"Moral insanity": why Duke Nicholas Konstantinovich considered a disgrace of the Romanov family

Nephew of Emperor Alexander II, Grand Duke Nikolay Konstantinovich Romanov family was considered an outcast. Due to kleptomania he was sent away from the court. But in exile he continued to shock the Royal family. The Prince lived in a dog pack, had a minor mistresses and appeared naked. The best psychiatrists are those times set the nephew of the Emperor, the diagnosis of "moral insanity".

At 21, Prince Nicholas became the commander of a cavalry squadron and had an affair with an American dancer Fanny Lear. To complete this relationship, the Romanov family sent the young aristocrat away from the capital. After participating in the Khiva military campaign Nicholas returned to St. Petersburg and resumed relations with Fanny.

Fanny Lear and Prince Nicholas before sending in the army

In the spring of 1874, the mother of 24-year-old Prince Nicholas Alexandra Iosifovna was gone. From the salary of the icon, whom she married, lost three diamonds. The Princess had called the police, who found the stones in one of the pawnshops in St. Petersburg. It turned out that they sell them to the adjutant Varnavski, and the stones gave him Nicholas Roerich himself.

Nicholas on the Bible swore not to blame, and the Emperor Alexander II was attracted to the investigation of the gendarmerie chief of Peter Shuvalov. The Governor-General for three hours interrogated Nicholas in the presence of his father, Prince Konstantin Nikolaevich. In the diary of a parent of the suspect wrote:

Nicholas with his parents

It turned out that the diamonds had stolen the Prince Nicholas, who wanted to sell jewels, and spend the money on American mistress. The family Council of the Romanov it was decided to send the Prince out of the capital and to publicly recognize him mentally ill. He differed from childhood strange behavior, which with age grew into signs of mental illness.

Emperor Alexander II

The name of the thieving family member was forbidden to mention in documents of the Imperial House. Nicholas was disinherited and erase from the army lists, and in private life he always had to be guards. For the first 7 years of the disgraced Prince changed 10 places of exile. The Prince lived in the Ukraine, the Volga region, Turkestan.

After a history of diamonds, the Prince had a relationship with Alexandra Demidova, which 3 years was pursued by Romanov. Everywhere she went for a fugitive and, according to the Royal relatives, bad for himself. In 1878, the Prince married the daughter of the chief of police of Orenburg Dreyer, Nadezhda Alexandrovna, on which he wrote the business assets. This long marriage was a civil and not recognized by the Church.

A group photo of the Romanov family. Nicholas Konstantinovich on the battlefield.

While staying in Turkestan, 33-year-old fugitive molested minor daughter of Colonel Bergman and even wanted to marry her. With his wife Nadezhda Alexandrovna he was going to divorce and marry her off to a buddy drinking a Cossack captain Mansurov. The new marriage was prevented by the girl's father, who complained to the Governor-General. However, in 45 years, Nicholas married 15-year-old Cossack girl Daria Chasovitina and even appeared in the society together with two spouses.

But by the early 1900s psychological state Nicholas worsened. The Prince lived in a luxurious Palace, but spent the night in the same room with a dozen dogs. In this room, he was pooped and slept naked on the floor surrounded by dogs. Every day the Prince summoned a Barber, who was removed from his body all the hair. Nicholas examined the assistant Professor and Professor Rosenbach Merzhievsky, but to help the patient, they could not.

Konstantin Nikolaevich (standing) with brothers and sisters

In 1901 Nicholas was married with a 15 year old schoolgirl Valerie Khmelnitsky. In St. Petersburg, marriage did not cause approval. Relatives sent the Commission the cancellation of the wedding. Throughout that time, Romanov had many sexual relationships, including with young boys.

June 29, 1901, 52-year-old Nicholas for 3 years, arrived in Balaklava. Here it is before lunch, slept on the floor with the dogs and every day swam in the sea. In warm time of the year "August sick" walked around the house naked and often went to the balcony, where he saw onlookers. In winter he stopped to bathe and refused to adhere to any rules of hygiene.

Pre-Revolutionary Balaclava

From cops and doctors, he demanded to bring him a boy or a girl for sexual pleasures. The main condition — not older than 12 years. From my own experience, it is advised to pay the parents of the child more money. Crimean doctor Belvis has examined the patient and diagnosed him with Folie morale is "moral insanity."

Home of Nikolai Konstantinovich Romanov. Contemporary photography

The doctors came to the conclusion that the causes of insanity the Prince could be complications from syphilis, which he suffered in his youth, and heredity. The patient's mother also suffered from mental disorders and hallucinations. Privat-docent of Moscow University Vladimir the Serbian put Nicholas Romanov the diagnosis of "degenerative psychosis with a blunting of the moral sense".

Nicholas (first from left) with his wife Nadezhda Alexandrovna and his brother Constantine

In 1904, Roerich moved to Stavropol, and after 3 years he returned to Tashkent. There he became lighter and he was engaged in the irrigation of arid regions of Turkestan. The Prince welcomed the February revolution, the abdication of the Emperor, and wrote a congratulatory letter to the President of the provisional government of Alexander Kerensky. Died an exile in 1918 from pneumonia.