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To aid the reader of this tale, what follows is the cast of principal characters:

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Prince Karl was driven nearly out of his mind by his family since they seemed to want to bring everything they owned with them. In addition, there appeared to be a million things to take care of prior to the departure. But eventually, and after many tears from the younger daughters, the family was packed and ready to depart.

The journey to Odessa was long and quite grueling for Prince Karl and for most of his family. The journey involved several bumpy coach rides through areas of deep snow and a slow and uncomfortable train journey.

Vierspänner im Winter – J. Konarski (probably a pseudonym of Franciszek Bujakiewicz, 1856–1918)

Happily, the younger daughters were thrilled by it all since this was their first journey of any distance that they had ever taken and there was always something to see that filled them with excitement and brought countless questions to their parents.

The Princesses Eugénie and Louisa filled their time imaging and re-imaging what the Grand Ball would actually be like. Would all the young men be handsome and excellent dance partners and would all the ladies be dressed in glorious gowns and bedecked in fabulous jewels?

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The Summer Palace

Some of the fountains of The Summer Palace

The family eventually arrived at the Summer Palace of the Grand Duke. The party was tired and perhaps the little the worse for ware. Awaiting on the steps of the steps was his Aide de Camp, Count Serge Rostov.  The Count immediately offered apologies from the Grand Duke for not being present to welcome them and offered his excuses by saying that Affairs of State had forced him to be in conference at that precise time. The Count next bid them welcome in the name of the Grand Duke and said that he was present to attend to their immediate needs. In return, Prince Karl presented his wife and daughters to the Count who was very gracious and bowed to each member upon presentation. The younger daughters giggled and hid their faces from shyness since no one had bowed to them before!

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Following the introductions, the Count led them to their apartments, where a number of servants were waiting to aid them. The Grand Duke had especially chosen these servants to wait exclusively on the family, and following careful and specific instructions, were to overhear any and every conversation made by the family, and then report what was heard to the Count who would then report anything that he thought of value directly to the Grand Duke. The Grand Duke even offered a Chaperone to accompany the two elder Princesses at the Grand Ball, which he felt would ease the mind of their parents. Prince Karl and Princess Caroline did not know that she was specifically instructed to pay close attention to the activities of Princess Eugénie!

The Chaperone

The Count said that as the hour was late and perhaps everyone was tried might he suggest that the family prefer to take their repast in their apartment. Prince Karl was happy to accept this proposal since they were all  very tired from the journey. It was next agreed that the Count would return the following morning and accompany them on a tour of the Palace and then present them to the Grand Duke.

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The Count arrived following breakfast. He asked if the apartments were to the family’s satisfaction and was there anything that they needed that had not been provided. Following some suitable banter, he then invited them to tour The Palace.

The Palace proved even more glorious than the family could have imagined. There seemed to be an endless number of beautiful State Rooms, and also what Princess Caroline could only think of as a Throne Room which was actually the Ballroom! She could be forgiven her error since there was an enormous chair at the top of a two-step platform where she assumed the Grand Duke received visitors. Everyone did not say it openly to the Count, but they found the Throne to be ridiculous, quite ridiculous!

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The Manner in which The Grand Duke would prefer people to be presented to him!

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After the tour, the family felt exhausted. While sitting quietly back in their apartment, the only word that came into the mind of Prince Karl to best describe the numerous State Rooms, Ante-rooms, Libraries etc., etc., was sumptuous. The family had been left breathless by each of the rooms with their beautiful statues, ornate wall decorations and fabulous ceilings.

The Interior of The Palace

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However, and despite the impressive interior of the Palace, everyone enjoyed the gardens most of all, which they learned were the Grand Duke’s pride and joy. While they walked through the garden, the Count related details of the fabulous plants that abounded there and how many had been brought from the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. Princess Eugénie asked if they might spend some time here during their stay at the Palace since the foliage interested her greatly.

Song of India by Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908)

Scenes from The Gardens of The Palace
The Grand Duke was extremely proud of the Wisteria

Secretly, both Princesses thought the gardens to be the most romantic place that they had ever seen. The Count said that the Grand Duke would be delighted for her to feel free to walk here whenever she chose since he was always eager for visitors to enjoy them.

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Once the Tour of the Palace and gardens was over, the Count took the family back to their apartments and left them to their thoughts for a while promising to return a little later. And as promised the Count returned and asked the Prince and Princess to accompany him to meet the Grand Duke. They were brought back to the Ballroom where they found him seated on his Throne. It took all of Princess Caroline’s self control to stifle her laugh!

The Grand Duke was busy with a number of people, but when he saw the Count and his wife, he stood up and came towards them. He appeared very gracious, and even friendly, and hoped that they would consider the Palace as their home and that if he could assist them in any way to please ask the Count. He mentioned that he looked forward to dining with them and their charming daughters and that the Count would arrange a suitable evening for this to occur. And with that, bowed slightly and then turned back to those attending him and returned to his work.

Secretly Princess Caroline hoped that the Grand Duke’s work would occupy him to the extent that he would not have time to dine with them. The Princess had not taken a liking to him at all and found his gracious manner to be nothing more than a façade. She felt certain that he had an ulterior purpose in bringing them here and that neither she nor the Prince would find it favourable.

The Count then ushered the Prince and Princess away and once back in their apartment, he apologised for the brisk dismissal by saying that the Grand Duke was very much occupied with State Affairs and final preparations for The Grand Ball. Both the Prince and the Princess were happy that the presentation had been brief since Prince Karl also found the Grand Duke to be somewhat sinister!

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The Grand Duke had of course been following the activities of the family unbeknownst to them! Thanks to a number of secret passages that he had built into the Palace once he took control of it along with various discreetly placed peepholes in the walls. These additions allowed the him to observe Princess Eugénie to his heart’s content. The more he saw of her, the more determined he became to make her his third wife!

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The next few days were filled with preparations for The Grand Ball both by the Grand Duke’s household and the family. Music filled the Palace as the orchestra, especially imported for the grand occasion, was undergoing their final rehearsal.

The Grand Duke had arranged, much to the irritation of the Director of the Orchestra du Ballet at St. Petersburg, for the full orchestra to come to his estate and play for his guests at The Grand Ball. Although Le Chef de L’Orchestra, Maestro Enrico Quintiliano Mancini, was not pleased with this arrangement, he could not refuse the command. Very few ever dared do that!

Johann Strauss II (1825-1899) – Schatz Walzer, Opus 418 (Treasure Waltz)

Meanwhile the staff of the Palace were being run ragged by the demands of the Grand Duke who could be heard barking his orders throughout the whole Palace!

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Much needed to be done to prepare the dresses to be worn by the young Princesses and Princess Caroline to make them ready for the great event. Fortunately, the various members of staff assigned to them were of great value.

Both Princesses were very tried by the end of each day, as there had been much more to do than they had realised. However, they quickly gained the habit of ending their day with a walk in the garden which was full of perfume at that time of the year. The Princesses confessed to each other that this was the most romantic place they had ever seen and wondered what it would like to meet one’s own true love here!

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At last the day of the Grand Ball arrived and Princess Caroline thought it best to keep her children in their apartments as much as possible in order to not be in anyone’s way. She did allow the daughters to walk in the gardens several times that day, but only under the strict rule that they were not to bother any of the servants since they obviously were being worked to exhaustion.

After much fussing, the ladies were ready to be seen in public. The Count had arrived a little earlier and was now enjoying an aperitif while waiting with Prince Karl for their entrance. The young Princesses were stunning in their ball gowns and with their hair coiffed perfectly. The Count complemented them and suggested that perhaps they would vie for the position of Belle of The Ball.

The Ballroom in the Estate of the Grand Duke at Odessa

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The Ball was indeed Grand in every way. It was to be a sumptuous affair where the cream of society would mingle, the finest wines would be sampled and the numerous gastronomic delights and sweetmeats would be offered to tempt all palates. The Grand Duke believed that he had left nothing to chance for he wanted everything to be perfect, and indeed it was …… except for his premier motive, that is!

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Clair de Lune (1890-1905) – Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Even the weather played its part on the night of The Grand Ball. The air was balmy with a full moon in the sky which was reflected on the Black Sea. There was only the slightest hint of a cloud in the sky that moved slowly and eventually disappeared beyond the horizon. The slight breeze coming from the sea carried the potent perfumes of the flowers in the garden to surround and intoxicate those taking a promenade there.

The scene was perfect and sure to ignite a flame in the soul of the young and remind the old of days past. It would set the scene for lasting love in some and infatuation in others. Many past liaisons and associations would be rekindled no doubt while perhaps new ones would begin.

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The Count escorted the family to the Grand Ballroom, which was all aglow and buzzing with activity. The Grand Duke was waiting at the entrance to the Ballroom and was gracious when he received the family. His conversation with them was brief since some important dignitaries were waiting behind them. Again, Princess Caroline welcomed the brief interaction with the Grand Duke.

However, he noticed especially the Princess Eugénie and how beautiful and elegant she was. Yes, he thought, she would make him a fine wife. She was still young enough for him to mold her into the person that he truly wanted by his side! Sadly he knew that he would not be able to spend any time with her, since regardless of the setting, there were always affairs of state to attend to and which  would require his immediate attention.

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The air was filled with music and a number of couples were dancing. Despite the irritation of the Director for the Orchestra du Ballet at St. Petersburg to come to his estate and play for his guests he had made the best of an annoying and demanding situation!

L’Orchestra du Ballet

Johann Strauss II (1825-1899) – Kaiser-Walzer, Op. 437 (Emperor Waltz, 1889)

The family moved towards some empty seats at the Ballroom’s edge and sat down and observed the scene. After a minute or so, the Count asked Prince Karl if he may have the honour of dancing with each of his daughters. The request was granted, and he was soon dancing, first with the Princess Eugénie, and then with the Princess Louisa. Both young ladies proved to be excellent dancing partners, and the Count complemented them on their grace and style. Following this, he begged to be excused since he knew that the Grand Duke would be of need of his services.

Fear of being a Wallflower

The young princesses were concerned that they would now become wallflowers since they did not see themselves as grand ladies with the necessary charms to attract dancing partners! However, their presence had been noticed by the young men including an assorted bunch of lotharios and philanderers. Happily. they did not have to wait long for dancing partners to seek them out and were soon in constant demand. Naturally they were thrilled to be invited to dance and completely forgot that they might become wallflowers and would only be invited to dance by their father!

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While dancing, Princess Eugénie eyes noticed a young man dressed in the white uniform of what she believed to be the Imperial Guard. Each time she was led to turn by her partner, upon return, she sought out this young man. She wondered who he was, and hoped that he might notice her, but alias, she dismissed this idea with a sigh since she assumed that he was far too grand and important to notice her, a mere girl from The Urals. However, dismissing him from her mind would prove a different matter.

Who is this young officer, I wonder?

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