A recent interview conducted with Grand Duchess Maria for “Sputnik” News Service’s Spanish correspondent, Alberto Garcia Palombo was recently posted online.
The original piece may be seen here in Spanish. The full interview will be posted at a later date.
RL is pleased to provide an English translation from the original Spanish.
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Heir of the Russian Tsars: The Bolsheviks are not uniquely responsible for the Civil War
This past year was marked, among other things, by an unusual event: the wedding of George Romanov, heir of the Russian tsars. On this occasion, the head of the Imperial Family of Romanov, Grand Duchess Maria, told Sputnik about her role in the history of Russia and her current activities.
The Russian Imperial Family, as represented by the heirs of Grand Duke Kyril, made its official return to Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. In the early days, however, their presence was little more than ceremonial, but with the passage of time they began to participate in the social life of the Eurasian nation.
According to Grand Duchess Maria, she does not involve herself in political struggle or try to attract media attention. She believes that any interest in her personally is due to feelings of respect for an historical and cultural legacy.
"I am open to dialogue, and I never shy away from answering anyone’s questions, including difficult and critical ones. I am always ready to engage and work with anyone and everyone. But I also never seek to impose myself or my views on anyone.," she remarked in an interview with Sputnik.
The position of the Russian Imperial Family, she asserts, is constructed in a responsible manner and does not waver according to temporary circumstances.
The responsibility of the Bolsheviks
Maria's ancestors were convinced that the October Revolution and the Russian Civil War were a shared tragedy and that both sides of the conflict had responsibility, she notes.
As she indicated, the responsibility lies not only with the revolutionaries, nor with the most radical Bolsheviks, nor with foreign enemies, but also with the aristocracy, part of the clergy, and the bourgeoisie.
"On the one hand, our country managed to avoid a full-scale Civil War in the 1990s. The people understand this and value the current political stability. On the other hand, however, there are certain forces that seek to disrupt this stability and sow the seeds of hatred and revenge again.," she adds.
The Russian Imperial House rejects any revanchism, whether “red” or “white”. Romanova stressed that the people who fought in the Civil War on both sides are already deceased, so we should not maintain the “white” vs. “red” confrontation. Instead, she says, we must learn from the lessons and do everything possible to avoid violence and renewed fratricide.
The rebirth of Russia
Exile from their homeland and emigration was a great tragedy for the royal family, whose descendants now live in every corner of the planet. Even so, For some, Russia continued and continues to be their homeland, if only in their dreams, she notes.
When Maryia first arrived in Russia she describes feeling a mixture of joy and pain. On that occasion, her father, Vladimir, was buried. At the same time, the grand Duchess saw that Russia faced a serious crisis and remained in a state of disorder.
The Communist regime, which had existed for more than 70 years, had just collapsed. Several generations had grown up under its rule. It was clear to everyone then that this ideology and system had outlived itself, that changes were necessary.
"But what these changes would be, what they would lead to—few knew. It was an era of great hopes and terrible disappointments… It sometimes seemed to me from the look of things that Russia had just experienced some kind of war that nobody had known about.”
The Grand Duchess concludes that, since those days, much has changed. The country, she says, has become much more stable. Meanwhile, in recent decades the Imperial Family has begun to participate in the social life of Russia even more, without ever interfering in political processes.
