a-doll-like-you:Later in life Louis Mountbatten speaks of his memories of his Romanov family ‘The Ts
a-doll-like-you:Later in life Louis Mountbatten speaks of his memories of his Romanov family ‘The Tsar was my father’s first cousin…and the Tsarina was my aunt on my mother’s side. Another aunt, Elizabeth, had married the Grand Duke Serge. So our Russian connections were very close. We used to see each other quite often either in Germany, or in Russia. I loved my Russian family and I loved Russia too.These old family photograph albums bring back memories of all the happy times we had together in that almost unbelievable world before the Revolution. In this photo with my cousins I was just ten…my little cousin the Tsesarevich Alexei is in the carriage. He was heir to the Russian throne and was younger than me by about four years and in very poor health sometimes… he was a haemophiliac, which was a great worry to us all. …Olga, Marie, Anastasia and Tatiana were all very beautiful. I remember I had always secretly hoped to marry Marie… (Lord Louis laughs softly).Russia was an autocracy at that time, the Tsar had absolute power and was answerable only to God. Yet anyone less like an autocrat than my uncle Nicky would be hard to imagine…he was a very, very kind-hearted simple charming man. But at the same time he was rather weak and indecisive. He was never happier than when he was outside playing with his children. I remember he would purchase us all chocolate-ices, and after, settle down with a long book to read quietly in peace Keep reading -- source link