maryboleyn: Anastasia Romanov was the youngest daughter of Emperor Nicolas II and Empress Alexandra

maryboleyn: Anastasia Romanov was the youngest daughter of Emperor Nicolas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia and the sister to Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Alexei. She was born 18 June 1901, and was murdered on 17 July 1918. About ninety years later, the last of the four grand duchesses’ bodies was found, and through DNA testing and rigorous scientific research, the myths that persisted that one of the sisters escaped was finally and conclusively proven false. With the new musical Anastasia now out, it is important to remember the real young woman be hind the mythology and legend, who died a brutal death at only seventeen.  “ Once upon a time runs the fairy tale. For Anastasia..she was born into a lavish world of palaces and liveried servants, gold braided courtiers and sleek yachts, loving parents and a devoted family-everything necessary to the traditional, heartwarming conclusion. For Anastasia, though, there would be no happy ending; her fairy tale went horribly awry, its peaceful promise shattered by war and revolution. In its place arose a new tale that gave resonance to the meaning of her name, in which hope triumphed over despair and desire transcended brutal reality.” - The Ressurection of the Romanovs by Penny Wilson and Greg King “Anastasia, the youngest daughter, destined to become the most famous of the children of Nicholas II, was a short, dumpy, blue-eyed child renowned in her family chiefly as a wag. When the saluting cannon on the Imperial yacht fired at sunset, Anastasia liked to retreat into a corner, stick her fingers into her ears, widen her eyes and loll her tongue in mock terror. Witty and vivacious, Anastasia also had a streak of stubbornness, mischief and impertinence. The same gift of ear and tongue that made her quickest to pick up a perfect accent in foreign languages also equipped her admirably as a mimic. Comically, sometimes cuttingly, the little girl aped precisely the speech and mannerisms of those about her. Anastasia, the L’Enfant terrible, was also a tomboy. She climbed trees to dizzying heights, refusing to come down until specifically commanded by her father.”  - Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert K. Massie -- source link

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