Hvidøre was the beloved holiday home
of Queen Alexandra and her sister Dagmar, The Empress Maria Feodorovna of
Russia. They brought it in 1906 following the death of their father King
Christian IX of Denmark. Hvidøre is situated on the coast north of Copenhagen
near Klampenborg. The sisters were regular visitors until the outbreak of the
First World War. After the Russian Revolution, Dagmar made it her permanent
home until her death in 1928. From 1920 her daughter Grand Duchess Olga
Alexandrovna lived there with her, along with her husband Nikolai Kulikovsky
and their two sons.
Coryne Hall tells the history of the
Italianate villa and the sister’s lives there. Many of the photographs were
taken around 1911. They have been beautifully re-produced. They show the
interiors of the villa when the sisters lived there. It is interesting to see
their tastes and how their chose to furnish their rooms. There is the
inevitable clutter on various surfaces with family photos and other ornaments
on every surface. There are other photographs of the sisters and their family
to help illustrate the story of their time in the villa.
On 3rd June 2000 I was
lucky enough to be invited to a lecture Coryne Hall was asked to give on Dagmar
at Hvidøre. It was a lovely sunny day as a group of us (including Senta Driver)
made our way from the station to Hvidøre.
Coryne had been invited to lecture by Paul Kulikovsky (a great grandson of
Grand Duchess Olga). As Hvidøre is not normally open to the public, it was a
not to be missed opportunity to see inside as we were given a tour of the villa
after Coryne’s lecture. Hvidøre is now owned by the Novo Nordisk Group who
specialise in the treatment of diabetes.
This book shows the intimate private life of Alexandra and Dagmar. It
will add to their admirer’s knowledge about the pair. The book is produced in
Rosvall Royal Books usual format, so it will fit well on the library shelf
alongside the other books they have published.
No comments:
Post a Comment