tone.
“I know,” Bilibin interrupted, “you think it’s very easy to take marshals while sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace.” This is true, but still, why didn’t you take him? And do not be surprised that not only the Minister of War, but also the August Emperor and King Franz will not be very happy with your victory; and I, the unfortunate secretary of the Russian embassy, do not feel any need to give my Franz a thaler as a sign of joy and let him go with his Liebchen [sweetheart] to the Prater... True, there is no Prater here.
He looked straight at Prince Andrei and suddenly pulled the collected skin off his forehead.
“Now it’s my turn to ask you why, my dear,” said Bolkonsky. “I confess to you that I don’t understand, maybe there are diplomatic subtleties here that are beyond my weak mind, but I don’t understand: Mack is losing an entire army, Archduke Ferdinand and Archduke Charles do not show any signs of life and make mistakes after mistakes, finally, alone Kutuzov wins a real victory, destroys the charme [charm] of the French, and the Minister of War is not even interested in knowing the details.

They are loved and hated, praised and criticized, presented as a symbol of the democratic era and proof of the complete decline of morals: they are commoners who marry into royal families. We will not talk about the personal fate of those who entered into morganatic marriages. We will try to analyze the rarely raised question of why these marriages have become the order of things these days and what they entail in the future. We will talk about the future of monarchical power as such.

The problem is much more complex than it might seem at first glance, and it should not be reduced to a dispute about how “stylish” or “vulgar” the newly minted princesses and prince consorts are. Behind conversations about outfits, hats, handbags and shoes, in most cases, personal likes and dislikes for the commoners who belong to the royal families are hidden, because it is no secret that many of us identify emotionally with them. There are people who wholeheartedly side with the common people, because it is thanks to them that the fairy tale of Cinderella becomes a reality. See how ordinary girl elevated to the title of princess - almost becoming a princess. Is it a sin to dream about how you wear a crown, dress up in luxury dresses and give a big reception? These people really like such dreams. There are also those who hold a completely opposite, but no less romantic opinion: princes and princesses must certainly be born into royal families. “Blue blood” is the source of a special aura of nobility; it distinguishes a person from the crowd. But that is another story.

Causes and consequences

The history of misalliances dates back to the time when the British king Edward VIII was forced to abdicate the throne after marrying a twice-divorced American woman. This was the first morganatic marriage in British history; people all over the world, mainly representatives of countries with the status of republics, ardently supported this couple and insisted on Edward's right to marry the woman he loved. They did not understand why Parliament revoked its consent to the marriage of two loving hearts. Thus, Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson became a romantic symbol of lovers who were not afraid to defy social conventions in order to be together forever. For many people, the laws governing the marriage of crowned heads of the United Kingdom are nothing more than “an unfortunate and pointless anachronism.”

The next generation witnessed the scandalous story of Princess Margaret, who wanted to marry Colonel Peter Townsend, a divorced representative of high society, and then, unable to withstand the onslaught of opponents of such a marriage, separated from Townsend and became the wife of another commoner, Antony Armstrong-Jones (who was created Earl of Snowdon upon marriage). This marriage did not bring happiness to the spouses, both had explosive temperaments, and the marriage was dissolved 18 years after its conclusion. This episode is perhaps the most important key to understanding the reasons for society’s favorable attitude towards misalliances at court. The idea that “they should be together because they love each other” began the public acceptance of morganatic marriages. What's wrong with a prince or princess marrying someone who doesn't have a drop of royal blood in her veins? Of course, most monarchical marriages were concluded taking into account the interests of family and geopolitical considerations, but history also testifies to deep feelings between monarch spouses. One of the most famous love stories is the marriage of Nicholas and Alexandra Romanov, the last emperors of Russia, there are other facts. Love is a feeling that can arise in any heart - be it the heart of a monarch or a commoner. Unfortunately, there is an opinion that only ordinary people are characterized by sincerity and simplicity.

However, love is not at all the exclusive reason for misalliance. To fall in love with a person, you need to know him well. In the past, monarchs practically did not communicate with ordinary people; their circle was limited to courtiers. They participated in royal celebrations, carried out their duties as the true rulers of their own states, and interacted with their own kind. Their children had never been among ordinary children, and knew only their equals; the life of the people was unknown to them. Therefore, it is only natural that their marriages were planned in advance. Let's say Nikolai Romanov and Alexandra of Hesse fell in love with each other when they met at the wedding of Elizabeth of Hesse, Alexandra's sister, and Grand Duke Sergei. Today, monarchs have a more open life, so to speak: they attend a regular school, work outside the palaces, attend various events where they can communicate with ordinary people. Is it any wonder that in this case they may well meet someone who shares their views on life and has similar tastes. And it won’t necessarily be a person of royal blood.

Another important reason for this phenomenon may be that representatives of the aristocracy have ceased to consider themselves different, different from others, they now do not want to be removed from the realities of society. On the one hand, there is definitely a positive aspect: such confidence can put an end to the arrogance and arrogance of some arrogant monarchs, at the same time there is a danger for the monarchy as such. Lack of awareness of his own otherness makes the monarch think that he has nothing to do with what is associated with court life: in other words, he will believe that he is no different from a wealthy industrialist or world celebrity. Having studied this issue deeply, we can come to the conclusion that sometimes This phenomenon is explained by the changes that have occurred in the monarchical government itself. The new generation of royal offspring has virtually no knowledge of what values their ancestors shared and what kind of life they led. That is why they do not understand who they are and why they occupy the highest position in their own countries.

Most people who consider themselves opponents of unequal marriages accuse commoners striving for the throne of sybaritism, self-interest, greed, vulgarity and other sins that until recently were considered absolutely unworthy of royalty. Are they so wrong? At the same time, we should not forget the other side of the issue, namely, those who are endowed with royal power. Yes, yes, princes and princesses by birth. If a young crown prince falls in love with a girl who is perceived by the court and society as poorly brought up, poorly educated and frivolous, who dresses in a way that does not befit a princess, it is worth thinking about his tastes and views on women in general. If he likes girls of this kind and endowed with similar “qualities,” perhaps he himself has at least some of them. In addition, if the crown prince or princess of the blood visits places where you can definitely meet a sufficient number of “vulgar” and “frivolous” people, they are likely to choose a corresponding lifestyle. So, the problem lies not only with the third estate, but also with those who are endowed with royal dignity by birth. And also, and obviously to a much greater extent, at the level of modern culture.

A striking example of this is the high-profile romance of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, who fixed his august gaze on a simple girl. The choice of the prince caused a lot of noise. Young and handsome Haakon chose a girl with a “turbulent”, as she herself put it, past as his bride. In addition, she was married to a drug dealer, from whom she left a four-year-old son. Even for such a liberal country as N Norway, the reputation of the future queen turned out to be too scandalous, and Parliament was close to prohibiting the conclusion of this union. But it would be worth recalling under what circumstances the young crown prince and his future wife met: their meeting took place on beer festival in Kristiansand, during a grand rock concert. Note that in the modern world (especially after the Queen of Great Britain bestowed a knighthood on one of the Beatles) rock has become the main musical movement. The international establishment views rock musicians favorably and even promotes the spread of rock music. But hardly anyone will deny the fact that rock arose as a rebellious movement opposing traditional values and aesthetic aspirations. At the same time, the monarchy is called upon to protect these values, because it itself is part of tradition. Most of the lyrics of rock compositions subvert the foundations of classical and folk culture. We may or may not like rock music in itself, but we must admit that this movement has declared itself an enemy of the main pillars of the monarchy - family, God and the state. And if the crown prince attends such concerts, he contradicts the essence of his status, forgetting that he is a representative of an ancient royal dynasty and the leader of the people whom he will soon rule. Of course, the crown prince should not be a reactionary, but he is still obliged to remain faithful to tradition, at least to some extent. Otherwise, his role becomes meaningless, for he is called upon to represent the “eternal values” of his people. We do not condemn rock music as such, but the tastes and preferences of the crown prince and why he took as his wife a person who is definitely “out of his circle.” The fact remains: Mette Marit is not at all like otherwise educated, religious romantic girl, and it doesn’t matter whether she belongs to the aristocracy or not. And that's the problem.

Another reason that gives rise to the problem of morganatic marriages is that many young monarchs attend public or private higher educational establishments, and often abroad. They find themselves among young people of very different backgrounds, communicate with them, and fall in love. Without aristocrats in this environment, without communicating with their equals, they choose ordinary people as partners. Moreover, almost everywhere they are in the company of ordinary people, and even if they meet young aristocrats, they find their company incredibly boring. I remember that in the turbulent 90s, the editors of Point de Vue magazine (a French publication that publishes articles about the royal houses of Europe) organized a summer cruise for young members of monarchical dynasties. An attempt to promote romantic relationships between young aristocrats failed miserably. Journalists at all costs wanted to connect the Spanish Prince Felipe and Tatiana of Liechtenstein, Victoria, a princess of blood from the Swedish royal family with the heir to the Dutch crown. When they realized that one of these young heirs to the throne would have to abdicate the crown, they considered the Norwegian princess Martha Louise an acceptable match for the Spanish prince. However, the young people wanted a more “spicy” relationship. The Prince of Asturias married a divorced television journalist who declared herself a “republican”, the heir to the Swedish crown is actively courted by a gymnastics coach and the owner of a sports complex named Daniel Westling, Prince Willem-Alexander chose as his companion an Argentinean, a graduate of the Faculty of Economics, who worked in a branch of Deutsche Bank in NYC. By the way, her father was a member of the Weidel government. The rosy-cheeked Princess Märtha Louise swapped romantic-style dresses for extravagant outfits and married the postmodernist writer Ari Behn, whose work can hardly be called classic. Princess Märtha Louise has particular views on religion, which may be quite natural for common man, but dangerous for the ruler, called to embody the eternal heritage of the nation, an element of which is religion.

A wave of morganatic marriages swept the Romanovs even before the revolution. Even in the family of Nicholas II himself, the main guardian of Russian laws, to his great despair, the law was broken twice. First, the emperor’s brother Mikhail Alexandrovich married the twice-divorced Natalya Sergeevna Sheremetyevskaya, then his sister Olga married Nikolai Alexandrovich Kulikovsky. Grand Duke Mikhail was killed near Perm with his secretary Johnson, and his wife, who received the title of Countess Brasova, and son managed to go abroad. In exile, Kirill Vladimirovich granted Natalya Sergeevna the title of princess. Her son, Count Georgy Mikhailovich Brasov, died in a car accident in France in 1931.

The emperor's uncle, Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich, was married for his second marriage to Olga Valerianovna Pistolkors (1865-1929), née Karnovich. This marriage, which also brought Nicholas II many experiences, was eventually recognized, and Olga Valerianovna and her children born in marriage with the Grand Duke were granted the title of Countess of Hohenfelsen. During the war, due to the troubles that German families caused, Olga Valerianovna was granted the title of Princess Paley.

As the reader knows, Pavel Alexandrovich was shot in January 1919 in the Peter and Paul Fortress along with his three cousins, Grand Dukes Nikolai and Georgiy Mikhailovich and Dmitry Konstantinovich.

Prince Vladimir Paley, like all children of the reigning house, born in a morganatic marriage, bearing the title and surname of his mother, could have avoided death by renouncing his father. This path of salvation was suggested to him by the head of the Petrograd Cheka, Uritsky, and aroused indignation in Vladimir Pavlovich. Returning home from the Cheka, Prince Vladimir said to his mother: “How dare he offer me this!” He died near Alapaevsk, at the bottom of a mine, 21 years old.

Olga Valerianovna managed to escape to Finland with her daughters Irina and Natalya, and then move to France.

Olga Valerianovna was completely devastated by the news of the death of her beloved husband and son. She dreamed of someday publishing the poems of Vladimir, a talented poet and playwright, but she failed to do this, and the works of Prince Paley are still destined to find their readers in Russia. Olga Valerianovna left memoirs where she described the entire way of the cross of her family, guilty only of belonging to the house of the Romanovs.

Olga Valerianovna's daughter, Princess Irina Pavlovna, in France married Prince Fyodor Alexandrovich, the son of Alexander Mikhailovich and Ksenia Alexandrovna. Irina Pavlovna died in the fall of 1990. In the summer of 1990, her son, Prince Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, visited Russia for the first time.

Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich (1877-1943), who emigrated at the beginning of the revolution, also had a morganatic marriage. He was interested in art. According to the story of Alexander Mikhailovich, it was Boris’s passion for art that at one time saved the lives of him and his brother Andrei. “The Grand Dukes Boris and Andrei Vladimirovich owe the salvation of their lives to a striking coincidence, which, if described by a novelist, the reader would have treated with disbelief. The commander of the Bolshevik detachment, which was ordered to shoot these two Grand Dukes, turned out to be a former artist who spent several years life in Paris in a difficult struggle for existence, vainly hoping to find a buyer for his paintings. A year before the war, Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich, walking through the Latin Quarter, came across an exhibition of artistically painted pillows. He liked them for their originality, and he purchased a significant number of them . That's all. The Bolshevik commissar could not kill a man who appreciated his art. He put both grand dukes in a car with a Communist Party badge and drove them to the area of the white armies..."*

Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich was married to Zinaida Sergeevna Rashevskaya, daughter of the general, hero of Port Arthur. She emigrated with the Grand Duke from Anapa in March 1919. The couple lived very modestly in the southwest of France, in Biarritz.

Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich, while in exile, married the famous Russian ballerina Matilda Feliksovna Kshesinskaya, to whom rumor attributed an affair with the heir, Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, the future Nicholas II.

Matilda Feliksovna was common-law wife Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich. In 1902, Kshesinskaya gave birth to a son, Vladimir, whom the Grand Duke adopted. In her memoirs, written abroad, Kshesinskaya claimed that Vladimir’s real father - Vova, as all his relatives called him - was still Andrei Vladimirovich, with whom she had a long affair in parallel with Sergei Mikhailovich**. In the chaotic revolutionary days, Sergei Mikhailovich, while still at the front, wrote to his brother Nikolai Mikhailovich in Petrograd: “... you know how attached I am to Vova and how passionately I love and how attached he is to me. You know that I live I have been with Malechka for 22 years (this is not in the physical sense, but I live in the same house and with the same means). Of course, you understand how worried and worried I was for their integrity."***.

* Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich. Book of memories. P. 323.

**See: Kshesinskaya M. Memoirs. M., 1992. P. 90.

*** GARF, f. 670, op. 1, d. 185.

The worries were not in vain. Kshesinskaya’s house was plundered in March 1917. “What you write about Malechka is simply terrible,” Sergei Mikhailovich writes to his brother, “I don’t know who is embittered against her, and the reasons for this embitterment lie only in personal accounts on the stage, or in nonsense rumors. I swear before the image that there is not a single crime behind her. If she is accused of bribes, then this is a complete lie. I was in charge of all her affairs, and I can imagine who needs all the most accurate information, what money she has there are and were and where they came from. I know that her house was robbed and robbed, I can imagine how many expensive and artistic things were lost. Don’t you believe your brother, who swears, but believe the rumors that malicious people spread. What was mine, everything Vova should have crossed over... (...) You write that if I come, so that you don’t dare see them. Why am I a scoundrel - I’ll leave my wife (civilian) and my boy. No, I’ve been honest all my life and noble, I will remain so."* With great difficulty, Sergei Mikhailovich obtained permission from the Provisional Government to return to Petrograd, where he was arrested in 1918 and sent to Alapaevsk. Of all the Alapaevsk martyrs, he was the only one who was shot at the edge of the mine - all the rest were thrown there alive...

Matilda Kshesinskaya managed to escape from Russia, and emigration, which equalized all Russians, allowed her to finally become the legal wife of Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich. In 1935, Matilda Feliksovna was granted the title of Princess Romanovskaya-Krasinskaya. Sergei Mikhailovich's son Vladimir bore the patronymic Andreevich...

Andrei Vladimirovich died in 1956, and Matilda Kshesinskaya, who was seven years older than her husband, died in 1971, at the age of 99. Her son survived her by only three years.

* GARF, f. 670, on. 1, d. 185.

Svetlana Rumyantseva

As you know, “you can’t order your heart,” Cupid’s arrows can hit anyone at any time. And, in fact, when choosing a partner, most people listen to their feelings, and only then to their reason.

However, a significant obstacle to two lovers entering into an official union can be the different social status of the bride and groom: there is talk of self-interest, greed, and vanity, which contribute to the emergence of mistrust in the couple. In modern society, a marriage contract is often concluded between newlyweds, which in turn has a historical background. We are talking about morganatic marriages that occurred between crowned heads and their partners from lower classes.

What does "morganatic marriage" mean?

First, let's look at the origins of this concept. Already in the name you can clearly hear the German word “Morgen”, which translates as “morning”. There are several versions that give a complete definition. Most researchers, historians and linguists come to the conclusion that the adjective “morganatic” arose from the word “Morgengabe” and means a morning gift from a husband to his young wife.

Thus, morganatic marriage means a union of unequal social status. First of all, this applies to members of the ruling power, that is, to the families of kings, kings, emperors and other monarchs.

Examples of morganatic marriages in history

The concept of “morganatic marriage” arose in the late 18th – early 19th centuries and was enshrined in the legislation of many European countries, including the Russian Empire

This measure suppressed any possibility of persons of low blood coming to the throne. However, despite the strict prohibition, historians can now cite many examples of such unions.

Abroad

Thanks to the famous song, you know that “kings can do anything,” except marry for love. Here are some refuting facts of these words from the history of different states:

in 2004 in the Netherlands, Prince Johan Friso became engaged to a commoner, ex-girlfriend leader of the underworld;
in the same 2004, the cousin of the British Queen Elizabeth II, Davina Windsor, married Gary Lewis, who came from a family of a farmer and a servant, who, in addition, was a native New Zealander;
Davina Windsor had someone to follow as an example, because in 1960 she married Elizabeth II younger sister, Princess Margaret, her chosen one was the commoner Anthony Armstrong-Jones;

Prince Charles and Princess Diana (once a kindergarten teacher)

Princess Diana, beloved by the British people, was a kindergarten teacher before her marriage;
Prince of Orange Willem Alexander, before inheriting the Dutch throne, decided to marry the daughter of the Argentine minister Maxima Zorrieguieta, their marriage took place in 2002.

In the Russian Empire

In the history of our country, morganatic marriages have been observed no less than among foreigners. Well, the concept itself arose thanks to the signing of the “Act of Succession to the Throne” by Paul the First.

Listed below are only the most famous examples of morganatic marriages in the Russian Empire.

Marta Samuilovna Skavronskaya, born into a family of Estonian peasants, is none other than Empress Catherine the First. She became the morganatic wife of Peter the Great and the mother of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna.
Elizabeth the First also chose not a prince or a prince as her chosen one, but a Don Cossack with little land, Alexei Razumovsky. True, the husband, at the request of Catherine the Second, destroyed the marriage documents.
In turn, Catherine the Second could not resist the nobleman Grigory Potemkin, who became famous not only as the empress’s favorite, but also as the creator of the Black Sea Fleet.

Catherine the Great and Grigory Potemkin

The grandson of Nicholas the First, Prince Nikolai Konstantinovich, completely fell in love with a French courtesan and even stole a jewel from Alexandra Iosifovna for her sake. For such a serious offense he was stripped of all titles and sent into exile.
Prince Alexei Alexandrovich was officially married to maid of honor Alexandra Vasilievna Zhukovskaya, the daughter of a famous Russian poet, but their marriage was dissolved.

Due to strict prohibitions and restrictions, it was not so easy for members of the Imperial House to choose a life partner. Many marriages were just a fiction, a mere formality; there were frequent cases of marriage to the widow of a titled person and even unions among blood relatives. Historians also talk about descendants of the imperial nobility born out of wedlock.

By the way, the Romanov dynasty has several branches due to such vicissitudes. And according to one of them, the British Prince Harry is considered a descendant of Nicholas I

The British even offered to return the monarchy to our country, seating him on the Russian throne. No one took this proposal seriously.

What now?

Socially unequal marriages also occur in modern society, however, they do not play such a global role as during the times of tsarist rule (at least in Russia). It is logical that the concept of “morganatic marriage” has sunk into oblivion, because in our country there has been no monarchy for more than a hundred years.

As for states where this type of power is still preserved, the fate of the loving monarch, his chosen one and descendants depends on the legislation. There are still cases where morganatic marriage becomes the reason for abdication. Perhaps the most striking recent example is the marriage in 2005 of Princess Sayako of Japan to the commoner Yoshiki Kuroda. The girl not only lost her rank, but also deprived her descendants of the opportunity to ascend to the imperial throne.

Japanese princess Sayako married Yoshiki Kuroda, who did not have titles, thereby depriving herself of royal rank

But Albert II of the Principality of Monaco, who ascended the throne in 2006, was not convicted for his relationship with Olympic swimming champion Charlene Wittstock. The girl not only did not belong to the nobility, but was completely from another state (South Africa). Nevertheless, the couple got engaged and now appear together on many official visits.

Conclusion

So, what is a morganatic marriage? This, based on the translation from German, is a gift. Well, unions concluded in monarchical families out of love, and not for the sake of some vain and selfish considerations, are rare; they can truly be called a “gift” of fate.

April 25, 2018, 11:35 pm