Anonymous (Bludov, Dmitrii)

Les Dernieres Heures de la Vie de L'Empereur Nicolas I (the Last Hours in the Life of Emperor Nicholas I)

Vienne (Vienna), M. Auer, 1855. First edition in French (translated and published in the same year as the original Russian); 10 1/2 x 7; pp. 1-25, [7]; green wraps, printed and ruled in black; illustrated with three plates by Jos. Stoufs; lacking portrait frontis, else complete; tiny, white label to upper left corner; faint, discolored spot to margin of front wrap; small chips to tips of spine and slight curling to corners; scattered foxing, mostly to margins and verso of plates; in about very good- condition. Published anonymously, the booklet was allegedly written by Count Dmitrii Nikolaevich Bludov, alt. Dimitri Bloudoff (1785 - 1864) - a Russian noble, imperial official, and a member of the inner circle of Emperor Nicholas I. Over time, Bludov served as Minister of Justice, Minister of the Interior, Chairman of the State Council, and President of the Academy of Sciences. He was also a historian, author, founder of the Arzamas Literary Society, close friend of Turgenev, Karamzin, and Zhukovskii, and legal advisor to Nicholas, writing many of his speeches, editing the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire in 1841-1842, drafting a new Criminal Code in 1845, and presiding over the court that condemned the Decembrists to death. The book gave the official version of Emperor Nicholas' death, i.e. pneumonia resulting from an untreated cold, touting his unwavering Christian values and refuting the circulating speculations that the ruler had committed suicide, while the Crimean War was raging. Very good .

ZH BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 002736

Catalogue: Romanovs

Keywords: Romanovs

Mitchell, Nina Cornelia; et al

An Archive of Material, Belonging to Activist Nina Cornelia Mitchell and Related to Social Reformer and Journalist Paul Underwood Kellogg and Emperor Nicholas II Romanov's Family

Various, By the authors, 1939. First Edition. Comprised of three letters and a manuscript memoir, the archive covered three continents and intertwined the lives of royals, reformers, and exiles. Nina Cornelia Mitchell (1854 - 1958) was an activist and an ardent relief worker in Europe during and after the First World War. She was also the first cousin of author and artist Miss Violet, nee Serena Catherine Dandridge, with whom she lived in the historic "Rosebrake" mansion in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, after her return to the United States. Paul Underwood Kellogg (1879 - 1958) was a social reformer, journalist, and co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union. He was the editor of "Survey" magazine, which he had managed to turn into the country's leading social work journal in a very short period of time. Mitchell had been visiting her friends - Prince Aleksandr Eristov, Georgian Lieutenant-Genaral, and his wife, who were living in exile in Paris, when she met Count Piotr Vassilievich Hendrikov, former Governor of the Orel Province and brother of Countess Anastasiia Hendrikova, Lady of Honor to Empress Aleksandra Feodorovna. He gave Nina a memoir, written first in Russian and then in French, to translate and write into English. Through his sister's stories and his personal visits to the Romanov family, Hendrikov was intimately familiar with the sovereigns' lives and suffered through their assasinations, which included his sister's. The memoir, emotional and painful to read, revealed some lesser known facts about Nicholas' family. Hendrikov stated that, although Aleksandra was thought to be cold and aloof, she was in reality just profoundly shy. He also gave examples of the Emperor's love and compassion for his people, including an instance, when having been presented with new war equipment for the infantry, he feared it would be too heavy for his soldiers, so he strapped it on and walked 15 kilometers to test it. The narrative followed the family's daily life, before and after their arrests, their work, their devotion to each other, the births of the children and their coping with son Aleksei Nikolaevich' terrible disease. Later on, Hendrikov described Nicholas' abdication, the reaction of the people, the exile and the terrible treatment the family received from their guards, his meetings with representatives of Duma, and finally, their murders, together with those of the closest to them people, court and servants, who had followed them through the last year of their lives. In her first letter to Kellogg, Mitchell gave the prehistory of the memoir, asked him to read it and possibly assist with finding a publisher for it, mentioned her better understanding of the situation in Russia, and inquired about getting a subscription to the "Survey" for her friend Helen Pendleton. In his response, Kellogg promised to read the papers, told Mitchell he would love to hear about her work in Europe and confirmed Helen Pendleton's subscription to his magazine. In Nina's second and last letter, she stated she would await the editor's criticism of the memoir, talked about her friends the Eristovs, and invited the Kelloggs to visit her in the "City of the Shepherds, in the Valley of the Daugther of the Stars." - Two ALS, signed by Nina Cornelia Mitchell, dated July 18, 1939 and August 14, 1939; 6 1/2 x 5 and 7 x 5 1/2; pp. [12] and [4] respectively; off-white, textured stock, black ink and red pencil; light age-toning; two rust spots from removed paper clips; very good condition. - Typed letter by Paul Kellogg, dated July 19, 1939; 11 x 8 1/2; single sheet, text to recto only; small, handwritten note in pencil; a few nicks and chips to edges; good condition. - Manuscript memoir, in two parts; 11 1/2 x 8 1/2 and 9 3/4 x 8 1/4; loose sheets, pp. 13 and 16 respectively; text to recto only; the first part a bit fragile, with several small nicks to corners; overall in very good condition. Very good .

ZH BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 002577

Catalogue: Romanovs

Keywords: Romanovs, Kellogg, Mitchell

Romanov, Nikolai

Spovid Buvshoho Tsaria (Confession of the Former Tsar)

Winnipeg, Canada, Nakladom "Ruskoi knyharni, 1918. First Edition. First Ukrainian edition, translated from Russian, n. d. (ca 1918); 7 x 5 1/2; pp. [1], 4-64; green wraps, printed and ruled in black; a few nicks to fore-edge and a small chip to corner of front wrap; thin strip of foxing to margin of back wrap; overall in very good condition. Allegedly, written by the the last Emperor of Russia Nikolai II Romanov as an explanation to the events and reasons for his "abdication of the throne," it was sharply criticized and labeled "not entirely, but predominantly conscious lies" by the anonymous author of the preface, to the point, where one could wonder, if the "cofession" was really written by the tsar. Chapters included the history of the Romanovs with Rasputin, Tsarina Alexandra's contempt for the Russian people, etc. Very good .

ZH BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 002706

Catalogue: Romanovs

Keywords: Romanov Family, Autobiography

Savchenko, P. (Petr Sevastianovich)

Russkaia Dievushka (Russian Girl) [Signed / Inscribed by Author]

Bielgrad (Belgrade), By the Author, 1930. First Edition. First edition; 7 1/4 x 4 3/4; pp. [2], 5-64; beige wraps, illustrated with a portrait of Olga Nikolaevna Romanova and a facsimile of her signature; mild age-toning to margins; a small signature of previous owner to upper margin of front wrap; a bit of glue showing at hinges; a small puncture (not affecting readability) to margin of last leaf; overall in very good condition. With a lengthy inscription to an identified recipient, signature and date. Petr Sevastianovich Savchenko (1881 - 1945 [?]) was born in a noble family, the son of a Major General in the Imperial Army. He was a lawyer and a Lieutenant Colonel in the White Army. Savchenko escaped Russia after the October Revolution and settled in Belgrade. His current biography, a moving tribute to Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna Romanova, was compiled from documents, memories, and stories - of his own and those of others, who had known and loved Emperor Nicholas II's eldest child. Very good .

ZH BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 003155

Catalogue: Romanovs

Keywords: Romanovs