The heroine of this article is Princess Marina, the Duchess of Kent, whose years of life covered most of the full dramatic events of the 20th century. Born under the sultry sky of Hellas, she found a new homeland among the fogs of London, and her name remains forever inscribed in the history of the British royal family.
Princess born in Athens
On December 13, 1906, the heir to the Greek throne, Prince Nicholas - the son of King George I who ruled in those years - and his wife, the representative of the Romanov dynasty that reigned in Russia, Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna, was joyful - they had a daughter, the future Duchess of Kent of Marina. She became the third child of this Providence couple. In addition to her, two more daughters grew up in the family - Elizabeth and Olga.
Born in Athens, the newborn princess was baptized in the Orthodox faith. Among those present during the celebration of the sacrament were two kings - her native grandfather George I and the British monarch Edward VII. Next to them, with respectful bowing of their heads, stood Prince of Denmark and Greece Andrei , Princess of Wales Maria, as well as Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich and Grand Duchess Victoria Fedorovna who arrived from Russia. Barely born, the child was surrounded by the splendor and fuss of court life.
Marina, Duchess of Kent: The Early Years
Marina did not utter her first words in Greek, but in English - it was on him that the entire royal family communicated with each other . Just as high society in Russia used to express itself exclusively in French, Greek aristocrats preferred English to their native language. Accordingly, the upbringing of the young princess was entrusted to the thin and prim governess discharged from London.
From an early age, the future duchess showed a talent for drawing, and later for painting, noticed and skillfully developed by her father in time, deservedly considered in her circles, though not professional, but very gifted and skillful artist. His lessons helped the girl learn to feel and create beauty.
Escape from rebellious Greece
The princess's happy and serene childhood ended when she was barely nine years old. The fateful year of 1917 came, bringing with it the misfortunes not only of Russia, but also of its native Greece, the usual course of life of which was overturned by a coup. Fleeing from imminent danger, the family first emigrated to Switzerland, and then settled in France.
Here, Prince Nikolai, Marina’s father, for the first time in his life was faced with the need to earn money himself, as he didn’t have enough livelihoods, and as the head of his family he was fully responsible for the well-being of those close to him.
They brought some income for their own paintings put up for sale, which attracted buyers not only with artistic merits, but with autographs of a member of the royal family. However, these funds did not cover all the current expenses of the family, accustomed to not denying anything to themselves. As a result, Prince Nicholas was forced to earn a living in private painting lessons.
Princess and Couturier
His family ended up in Paris that year, when a stream of emigrants from Russia, driven by the revolution, poured into the capital of France, and the prince and his wife tried as best they could to help the refugees settle in a new place. Marina and her sisters had to do all the housework themselves, since there was no question of hiring a servant. Despite all the hardships, she fell in love with Paris, and when in 1921 the political situation allowed her family to return to Athens, she chose to stay in France.
Secular chronicle reported that the reason was her desire to continue her education, but people who knew the princess closely hinted that the young Parisian fashion designer Edward Moline, whom Marina met during one of the fashion shows, played an important role in this. However, no matter how far their mutual enthusiasm went, there could be no question of marriage: prudent princesses did not marry a couturier.
Marina, Duchess of Kent: Marriage
As for marriage, this issue - the most important in the life of any woman - became every year more and more relevant. Finally, in March 1932, during a trip to London, Marina met with her future husband. At one of the social events, the girl was introduced to her distant relative, who was her second cousin, Prince George, who two years later became her husband.
On the eve of the wedding, the groom was awarded the title of Duke of Kent, the right to which after the marriage received his young wife. The solemn ceremony took place on November 29, 1934 in Westminster Abbey, after which the new-found Duchess of Kent, happy and full of hope, proceeded with her husband to the Greek chapel, where the rite was repeated in accordance with the Orthodox canon.
In those days, leading British newspapers published reports of this important event. In addition to listing the dignitaries who arrived at the ceremony from all over Europe, and excerpts from their speeches, the publishers spared no room for a detailed description of the brilliant dress of the bride, made according to the sketches of the famous Parisian couturier Edward Moline. But few knew that it was his wedding present, sent to the bride in memory of their former love. However, her husband also liked the dress.
Short but vibrant family happiness
They were an almost perfect match. Both were young and beautiful. Their marriage, contrary to tradition, was not the fruit of cold dynastic calculations, but was the happy conclusion to the novel, which lasted for two years. From now on, her full title was: Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent. Marina, whose photo of those years is presented in the article, became a member of the British royal family.
However, the happiness she gained under the arches of an ancient abbey was short-lived. Soon after the birth of the youngest son (they all had three children), the Duchess of Kent Kent was widowed: her husband George died tragically during a plane crash in August 1942 in northern Scotland.
Sister of Mercy Kay
Having managed to cope with her grief and following the lead of many ladies from high British society, she graduated from nursing courses and throughout the war years under the pseudonym of sister Kay worked in military hospitals in London. This greatly helped her survive the loss.
The subsequent life of the Dowager Duchess
After the death of her husband, Marina, the Duchess of Kent, whose further life was mainly focused on raising children, found herself in a rather constrained financial situation. The fact is that, according to British law, she was deprived of the so-called civil sheet - budgetary funds received for the maintenance of members of the royal family, and her income was limited only to a modest subsidy. This prompted Marina to auction a significant portion of her husband’s property. The proceeds helped her solve the most pressing financial problems.
However, in spite of all the misfortunes that befell her, the Duchess of Kent of Marina still remained a member of the royal dynasty and, in that capacity, fulfilled her secular duties. In particular, for over twenty years she has remained the permanent president of a number of privileged clubs.
An interesting detail: the spouse of the current Queen of England Elizabeth II - the Duke of Edinburgh Philip Mountbatten - is the Duchess of Marina's cousin. In 1947, she not only attended his wedding, but also put her own handwritten signature under the marriage certificate of the young. Then her son Michael was honored to become one of the wedding pages.
Subsequently, Marina, the Duchess of Kent, whose life passed in the family circle of her late husband, visited many countries of the world as a representative of the English royal house. Among other trips on which she was entrusted with a diplomatic mission, it should be noted a visit to Ghana, dedicated to the day of independence, this small West African state. It is symbolic that fifty years later, Marina’s son, Edward, Duke of Kent, took part in the celebrations marking the half-century anniversary of the republic.
Point set in Frogmore
Her Royal Highness Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, passed away on August 27, 1968 at Kensington Palace, located in western London. The cause of her death was a brain tumor with which the best British doctors could not cope. She found her last peace at the royal cemetery in Frogmore, in the same place where her husband was buried.
The funeral service for the deceased duchess took place three days after his death in the chapel of St. George. On that day, the whole color of the European monarchy gathered to give the last debt of the deceased. In addition to the British Queen Elizabeth II, as well as another Elizabeth the Queen Mother, the ceremony was attended by the Greek monarch Constantine II and his wife, the Romanian Queen Mother Elena, as well as the former Italian King Umberto II. They saw off on the last journey not just a woman, but part of the history of the British and Greek royal dynasty. The article contains an image of her family coat of arms.