Parties of the Past Century (II)
February 16, 2013
Le Bal du Palais d’Hiver
It just so happened that I stumbled across an incredibly posh and surprisingly well composed series of five episodes on the most exquisite XXth century parties I’m going to use as a main support for my own sequence, just to baffle a bit the monotony this blog has, alas, succumbed to.
So without further (and obviously unnecessary) introductory lines, behold the first sample.
As if anticipating the ensuing horrors of the Russian Revolution, Tzar Nicholas II, knowingly the last Romanov ever to sit on his rightful throne, and Empress Alexandra, whose demeanor, like her mother in law, I’ve always disapproved of, threw the most dazzling party at the Palais d’Hiver.
February 16, 2013 at 7:51 pm
That was extraordinary!
We were in Paris in the early 90s and staying on the floor of a friend from university who was living in The attic room of a family near L’Opera (doing their ironing and tutoring although we are not convinced she did much of either). One night she said “I met someone who invited me to a book launch party near the Louvre – tonight”. We went together and it turned out to be the exiled Romanovs who were now working in art history or something (never got near the book but it was large and art history focused and probably very expensive). Hadn’t thought about that night until watching your video clip recommendation.
Thank you!
*wavingfromlosangeles*
February 17, 2013 at 12:40 pm
So fantastic to have such memories of medieval dynasties turned modern and be able to say you’ve met them! Thank you for sharing
February 16, 2013 at 8:57 pm
Amazing Madame!
February 17, 2013 at 12:49 pm
Merci beaucoup, as always!
February 17, 2013 at 1:23 am
Fascinating story, thank you for posting it. In the mid 1990s I rode a bus to work through Burnaby, Canada. Each morning an elegant lady with a pleasant smile got on the bus. Two years later, I was surprised to read an article about her in MacLean’s magazine, claiming her late husband was the Tsar’s son Alexi. It’s an interesting story. She uses the name Sandra Romanov.
http://npsnet.com/tsarevich/index.html
February 17, 2013 at 1:26 am
Fascinating story, thank you for posting it. In the mid 1990s I rode a bus to work through Burnaby, Canada. Each morning an elegant lady with a pleasant smile got on the bus. Two years later, I was surprised to read an article about her in MacLean’s magazine, claiming her late husband was the Tsar’s son Alexi. It’s an interesting story. She uses the name Sandra Romanov.
Google “Tsarevich Alexei, lenin’s great secret” to read an article about Alexi and Sandra written by John Kendrick.
February 17, 2013 at 12:48 pm
That’s one beguiling story of exile, the Romanov’s… I knew about some being expatriated to America but actually never heard of Alexei’s wife being there… Never genuinely believed it’s possible to just see a Grand Duchess on the bus, like normal people. But I guess that since you remembered her face distinctly, she did have a certain something aristocratic left about her…
February 19, 2013 at 6:22 am
Initially, I thought she was a bid odd. I think that’s why I remembered her. It was the way she walked, how she held herself and how she sat that was different. Her manners and style reminded me of ladies from Victorian England. I conducted quite a lot of research and discovered most of the history we were taught in school was fabricated. It is possible the Tsar’s son survived and was well hidden and protected. I recommend reading her story, it’s interesting. Her husband died in the 1970s, and she would have needed to support herself, hence, the reason I saw her on the bus going to work. Eustace Mullins was a researcher and historian who claimed to have known Alexei. Eustace confirmed that Alexei survived. Eustace’s interviews are on YouTube. Bankers in England financed the Bolsheviks and the revolution. They absconded with the Tsar’s wealth and used it to finance the USA’s Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed is a private bank owned by 12 banking families, most of which are European. The Fed runs the USA, it controls everything. The Tsar, at the time of his death, was the wealthiest man in the world. He was not cooperating with the bankers and other royal families, and was eliminated. As well, they had an agenda to force communism upon Russian citizens.
February 17, 2013 at 1:54 pm
Wow. Hard to know what to say to such displays of wealth. It’s hard for me to imagine seeing anything like that. But it was beautiful and the video is a nice touch.
February 17, 2013 at 8:18 pm
Indeed, these videos are stunningly well made for their reduced time.
February 17, 2013 at 3:37 pm
What an extraordinary event! Thanks for sharing it.
February 20, 2013 at 2:43 am
I’ve always been impatient with restraint and self-control when it comes to parties, in particular the exquisite ones.
A wonderful video – especially welcome when one is trapped in the middle of a not-very-happy work day, as I am.
Jewels the size of fruits and nuts? The very best type of dessert.
February 21, 2013 at 9:32 am
I’m in full agreement with your last statement: huge precious stones to replace common deserts are the best choice ever, not merely in regards to visual enhancement but also for those fine ladies at the table who wish to keep their diet… Now we’ve exposed their secret to a tiny waist.
February 21, 2013 at 9:01 am
I’ve come back, bearing awards: http://thecaferoyal.wordpress.com/2013/02/21/liebchen-liebster/#comments
February 22, 2013 at 4:19 pm
Indeed, leaving aside obvious social and political considerations, these costumes were very beautiful and they are part of European culture and history. Merci, Madame de Pique.