Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich of Russia - Russian Grand Duke

Russian Grand Duke

Nicholas Mikhailovich was tall at 6' 3", and a beefy frame, with dark eyes and a short dark triangular beard. He became bald early in life and, in later years, heavy set. He loved children, and although he never married, according to his niece, Princess Nina, he fathered several illegitimate children. Moody and eccentric, he had an acerbic and cynical nature. He also had a sharp wit and a keen, sometimes childish, sense of humor. His pranks and jokes endeared him to his family. He considered himself as a socialist, holding liberal political views. His behavior, along with his stubborn insisting on always speaking his mind, did not endear him to the Imperial family, and it was his charm and humor which often alleviated their anger toward his beliefs. This label of "liberal" was only further supported by his open and easy nature. The grand duke considered the men in his regiment to always be his equals, and addressed them as "my friends". He was uneasy about class pretensions and especially the idea of being "above" the men, yet his soldiers loved him deeply and praised him loudly. He would receive intellectuals from across the political spectrum and have long engaging discussions and correspondence with them.

His passion for Russian history and butterflies, his genuine scholarship, along with his love and respect for France and its political systems made him an atypical Romanov. His liberalism did not prevent him from writing to Leo Tolstoy to protest a pamphlet the famous writer was distributing containing what the grand duke considered an unfair and inaccurate criticism of his grandfather Nicholas I. Widely considered an eccentric, he was well regarded by many family members including Empress Maria, who valued his opinions. Nicholas traveled extensively; he often visited Paris and the south of France where he reunited with his brother Michael and sister Anastasia. Nicholas was fond of gambling and lost large amounts at the casino in Monte Carlo. He was famous for his indiscretions, disclosing confidential information about politics in Russia to his friends or in conversation at reunions. These got him into trouble more than once. An ardent Francophile, he offended Germany during a visit to Paris when he expressed his anti-German political views, which caused a diplomatic protest. Upon his return to Russia, Alexander III exiled him for some months to Borjomi, his family's rural state.

Very outspoken about his ideas, he begged Nicholas II to cancel the coronation ball at the French embassy in Moscow following the Khodynka Tragedy, warning him that holding it would create a perception of monarchical indifference such as had made Marie Antoinette unpopular. When it was held nevertheless, he arrived with his brothers, then departed soon after in protest. His manner could turn caustic. The Imperial family always said he had a mean and critical tongue. He loathed Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna and her family, the Vladimirovichi. A vehement critic of most of his male cousins, Grand Duke Nicholas Nikholaievich in particular, Nicholas Mikhailovich was a divisive figure among the Romanovs.

At the death of his father in 1909, he became the head of the Mikhailovichi branch of the Romanov family and inherited great wealth. He received all of the lands and houses of his father: Borjomi, his large rural esstate in Georgia where he enjoyed living and preferred to work; Mikhailovskoe outside St Petersburg; an enormous palace on the Neva in St Petersburg, and the great estate Grushevka in southern Ukraine. His primary residence was the palace on the Neva, which was so large that his brother Grand Duke Sergei, who lived with him, used a bicycle to go from one side to the other. Between his two residences in the capital region, he employed more than 400 servants.

Nicholas Mikhailovich was initially on good terms with Nicholas II, both when he was heir to the crown and later as an emperor. However, the Grand Duke's liberal political views placed him at odds with Empress Alexandra, who regarded him as her personal enemy. A pessimistic man, Grand Duke Nicholas became increasingly worried about the political situation, especially after the Russian defeat in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 and the subsequent unrest. He wrote to Tolstoy, with whom he had carried on a friendly correspondence, on 1 October 1905: "I suffer all the more from my silence because every one of the government's flaws is so blindingly clear to me and I see no remedy except in a radical change from everything that now exists. But my aged father is still alive and, out of respect for him, I must be careful not to offend him by my views or my behavior."