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Princess Elisabeth

Updated: Feb 15, 2023

Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, was a German princess from the Royal House of Hesse Darmstad. She married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, the fifth son of Emperor Alexander II of Russia and thus became Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna of Russia. Elisabeth initially became famous in Russian society for her beauty. However it soon became clear her convictions were deeply moved by the plight of the poor and thus she seriously began working with charitable efforts among orphans and widows in Moscow. Russia at that time was on the brink of revolution against the Imperial government. It affected Elisabeth directly after the Socialist Revolutionary Party assassinated her husband with a bomb in 1905. Elisabeth was said to have gathered the disembodied parts of her husband herself not allowing servants to help. She then insisted on meeting Sergei's murderer, Ivan Kalyayev and publicly forgave him. She then campaigned directly with her nephew the Emperor for him to be pardoned. The Grand Duchess sold all she owned and departed the Imperial Court to devote herself to charity work, eventually becoming a nun. She used her vast fortune to employ a financial manager and doctor and with some nuns founded the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent. The organisation was dedicated to helping the downtrodden of Moscow, specifically orphans and widows. It also served as a hospital and school. Elisabeth was warned of the imminent threat the growing revolutionary move held for her but she chose to continue serving the poor. In 1918 she was arrested by the Bolshevics based solely on being a member of the Imperial Family. With the new communist government solidifying under Lenin she, her staff and nuns were ultimately executed by being thrown into a well and having hand grenades dropped in after them. It is said that Elisabeth was heard singing hymns at the bottom of the well until consecutive hand grenades eventually brought total silence. Elisabeth's tale however will never be silenced and will continue as a moment in history when a woman of exceptional privilege decided to acknowledge the less fortunate, forgave them their murderous revolution and dedicated herself to the point of laying down her life for them.


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