Stories from the Artisan: Portraits of the Yusupov princes. Portrait of Zinaida Yusupova in Russian costume Portrait of Yusupova

Inspirer

Among the masterminds of the murder, perhaps the most important place is occupied by the mother of one of the murderers - Zinaida Nikolaevna, Princess Yusupova, Countess Sumarokova-Elston (1861–1939). She had her own personal scores to settle with the Royal Family and Her Friend...
On June 22, 1908, her eldest son Nikolai was killed in a duel. The reason for the fight was his inadmissibly insolent open courtship of the wife of a horse guards officer.

N.P. Bogdanov-Belsky. Portrait of N.F. Yusupova. 1900s.

According to the rules existing at that time, permission from the Emperor was required for a duel. The Emperor gave his consent. N.F. Yusupov was killed, which was the trigger for the destructive activities of Princess Z.N. Yusupova and her son-confidant Felix. In order to stop any relations with the guards officers, who completely sympathized with their insulted brother, the princess forced her husband, who was under her strong influence, to resign from the post of commander of the Cavalry Regiment of the Imperial Guard.

Prince F.F. Yusupov senior in the office of L.-Gv. Cavalry Regiment. In the right corner is a portrait of his wife, Princess Zinaida Yusupova.

Another reason for Princess Zinaida’s anger at the Tsar was the service failures of her unlucky and dim-witted husband, Prince Felix Feliksovich Yusupov, Count Sumarokov-Elston Sr. On May 17, 1915, he was appointed chief commander of the Moscow Military District and governor general of Moscow. Soon, however, after the German pogrom in Moscow, which was allowed in large part due to the criminal inaction of Prince Felix Sr., he was removed from office.

Prince F.F. Yusupov Sr., upon arrival in Moscow, at the Nikolaevsky station receives reports from his subordinates. May 1915

Finally, the third reason for hatred, this time directed against the Tsar’s Friend, was the experiences of Princess Z.N. Yusupova, preceding the marriage of her youngest son Felix to the Tsar’s niece, Princess of the Imperial Blood Irina Alexandrovna. It was believed that G.E. Rasputin, who told Empress Alexandra Feodorovna about his homosexual inclinations, almost upset the ambitious plans of his insane mother.

Princess Z.N. Yusupova with her son Felix. 1901 Moscow. Photo from the family album of the Yusupov princes. Collection of the Museum “Our Epoch” (Moscow)

Documents that have reached us testify to the consequences this had.
“My mother,” wrote Prince F.F. Yusupov,” was one of the first to raise her voice against the “elder.” After a long conversation with the Tsarina, she believed for a moment that she had shaken Her trust in the “Russian peasant.” […] In the summer of 1916, her relationship with the Empress had already been interrupted for some time, when, deciding to make one last attempt, she asked for a reception at the Alexander Palace. Her Majesty received her very coldly and, as soon as she learned the purpose of the visit, invited her to leave the Palace. The mother said that she would not leave without saying what she had to say. She spoke for a long time. When she had finished, the Empress, who had been listening in silence, stood up and dismissed her with the words: “I hope never to see you again.”

Princess Z.N. Yusupova with her son Felix at the Yusupov dacha in Tsarskoe Selo (Pavlovskoe highway, 30). Photo from A.A.’s album Vyrubova.

From letters of Princess Z.N. Yusupova to her son: (11/18/1916): “So far the book [G.E. Rasputin] will not be destroyed, and Valide [the Empress] will be tamed, nothing can be done, tell this to Uncle Misha [Rodzianko]”; (11/25/1916): “Now it’s too late, we can’t do without a scandal, but then everything could have been saved by demanding the removal of the manager for the entire duration of the war and the non-interference of Valide [the Empress] in state issues. And now, I repeat that until these two issues are resolved, nothing will come out peacefully, tell this to Uncle Misha [M.V. Rodzianko] from me.”

Prince F.F. Yusupov with his bride, Princess of the Imperial Blood Irina Alexandrovna.

From a letter from the wife of the Chairman of the Duma A.N. Rodzianko to his relative Princess Z.N. Yusupova (December 1, 1916): “All appointments, changes, the fate of the Duma, peace negotiations are in the hands of a crazy German woman, Rasputin, Vyrubova, Pitirim and Protopopov.” From her letter to the same addressee (12/24/1916): “Despite all the darkness surrounding us, I firmly believe that we will emerge victorious both in the fight against the external enemy and the internal one. Holy Rus' cannot perish from a gang of crazy and base people: too much noble blood has been shed for the glory and honor of Russia for the devilish force to prevail.”
Prince Felix Yusupov Sr. was the first to set off on the journey of the whole earth, on the night of June 11, 1928. Some time before his death, he was crushed by a blow after he learned from the newspapers about another shameful sex scandal of his restless son. The last place of residence of the decrepit old man, “with his head lolling to one side and his speech unintelligible,” was a bed in a small Roman house. He was buried in the Roman cemetery of Testaccio.

Princess Z.N. Yusupov in the last years of his life.

Accustomed to always being the first in everything, the richest woman of the Russian Empire, who stopped at nothing to destroy the Tsar’s Friend for the sake of personal revenge, and through him the Empress and with them all of Russia, Princess Zinaida Yusupova, died after being evicted from her hired job. apartment, in a small room in one of the Paris nursing homes on the morning of November 24 (NS) 1939.

The grave of the Yusupov princes at the Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois cemetery in Paris.

In the coffin, the princess, who had never worn anything but fashionable hats, lay for the first time in a simple scarf. She was buried not next to her husband, whom she slightly despised for his narrow-mindedness, but in the Parisian cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois. Her son and daughter-in-law will later rest next to her, under the same cross.

The portrait of Princess Zinaida Yusupova by Valentin Serov is one of the artist’s most famous works. The portrait is in the Russian Museum. The Yusupov family emigrated from the Crimean estate; almost the entire Yusupov portrait gallery remained in Petrograd and Moscow, and now adorns the collections of famous museums - the Hermitage (portraits made by foreign painters), the Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery...

In the portrait by François Fouquet from the Hermitage we see the very young Princess Zinochka Yusupova...


Jean Fouquet. Portrait of the young princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova. 1875

It's hard to say how successful this portrait is. Zinochka, already at an early age, was distinguished by great charm, which the artist did not convey. Or did not try to convey.

Not everyone knows that Zinaida Yusupova had a sister, Tatyana, who was no less beautiful and charming. Unfortunately, at the age of 22, Tatyana left that world...

VC. Shtemberg. Portrait of Princess Tatyana Nikolaevna Yusupova. Ser. 1880s

In society they said that the famous Yusupov curse continued to come true... There was a legend in the princely family that in each new generation only one descendant would remain - several centuries ago the family was cursed because the sons of the Nagai Murza Yusup moved to the Russian court and under under the influence of Ivan the Terrible they converted to Orthodoxy. Maybe it was a coincidence, but indeed in each new generation of the Yusupovs only one descendant remained, and the rest died under different circumstances. Zinaida Nikolaevna was also destined to lose her beloved sister...

Zinaida and Tatyana Yusupov

The princesses were the first brides not only of Russia, but also of Europe. Zinochka had suitors from foreign royal houses, which gave the father-prince the opportunity to make ambitious plans and dream of seeing his daughter as the queen of some small but cozy state... However, Zinochka preferred Count Felix Sumarokov-Elston, a guards officer and an undistinguished , despite the title, a rustic shirt-guy.
But Tatiana was seriously in love with the youngest son of Emperor Alexander II, Grand Duke Paul. The Yusupov princes were their own people at court, Tatyana was very friendly with the younger Grand Dukes Pavel and Sergei. Did her childhood friendship develop into true love or was the girl simply indulging in romantic dreams? Now it’s hard to say. But in her diary, Tatyana definitely wrote about her love, jealousy and dreams of marrying Pavel...
However, Pavel preferred another childhood friend - the Greek princess Alexandra, the niece of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich. Tatiana's heart was broken. Looking at her happy sister and her husband, Tatyana wrote sad poems:

Their sail is April's shining light,
The star guards his path.
My sail, saturated with the moisture of tears,
Disappears in the distant waves...

Their cups sparkle with the drink of love,
My cup has tipped over...
That torch that burns brightly for others
I will decorate with a white lily!

In 1888, Prince Yusupov went to Berlin on business. Tatyana was then visiting her sister and Felix in Arkhangelskoye. And suddenly she fell ill.
The prince in Berlin received a telegram from his daughter:
06.24.1888 Tanya has a slight fever, we have a good doctor, don’t worry Zinaida.

But three days later a telegram arrived from his son-in-law, and it was addressed to the prince’s close associates:
06/27/1888 Princess Tatiana died at midnight without suffering, very calmly without regaining consciousness, prepare Father Sumarokov.

Sculpture of M.M. Antokolsky "Angel" on the grave of Princess Tatyana Yusupova in Arkhangelskoye

Zinaida gave birth to four sons. Two died in infancy. But two sons - Nikolai and Felix, who received names in honor of their grandfather and father, remained alive to the joy of their parents. Motherhood became great happiness for Zinaida Nikolaevna. She turned out to be a very caring and loving mother and she literally blossomed, shining next to her little sons. At court they called her that: Radiance...


Francois Flaming. Portrait of Princess Z.N. Yusupova with two sons in Arkhangelskoye. 1894

The old prince did not survive his youngest daughter for long. In 1891, by the highest decree, Zinaida Nikolaevna, the last and only representative of her noble family, was allowed, in order to prevent its extinction, to transfer the family title and name to her husband and children. Now the family was officially called the Yusupov princes, the Sumarokov-Elston counts.

Son Felix recalled:
“Mother was amazing. Tall, thin, graceful, dark and black-haired, with eyes shining like stars. Smart, educated, artistic, kind. No one could resist her charms. But she did not boast about her talents, but was simplicity and modesty itself. “The more you are given,” she repeated to me and my brother, “the more you owe to others. Be humble. If you are superior to others in anything, God forbid you show it to them.”


Francois Flameng. Portrait of Princess Zinaida Yusupova with the famous pearl "Pelegrina". 1894

Konstantin Makovsky. Portrait of Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova in Russian costume. 1900

Alexey Stepanov. Portrait of Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova. 1903

However, along with the title, Zinaida Nikolaevna seemed to pass on a kind of curse to the children...
Her eldest son Nikolai, a strict, intelligent, brilliantly educated and noble young man, was killed in a duel at the age of 25. The princess barely survived this misfortune...

Valentin Serov. Portrait of Prince Nikolai Feliksovich Yusupov

“Soul-tearing screams came from my father’s room, - Felix Yusupov recalled. -I entered and saw him, very pale, in front of the stretcher where Nikolai’s body was stretched out. His mother, kneeling before him, seemed to have lost her mind. With great difficulty we tore her away from our son’s body and put her to bed. Having calmed down a little, she called me, but when she saw me, she mistook me for her brother. It was an unbearable scene. Then my mother fell into prostration, and when she came to her senses, she did not let me go for a second.”

Now all her love focused on her youngest and only surviving son, Felix. And with all her attempts to raise him on the principles of restraint and nobility, the princess unwittingly spoiled her son too much... Which later sadly affected the zigzags of his fate.

Valentin Serov. Portrait of Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova. OK. 1902.

Another sketch for the portrait of Serov

Zinaida Nikolaevna has been very involved in charity work all her life. Already at the age of 18, she headed a shelter for orphans and widows of Russian army soldiers, and since then her charitable projects have simply been difficult to count. In addition, several charitable societies and foundations founded by her father, as well as the maintenance of an institute for the deaf and dumb, came into her care.

Charity bazaar in the Yusupov house

Zinaida Nikolaevna did a lot for the peasants on her Arkhangelskoye estate, and on other estates as well. Schools for children, the organization of medical care, the maintenance of rural churches, financial support for the poor... Rarely did the peasants treat any of the landowners with such love.

Zinaida Nikolaevna with peasants in Arkhangelskoye

The artist Valentin Serov, who worked on portraits of the Yusupov family, always did not treat representatives of the aristocracy very favorably. But Zinaida Nikolaevna simply captivated him with the light of her personality. In letters from Arkhangelskoye, the artist spoke enthusiastically about the princess, marveling at how much people valued her.
Serov once said:
“Princess, if all rich people were at least a little like you, there would be no room for injustice!” The princess sadly answered: “Injustice cannot be eradicated, Valentin Alexandrovich. Moreover, with money.”
However, after the death of her eldest son, Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova made charity her main business.
Under the patronage and support of Zinaida Nikolaevna there were shelters, schools, hospitals and churches not only in St. Petersburg and Arkhangelsk, but throughout the country. She helped the Elizavetinsky and Krupovsky orphanages, although they were not founded by her, maintained the Yalta women's gymnasium, and made generous donations to the activities of the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent of Mercy.
During the Russo-Japanese War, the princess, at her own expense, organized an ambulance train to transport the wounded from the fronts in the Far East to the European part of the country, and established infirmaries and sanatoriums in her palaces and estates.
She repeated the same thing during the First World War...


Zinaida Nikolaevna with the staff of her hospital train before being sent to the battlefields

A carriage for the wounded on the ambulance train of Princess Yusupova

Hospital in the Yusupov house on Liteiny Prospekt in St. Petersburg

Nikolai Nikolaevich Becker. Portrait of Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova. OK. 1914

The Yusupovs emigrated from Crimea in 1919 together with the Dowager Empress Maria Fedorovna, the mother of the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II. Felix was married to the beloved granddaughter of Empress Maria Feodorovna Irina and was considered almost a member of the family.

Felix Yusupov with his wife and daughter

Of course, in exile, the Yusupov family lived quite modestly, but still in better conditions than other Russians - the Yusupovs were able to take some jewelry, paintings from the estate, and they even had small real estate abroad. For example, their own pre-war apartment in Paris for trips to the capital of France... Even a car covered in dust from five years ago waited for them in the garage...
And Zinaida Nikolaevna again took up charity work. She organized a free canteen for Russian emigrants who found themselves in a hopeless situation, a sewing workshop that provided work to dozens of women for the first time, and an employment office that helped confused people find a serious, real job.
Journalist P.P. Shostakovsky wrote:
The smartest and most intelligent of them turned out to be old woman Yusupova.<...>The old princess did not remember the past. ...In short, she not only accepted the current situation as inevitable, but also tried to make it easier for others to take a new road, to give them the opportunity to earn a piece of bread for themselves.”

Fans surrounded the princess until her old age, although she was always strict with them.
But after her death, Felix found poetry in his mother’s papers:

You say you are in your seventh decade?
Of course, with your help I will believe,
Madam, in this news, otherwise
I would have thought that you weren’t even three dozen.
So, you are sixty years old, you say.
Thank you for that. And if I thought it was thirty,
Of course, I couldn’t help but fall in love with you!
And, without knowing you briefly,
I wouldn't enjoy love completely!
So, madam, you are now sixty,
And young and old don’t hide their love in you.
You are sixty. And what? For a loving look
Not only sixty - and a hundred is not a barrier.
And for the better - when you are already over sixty!
The duller the petals, the stronger the aroma.
When the soul is in bloom, winter has no power over it.
And her charms are forever irresistible.
Immature beauty will understand a little.
And the conversation with you is both sharp and honey.
And only you alone will understand and forgive.
And in you, like threads in one single thread,
Both intelligence and kindness. And I'm honestly glad
That you turned sixty today!

Reproductions of portraits are collected from various sources.

And if this is so, then what is beauty?
And why do people deify her?
She is a vessel in which there is emptiness,
Or a fire flickering in a vessel?
N. Zabolotsky

Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova was born in 1861 into the family of the last of his family, Prince Nikolai Borisovich, one of the richest people in the Russian Empire. A decent and generous man, he gave his daughters an excellent upbringing and education. Since childhood, Zinaida was surrounded by people of culture and science, and was fond of philosophy.

After the death of her sister, she became the sole heir to the untold wealth of an ancient family, and not only Russian aristocrats, but members of the royal families of Europe wooed her. One of them was a contender for the Bulgarian throne, Prince Battenberg. During his visit to Princess Yusupova, he was accompanied by the young lieutenant Count Felix Sumarokov-Elston. Despite the title and sonorous surname, he was lower than Zinaida in position and, even more so, in wealth, but this did not matter to the girl.

According to family legend, it was love at first sight. The next day, Zinaida announced her choice to her father. The old prince was surprised and dissatisfied, but did not argue with his only daughter. This marriage turned out to be surprisingly happy and lasting. Zinaida Nikolaevna always had many admirers, but she never gave them a reason and was devoted to her husband. So that the line of the Yusupov princes would not be cut short, the Emperor, by personal decree, allowed the count to also take the title and surname of his wife. Their descendants were to be called Prince Yusupov Counts Sumarokov-Elston.

But, of course, behind the luxurious screen of wealth and honors, the princess’s life went on as usual, like all ordinary women: joys gave way to sorrows, bright periods to grief. Zinaida Nikolaevna gave birth to four sons, but buried two of them in infancy. And soon after the birth of the eldest, Nikolai, she herself almost died. The doctors could not even make an accurate diagnosis and believed that the princess had contracted typhus. But everything turned out to be much worse - after premature birth, blood poisoning began. The princess was considered hopeless, and the famous Professor Botkin, who personally treated her, only shrugged helplessly - the forty-degree temperature could not be brought down, the liver was failing, and dark spots had already appeared all over her body...

At 23 years old, it is difficult to believe in her own death, but gradually Zinaida herself began to realize that she did not have long left. On one of the difficult sleepless nights, she suddenly remembered Fr. John of Kronstadt - his fame was already thundering throughout Russia. She really wanted to see him before he died, not because of the hope of a miracle of healing, but simply for the opportunity to talk with this wonderful man. The Yusupov family had long wanted to meet him, but everything was somehow postponed, it didn’t work out...

An old, reliable servant was sent to Kronstadt, and Fr. John, having learned what condition the patient was in, put aside all matters and came straight away. Zinaida Nikolaevna remembered the way he prayed for the rest of her life. Botkin, with whom Fr. John, leaving, bumped into the doorway and turned to him: “Help us!” - which greatly surprised those around him - the professor was known for his skepticism and free-thinking. A few days later Fr. John gave the princess communion, and for the first time in a long time she fell asleep peacefully. The temperature subsided, and upon waking up, Zinaida Nikolaevna felt completely healthy. The husband was kneeling by the bed, and Professor Botkin was silently crying next to him. A week later the princess stood up. And after 3 years, her second son was born - Felix, the famous killer of Grigory Rasputin. But for now, those terrible times before the start of the revolution were still very far away...

The princess, like her father, was a famous philanthropist and philanthropist. In St. Petersburg alone, she paid huge sums of money to several dozen orphanages, hospitals, and gymnasiums. And in 1900, she and her husband drew up a very eloquent will: “In the event of a sudden cessation of our family, all our movable and immovable property, consisting of collections of fine arts, rarities and jewelry collected by our ancestors and us... we bequeath to the ownership of the state in the form of preservation these collections within the Empire to satisfy the aesthetic and scientific needs of the Fatherland..."

During the war, the princess maintained a medical train and hospitals at her own expense, and organized sanatoriums and hospitals for the wounded in her palaces and estates.

At court, Zinaida Nikolaevna was very loved and called “Shine.” And it was, of course, not the dazzling sparkling family diamonds that the princess wore to balls. She brought cheerfulness and peace with her everywhere. She could easily and naturally talk with the peasants in her beloved Arkhangelsk, and with the Tsar. “Mother was amazing. Tall, thin, graceful, dark and black-haired, with eyes shining like stars. Smart, educated, artistic, kind. No one could resist her charms. But she didn’t boast about her talents, she was just simplicity and modesty,” her son Felix recalled about her.

And there were legends about the rare beauty of Princess Yusupova. « The princess was extraordinarily beautiful, the kind of beauty that is a symbol of the era,” the aunt of the Spanish king recalled about her after her visit to Russia. Many artists painted portraits of Zinaida Nikolaevna, and even the “court” artist Makovsky, who loved (and knew how) to embellish his clients, did not need to correct anything in the portrait of the princess. But the princess’s beauty always had a tinge of sadness.

Probably all ancient families have their own legends, beautiful or terrible. The Yusupov princes also had such a legend. According to legend, the descendants of the Tatar prince Yusuf were cursed by their fellow tribesmen for abandoning their native faith and going into the service of the Russian Tsar. According to this curse, of all the Yusupovs born in one generation, only one will live to be twenty-six years old. Zinaida Nikolaevna remembered this legend when her eldest son Nikolai died in a duel. In a few months he would have turned 26 years old... The only joy and hope of his parents was the youngest, Felix. Now he was the heir not only to his mother’s amazing beauty, but also to the entire enormous fortune, second in size only to the imperial one.

The young prince could be called a prominent representative of the “golden youth” of that time. His shocking antics were discussed in high society and immediately became overgrown with details and speculation - about his love of dressing in women's outfits, then about his homosexuality... However, this topic was generally very popular in secular “salons”. And it was not only Felix who got it, but also Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, the husband of Elizabeth Feodorovna, and Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (by the way, an exemplary family man and father of 9 children). Therefore, it is quite difficult to judge how much of this gossip was true and how much was simply fiction. And it is unlikely that in this case the Royal Family would have allowed Felix Yusupov to marry the Emperor’s niece, Princess Irina. Nicholas II was very principled in such matters, and titles and wealth came last for him.

The royal family loved the Yusupov couple. Grand Duchess Elizaveta Fedorovna was especially friendly with Zinaida Nikolaevna. Empress Alexandra Feodorovna also had a warm relationship with her, but it did not last long. The cause of the discord was Grigory Rasputin. It gradually became obvious that he not only enjoyed the authority of the Tsarina, but was also trying to influence the political decisions of the Tsar. Elizaveta Feodorovna tried to persuade her sister to remove him from the courtyard, and Zinaida Nikolaevna, always distinguished by her straightforwardness, openly condemned the behavior of the “elder”. But Alexandra Feodorovna could not be convinced. She almost stopped communicating with her sister, and completely broke off her friendship with Princess Yusupova.

There is no one to blame in this tragic story; everyone had their own truth. Elizaveta Feodorovna and Zinaida Nikolaevna tried to save the authority of the Royal Family and suppress rumors about Rasputin and the Emperor, which were spreading not only in high society, but also among the common people. And Alexandra Feodorovna, as a mother, was ready to do anything to ease the torment of her beloved son, and unconditionally believed the person who promised his healing. There is an opinion that if Fr. had been alive at that time. John of Kronstadt, Rasputin would not have been at court and everything would have turned out completely differently... When in 1916 Felix Yusupov and his accomplices killed Rasputin, his mother was the first to support him: “You killed the monster that tormented the country. You are right. I'm proud of you…".

The Tsar replaced the death penalty for the prince with exile to a distant estate, and 2 years later, already with his family in Tobolsk, he conveyed a message through his physician: “When you see Princess Yusupova, tell her that I realized how correct her warnings were.” . If they had been listened to, many tragedies would have been avoided.”

When the Civil War began, Felix and his family were already in Crimea and, together with his wife’s brothers, submitted a request to General Denikin to enlist in the White Army, but they were all refused - “the presence of relatives of the imperial family in the ranks of the White Army is undesirable.” In 1919, on the eve of the seizure of Crimea by the Bolsheviks, Zinaida Nikolaevna with her husband, son, daughter-in-law and little granddaughter emigrated on the battleship Marlboro, which was sent by the nephew of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, King George of England. Later, in Malta, Felix exchanged several family diamonds for passports and visas for his family and moved to Paris.

In emigration, the Yusupovs, of course, did not live in poverty, thanks to the small amount of jewelry that they managed to bring out of Russia and real estate purchased abroad long before the revolution. But after the outbreak of the First World War, many aristocrats, including the Yusupovs, out of a sense of patriotism, transferred all their funds from foreign banks to their homeland. Therefore, they found themselves in a foreign land with almost no means of subsistence.

But Zinaida Nikolaevna herself and her loved ones were almost not worried about the missing wealth. Like all emigrants, they dreamed of only one thing - to return to Russia. « Will I ever see Russia?.. No one is allowed to hope. I’m already in those years when you can’t think about the future unless you’re out of your mind. But I still dream about a time that, probably, will not come for me and which I call: “After the exile,” wrote Felix Yusupov in his old age.

His mother lived a long life, raised a granddaughter and was buried in the Russian cemetery of Saint-Genevieve-des-Bois. She never saw Russia.

Once upon a time, the famous artist Valentin Serov, who painted her portrait in Arkhangelskoye, said: “If all rich people, princess, were like you, then there would be no room for injustice.” To which Zinaida Nikolaevna replied: “Valentin Alexandrovich, injustice cannot be eradicated, especially with money.”

V. A. Serov. Portrait of Zinaida Yusupova

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In Russia there were few women of such dazzling beauty, as well as such great intelligence. Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova, by her husband, Countess Sumarokova-Elston, was the last owner of both Arkhangelsk near Moscow and numerous family palaces in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Crimea. In fact, it ended the line of the Yusupov princes, who were associated with the Moscow and St. Petersburg English Club almost from the moment of their founding until October 1917.

Zinaida Nikolaevna was the daughter of the last prince Yusupov - Nikolai Borisovich Jr. A musician, a historian, a rather modest collector (unlike his famous grandfather), Nikolai Borisovich literally adored his daughter Zinaida, who remained the only one of her kind after the death of her sister. Zinaida Nikolaevna was well educated, accustomed to the society of people of science and culture. She was even good at philosophy. European princes of the blood wooed her, one of the richest and most noble brides in Russia, but... “military women love her.” When Count Felix Feliksovich Sumarokov-Elston appeared on the horizon, the beauty’s heart melted, although the count had neither special intelligence, nor business acumen, much less subtle taste. But he had a uniform, and that was enough. The father was horrified, but did not dare to contradict his daughter.

Count Felix, through his mother, had already received the surname of the extinct Sumarokov family. Now, because of his wife, the surname Yusupov was added to him and the princely title was granted, but with the condition that it would pass only to the eldest son. Fate decreed otherwise - the youngest of the sons of Zinaida Nikolaevna and Felix Feliksovich became Prince Yusupov. The famous killer of the “elder” Rasputin was the last of his kind - he had only a daughter and granddaughter.

Zinaida Nikolaevna loved dancing. Court balls were her passion. They said that, having danced “until she dropped” in Zimny, upon arriving home she felt prenatal contractions, and soon Prince Felix Jr. was born, admitting that he was a useless dancer, while he was predicted to become the first secular gentleman.

Happiness, one might say, bypassed the beautiful Zinaida. Two of her children died in infancy, the eldest son, Nikolai, died in a duel because of some empty person. Together with her husband, she owned unique art collections and more than once thought about their fate, especially since some kind of fate was hanging over the Yusupov family. In 1900, long before the death of their eldest son, who was the main heir, she and her husband wrote a will that was quite extraordinary for its time, which was only recently introduced into scientific circulation (collection of the RGADA). Here is a short excerpt from it:

“In the event of a sudden cessation of our family, all our movable and immovable property, consisting of collections of fine arts, rarities and jewelry collected by our ancestors and us... we bequeath to the ownership of the state in the form of preserving these collections within the Empire for the satisfaction of aesthetic and scientific needs of the Fatherland..."

After the death of her eldest son, Zinaida Nikolaevna devoted herself almost entirely to charity. She provided financial assistance to the Elizavetinsky and Krupovsky shelters, the Yalta women's gymnasium, schools on estates, etc., churches, and canteens for the hungry in 1891-1892. In 1883, she allocated donations for the families of Montenegrins. The Yusupov archive preserved her correspondence with Elizaveta Fedorovna, the Grand Duchess, a famous philanthropist for charity.

For her patriotic activities, Zinaida Nikolaevna was awarded diplomas and letters of gratitude from many societies and institutions. Among them are the “Society of Devotees of Russian Historical Education in Memory of Emperor Alexander III,” the Russian Red Cross Society, and the Elizabethan Benevolent Society. Zinaida Nikolaevna was a member of the committee for the establishment of the Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow and donated 50 thousand rubles for the construction of the Roman Hall, which once bore her name, and now has simply become an anonymous part of the art gallery.

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna safely emigrated from revolutionary Russia along with her entire family and died of her own death in 1939. She rests in the Russian cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois, where almost all of old Russia found refuge. None of the princely family had time to use the tomb built in Arkhangelskoye.

Such was the life of Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova - one of the most charming Russian women at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Today the only thing that reminds us of her is the porter by V.A. Serov and a few old photographs.

There are several versions of legends about the Yusupov family curse. Even within the family, this story was told in different ways. Zinaida Nikolaevna herself adhered to the version of her grandmother - Zinaida Ivanovna Naryshkina-Yusupova-de Chavaud-de-Serre.

The founder of the clan was considered to be the Khan of the Nogai Horde, Yusuf-Murza. Wanting to make peace with Moscow against the will of his fellow tribesmen and fearing for the lives of his sons, he sent them to the court of Ivan the Terrible. The Russian chronicle says: “The sons of Yusuf, having arrived in Moscow, were granted many villages and hamlets in the Romanov district, and the service Tatars and Cossacks settled there were subordinate to them. From that time on, Russia became the fatherland for the descendants of Yusuf."

A. G. Rokshtul. Fictional Portrait of Khan Yusuf.

The old khan calculated everything correctly: before his sons had time to reach Moscow, his brother dealt harshly with him. When the news reached the Horde that the sons of Murza had abandoned the Muslim faith and accepted Orthodoxy, one of the sorceresses placed a curse on them, according to which, out of the total number of Yusupovs born in one generation, only one would live to be twenty-six years old, and so it would continue up to the complete destruction of the dynasty. Why this curse sounded so confusing is not easy to say, but it came true with amazing accuracy. No matter how many children the Yusupovs had, only one man was destined to live to the age of twenty-six.

Abdul-Murza - Dmitry Seyushevich Yusupovo-Knyazhevo

At the same time, this terrible fate did not affect the financial prosperity of the family in any way. By 1917, the Yusupovs were in second place in wealth after the Romanovs themselves. They owned a huge amount of land, sugar, brick, sawmills, as well as factories and mines. Their annual income was no less than fifteen million gold rubles. And there were legends about the luxurious Yusupov palaces. Even the greatest princes were jealous of the stunning decoration of their houses and salons. For example, Zinaida Nikolaevna’s rooms in Arkhangelskoye and in the palace in St. Petersburg were furnished with designs from the executed French queen Marie Antoinette.

F. Flameng. Princess Yusupova with her sons in Arkhangelskoye (1894)

Artist Klavdiy Petrovich Stepanov (1854-07/15/1910)

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova, artist Valentin Aleksandrovich Serov

The art gallery could compete with the Hermitage in terms of the number of greatest and authentic works by recognized artists. And Zinaida Nikolaevna’s countless jewels were treasures that in the past belonged to almost all the royal courts of Europe. She especially treasured the magnificent pearl “Pelegrina”. She rarely parted with it and is even depicted wearing it in all portraits. It once belonged to Philip II and was considered the main decoration of the Spanish Crown. However, Zinaida Nikolaevna did not measure happiness by wealth, and the curse of the Tatar sorceress made the Yusupovs unhappy.

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova, artist Konstantin Makovsky

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova, artist Stepan Fedorovich Alexandrovsky (1842-1906)

Of all the Yusupovs, probably only Zinaida Nikolaevna’s grandmother, Countess de Chavo, was able to avoid great suffering due to the untimely death of her children. Born Naryshkina, Zinaida Ivanovna was married to Boris Nikolaevich Yusupov while still a very young girl. Soon she gave birth to a son, and then a daughter who died during childbirth. Only after these events did she learn about the family curse. Being a sensible woman, she told her husband that “ give birth to dead people" no longer. In response to his objections, she said that if he still hasn’t had enough, then it’s allowed “ belly up the yard girls", and that she is not going to object. This was the case until 1849, when the old prince died.

Portrait of Princess Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova (1809-1893) born. Naryshkina, Christina Robertson

Prince Boris Nikolaevich Yusupov (1794-1849), Christina Robertson

Zinaida Ivanovna was not even forty years old when she plunged headlong into the maelstrom of new novels and relationships. There were gossip and legends about her beau, but the young Narodnaya Volya received the most attention. When he was imprisoned in the Shlisselburg fortress, the princess abandoned social life, followed him and, unknown how, she achieved that he was released to her at night. Many people knew about this story and gossiped about it, but, surprisingly, Zinaida Ivanovna was not condemned. On the contrary, secular society recognized the right of the stately princess to all sorts of extravagances a la de Balzac. But then it all ended; for some time she was a recluse at Liteiny.

Portrait of Princess Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova (1809-1893) born. Naryshkina, K. Robertson

Portrait of Princess Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova (1809-1893) born. Naryshkina, K. Robertson

Then she married a bankrupt but well-born Frenchman and left Russia, renouncing the title of Princess Yusupova. In France, she was called Countess de Chaveau, Marquise de Serres. The story associated with the young Narodnaya Volya member was recalled by Yusupov after the revolution. One of the emigrant newspapers published a report that, in search of Yusupov’s treasures, the Bolsheviks destroyed all the walls of the palace on Liteiny Prospekt. To their chagrin, they did not find any jewelry, but they did find a secret room adjacent to the bedroom, in which there was a coffin with the body of an embalmed man. This was probably the Narodnaya Volya member sentenced to death, whose body Zinaida Ivanovna bought and brought to St. Petersburg.

The Keriole estate on the sea coast of Brittany, which Zinaida Ivanovna acquired for her second husband

Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova Louis Charles Honoré Chauveau

However, for all the drama of the life of Zinaida Naryshkina-Yusupova-de Chavaud-de-Serre, her family considered her happy. All her husbands died before reaching old age, and she lost her daughter during childbirth, when she had not yet had time to get used to her. She fell in love many times, did not deny herself anything, and she died surrounded by her family. For the rest of the dynasty, despite their mind-boggling wealth, life was much more prosaic. Family rock spared no one.

Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova

Zinaida Ivanovna Yusupova

Zinaida Nikolaevna's eldest son Nikolenka grew up as a silent and withdrawn boy. No matter how hard Princess Yusupova tried to bring him closer to her, nothing worked for her. All her life she had imagined the horror that gripped her when, at Christmas 1887, when asked to her son what gift he would like to receive, Zinaida Nikolaevna listened to a completely unchildish and icy answer: “ I don't want you to have other children."

Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna Yusupova

Then the princess was confused, but it soon became clear that one nanny assigned to the young prince told the boy about the Nogai curse. She was immediately fired, but Zinaida Nikolaevna waited for the expected baby with a feeling of absorbing and acute fear. Even at first, the fears were not in vain. Nikolenka did not hide his dislike for Felix, and only ten years later, between the matured brothers, a feeling arose that was more like friendship than the love of two relatives. Family rock made its presence known in 1908. Then the ill-fated duel took place.