See Hillwood's Russian glories and gardens

The entrance to Determined Women at the dacha at Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens/by Patricia Leslie

The Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens is a respite of soothing and enchanting glorious springtime colors where guests may wander lush grounds, and walk green pathways to admire endless flower gardens.

A sense of peace and serenity prevails; time is unhurried.

One pathway leads to a small Russian dacha*, built about 1969 and the setting of an exhibition of 100 pieces from the collection of Marjorie Merriweather Post (1887-1973) who lived and died at Hillwood and made it what it is today: luxurious galleries and a museum of incredible works of art.

The Grand Duchesses, the four daughters of Nicholas II and Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia, 1916, two years before they were murdered.

 Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, 1906, whose daughters are pictured above.

Left:  Star of the Order of Saint Anna, 19th cent. St. Petersburg, silver, diamonds and enamel. Translated from the front:  To those who love justice, piety, and faith. In the center is the Russian imperial eagle.

Right:  Badge of the Order of Saint Anna, 19th cent. Russia, gold, diamonds, enamel/by Patricia Leslie

Ms. Post's inheritance as the only child of her parents no doubt made possible her philanthropic efforts and marshaled her business smarts (she founded General Foods with her second husband**).

At age 27 she was the richest woman in the U.S.

Her father had founded the Post cereal company.

Georgii Musikiiskii (miniaturist), after Johann Gottfried Tannauer, Abraham Heydrich (watchmaker), 1725, watch with miniature portrait of Catherine I, Peter the Great's second wife, gold, silver, diamonds, enamel, copper, St. Petersburg. The ceiling lights at the exhibition are reflected on the watch/by Patricia Leslie

Back of the watch above/By Patricia Leslie

Her admiration of influential women and their designs, works, and artistry form the basis of the exhibition, Determined Women: Collectors, Artists, and Designers at Hillwood which begins in the 1700s and continues to present day. (A curator has added recent pieces about, for example, Stacey Abrams.)

For any cultural and history Russophile like me, the dacha brimming with priceless, historical pieces is another magnificent "find" in Washington, D.C.

After Elisabeth Louise Vigee-Lebrun, Portrait of Marie Antoinette and Children, after 1787, at Versailles with the jewel cabinet of Marie Antoinette on the right.

Christina Sanders Robinson (1796-1854), Portrait of Nicholas I, 1840, Russia. His grandmother was Catherine the Great.

Two evening dresses of Ms. Post, the one on the left by Thum (1865-1954), 1920-1925, and the one on the right, by Hattie Carnegie (1886-1956), 1935-1940/by Patricia Leslie

Embroidery by Aunte Mollie Post, Marjorie Merriweather Post's baby bonnet, n.d./by Patricia Leslie

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, designer, altar cloth, c. 1899, Russia/by Patricia Leslie

 

 Needlework by Caroline Lathrop Post, 1854/by Patricia Leslie

Joseph E. Davies was Ms. Post's third husband who took her to Moscow when he was U.S. ambassador to Russia, 1937-1938. Those years coincided with the 20th anniversary of the Russian Revolution and Joseph Stalin's sale of Russian imperial and pre-revolutionary works, money he needed for his industrial agenda.

Carpe diem!

And Ms. Post did! Now, outside of Russia, her Russian collection is considered the best in the world. (What would Mr. Putin exchange for it? Or, some of it?)

Many more Russian artifacts are on display in the mansion.

From left: Maid of Honor Cypher Pin, 1796-1801.  The cypher states for Empress Maria Feodorovna, wife of Emperor Paul I.  These pins were worn on the left side of the breast by Maids of Honor to the Empress. Gold, diamonds, Russia.

Center: Another Maid of Honor Cypher Pin, 1907. Attributed to the firm of Karl Karlovich Hahn.  The pin consists of the ciphers in Russian letters of the last two Empresses, Maria Feodorovna and Alexandra Feodorovna. It was given in 1907 to Irene Rimsky-Korsakoff (1883-1972) (Madame Mishtowt of D.C.). The ciphers are topped by the imperial cleft crown of Russia, all set in diamonds with gold and silver, St. Petersburg

Right: Attributed to Carl C. Blank, Lady of Honor Insignia with miniature portraits of Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, 1912. Gold, diamonds, silver, silver gilt, glass, St. Petersburg/by Patricia Leslie

Three busts of Empress Catherine II. 

From left, by Felix Chopin (1813-1892), made in Russia, c. 1867. 

In the center is a marble by an unknown sculptor, made in Russia, after 1771. 

On the right, by August Spiess, designer (1817-1904), the Imperial Porcelain Factory, St. Petersburg, after 1872 after a model by Jacques-Dominique Rachette (1744-1809) based on a marble original by Fedot Ivanovich Shubin (1740-1805)/by Patricia Leslie

Mather Brown (1761-1831), King Louis XVI Saying Farewell to his Family, 1793, U.S.A.

A pathway at Hillwood/by Patricia Leslie

At Hillwood/by Patricia Leslie

Determined Women at Hillwood/by Patricia Leslie

Despite its small size, the exhibition packs two rooms with photographs, paintings, sculpture, jewelry, embroidery and more, a "must see" for Russian cultural aficionados.

But you don't have to love Russian history, culture, and people to want to come since it's more than all things Russian. Artists and designers from other nations, especially France, are represented, along  with dress designers of her own whom Ms. Post admired.  And, I am guessing it was a relative who made Ms. Post's baby bonnet.

Pictures, descriptions and locations of all the objects in the exhibition may be found here. 

After she and Mr. Davies divorced in 1955, Ms. Post established Hillwood where she is buried on the grounds. (She reclaimed her maiden name after her fourth and last marriage.)

Of note: Ms. Post built and owned Mar-A-Lago in Florida, another of her "notable" five homes before Donald Trump, the present owner, bought it in 1985 for about $10 million. She had willed it to the National Park Service which deemed it too expensive to maintain. Forbes places the current value around $160 million.

The Hillwood exhibition accompanies a new publication, The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post ($60, hardcover; $30, paperback).

*A dacha is a small Russian country house or villa. In 2017, approximately 60 million Russians or more than 40 percent of the population of 145 million, were estimated to own one.

**Ms. Post's husbands were, in order:

Edward Bennett Close (married 1905; divorced 1919)

Edward Francis Hutton (m. 1920; d. 1935)

Joseph E. Davies (m. 1935; d. 1955)

Herbert A. May (m. 1958; d. 1964)

What: Determined Women: Collectors, Artists, and Designers at Hillwood

When: Now through Sunday, June 18, 2023, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Where: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20008

Admission: Suggested donations are $18 (adults), $15 (seniors), $10 (college students), $5 (child, ages 6 -18) and free for members and those under age 6. $3 discounts are available for adults and seniors who make reservations online for weekdays, and $1 off, for weekends. For busy times (Mother's Day, anyone?), reservations are highly recommended.

Directions via bus, rail, car

Parking: Free and on-site

For more information: 202-686-5807

Café onsite

patricialesli@gmail.com

Book review, 'The Race To Save The Romanovs'

Ahem.
 
After reading The Race To Save The Romanovs: The Truth Behind the Secret Plans to Rescue the Russian Imperial Family, I submit a better title is: The Race To Flee The Romanovs since ...

Nobody wanted 'em!
 
Not the Spanish, or the Danes, the Finns, the Swedes, the French, or the Germans. (Perish the thought! The Germans? The book quotes Nicholas and Alexandra that they would rather be dead than be rescued by Germans, and so they were.)

The English? My dear chap, certainly not the English, heaven forbid, for although Cousin George V was Nicky's first cousin and lookalike twin (their mothers were sisters), how dare the English to even consider, consider (!), harboring the Russian royal family and giving the English underclasses the very idea of revolution, like the Russians!
 
Please, spare us all, which the English did not.
 
What does family have to do with it anyway at a time like this, when your arse might be shot by subjects tempted to follow revolutionaries who might (dare to even ponder the possibility(!)) overtake the English throne?
 
The very thought of it! Which, the English tried not to think of it.
 
No way was the King of England going to help his family in distress, his wife, Queen Mary, whispering sweet reinforcements in his ear: nyet! (Naturally, Queen Mary arguably could be called a force behind George's failure to rescue, but that the respected Race author, Helen Rappaport, the writer of many Romanov books, would stoop to insert a rumored conversation between Gore Vidal and Princess Margaret, yes, that Princess Margaret, the sister of Queen Elizabeth II, about the weaknesses of her grandmother leaves one to ask: Prithee, why denigrate your work with this trifle?)  

In her book, Ms.Rappaport quotes letters, diaries, published materials, new documents she and her researchers uncovered, and government archives where she could gain access, some archives still under wraps after all these 100 years. ("It's none of the public's business," the royal keepers sniff.)
 
The Bolsheviks shot, bayoneted, and burned the family on July 17, 1918, and announced Nicholas's death only, which the British press barely bothered to report.  The English Royal Family desired to keep all matters Romanov quiet (surprise!) to avoid stirring up their own messes, excuse, masses and besides, the rest of the family, Alexandra and the five children were sequestered somewhere else, safe and sound in Siberia.
 
Weren't they?
 
No one cared too much about the imprisoned family anyway after they and close staff members were hauled east towards Siberia from St. Petersburg the year before they were murdered (the map in the book, quite confusing).
 
Before all the family deaths were revealed (much to the consternation of the world, but let's not talk about it), the Bolsheviks used them as negotiating tools to try and gain release of prisoners, Ms. Rappaport writes.
 
Alexandra, formerly of Germany, wife, mother  and  seemingly despised by all Russians and Brits (she did favor Rasputin, lest anyone need the reminder) suggests another unpopular wife of a national leader, Mary Todd Lincoln, both women whom some blame for their husbands' demise and deaths. (To this duo, please add Queen Mary. Is anyone working on a book about the trio? I would like to read it.) 
 
Ms. Rappaport's Race has a fine glossary of characters at the front which helps keep identifications straight, but not every name is included. (If you are going to list some, then why not list them all?)
 
I am thinking about the omission of Dmitri Malinovsky (pages 222-223), Nicholay Sokolov (pages 134 and 135), not to be confused with Viktor Sokolov (on the same page as Nicholay [page 223] and more), cousins and Princes Vladimir and Alexander Trubetskoy, pages 134, 136-137, and Konstantin Nabokov (the Russian ambassador to the United Kingdom whose name is found on page 248 and four other pages, whose surname is the same as Vladimir's of Lolita fame and are they related, I wondered? Yes, his uncle, I discovered in a web search). 

There were more names not identified in the glossary, but my paper ran short, and I grew weary of listing and looking them all up.
 
And then there was the tiny (in small print) Romanov family  tree and all their European royalty relations spread over two pages, necessitating a magnifying glass, and surely, there is a better way to display the lineage in larger print for all those beyond the age of 55 who might read this book and take a gander at the family tree!
 
(RE: The map of the Romanovs' prison route. Where was England? We know where England is, but its relationship to Finland and Russia would have helped here.)

Was this a race to get the book out in the centennial year of the Romanovs' murders?

Rumor of an escape route to Japan and then, the US, is mentioned (?).

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The pit where the Romanovs were thrown

 

Lilies are planted at the ditch where the Bolsheviks threw the bodies of the Romanov family and their staff members after the murderers covered them with sulphuric acid to shield their identities on July 17, 1918/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
 
The Romanovs, Russia's last Royal Family, were murdered by the Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg, Russia on the night of July 17, 1918. The Bolsheviks shot, bayoneted, and burned the family and their loyal staff of four at the Ipatiev House  where the family had been imprisoned their last 78 days.

Due to the reluctance of some of the perpetrators to shoot the daughters, and the need to bring in fresh troops to finish them off, the crime took much longer than expected.  When at last the deed was completed, the killers hauled the bodies almost ten miles away to an abandoned ditch where they pitched the dead.

Now the ditch and the surrounding area are a holy place, Ganina Yama and the home of the Monastery of the Holy Royal Martyrs.  There visitors are invited to come, pay respects, and wonder why the Bolsheviks also murdered the children, a crime the killers tried to hide for as long as possible to avoid a world outcry and to be able to use the family in death to negotiate for the release of prisoners.

These photographs were taken on July 25, 2018, a week after the centennial of the murders.

To see the second site where the bodies were moved on July 19, 1918, go here.

The family and their servants were canonized on November 1, 1981. Except for the children, Alexei and Maria whose bones were found elsewhere and are still in Russian archives, the family and staff were buried on July 17, 1998 at Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg where most czars since Peter the Great are buried.
 The ditch at Ganina Yama. Yama means "mine."/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
A covered wooden semi-circle walkway surrounds the Romanov burial ditch at Ganina Yama. A cross is at right center and pictured below/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
 
A cross flanked by fresh flowers at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
 
Large photographs of the seven murdered Romanovs hang at the memorial site, each picture bordered by cascades of fresh flowers/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
To the left is a photograph of Czar Nicholas II/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
 
Photographs of the Romanovs bordered by fresh flowers on a wooden walkway form a semi-circle around the burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
Adjacent to the burial site is a chapel with 17 cupolas to commemorate the 17th day of July, 1918 when the family and their staff of four were murdered and brought here. The monastery was built in 2001 and includes seven chapels, one for each family member/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

The adjacent chapel with its 17 domes, 17 to commemorate the day of the tragedy, July 17, 1918/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
The semi-circular wooden walkway with photographs of the Romanovs surrounds the depression in the ground, the site where the bodies were thrown/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
The chapel with 17 domes adjacent to the burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
A statue of the five children, Olga, Alexei, Anastasia, Maria, and Tatiana near the burial site at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018


A chapel at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 17, 2018

Another chapel at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018


A chapel at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

A chapel at Ganina Yama and a woman wearing apparel and head covering which the monastery provides to visitors who are not properly clothed/Photo by Veronica,  July 25, 2018

The bust of Empress Alexandra at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018
The back of a bust of Nicholas II at Ganina Yama/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

Apparel to cover bare legs for men and women is distributed at the entrance to Ganina Yama, with head coverings for women available, as well/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

One hundred years later on July 17, 2018 ,an estimated 75,000 people attended a liturgy at the Church on the Blood in Yekaterinburg built on the site of the house where the Romanovs were killed. The people walked to Ganina Yama, about four hours away, following the route the bodies were taken. To the left above are photographs of the Royal Family/Photo, the Vatican

Romanovs' second burial site, July 19, 1918, in pictures

Across these railroad tracks at the Porosyonkov Ravine or Field is the second place the Bolsheviks buried the bodies of the  Romanovs, their cook, doctor, maid, and footman on July 19, 1918. To hide the bodies from the Bolsheviks' opponents, the Whites, the executioners moved them 4.5 miles from the first place they dumped them on July 17, 1918  at what is now Ganina Yama, a monastery. (For July 25, 2018 photos of Ganina Yama, go here.)

The bodies of two children, Alexei and Maria, were found in a separate place and still have not been buried at Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg with the rest of the family.  The Russian Orthodox Church reportedly is unable to accept the last remains as those of Alexei and Maria.  

At this ravine 61 years later, amateur sleuths found most of the Romanovs' remains. This is how the site looks a little more than 100 years later.

Entrance to the second burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

Monuments stand on both sides of the second burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

One monument at the second burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

Another monument at the second burial site/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

The second burial site of the Romanovs and their four staff members/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

The second burial site of the Romanovs and their four staff members/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

The cross and second burial site of the Romanovs and their four staff members looking towards the exit path/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018

The exit looking towards the railroad tracks/Photo by Patricia Leslie, July 25, 2018


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