«I read his diary, he (Nicholas 2) brought it with him. I was very interested in one day in the diary, this is April 1, where he writes about Alice of H (Alix of Hesse) and about me. He likes Alice very much, he has already told me about it before, and I am seriously starting to be jealous of her…»
• , • .he new crowned Emperor Nicholas II and his wife Empress Alexandra Feodorovna had made a visit to the Austrian empire in 1896. We can see in the slides some illustrations during their visit, in the 3rd slide the Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria talking to the Russian Empress and next to her, Elizabeth the Empress of Austria nicknamed Sisi and Emperor Nicholas II,and the 4rth slide we can see a zoom in of that illustration showing the two Empresses who were considered to be the most beautiful at their times. Actually, Empress Alexandra saw Sisi 9 years ago when she was Princess Alix of Hesse, she was so impressed by her charm character and beauty. “On Saturday we saw the Empress of Austria, and I was perfectly enchanted with her. She has a most lovely, tall & thin figure (50 years old) and such a pretty face & soft voice.” wrote to her brother Prince Ernest of Hesse, 3 August 1887. “How funny it is to hear German spoken everywhere after 2 years in Russia. […] Nicky drove with the Emperor [of Austria] & I followed with the Empress - I must say I am shy with all these masses of strange faces again. The Empress I had already seen twice before - she enquired after you. - Stephanie [the Dowager Crown Princess of Austria] was directly charming - she must be coming now in a minute - as she wanted to see me a little quietly. […] At 5 there is an immense Dinner & Cercle (oh dear) & parade, then Pürschen for Nicky. At 4 family dinner at Leinz, then drive & later a Concert here in the Burg. It is such a pitty [sic] that as soon as the Empress does not appear Stephanie neither does, as she would have been such a great help to me.” wrote to her brother Ernest the Duke of Hesse 15/27th of August 1896 #empressalexandrafeodorovna #empresselisabethofaustria #empresssissi #alexandrafeodorovna #royalwomen #elisabethofaustria #history #royals #nicholasii #franzjosef #romanovs #theromanovs #romanovdynasty #romanova_team #otma #sissiofaustria #alixofhesse #sisi #empresselisabeth #romyschneider https://www.instagram.com/p/CbYFvCosMJN/?utm_medium=tumblr
Both Nicholas I and Nicholas II’ s consort converted their names to Alexandra Feodorovna.
Nicholas I married Charlotte of Prussia and Nicholas II married Alex of Hesse. Both marriages were happy.
However, in personality they were very different, Charlotte was the obedient and admiring supporter of her husband’s views. Her personality was completely overshadowed by Nicholas I’s strong character. As empress, she had no interest in charity work.
Alix was very political, even interfering in her husband’s government affairs, highlighting his weak personality.
rowing up, Alexandra’s family hid a dark secret. The men of their royal line tended to suffer from the often-fatal disease hemophilia, an illness that prevents blood from clotting. When Alexandra was barely a year old, her hemophiliac brother Frederich died after a nasty fall. Meanwhile, the women of the line were often carriers of the gene, including Alexandra herself.
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II.
eath visited the royal House of Hesse in 1878. A violent outbreak of diphtheria entered the palace, and many of the children fell ill, along with their father Louis. Alexandra was among them. Her mother Princess Alice refused to leave their sides and nursed most of them back to health, but her loyalty came at a great cost.
In December of that year, Alice took ill and died along with Alexandra’s most beloved sister, Marie. The young Alexandra was reportedly so bereft at the loss that her whole personality turned from cheerful to solemn.
Later in her life, the nervous and fear-wracked Empress was addicted to Veronal, a kind of sedative. As she once confessed to a friend, “I’m literally saturated with it.”
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III.
he romantic love story of Alexandra and her husband Tsar Nicholas II is one for the ages. They first met at her sister’s wedding in 1884, when Alexandra was only 12 years old. Over the years, they grew closer and closer, and soon they were both very much in love. Nicholas even spoke of her with aching adoration in his diary.
He wrote: “It is my dream to one day marry Alix H. I have loved her for a long time…For a long time, I have resisted my feeling that my dearest dream will come true.”
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IV.
icholas and Alexandra may have loved each other fiercely, but they were in for utter heartbreak at first. Nicholas’ parents Alexander and Maria were staunchly anti-German and refused him flat out when he asked to marry her. As for Alexandra’s side of the family, Queen Victoria wasn’t too pleased with Russia, and she personally detested Nicholas’ father.
