The Kirsanov Local History Museum houses a furniture set from the Obolensky manor house, which miraculously survived the destruction of the estate in March 1917 and the subsequent equally dramatic moments in Russian history. This carved, lavishly inlaid furniture once made an indelible impression on the visitors of the Obolensky estate. The nightstand, as well as the whole set, is inlaid with geometric ivory patterns and metal inlays.
The destiny of the eldest son of Princess M. K. Obolenskaya (Reitern) is of particular interest. Sergey Platonovich Obolensky, who was born in 1890, assumed his full title — Obolensky-Neledinsky-Meletsky — after his father’s death. Educated at Oxford, he returned to Russia when World War I broke out and joined a cavalry regiment as an officer. For his achievements at the war front he was awarded three George Crosses. He participated in the Civil War and fought in the White Army for three years.
After the Russian Civil War, he emigrated and was granted American citizenship in 1932. He married first the morganatic daughter of Emperor Alexander II, Serene Highness Catherine Yurievskaya. His second marriage was to Ava Alice Muriel Astor, daughter of millionaire John Jacob Astor IV. He began working in the hotel business, owned by the Astors since the 19th century. After his second divorce, he did not give up his career in the hotel business.
The most interesting turn in the prince’s biography came at the outbreak of the Second World War. Obolensky became a member of the US Office of Strategic Services (the forerunner of the CIA), rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. At the age of 53 he was the oldest paratrooper in the US Army, becoming one of the founders of the US Special Forces. One of the most successful OSS operations in World War II, thanks to the diplomatic talent of Sergey Obolensky, was the capture of Sardinia in September 1943.
After the war Prince Obolensky returned to the hotel business and social life. He married for the third time, to Marilyn Fraser-Wall: he was 81, his girlfriend — 42. The newspapers described their relationship as a “Hollywood-style affair”. He lived his last years in the affluent Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe and died just short of his 88th birthday.
The Obolensky estate in Kirsanov was destroyed in March 1917 by soldiers and peasants deserting from the battle front. Little has remained of the Obolensky manor house and park. The set of luxurious furniture, housed in the Kirsanov Local History Museum, is the only silent witness of that era and the life of the Obolensky Princes, who used to spend their days surrounded by such beautiful pieces of furniture.
The destiny of the eldest son of Princess M. K. Obolenskaya (Reitern) is of particular interest. Sergey Platonovich Obolensky, who was born in 1890, assumed his full title — Obolensky-Neledinsky-Meletsky — after his father’s death. Educated at Oxford, he returned to Russia when World War I broke out and joined a cavalry regiment as an officer. For his achievements at the war front he was awarded three George Crosses. He participated in the Civil War and fought in the White Army for three years.
After the Russian Civil War, he emigrated and was granted American citizenship in 1932. He married first the morganatic daughter of Emperor Alexander II, Serene Highness Catherine Yurievskaya. His second marriage was to Ava Alice Muriel Astor, daughter of millionaire John Jacob Astor IV. He began working in the hotel business, owned by the Astors since the 19th century. After his second divorce, he did not give up his career in the hotel business.
The most interesting turn in the prince’s biography came at the outbreak of the Second World War. Obolensky became a member of the US Office of Strategic Services (the forerunner of the CIA), rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. At the age of 53 he was the oldest paratrooper in the US Army, becoming one of the founders of the US Special Forces. One of the most successful OSS operations in World War II, thanks to the diplomatic talent of Sergey Obolensky, was the capture of Sardinia in September 1943.
After the war Prince Obolensky returned to the hotel business and social life. He married for the third time, to Marilyn Fraser-Wall: he was 81, his girlfriend — 42. The newspapers described their relationship as a “Hollywood-style affair”. He lived his last years in the affluent Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe and died just short of his 88th birthday.
The Obolensky estate in Kirsanov was destroyed in March 1917 by soldiers and peasants deserting from the battle front. Little has remained of the Obolensky manor house and park. The set of luxurious furniture, housed in the Kirsanov Local History Museum, is the only silent witness of that era and the life of the Obolensky Princes, who used to spend their days surrounded by such beautiful pieces of furniture.
