Irina Yusupova (Sheremeteva Irina Feliksovna): biography, family

The article tells about the influential family of Irina and Felix Yusupov, as well as their daughter Irina Feliksovna Yusupova (in Sheremeteva's marriage). Irina Feliksovna's life has very little information, but to understand how she was a person, it is important to learn about the life of her relatives. On the mother's side, the Emperor and the Empress of the Romanov family were relatives, and on the side of her father were the famous princes Yusupovs.

Irina Sheremeteva

Irina Feliksovna Yusupova (married Sheremetev) was born in St. Petersburg, in the palace, on the Moika River on March 21, 1915. She was the only child in the family of Irina Yusupova and Prince Felix Feliksovich and was a granddaughter of the Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich.

At baptism Irina was received by the first cousin grandfather Nicholas II and great-grandmother Maria Feodorovna, who at one time baptized her mother.

Up to nine years her grandmother was engaged in Zinaida Nikolayevna. In 1919, her parents took Irina into exile. Like her relatives, the battleship with the sonorous name "Marlboro" took Irina away from home, to the UK.

Nikolai Dmitrievich Sheremetev was the representative of another famous Russian clan in France. Both these famous families had already lost their wealth by that time.

June 19, 1938 Irina Yusupova married the Count Sheremetev. His sister was married to the nephew of the Queen of Italy. Sheremeteva Irina Feliksovna changed the habitual France and left with her husband to Italy.

Children, grandchildren, great-grandsons

After the wedding Sheremetevs began to live in Rome. On March 1, 1942, they had a daughter, Ksenia Nikolaevna Sheremeteva. Irina Felixovna died in France, in Korme, but was buried in a Russian cemetery, next to her relatives and husband. Xenia really enjoyed living in Greece. Her husband's name is Sfiri, so the name of Yusupov disappeared with the death of Felix.

Xenia Sfiri also has only one daughter - Tatiana Sfiri. They were with their mother in Russia, in a country where their ancestors made history. Xenia Sfiri asked, and she was given a Russian passport on a special presidential decree. It flows the blood of the Yusupovs by the mother and the Sheremetevs by the father. Ksenia Nikolaevna Sheremeteva (Sfiri) was present at the burial ceremony of the remains of the royal family. She says that she would like to visit the homeland of her ancestors more often, but she does not have any housing in Russia, so this is very problematic.

Tatiana Sfiri married Alexis Giannokolopulos. But this marriage broke up, and Tatiana linked her life with Anthony Vamvakidis, from whom she gave birth to two children with a difference of two years. Their parents gave them wonderful names. Marilia Vamvakidis was born in 2004, and Jasmine-Xenia was born in 2006. Now they are direct descendants of the genus Yusupov and Sheremetev.

The Empress Maria Feodorovna is the powerful great-grandmother of Irina Feliksovna Yusupova

Empress Maria Feodorovna - a significant figure in the history of the Romanov dynasty. She was the wife of Alexander III, the mother of Nicholas II. The future empress was born in Denmark on November 26, 1847. June 11, 1866 Mary becomes the wife of Alexander III, the penultimate Russian emperor. Maria Feodorovna and Alexandra had six children, which was quite normal at that time.

Maria Feodorovna was a very active woman - she often had the last word on family issues. At the time when the empress lived, the atmosphere in the royal family was very pleasant, friendly. This is a great rarity for the court, as often intrigues are rooted in royal families. The husband was very fond of his wife and deeply respected her for her political intuition and natural mind. The spouses did not like to part, so they mostly appeared together in all social gatherings, parades, hunting. If they were separately, then they managed to maintain their love with the help of detailed letters.

Maria Feodorovna was very friendly with everyone: both with representatives of high society, and with more ordinary people. By her manners it was immediately evident that she was of royal blood - so much greatness in her was that it blocked her small growth. Maria Feodorovna knew about everything in the royal palace, her charm affected absolutely everyone.

When the eldest son Nikolai Alexandrovich was going to marry a German princess, Maria Fyodorovna opposed. However, this marriage still took place. In 1914 the First World War began. At that time the Empress was in Denmark. Upon learning of the outbreak of hostilities, Maria Feodorovna tried to return to Russia, but chose an unsuccessful route. Her path ran through unfriendly Berlin, where she faced a rude attitude. Therefore, the Empress was forced to return to Copenhagen, to her native Denmark. The second time the Empress Dowager decided to return via Sweden and Finland. In Finland, she was particularly warmly received by people: in her honor at the railway stations sang national anthems and applauded. This is because Maria Fyodorovna always defended the interests of the Finns in the government spheres of Russia.

If in the family the word was left for the empress, then she did not interfere with big politics infrequently. However, she was against her son, Nicholas II, becoming commander-in-chief, and did not hide his opinion from him. Also, when in 1916 Germany proposed a separate peace, Maria Feodorovna categorically objected and notified her son about it in a letter. In addition, she understood that Rasputin could harm the state, and often offered to send him.

The parents of Irina Feliksovna Yusupova - Irina Alexandrovna and Felix Feliksovich

Irina Yusupova, whose biography is extremely interesting, was the first daughter of Princess Xenia and Prince Alexander Mikhailovich. Although she was from the Romanov family, she entered the history as Yusupova. She became famous not only thanks to powerful parents. This woman made her unique contribution to history. However, without the history of her parents, there would not have been her own history, so it is worth mentioning who her father, Alexander Mikhailovich and mother Xenia Aleksandrovna were.

Immediately I must say that both the father and mother of Irina belonged to the ruling dynasty. Alexander Mikhailovich, if you count, was a cousin of Xenia, his future wife. Because of this, the young did not immediately succeed in obtaining parental consent to marry. The Empress and the Emperor did not approve of this marriage. There was an unspoken law that developed into a rule that forced members of the ruling clan to marry members of other European ruling dynasties.

Xenia fell in love with Alexander at first sight. He often visited them in Gatchina, because he was friends with the brothers Xenia. She told her feelings only to her older brother Nicholas. Sandro was a versatile man. Liked to talk about naval affairs and aviation, and also read a lot. Its famous library, unfortunately, was destroyed during the riots of the revolution. Princess Xenia was a kindly and intelligent person. She tried to share all the hobbies of her husband. For thirteen years of marriage, seven of their children were born, Irina was the very first and only girl.

Unfortunately, the further time passed, the relationship between the spouses worsened. The husband changed Xenia, and she got used to this lie and found solace in the arms of other men. The girl Irina suffered most from such relations in the family.

Irina Alexandrovna Yusupova could be proud of the love of her parents to each other. Despite the fact that they were separated during their old age, they are buried in one place in the south of France, where her parents have often lived since 1906.

Thus, Irina Yusupova - niece of Emperor Nicholas II, granddaughter of Alexander III and great-granddaughter of Nicholas I. She was born in Peterhof, July 3, 1895. About this event, all were informed by the Highest Decree, issued the same day. Fifteen days later her baptism occurred. There was an action in Alexandria, in a church not far from the palace. Accepted to the hands of Irina during the ceremony, the Emperor Nicholas II and her grandmother, the Empress. The girl was considered one of the most enviable brides of her time in Imperial Russia. Her often called her Irene because of the strong influence of French fashion. She did not wear the title of Grand Duchess, but was called the Princess of Imperial Blood.

She grew up in the love of her grandmother, and her parents seemed to have nothing to do with her. Her aunt Alexandra Fedorovna also took an active part in the life of the girl. Her daughter Olya was the best friend for Irochka. The girl was taught different languages. She taught German, French and English. The house was spoken in all these languages, so the training was fairly easy. A lot of time the child spent behind books and drawing. Despite the versatile training, the girl grew too shy. It was very disturbing in everyday life. According to the etiquette, the servants could not begin the conversation with the owners, so she had to wait for the princess to overcome her shyness.

At the age of nineteen, Iren married Felix Feliksovich Yusupov and became Princess Yusupova, Countess Sumorokova-Elston. This young man behaved very shockingly. All his youth he walked on a wide leg, but when he met already grown Irina, he realized that this is the man he needs, the prince settled down. Although he knew the princess from childhood, an entirely different person now opened before him. He beautifully courted, honestly told about his adventures and promised to be an exemplary husband, and he achieved the location of the princess and her love for life.

He became famous as the one who killed Grigory Rasputin. In addition to political intrigues, Felix had personal reasons to hate Rasputin, because he advised not to give his wife Felix Irina. For the Yusupov family, this marriage was a chance to become related to the ruling family, and for the Romanovs to get a lot of money from the Yusupov family.

Wedding of Yusupovs

When Alexander Mikhailovich offered to marry his daughter to Feliks, the Yusupovs gladly agreed. After the death of Nicholas, his elder brother, Prince Yusupov became the sole master of the whole inheritance of the family. Parents wanted to cancel the wedding, when they heard rumors about the homosexuality of Felix. However, the wedding was held in 1914. The bride did not get the title of Grand Duchess, so she did not have a magnificent court dress, in which the brides from the Romanov family married before.

At the wedding, the whole color of the empire was gathered. The emperor and the empress came from Tsarskoe Selo. All the Grand Duchesses also gathered: Mary, Olga, Tatiana and Anastasia. All of them gave their blessing.

Family life

A year later, a young couple of Yusupovs had a baby. In honor of her mother she was called Ira. The girl's father felt responsible to the family, and much less rumors began to circulate about him. From a frivolous youth, he turned into a husband who was carried away by politics and talked about the future of the country. During this period, the empire experienced various unrest, including the prerequisites for revolution and discontent among the people by the influence of Rasputin on the ruling dynasty.

All my life the Yusupovs have lived their souls in their souls. Although they were so different, their support was always felt to each other. They say that Irina Yusupova dissolved in her husband and daughter. They always did everything together.

Felix Yusupov and Rasputin

Prince Yusupov became famous first of all as a murderer of Grigory Efimovich Rasputin. Later, he wrote many memoirs and memoirs about the time that in difficult days prevented their family from falling to poverty. Grigory was a peasant who managed to achieve friendship with the imperial family. He lived in the Tobolsk province, in the village of Pokrovsky. He was called a king's friend, healer, seer and elder. It seems that they loved him only in the royal family, but the people considered his influence on the king to be bad, and his image remained negative in history.

Rasputin exerted a tremendous influence on Alexander Fedorovna, as he tried to treat Tsarevich Alexei from hemophilia. Once he was already trying to kill him, but the elder remained alive after being wounded in the stomach. A new murder plan was developed by Purishkevich, Sukhotin and Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich. On the night of December 17, 1916, there was a murder. Information about the incident was confused by everything: from the conspirators themselves to the authorities. The first shot made Rasputin lured to the basement of Felix Yusupov, what happened after that is unclear.

Away from trouble

From the serious consequences of the conspirators, the fact of Prince Dmitri's participation in this affair was saved. He went to Persia. Purishkevich went to the front, and Yusupov left for Kursk province. Irina and her daughter moved to the Crimea until the gossip had subsided. From the Crimea the Yusupovs, like many aristocrats, sailed in 1919 to Malta, and then to Paris. They remained with nothing after the revolution, but they saved their lives.

In France there were many such families, according to some estimates - about three hundred. The Yusupovs were able to take some valuables out of the country, but they had to be sold for a pittance. Various jewelry jewelry of the Parisians was not surprising, because the refugees brought with them many values. However, the sale of only two paintings by Rembrandt allowed Yusupov to buy a house. Together with them, Zinaida Nikolayevna and Felix Sr. settled in the Bois de Boulogne . In complex, unfamiliar conditions, the Yusupov family not only survived, but also became influential and wealthy. Felix and Irina opened their own fashion house and named it "IRFE". To help emigrants find work, they at their own expense opened an employment agency.

Own business

Felix took over the work of a designer and an artist. Irina's unique taste and energy played a big role in promoting the collections. She herself demonstrated dresses from "IRFE". Guests of the fashion house came not only for dresses, but also to look at the legendary hosts of the house. Semi-transparent silk dresses shocked with eroticism and elegance. Soon the customers did not hang up. This allowed to open three more branches of the fashion house "IRFE" in other European countries. Even at the royal court in England it was possible to meet the clothes produced by the Yusupovs. The crisis of that time soon took away from the family a large number of rich clients. For some time, the perfume brand "IREF", invented by Felix, kept the fashion house afloat, but soon they were ruined, like many other fashion houses of that time.

After the defeat in business, Felix Yusupov wrote a book of memoirs, mainly it was memories of the murder of Rasputin. The money from the sale of books provided them with a decent life for some time. Rasputin's daughter Matryona, who also lived in France, filed a lawsuit in court, but lost. Despite the proximity of events, the American company filmed a film about Grigory Rasputin and his influence on the Empress. The Yusupovs sued, as the picture presented Irina in a bad light. The court they won and received more than one hundred thousand pounds sterling compensation. This amount allowed you not to think about money until death, and live in your own pleasure and engage in artistic activities.

Felix and Irina Yusupov painted watercolor paintings and made engravings that earned praise from critics. They also collected various art objects, for example books and paintings. Although the couple had an attempt to go to America, they could not stay there, because they are very accustomed to France. They were together until death. Felix died in 1967. Irina Yusupova survived it for several years. Not far from Paris is the Russian cemetery of Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois. Zinaida Nikolayevna Yusupova, her son, daughter-in-law, granddaughter and her husband were buried there.

In the emigration

Russian emigrants of the first wave in France are people who left for Paris in the early twentieth century. Some of them, for example the Yusupovs and Romanovs, have left a great reputation for themselves. However, not everyone is lucky to get into people abroad. Many officers became taxi drivers and workers in car assembly factories. The former perfumer of the imperial palace came up with the famous fragrance "Chanel No. 5". In the Russian conservatory taught such geniuses as Chaliapin and Grechaninov, and Rakhmaninov himself was the rector. Russian women became the faces of "Chanel" and "Chantal", as well as the fashion house "Lanven".

Bunin, Tyutchev, Gogol, and many other writers and poets belong to the Russian emigration of the first wave. Russian figures have made a significant contribution to the cultural heritage and still have a strong influence on the various facets of French art. In France, lived one of the most famous philosophers of our time - Berdyaev. Recently, the fashion house "IRFE", which Russian owners have untwisted, has revived. Jean-Christophor Mayo recreated the Russian ballet of Sergei Diaghilev in a new form of the ballet Monte Carlo. But something also ceases to "breathe" in Russian form and remains only a shadow of fashionable culture.