| Prince Andrew Romanoff | |||||||||||
| Succession: | Head of the House of Romanov (disputed) | ||||||||||
| Reign: | December 31, 2016 – November 28, 2021 | ||||||||||
| Reign-Type: | Tenure | ||||||||||
| Predecessor: | Prince Dimitri Romanovich | ||||||||||
| Successor: | Prince Alexis Andreievich | ||||||||||
| Issue: | Prince Alexis Andreievich Prince Peter Andreievich Prince Andrew Andreievich | ||||||||||
| Full Name: | Andrew Andreievich Romanov | ||||||||||
| House: | Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov | ||||||||||
| Father: | Prince Andrei Alexandrovich of Russia | ||||||||||
| Mother: | Donna Elisabetta Sasso-Ruffo, Princess of San-Antimo | ||||||||||
| Birth Date: | January 21, 1923 | ||||||||||
| Birth Place: | St Pancras, London, England | ||||||||||
| Death Date: | November 28, 2021 (aged 98) | ||||||||||
| Death Place: | Inverness, California, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Religion: | Russian Orthodox Church | ||||||||||
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Prince Andrew Romanoff (born Andrei Andreievich Romanoff; January 21, 1923 – November 28, 2021)[1] [2] was a Russian American artist and author. He was a grand-nephew of Russia's last Tsar, Nicholas II. He was a great-great-grandson in the male line of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia and since the death of Prince Dimitri Romanov in 2016 was claimant to the headship of the House of Romanov until his own death in 2021.[3] [4]
Andrew Andreievich was born on January 21, 1923, in St Pancras, London, England, into the family of Prince Andrei Alexandrovich of Russia (1897–1981) and his first wife Princess Elizabeth Fabricievna, née Duchess of Sasso-Ruffo and Princess of San-Antimo.[5] [6] His godfather was the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom.[7]
The third child and youngest son in the family, Andrew Andreievich spent his childhood with his sister, Princess Xenia Andreievna, and his brother, Prince Michael Andreievich, in the guest house of Windsor Castle – granted to his family by King George V. Until age 12, he studied at home and received a private traditional education, characteristic for the House of Romanov. He was subsequently educated at Haileybury.[8]
Following his discharge from the Royal Navy at the end of World War II, Andrew Andreievich became an intern on an English farm in Kent, learning to become an agronomist. He also worked in a special garden near London. Finding no further prospects in Europe, after the invitation in 1949 of his uncle Prince Vasily Alexandrovich, along with his cousin Prince Nikita Nikitich, and having only 800 dollars in his pocket, he immigrated to the United States on a cargo ship carrying racehorses, pigeons, and eight passengers.
After settling in California, he started working in a store, then worked with his uncle at California Packing, where he grew tomatoes using hydroponics and worked on the introduction of new varieties of vegetables.[9]
He studied sociology and criminology at the University of California at Berkeley. Then he worked as a broker in a shipping company and spent three years in Japan and Korea. After his return to San Francisco, Andrew Andreievich became a real estate agent. He also worked as a simple employee behind the chair factory and became a designer. He became a naturalised U.S. citizen on December 20, 1954.[10]
Following the death of his second wife, he moved to the town of Inverness, Marin County, California, where he worked as a carpenter and joiner, and later was engaged in a jewellery business.
He began to draw as a primitive artist, without formal art education, drawing pictures by intuition and relying on imagination. Andrew Andreievich also engaged in artistic photography. After retirement, he devoted himself entirely to art. On his preferred medium of Shrinky Dinks (plastic sheets that shrink by two-thirds when cooked in an oven), he drew and painted, shrinking the scenes, then mounted them on painted panels. Andrew's artwork was firmly rooted in the traditions of American folk art. His work typically depicted personal memories, impressions of American news, culture, and scenes of domestic life.[11]
Andrew Andreievich lived with his wife, the American painter Inez Storer, in Inverness, California. In 2007, he released an autobiography called The Boy Who Would Be Tsar, illustrated with his artwork. His work has been exhibited worldwide, including recent exhibitions at Gallery 16 in San Francisco.[12]
He died on November 28, 2021, at an assisted living facility in San Anselmo, California.[13]
Prince Andrew married three times. He was married firstly in San Francisco on September 9, 1951, to Elena Konstantinovna Durnova (1927, Tokyo, Japan – 1992, Oakland, California). She was the only daughter of Russian nobleman Konstantin Afanasievich Durnovo (1896–1970) and wife Felixa Stanislavovna Zapalska (1903–2002). They had one son before divorcing in 1959:[14]
He was married secondly to Kathleen Norris (1935, San Francisco – 1967, San Francisco) in San Francisco on March 21, 1961. She was a paternal granddaughter of American authors Charles Gilman Norris and wife Kathleen Norris. She died after pneumonia at age 32. They had two children:[15]
He was married thirdly on December 17, 1987, in Reno, Nevada, to the American artist Inez Storer (née Bachelin; born 1933, Santa Monica, California). She is daughter of Franz Bachelin and wife Anita Hirschfeld.
Members of the House of Romanov born after the Russian revolution, such as Andrew, tended to use the title Prince, appropriate style and the surname Romanov.[16] As the younger son of a great grandson of a Russian Emperor, formally Andrew was titled His Serene Highness Prince of the Imperial Blood Andrew Andreievich.[17]
On account of his parents' marriage Andrew’s claim to this princely title was never recognised by Grand Duke Kirill, Grand Duke Vladimir or Grand Duchess Maria.[18] In 1951 Grand Duke Vladimir recognised the title Prince Romanovsky for Andrew and his siblings. However they rejected this title.[19]