Russia celebrates its first royal wedding in more than a century | Globalism
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The last heir of Caesar RussiaWho was executed by the Bolsheviks with his family in 1918, he celebrated his wedding on Friday (1) in Saint Petersburg, in the presence of the kings of Europe.
Grand Duke Georgi Mikhailovich Romanov, 40, married 39-year-old Italian Rebecca Petarini at St. Isaac’s Cathedral in the heart of the city that was the former imperial capital (the capital of Russia today is Moscow).
1,500 people were invited to the wedding, including Queen Sofia of Spain and deposed King of Bulgaria Simeon II And his wife Margarita, as well as other representatives of European royal families.
Grand Duke Georgi Mikhailovich Romanov and Victoria Romanovna Petarini exchange rings during the wedding ceremony at Saint Isaac’s Cathedral in Saint Petersburg, Russia, October 1, 2021 – Photo: Anton Vaganov/Reuters
Georgi Mikhailovich Romanov was born in Madrid and graduated from Oxford University. He is the son of Grand Duchess Maria Romanova, granddaughter of Grand Duke Kirill. Kirill was the cousin of Nicholas II, the last tsar of the Romanov dynasty, who ruled in Russia for more than 300 years.
Shot by the Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution overthrew the king and captured him by the Bolsheviks in 1917. The following year, Nicholas II was shot in the Urals with his wife, Empress Alexandra, their four daughters and their son..
They were buried for a long time in a place kept secret by the Soviet regime, but their bodies were eventually transferred to Saint Petersburg Cathedral in 1998.
They were also canonized in 2000 by the Russian Orthodox Church and were officially recognized by justice in 2008 as victims of Bolshevism.
An aerial view of St. Isaac’s Cathedral, which hosted the wedding of the Grand Duke of Russia, George Mikhailovich Romanov, and his Italian bride, Victoria Petarini, in downtown Saint Petersburg, Russia, pictured September 30, 2021. Anton Vaganov/Reuters
Grand Duke George Romanov met his fiancée in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, where they were both working in European institutions.
Rebecca Petarini, the daughter of a diplomat, converted to Orthodoxy so that she could marry Romanov and her name was changed to Victoria Romanovna.
The Russian Grand Duke has been living in Moscow for three years, near the Kremlin (the seat of the Russian government), and claims to be dedicated to charitable projects.
In an interview with the Russian newspaper “Fontanka”, he said that he chose to marry in St. Petersburg “for many reasons”, since the city is “the history of Russia, the history of the Romanovs’ house.”
Russia’s Grand Duke Georgi Mikhailovich Romanov and his fiancée Rebecca Petarini pose for a photo in Moscow – Image: Imperial Russian Foundation via Reuters
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