After the assassination of her husband, Tsar Alexander II, Katia decides to leave Russia to settle in France, on the Côte d'Azur. Discover this story in this bonus episode of "At the heart of history".

While listening to the story dedicated to Alexander II and Katia, you may have asked yourself a question: what happened to Katia after the tsar's assassination in 1881? In this bonus episode of "At the heart of history", the history specialist Jean des Cars tells you why Katia decided to leave Russia to settle in France.

The funeral of Alexander II took place in St. Peter and St. Paul's Cathedral, the St. Denis of the Romanovs, in St. Petersburg. It is the new sovereign, Alexander III, who wears the catafalque with the grand dukes. During the ceremony, the imperial family is in the front row. Then, everyone stands up to pay homage to the deceased tsar: we kiss his hands. According to Russian tradition, the coffin is open. The ambassadors succeed the Romanovs. Suddenly, the master of ceremonies stops the parade. From the bottom of the cathedral, advancing, supported by a Minister of the Court, a young woman wrapped in her mourning veils: it's Katia. Devastated, she pays a final tribute to the man who loved her so much. A few days later, she leaves Russia forever, with her three children.

She buys a sumptuous villa in Nice

She first took refuge in Biarritz, already highly prized by the Russian aristocracy. Then, in January 1891, she bought the sumptuous Villa Georges in Nice and moved there permanently. Nice is also very popular with the Romanovs. The first tsarevitch, the eldest son of Alexander II, Nicolas, had stayed there in 1865 to try to cure his tuberculosis. He died there on April 25 of this year. His fiancée, née Dagmar from Denmark, finally married his younger brother, the new heir, the future Alexander III. To commemorate the death of the tsarevich, a chapel had been built on the site of the villa where he had breathed his last. It was inaugurated in 1869. Much later, in 1912, not far from there, will be inaugurated the Saint-Nicolas cathedral, the Russian church of Nice, a homage of the wife of Alexander III, Maria Feodorovna, to his first fiance Nicolas. Even today, this very important Orthodox building is managed by Russia.

A dignified and withdrawn life

Katia attended the cathedral from its inauguration. She will donate her dearest relic, the bloody shirt worn by Alexander II at the time of his death. In Nice, Katia leads a dignified and withdrawn life. She is devoted to charitable works, in particular a retirement home bearing the name of her husband.

His son, Georges Yourevski, was an officer in the Russian Navy and then a captain in the Hussar Regiment of the Tsarskoie Selo Guard. He died in 1913. His eldest daughter, Olga, married the Count of Meremberg, of the Nassau-Luxembourg family. Finally, Catherine will marry a prince Obolenski from whom she will divorce in 1922. Katia, she, died the same year, aged 75 years and forgotten by all ...

Among the Romanovs who escaped the 1917 Revolution and fled Russia, some also settled on the Côte d'Azur. This is the case of the Grand Duke André, cousin of the Tsar, who will reside there with his wife, the famous ballerina Mathilde Kchessinskaya who had been the first love of the future Nicholas II. They built the splendid Villa Alam, in Cap d'Ail. His brother, the Grand Duke Cyril chose Château Fabron. Even today, many Russians live on the French Riviera and do not go unnoticed ...

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"At the heart of history" is a Europe 1 Studio podcast

Author and presentation: Jean des Cars

Project manager: Adèle Ponticelli

Realization: Guillaume Vasseau

Diffusion and edition: Clémence Olivier

Graphics: Europe 1 Studio

Direction Europe 1 Studio: Claire Hazan