Portrait by Franz Winterhalter.

Maria Nikolaievna (born August 18, 1819 in Pavlovsk; died February 21, 1876 in St. Petersburg) was a daughter of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia and sister of Alexander II. She was Duchess of Leuchtenberg and President of the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg. The Empress Eugenie Surrounded by her Ladies in Waiting Franz Winterhalter was a famous Victorian, German speaking artist. ... August 18 is the 230th day of the year (231st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1819 common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Pavlovsk (Russian: Павловск) is a town situated in the Leningrad oblast, Russia, 30 km from St. ... Nicholas I of Russia (Russian: Николай I Павлович, Nikolai I Pavlovich), July 6 (June 25, Old Style), 1796–March 2 (February 18, Old Style), 1855), was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855 and king of Poland from 1825 until 1831. ... A number of historical people were named Alexander II: Alexander II of Macedon was King of Macedon from 370 to 368 B.C. Alexander II of Epirus was the King of Epirus in 272 B.C. Pope Alexander II was Pope from 1061 to 1073. ... The term duke is a title of nobility which refers to the sovereign male ruler of a Continental European duchy, to a nobleman of the highest grade of the British peerage, or to the highest rank of nobility in various other European countries, including Spain and France (in Italy, principe... The edifice for the academy was built in 1764-89 to a design by Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe and Alexander F. Kokorinov. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and...

Duchess of Leuchtenberg

Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaievna was born on August 18, 1819 in Pavlovsk, She was the second of seven children and eldest daughter of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia and Alexandra Feodorovna, born Princess Charlotte of Prussia. Unusually for her position and time, she married for love. She met her future husband, Duke Maximilian of Leuchtenberg, the eldest son of Eugène de Beauharnais and grandson of Empress Josephine, when he came to St. Petersburg in Calvary maneuvers in 1837. A year later he made a second visit to St. Petersburg, as noted by Grand Duchess Olga in her diary “In four days it has become quite clear that Max and Maria were made for each other." It was not a desirable match for a daughter of a Russian Emperor. Maximilian was one level below royalty with the treatment only of serene Highness as member of a secondary branch of the house of Bavaria. The Bonaparte family had been bitter enemies of Russia, nevertheless the Tsar granted his permission on condition that his daughter did not leave Russia to live abroad. Since the duke of Leuchtenber was not a member of a reigning family, it was easy for him to accommodate in Russia and live there. The wedding took place on July 2, 1839 in the chapel of the Winter Palace. Her father made her husband an imperial Highness. They remained in Russia where their seven children grew up in the circle of the imperial family. Nicholas I can be: Pope Nicholas I Nicholas I, Tsar of Russia and King of Poland Nicholas Mysticus, Patriarch Nicholas I of Constantinople This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... There have been two Russian empresses who have taken the name Alexandra Feodorovna upon their conversion to Orthodoxy: Princess Charlotte of Prussia, consort to Nicholas I Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine, consort to Nicholas II This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might... Princess Charlotte of Prussia (Frederica Louise Charlotte Wilhelmina, July 13, 1798-November 1, 1860) was, as Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress consort of Russia as the wife Nicholas I of Russia. ... Eugène Rose de Beauharnais (September 3, 1781 - February 21, 1824) was the first child and only son of Joséphine de Tascher de la Pagerie and Alexandre, Vicomte de Beauharnais. ... Joséphine de Beauharnais, Empress Joséphine Joséphine de Beauharnais (June 23, 1763 - May 29, 1814) was the first wife of Napoléon Bonaparte, and became Empress of France. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... Calvary (Golgotha) is the English-language name given to the hill on which Jesus was crucified. ... | Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom (1837 - 1901) 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... The Free State of Bavaria  (German: Freistaat Bayern), with an area of 70,553 km² (27,241 square miles) and 12. ... July 2 is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 182 days remaining. ... Located between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, the Winter Palace (Russian: Зимний Дворец) in Saint Petersburg, Russia was built between 1754 and 1762 as the winter residence of the Russian tsars. ...

President of the Academy of Arts

View on Marie Palace in St. Petersburg

The Duchess of Leuchtenberg's residence in St. Petersburg was since 1845 the Mariinsky Palace, named after the grand Duchess. Maria Nikolaievna and her husband had artistic inclinations and were active in charitable and artistic causes. Maria’s husband was President of the Academy of Arts. The Grand Duchess was an avid art collector and after the death of her husband in 1852, she replaced him as President of the Academy of Arts. From then on, Maria Nikolaievana devoted herself to her collection even with greater ardor. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (937x684, 417 KB) 19th-century vintage postcard of St Isaacs Square and the Saint Petersburg skyline. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (937x684, 417 KB) 19th-century vintage postcard of St Isaacs Square and the Saint Petersburg skyline. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The façade of the Mariinsky Palace is executed in a local reddish-brown sandstone. ... 1852 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

Second marriage

Maria Nikolaievna made a second marriage in 1854, to Count Grigori Stroganov (1823 – 1878). It was a morganatic union and was kept secret while her father lived. Officially the marriage did not take place until November 16, 1856, after Nicholas I death. Her sister Olga described her as more talented than all her brothers and sisters put together, but lacking a sense of duty. Stroganovs or Strogonovs (Строгановы, Строгоновы in Russian), also spelled in French manner as Stroganoffs, was a family of highly successful Russian merchants, industrialists, landowners, and statesmen of the 16th - 20th centuries that eventually earned nobility. ... A morganatic marriage is a type of marriage which can be contracted in certain countries, usually between persons of unequal social rank (unebenbürtig in German), which prevents the passage of the husbands titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage. ... November 16 is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 45 days remaining. ...

In 1862, Maria Nikolaievna installed herself in Florence in the Villa Quarto, which had belonged to Jerome Bonaparte, and appointed the painter and collector Karl Liphard as her advisor. They went almost daily to visit Museums, private collection and antiquaries. In Italy, the Grand Duchess was zealous in her purchases of painting, sculptures and furniture for the complete refurbishing of his residence. Florences skyline Florence (Italian: ) is the capital city of the region of Tuscany, Italy. ...

Duchess Maria probably suffered either from varicose veins or from some sort of bone disease, and by the end of her life she had become an invalid. She died on February 21, 1876 in St. Petersburg. February 21 is the 52nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...

Art collections

On her death in 1876 Maria Nikolaievna's art collections were divided between her three surviving sons: Prince Nicholas of Leuchtenberg, his brothers Eugene and George, their sisters Princes Maria of Baden and Princess Eugenia of Oldenburg and their half sister countess Elena Strogonova. In 1884, her son mounted an exhibition at the St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts with the Grand Duchess former collection. In 1913 another exhibitions was organized at the Hermitage entitled the Heritage of Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaievna. After the revolution the collection was dispersed and now can be enjoyed in museums in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vienna and the United States. 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Location Position of Moscow in Europe Government Country District Subdivision Russia Central Federal District Federal City Mayor Yuriy Luzhkov Geographical characteristics Area  - City 1,081 km² Population  - City (2005)    - Density 10,415,400   8537. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... Inhabitants according to official census figures: 1800 to 2005 Vienna in 1858 UN complex in Vienna, with the non-affiliated Austria Center Vienna in front - picture taken from Danube Tower in nearby Danube Park. ...

Children

- Children (1st Marriage):

1. Alexandra Princess Romanovskaja (1840-1843) died in childhoodAlexandra
2. Maria Maximilianovna, of Leuchtenberg (1841-1914) m. William of Baden (1829-1897
3. Nicholas Maximilianovich, 4th Duke of Leuchtenberg (1843-1891)
4. Eugenia Maximilianovna, Princess Romanovskaja (1845-1925) m. Alexander of Oldenburg(1844-1932)
5. Eugen Maximilianovich, 5th Duke of Leuchtenberg (1847-1901) m. Daria Opotchinina (1845-1870) m. Zinaida Skobeleva(1878-1899)
6. Sergei Maximilianovich, Duke of Leuchtenberg (1849- 1877) Killed in the russian turkish war
7. Georgi Maximilianovich, 6 th Duke von Leuchtenberg (1852 -1912) m. Theresa of Oldenburg (1852-1883) m. Anastasia of Montenegro (1868-1935)

- Children (2nd Marriage):

1. Grigori Grigorievich, Count Stroganov (b. 9.5.1857) died in childhood
2. Elena Grigorievna, Countess Stroganova (1861-1908) m GrigoriNikitich Milashevich (1861-1908)

References

• The Romanov Legacy, The Palaces of St Petersburg by Zoia Belyakova