Grand Duke George Alexandrovich Romanov was a brother to the Russian Emperor Nicholas II. He was the third son in the family of autocrat Alexander III and Maria Fedorovna.
Childhood and youth
George was born on April 27 (May 9), 1871 in Tsarskoye Selo (Russian Empire). It is known that at first he was a beautiful, healthy, strong and extremely cheerful child. Despite the fact that George was known as the favorite of his mother, he, like the other brothers, was brought up in severity. The boys slept in army beds, got up at 6 o’clock in the morning and washed themselves with cold water. Their breakfast consisted of black bread and porridge, and for lunch they ate lamb cutlets or roast beef with baked potatoes and peas. When George was 11 years old, he was even carved for one of the infringements, although such an assault was not characteristic of the royal family.
At that time, the imperial couple quite often lived in the Gatchina Palace. There, at the disposal of the guys were a small bedroom, a games room, a living room and a dining room, which were furnished with inexpensive furniture. The only valuable thing in their home was a large icon, generously encrusted with pearls and precious stones.
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Usually, the brothers studied in different rooms, so that they had no reason to distract each other. At the same time, all the teachers were the same. It is worth noting that they were given an excellent education, since the lessons were taught by real professors. The boys were very capable, as evidenced by the fact that they were fluent in French, German and English, and also spoke good Danish. In addition, the young men were fond of fishing and shot well.
Georgy Romanov grew up as a smart boy and he was promised a brilliant career in the Navy. Unfortunately, this was not destined to come true. He became seriously ill, and soon the doctors diagnosed him with tuberculosis. In 1890, parents decided that George needed to go abroad. On this journey he was accompanied by his elder brother Nikolai. They were supposed to arrive in Japan, since Empress Maria Fyodorovna believed that the sea air and sunbathing would help her sick son recover. But in Bombay, George had an attack that forced him to return to Russia. Nikolai had to continue the journey without his brother.
Caucasian resort
George’s health was getting worse, so they decided to send him to Abastumani, a small Georgian village located at the foot of the Meskhetian mountains. I must say that this choice was not accidental. Even then it was known about the unique climate, beautiful nature and life-giving sources of those places. The village gradually began to turn into a popular balneological resort. Residents from nearby villages came here for treatment, taking sick relatives and placing themselves in huts near bathtubs located right in the ground.
Why exactly in Abastumani it was decided to treat George? It is known that before sending him here, several places were considered where the young man would feel better. We stopped at Abastumani with its unique climate. This was greatly facilitated by the Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich, who was at that time the viceroy in the Caucasus. He loved this land very much and was sure of the extraordinary healing properties of its climate. Here, he had four sons, who subsequently will spend a lot of time with Georgy Romanov.
Arrival in the Caucasus
In 1891, Maria Fyodorovna, along with her sick son, several members of the retinue, and an escort arrived in Abastumani. Previously, a plot of land was bought from Adolf Remmert, a medical inspector in the Caucasus, who supervised the installation of mineral waters. Immediately began to build temporary residential buildings and pitch tents for the servants and security. The empress herself, her son and her inner circle settled in the best houses of local aristocrats.
Meanwhile, the construction of the so-called palaces, one stone and two wooden, was proceeding quickly on the purchased site. These buildings were quite unusual. The walls at the wooden palaces were made up of thick logs sewn with shields, after which they were finished. It was believed that it was better to live in such houses. In one of the palaces, all the rooms were decorated with skilled craftsmen who laid beautiful tile stoves in them, and in the hall there was a huge fireplace. On the second floor there were bedrooms, where a wide staircase led.
Life in Abastumani
In a small pretty town, time flowed slowly. There is no information about the personal life of Georgy Romanov. It is only known that here he underwent a complex of various medical procedures, and in the summer he traveled to the picturesque surroundings and studied. His faithful companion was always the Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, who was often called Gigo in the Georgian manner. He was born in Tiflis and was a great connoisseur of history, since from childhood he was keenly interested in these places with so many ancient monuments.
Grand Duke George Romanov fell in love with this land. The monastery of Zarzma made a particularly strong impression on him, which he visited with his constant companion Georgy Mikhailovich. Later, the architecture of this monastery prompted him to decide on the construction of a church dedicated to Alexander Nevsky, his heavenly patron. Its construction was led by Otto Simanson.
The heir to the Tsarevich
In 1894, the father of George Romanov, Emperor Alexander III, unexpectedly dies. Brother Nicholas becomes the new autocrat. However, he did not have his children at that time, so George was declared the heir to the prince. His health was still poor, so for some time he had to live in Abastumani without a break. Despite the fact that he was with his father during his death in Livadia, doctors categorically forbade him to go to St. Petersburg and take part in the funeral.
The real joy of George was the rare at that time visits of his mother Maria Fedorovna. In 1895, they shared a trip to Denmark with relatives. It was there that one of the most serious attacks happened, which for a long time confined George to bed. When he felt better, he returned to Abastumani.
Friendly support
Despite a serious illness, Tsarevich Georgy Romanov never felt alone. In Abastumani, his mother began to visit him much more often. In addition, his sisters and brothers constantly came to him, as well as the children of Prince Mikhail Nikolayevich, the Grand Dukes permanently residing in the Caucasus.
The friendly circle did their best to dispel George’s sad thoughts. They arranged funny picnics, interesting evenings, costume balls, which were so fashionable at that time in St. Petersburg. Not only from Tiflis, but also from the capital itself, many young people came to him. It is known that the prince even baptized the daughter of Artemy Kalamkarov, the director of the local post office. By the way, the spouse of the official took an active part in the Abastuman court life. Nothing seemed to portend trouble.
The death of the Tsarevich
Wednesday, June 28, 1899, 9 a.m. George decides to stroll around the surroundings of Abastumani. To do this, he asked to give him a tricycle running on a gasoline engine. The weather was fine and a pleasant breeze was blowing. The Grand Duke quickly drove along the highway to the Zekarsky Pass. Soon he noticed a cart ahead, in which the milkwoman Anna Dasoeva and her worker, a boy named Athanasius Semenikhin, were traveling. The prince honked and they gave way to him, directing their cart to the side of the road.
Not even 10 minutes had passed before the thrush saw George returning back on his tricycle, but already much more slowly. She immediately noticed his bloodied tunic and, feeling trouble, sent the boy to the palace, and she ran to the prince herself. Forces quickly left him, so she helped him to fall to the ground. Soon Anna Dasoeva noticed that spots began to appear on George's face. At 9 hours 35 minutes the heir to the tsesarevich and the grand duke was gone. He was only 28.
Causes of death
Meanwhile, Athanasius Semenikhin, sent to the palace, reported the misfortune. The life physician Aykanov and several people from the prince's retinue immediately left for the scene of the tragedy. The body of George was transported to the palace, and at the place where he died, a tent was put up and a guard was assigned to it.
The next morning, an autopsy was performed, followed by embalming of the body, which was carried out by the senior resident of St. Petersburg Semenovsky Hospital, Mr. Birulya, who was resting in Abastumani. This was attended by the commandant, Major General Rylsky, prosecutor Nimander, Ch. the doctor of the local hospital, Mr. Gopadze, as well as the doctors Maksimovich, Tekutiev, Voskresensky and others. An autopsy revealed that the death of the crown prince occurred as a result of the sudden rupture of one of the pulmonary vessels, resulting in severe hemorrhage. The embalming of the body was completed only in the evening.
Worship
Starting from the day of death, a large number of local people began to flock to the scene of the tragedy. Two days later, to the ashes of the Grand Duke, put up for worship in the palace, they began to allow everyone to say goodbye to the heir to the Tsarevich. His body rested in a temporary coffin covered with a naval flag. The great prince himself was dressed in a naval uniform.
On the ninth day, the ashes of George Romanov was transferred to the Alexander Nevsky Church. A memorial liturgy was held here, and at the end of it a memorial service was held, which was attended by representatives of various departments, authorities and the generals. Anna Dasoeva was also allowed to be present here, in whose hands the Grand Duke died.
Way to Petersburg
The church read the gospel all night. July 7 at 4 h. 15 min. in the morning, Prince Nikolai Mikhailovich arrived here, accompanied by representatives of the authorities. Soon the coffin with the ashes was carried out and installed on the hearse. After this, the procession, led by the clergy and accompanied by garrison troops, moved to Borjomi. Upon arrival, the coffin with the body of the Grand Duke was placed on an emergency train, leaving for Batumi.
There, the mournful procession was met by Empress Maria Fyodorovna, the sisters and brothers of the deceased, as well as Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich. They arrived in Batumi on the battleship "George the Victorious", which was escorted by the Black Sea squadron. The coffin was transferred to the barge and delivered to the ship. There it was installed on the trench of the ship, surrounded by beautiful tropical plants. After that, the battleship began to surround boats and steamboats with people who wanted to say goodbye to the deceased prince. At 10 o’clock. 15 minutes. the ship headed towards Novorossiysk. From there, the coffin was delivered by rail to Rostov-on-Don. A funeral train on its way several times stopped for a memorial service. In the morning of July 11, he arrived in Moscow, and the next day in the evening - in St. Petersburg.
The funeral
The burial of George Romanov, whose biography turned out to be so short, took place on July 14. The liturgy and the funeral service were performed by Metropolitan Anthony in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, after which there came a moment of farewell to the deceased.
The first to approach the coffin was Maria Fyodorovna, followed by the elder brother of the deceased, autocrat Nikolai II. After them, the entire royal family took turns saying goodbye to the Grand Duke. The coffin with his body was lowered into the grave, located next to the sarcophagus of Alexander III.
Memory
Emperor Nicholas II never forgot about his brother George Alexandrovich. Subsequently, he often recalled his extraordinary sense of humor. He even wrote down his most successful jokes on scraps of paper, and then collected them in a special casket, known as the "box of curiosities." Over the years, Nicholas repeatedly turned to its contents in order to amuse his household.
In 1910, when the son of Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich was born, he named him George in honor of his elder brother. Unfortunately, he also did not live long. At the age of 21, he died in a terrible car accident. It is also known that in honor of Grand Duke George Romanov the settlement Georgsfeld, founded in 1885, located in Transcaucasia, was founded by German colonists. Now it is the settlement of Chinarli (Azerbaijan).
Genetic research
In 1994, there was a need for DNA analysis of the remains of the imperial family shot in Yekaterinburg in 1918. To do this, it was decided to exhume the body of the younger brother of Nikolai 2 George Romanov. This procedure put an end to the long-standing problem of searching for DNA of the closest relatives of the murdered autocrat, as foreign descendants flatly refused to provide their biological material.
The result of these genetic studies was the conclusion that, from the forensic, medical and scientific points of view, the result was excellent. This means that the genotype of George Romanov completely coincided with the DNA of the object called "skeleton No. 4". It was under this number that the remains of the last Russian emperor Nicholas II were listed.