The Grand Duchess Vladimir of Russia

The Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the Older of Russia, also known as the Grand Duchess Vladimir.

The Grand Duchess Vladmir had perhaps the most expansive jewelry collection of all the royals. When she died in 1920, her jewels were auctioned, and many of her important pieces were snatched up by Queen Mary of England, grandmother to the present Queen of Britain.

A young Grand Duchess in fancy dress costume, with a concentric circles diamond tiara and wearing a diamond necklace with a large pearl drop as a headband.

The Grand Duchess wearing rows of pearl and a large diamond kokoshnik tiara, a style that all Russian Grand Duchesses owned.

Grand Duchess Vladmir  was born Marie Alexandrine Elisabeth Eleonore of Mecklenburg-Schwerin on 14 May 1854, daughter of Grand Duke Frederick Francis II of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Princess Augusta of Reuss-Köstritz. She died on 6 September 1920 in Contrexéville, France.

The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess Vladimir.

The Grand Duchess Vladimir on her wedding day.

Grand Duchess Vladimir in her impressive pearl and diamond suite. Her tiara of concentric diamond circles and large pear pearls is in the collection of Queen Elizabeth II, who wears it often.

Grand Duchess Vladimir was the mother of Grand Duchess Yelena "Helen" Vladimirovna, aka Princess Nicholas of Greece, who was the mother of Princess Marina of Kent, who was the mother of the still-living Prince Michael of Kent.

Russians from a lost age

Emperor Alexander II of Russia with his Danish-born wife, Empress Marie Fedorovna.

The Empress Yekaterina the Great. The young Grand Duchess was a pure, shy girl when she came to Russia, and soon became corrupted by the court of the Empress Elisabeth. Empress Catherine hated her husband, and usurped the throne from him.

The beautiful Empress Marie Fedorovna. She is wearing her trademark diamond kokoshnik.

Empress Marie, in a signed photo from 1989.

Identical sisters: Empress Marie and her sister, Queen Alexandra of Denmark, often dressed together in society to amuse themselves.

After the deaths of their husbands and long years of hardships, the two sisters had grown much apart, but nevertheless bought and shared a house together in Hvidore, Denmark, in their later years. Alexandra died in 1925, Maria in 1928, ten years after the assassination of her son, Nikolai II, and his family.

Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the Younger of Russia

A postcard I bought of the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the Younger. She was only 18 when she was forced to marry a Swedish prince for political reasons.

Grand Duchess Marie with her grandma who was Queen Olga of Greece, her great grandma, and her son, Prince Lennart.

Grand Duchess Marie of Russia with her son, Prince Lennart of Sweden.

Marie with her first husband, Prince Wilhelm of Sweden.

Grand Duchess Marie on her wedding day in 1908. She is wearing the Romanov nuptial tiara, large cherry drop diamond earrings, a large diamond necklace, and the Romanov nuptial brooch.

Marie and Wilhelm.

Grand Duchess Marie in 1930.

The parents of the Grand Duchess, her father being the Grand Duke Pavel of Russia, pictured with her grandma, Queen Olga of Greece. Her mother died when she was very little, and she had no recollections of her.

Grand Duchess Marie at the age of 6. 

Marie in traditional Swedish dress.

Grand Duchess Marie in a nurse uniform during World War I, where she worked tirelessly helping soldiers.

The Russian Imperial Family on the balcony of a palace. To the far left is Grand Duke Pavel, father of the Grand Duchess Marie. Empress Alexandra Fedorovna and Tsar Nicholas II are center left, and Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the older is just to the right of them.

I own Grand Duchess Marie's first volume of her autobiography, Education of a Princess, which details her life in Russia. The Seattle Public Library owns a copy of her second volume, Education in Exile, which details all the struggles she met with when she left Russia, living in France, England, and finally, in America. Sadly, all the photos were torn out of the book, which is such a shame, as the book is from the 1930's, and is a rarity to find.

Pearl and Diamond Diadems

The grand pearl and diamond diadem of the Empress Eugenie of France, the last Empress or Queen of France, who died in 1920.

A large Russian aigrette-style tiara, with tall, feather-like diamond tendrils coming out  of the tiara base. Large brioche diamonds dangle from each tendril.

A diamond and pearl tiara that also converts into a necklace

A diamond and pearl tiara originally belonging to Princess Marina, the Duchess of Kent. It  is now in the collection of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

An oriental pearl and diamond Russian diadem, which went up for auction when the Communist party of Russia auctioned off the Tsarist Crown Jewels.

An oriental pearl, button pearl, and diamond tiara. I saw this tiara in a fashion shoot in a magazine, and it was placed far back on the model's head around a low bun.

Royals!

 Loelia, Duchess of Westminster, wearing an impressive halo tiara.

 Loelia, Duchess of Westminster

Empress Josephine, consort to the Emperor Napoleon I 

Empress Marie Louise, second wife of Napoleon I

Another painting the Empress Marie Louise of France, wearing an exceptionally large  diamond and gold tiara.

A photograph of the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, consort to Nicholas II, in a Faberge gold and enamel picture frame.

An early portrait of the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, where she is seen wearing a  large diamond spike kokoshnik tiara.

A Faberge enamel heart frame with a miniature of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna. She was known as the  Mother of Russia. She died in Denmark in 1928.

The Grand Duchess Yelisaveta Feodorovna, or Ella as she was known. She was executed during the Russian Revolution. Her body was posthumously buried in Jerusalem.

Princess Anne, the Princess Royal of Great Britain, wearing the tiara of her grandmother, Princess Andrew (Alice) of Greece. Princess Alice was the daughter of Princess Victoria of Hesse, a sister of the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia and the Grand Duchess Ella of Russia.

Queen Elisabeth of Belgium wearing her tiara low on the brow, as was the style in the 1920's

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother wearing the oriental circlet of Queen Victoria. The original tiara contained opals, but when it was passed on to Queen Alexandra, she had the opals replaced with rubies, as opals are bad luck for women to wear.

Queen Marie of Rumania, wearing a tiara that formerly belonged to the Grand Duchess Ella and the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the younger.

A young capture of Queen Victoria, wearing a small diamond and sapphire tiara at the back of her head, in a painting by Franz Xaver Winterhalter.

Serena, the Viscountess Linley, wearing a tiara designed by Linley Furniture, her husband the Viscount Linley's store. This photograph was taken by her father-in-law, Lord Snowdon, ex-husband of the Princess Margaret.