Countess Golitsyna. Natalya Golitsyna - biography, photographs. The Mystery of the Three Cards

Natalya Petrovna Golitsyna

Birth name	Countess Natalya Petrovna Chernysheva
Date of Birth	January 17 (28)(1744-01-28 )
Place of Birth	Berlin, Germany
Date of death	December 20, 1837 (1st of January )(1838-01-01 ) (93 years old)
A place of death	Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire
A country
Occupation	state lady
Father	Chernyshev, Pyotr Grigorievich
Mother	Ekaterina Andreevna Ushakova (-)
Spouse	Golitsyn, Vladimir Borisovich
Children	3 sons and 2 daughters
Awards and prizes
Natalya Petrovna Golitsyna at Wikimedia Commons

Biography

Origin

Daughter of diplomat and senator Count Pyotr Grigorievich Chernyshev from his marriage to Ekaterina Andreevna Ushakova. She came from a family of so-called new people who appeared at the beginning of the 18th century surrounded by Peter the Great.

Her grandfather on the male line was the orderly of Peter I, a representative of a poor and unnoble noble family, Grigory Petrovich Chernyshev. The rapid rise of the imperial orderly's career began when Peter I married him to a 17-year-old beauty, dowryless Evdokia Rzhevskaya, giving her a dowry of 4,000 souls. And then he gave money and villages to the sons born from this marriage.

There was a rumor in secular circles that Natalya Petrovna was the emperor’s own granddaughter. Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, like her father, showered the Chernyshevs with special favors, granted them profitable estates, count titles, and soon the Chernyshevs became one of the richest families in Russia. On her mother's side, Natalya Petrovna was the granddaughter of Count A.I. Ushakov, famous for his cruelty, the head of the search office.

Youth

Numerous sources call the exact year of birth of Natalya Petrovna differently - or 1744. She herself wrote in her notes:

Her father, Count Chernyshev, was recalled from Berlin and appointed envoy to London in 1746. So we can say with confidence that Natalya Petrovna was born in 1744.

She spent her childhood in England. Her mother took advantage of her long stay abroad and gave her daughters an excellent European education. They were fluent in four languages, but did not know Russian well.

Having become a princess, Natalya Petrovna was not constantly at the Court and was there only occasionally, when the highest commands were announced or when she received the highest invitation. Natalya Petrovna lived for a long time on the estates of her father and husband, raising and educating her children. Energetic, with a strong masculine character, she took control of her husband’s household into her own hands and soon not only put it in order, but also significantly increased it.

Life in St. Petersburg

The princess turned her house into a high society salon for the French emigration. F. F. Vigel wrote:

Natalya Petrovna was literally the model of a court lady. She was showered with honors. At the coronation of Alexander I, she was awarded the Cross of St. Catherine, 2nd degree. At her ball on February 13, 1804, the entire imperial family was present. In 1806 she was already a lady of state. Initially, the sign of the lady of state was received by her daughter, Countess Stroganova, who returned it with a request to grant it to her mother. At the coronation of Nicholas I, she was awarded the Order of St. Catherine, 1st degree. The attentiveness of the authorities to Natalya Petrovna was amazing: when she began to see poorly, enlarged solitaire cards were made especially for her; at her request, court singers could be sent to Golitsyn’s estate in Gorodnya. According to the memoirs of Feofil Tolstoy, music critic and composer:

On certain days the whole city went to worship her, and on her name day the entire royal family honored her with a visit. The princess received everyone, with the exception of the Emperor, sitting and not moving from her place. One of her close relatives stood near her chair and called the guests, since the princess had been seeing poorly lately. Depending on the rank and nobility of the guest, the princess either bowed her head or uttered a few more or less friendly words. And all the visitors were apparently very pleased. But they will not think that Princess Golitsyna was attracted to her by the luxury of the premises or the splendor of the treats. Not at all! Her house in St. Petersburg was not particularly luxurious; the only decoration of the front living room were damask curtains, and even then they were quite faded. There was no dinner, no temporary buffets set with rich wines and sets, and from time to time orchards, lemonade and simple sweets were served.

Highly willful, Golitsyna was arrogant with her equals in position and friendly with those whom she considered inferior to herself. Another contemporary of the princess, V. A. Sollogub, recalled:

Along with her successes at court, Natalya Petrovna was zealously involved in housekeeping. She then introduced a new crop - potatoes - to her estates, expanded and equipped the factories owned by the Golitsyns with new equipment. In 1824, Princess Golitsyna became an honorary member of the Scientific and Economic Society.

Family

All contemporaries unanimously noted the steep, arrogant disposition of the princess, her character, devoid of any feminine weaknesses, and her severity towards loved ones. The whole family was in awe of the princess; she was very strict with the children even when they themselves had long outlived their youth, and until the end of their lives she called them by their diminutive names.

Managing all the estates herself, Natalya Petrovna gave her daughters 2 thousand souls as a dowry, and gave her son Dmitry only the Rozhdestveno estate of 100 souls and an annual allowance of 50 thousand rubles, so he was forced to incur debts, and only at the request of Emperor Nicholas I she added another 50 thousand rubles in banknotes, thinking that she was generously rewarding him. Only after the death of his mother, having lived his whole life, having almost nothing, seven years before his death, Prince Dmitry Vladimirovich became the owner of his 16 thousand souls.

Once angry with her eldest son Boris Vladimirovich, Golitsyna had absolutely no contact with him for about a year and did not answer his letters. Prince Boris never married, but died, leaving orphans two illegitimate daughters from a gypsy woman who bore the surname Zelensky. They were brought up in the family of Dmitry Golitsyn, and their existence was hidden from Natalya Petrovna.

...Yesterday was the birth of old woman Golitsyna. I went in the morning to congratulate her and found the whole city there. Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna also came. In the evening the whole city was there again, although no one was invited. Yesterday, it seems, she turned 79 years old, and I admired her appetite and vigor... There is no happier mother than the old woman Golitsyna; you need to see how the children look after her, and the children already have grandchildren.

Here's P's chronicle.<етер>Burgskaya: yesterday we celebrated the centenary of Princess Nat.<альи>Peter.<овны>, there was no dancing, but the convention was quite crowded. Several generations crowded around the great-great-grandmother; homegrown roses twined around a century-old oak tree<…>The Emperor sent the princess two magnificent vases.

Princess Golitsyna was very rich. After her death, there were 16 thousand serf souls, many villages, houses, estates throughout Russia. Only N.P. Golitsyna, the only one, could afford to hire 16 horses to travel from Moscow to St. Petersburg. The most that the richest travelers allowed themselves was 6 horses for the same journey.

Natalya Petrovna died on December 20, 1837. She was buried in Moscow, in the Golitsyn tomb at the Donskoye Cemetery.

Golitsyna and Pushkin

In her youth, Natalya Petrovna was known as a beauty, but with age she acquired a mustache and beard, for which in St. Petersburg she was called “Princess Mustache” behind her back, or more delicately, in French, “Princesse moustache” (from the French moustache - mustache), although neither This feature is not visible in one portrait. It was this image of a decrepit old woman, who had a repulsive, unattractive appearance “combined with a sharp mind and royal arrogance,” that arose in the imagination of the first readers of The Queen of Spades.

According to legend, Golitsyna's great-nephew

“Night Princess”, “Princess of the Night”... It sounds very romantic if fear were not at the heart of this story. Pushkin’s contemporary, one of the most beautiful women of her century, Evdokia Golitsyna was nicknamed the “night princess” because she was always awake at night, slept during the day and began to receive guests after ten in the evening.

The thing is that once, when she was abroad, a fortune teller - and according to some reports, it was the famous Madame Lenormand - predicted that she would die at night, in her sleep, untidy. And the mortally frightened princess tried as best she could to avoid her fate...

The maternal niece of the famous Russian nobleman and “Tatar prince” Nikolai Borisovich Yusupov, Golitsyn came from the ancient Izmailov family on her father’s side. She was born on August 4, 1780 in the family of Senator Ivan Mikhailovich Izmailov and his wife Alexandra Borisovna, née Yusupova.

The girl was left an orphan early - her father died when she was not even seven years old, and three years later her mother passed away. The orphaned children - Evdokia and her older sister Irina - were taken in by their father's childless brother Mikhail Mikhailovich Izmailov, who was in charge of all construction work in the Kremlin and the restoration of monuments of Moscow antiquity.

In her uncle’s house, Evdokia received an excellent education, had her own opinion on every issue and talked about things that rarely interested girls in her circle. So, Evdokia read Rousseau with enthusiasm and loved solving puzzles, having a special love for mathematics. It was strange and unlike anyone else, so her uncle called her “a beautiful eccentric.”

From her early youth, Evdokia Izmailova had a bright personality and could not help but make a splash at court, shining with both beauty and intelligence. Her movements showed an oriental bliss, so contrasting with the cold, snowy St. Petersburg. Emperor Paul I took part in the fate of Izmailova, marrying her favorite, a noble and wealthy nobleman, Prince Sergei Mikhailovich Golitsyn. But the prince was a narrow-minded and unattractive person. Needless to say, he did not evoke any feelings in Evdokia. And he himself did not pay any attention to his young wife.

It was an extremely unsuccessful marriage, because it was not sanctified by genuine feeling, but Paul I did not allow his subjects to marry for love. Therefore, after the death of Paul I, who was killed by participants in the palace coup in March 1801, Golitsyna considered herself free from any obligations and turned to her husband with a letter asking for a divorce. But Sergei Mikhailovich was a touchy and vindictive person and did not give a divorce. Subsequently, the princess took revenge on her husband: when he was about to marry the young beauty Alexandra Rosset, Evdokia Ivanovna, in turn, refused the prince a divorce.

In 1806, the princess was visited by the French actress Louise Fuzile, who was traveling around Russia, and dedicated a special chapter in her book of memoirs to Golitsyn. “When she raised her huge black eyes, she had that inspired look that Gerard gave her in one of his beautiful paintings where she was depicted,” wrote Fuzile. “When I saw her in the garden, she was dressed in an Indian muslin dress that gracefully draped her figure. She never dressed like other women; “given her youth and beauty, this simplicity of ancient statues suited her perfectly.” When alone, the princess loved to pluck the strings of a harp or guitar, but she never played in public.

Peter Vyazemsky recalled about her: “The princess was very beautiful, and her beauty expressed its own peculiarity. She enjoyed this advantage for a long time. I don’t know what she was like in her first youth; but even her second and third youth captivated her with some kind of freshness and chastity of virginity. Black, expressive eyes, thick dark hair falling on her shoulders in twisting curls, a southern matte coloring of her face, a good-natured and graceful smile: add to this a voice and pronunciation that are unusually soft and euphonious - and you will form an approximate idea of her appearance. In general, her beauty resonated with something plastic, reminiscent of an ancient Greek sculpture. There was nothing in her that revealed any thoughtful preoccupation or everyday feminine resourcefulness or fussiness. On the contrary, there was something clear, calm, rather lazy, dispassionate about her.”

At one of the social events, Princess Golitsyna met the aide-de-camp of Emperor Alexander I, Prince Mikhail Dolgoruky, to whom she experienced deep heartfelt affection. He could not help but attract the attention of the princess as a person “deeply knowledgeable in history, mathematical sciences, a quick mind, a decisive and direct character, a courageous and beautiful appearance, a kind heart and a noble soul.”

But their happiness did not last long. On October 15, 1808, Dolgoruky fell on the battlefield in the Swedish campaign. But even if he had remained alive, he was not destined to unite his life with Evdokia Golitsyna, but would have had to marry Grand Duchess Ekaterina Pavlovna. She was madly in love with him, and Emperor Alexander Pavlovich did not oppose their marriage, which he decided to notify the prince about, but the courier arrived with a message from the emperor only two days after the death of Dolgoruky.

They said that he went to war with the Swedes to seek death, because he could not be happy with the woman he loved and did not see a way out of this situation...

Having lost her lover, Golitsyna was inconsolable and became isolated in her grief. She remained faithful to Dolgoruky, and no one else touched her heart. In despair, the princess left St. Petersburg and lived in Europe for several years. People fell in love with her, they adored her, but she remained benevolently and condescendingly. Everyone could count on her help, on her support, but no one else was able to melt her heart...

After the end of the War of 1812, Evdokia Golitsyna returned to Russia. In her head there is a chaos of painful patriotism, mixed with freedom-loving thoughts gleaned in Europe. She could come to a high society ball, dressed in a Russian costume - a sundress and a kokoshnik entwined with laurels. The princess devoted a lot of effort to the fight against the planting of an overseas vegetable in Russia - potatoes, which, in her opinion, contradicted the Russian national consciousness. Evdokia Ivanovna’s feminine charm was so great that she was forgiven for her political enthusiasm, which often ran counter to generally accepted opinion.

Golitsyna's literary salon thundered throughout St. Petersburg. In her house on Millionnaya Street, and in the summer - at her dacha in the vicinity of the Karpovka River, the most refined society gathered - numerous friends and admirers, nobles and talents, writers, artists and simply educated people. As soon as he graduated from the Lyceum, young Pushkin began to frequently visit the “night princess” salon. According to contemporaries, Golitsyna became the poet’s first St. Petersburg love. He was 18, she was 37, and she was still incredibly beautiful.

Moreover, she had a wonderful ability to penetrate the feelings and thoughts of another person, and was a genius for easy communication and enlightened conversation. Karamzin wrote about Pushkin’s ardent passion: “In our house, the poet Pushkin fell mortally in love with Pythia Golitsyna and now spends his evenings with her: he lies out of love, gets angry out of love, but has not yet written out of love...” But the famous historian was wrong. The poems of the poet in love were not slow to appear.

Where is the woman - not with cold beauty,

But fiery, captivating, lively?

Where can I find a casual conversation?

Brilliant, cheerful, enlightened?

With whom can you be not cold, not empty?

I almost hated the Fatherland -

But yesterday I saw Golitsyna

And reconciled with my fatherland.

And after returning from exile, Pushkin continued to visit Golitsyna. His love passed, his blood cooled, but a feeling of friendship remained, as happened with many of the poet’s hobbies. From the south of Russia, with affectionate playfulness, he asked his St. Petersburg friends: “What is the poetic, unforgettable, constitutional, anti-Polish, heavenly princess Golitsyna doing?”

Until the age of sixty, Golitsyna still shone with her chaste beauty, but the years had done their job, sharply turning the “heavenly” princess into a “terrible” old woman. She grew old somehow suddenly. A contemporary wrote about her: “Old and terribly ugly, she always wore dresses of sharp colors, was known as a scientist and, they say, corresponded with Parisian academicians on mathematical issues. She just seemed like a boring bluestocking to me.”

In her old age, Evdokia Ivanovna was distinguished by great piety. Princess Golitsyna died on January 18, 1850 in St. Petersburg, having accidentally fallen asleep at night. Nevertheless, the fortune teller’s prediction came true... She was buried in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra next to a bronze slab, darkened by time, on the grave of Prince Dolgoruky. According to her will, an inscription was made on her grave: “I ask Orthodox Russians and those passing here to pray for the servant of God, so that the Lord will hear my warm prayers at the throne of the Most High, to preserve the Russian spirit.”

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One of the most famous works of the famous Russian artist of the 18th century F. S. Rokotov was "Portrait of an unknown woman in a white cap", which still causes a lot of controversy - starting with doubts about the authorship of the work and ending with discussions about who really was hiding behind the image of the “unknown woman”. Art critics are inclined to believe that Rokotov depicted in the portrait Princess N.P. Golitsyna, nee Chernysheva, who served as the prototype for the old countess in Pushkin's "Queen of Spades". And there are even more mysteries associated with this literary character.

A.S. Pushkin did not deny that his countess had a real prototype. So, in 1834 he wrote: “At court they found a similarity between the old Countess and Princess Natalya Petrovna and, it seems, they are not angry.” According to legend, Golitsyna’s great-nephew once lost at cards and decided to turn to his rich relative for help. She did not give him money, but named three cards that he needed to bet on in order to win back: three, seven, ace. This secret was revealed to her by her friend, the alchemist and occultist Count Saint-Germain. The nephew followed her advice and got even. And later he told this story to Pushkin.

It is not known for sure whether this story took place in real life, but the memories of contemporaries about Princess Golitsyna suggest that she could indeed serve as a prototype for the old countess from “The Queen of Spades.” The princess was a powerful, despotic and arrogant woman who kept both her family and courtiers in fear. Even her son, being the Moscow governor-general, was timid and did not dare sit in her presence.

Contemporaries claim that the princess valued most of all in her handsome but weak-willed husband, Prince Golitsyn, his noble surname: “She scolds all surnames and puts no one above the Golitsyns, and when she praised Jesus Christ in front of her 6-year-old granddaughter, the girl asked: “Isn’t Jesus Christ from the Golitsyn family?”

In her youth, Natalya Petrovna was attractive, but later she grew a mustache, for which she received the nickname “the mustachioed princess.” In adulthood, her appearance was repulsive, which, combined with her arrogant behavior, gave her even more resemblance to the Pushkin countess. And the mansion in St. Petersburg where she lived began to be called “the house of the Queen of Spades.”

Contemporaries of Princess Golitsyna recalled: “She ruled with some kind of unconditional power recognized by all. After being introduced to the court, each young girl was taken to bow to her; the guards officer, having just put on his epaulettes, appeared to her as to the commander-in-chief.”

Despite her impressive fortune, the princess was stingy. F. Tolstoy recalls: “But they will not think that Princess Golitsyna was attracted to her by the luxury of the premises or the splendor of the treats. Not at all! Her house in St. Petersburg was not particularly luxurious; the only decoration of the front living room were damask curtains, and even then they were quite faded. There was no dinner, there were no temporary buffets set up with rich wines and sets, and from time to time orchards, lemonade and simple sweets were served.”

The Queen of Spades is not the only mystery left by the writer: biographers are still arguing about

The exhibition “Silver and Gold of the Queen of Spades” opened at the Sheremetev Palace in St. Petersburg. The organizers tried to reveal the secret of Princess Natalya Petrovna Golitsyna (1744-1837), who became the prototype of Pushkin’s heroine.

Favorite Palace

The Sheremetev Palace was chosen not only because the initiator of the exhibition, the Theater Museum, is located here, which attracted nine more museums, archives and libraries from St. Petersburg and Moscow to participate. But in this case, it is important that Natalya Petrovna’s life is closely connected with the mansion on the Fontanka. She often visited her friend Anna Sheremeteva here, and together they performed in amateur performances in front of Catherine II herself.

Well, later Natalya Petrovna lived in the palace for several years, returning from France, since her house on Malaya Morskaya Street was not yet ready.

Granddaughter of the Emperor?

Pushkin’s story “The Queen of Spades” was published in 1834, the poet wrote: “At court they found similarities between the old Countess and Princess Natalya Petrovna and, it seems, they are not angry.”

Who was the heroine? Natalya Petrovna Golitsyna, née Chernysheva, came from a family of “new people” who rose to prominence under Peter the Great. Her grandfather was the Tsar's orderly; his career took off when Peter married him to the 17-year-old beauty Evdokia Rzhevskaya, giving her four thousand souls as a dowry. There was a rumor in secular circles that Natalya Petrovna herself was the emperor’s own granddaughter.

Prince Vladimir Golitsyn Artist A. Roslin. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Empress Elizabeth continued to shower the Chernyshevs with favors, so they became one of the richest families in Russia.

Natalya was born in Berlin, where her father Count Chernyshev was an envoy. Soon he was assigned to London, and Natalya spent her childhood in England. The girl spoke four languages, and began to learn her native language only at the age of nine, when the family returned to Russia. However, four years later the Chernyshevs left for France again: the count became an envoy to the court of Louis XV. Young Natalya was personally acquainted with the monarch, shone at balls, her portraits were painted by the best painters.

The beauty returned to her homeland at the age of 21 and became one of the most notable ladies-in-waiting of Catherine the Second. Natalya married Prince Vladimir Borisovich Golitsyn. The Empress herself decorated the bride's hair with diamonds, blessed her in the court church and was present at the wedding.

In 1783, “for the education of her children and the health of her husband,” Golitsyna took her family to France and again shone at court, where she was called the “Moscow Venus.” She also visited London: King George IV, who courted Natalya, gave her his autographed portrait.

Stern and arrogant

The Golitsyns returned to St. Petersburg in 1790, and Natalya Petrovna became an exemplary lady of state, awarded all possible orders. According to the memoirs of a contemporary: “The whole city went to worship her on certain days, and on her name day the entire royal family honored her with a visit. The princess received everyone, with the exception of the sovereign-emperor, sitting and not moving from her place. Depending on the rank and nobility of the guest, the princess either bowed her head or uttered a few words of greeting. And all the visitors were apparently very pleased. There was no dinner; from time to time they served orchards, lemonade and simple sweets. Almost all the nobility were related to the countess by blood or marriage. In the city she ruled with some kind of unconditional power recognized by all. After being introduced to the court, each young girl was taken to pay her respects. The guards officer, who had just put on his epaulettes, appeared to her as to the commander-in-chief.”

Contemporaries unanimously noted the steep, arrogant disposition of the princess, her severity even towards her loved ones. Son Dmitry Vladimirovich, who became Moscow governor-general, could not sit in the presence of his mother without her permission until the end of his life. The princess died on December 20, 1837 at the age of 93.

Princess Natalya Golitsyna Artist Mituar, 1810s. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Pushkin's bill of exchange

In her youth, Natalya was known as a beauty, but with age she acquired a mustache and beard, for which she was called “Princess Mustache” behind her back. Perhaps that is why the image of an old woman with a repulsive appearance, but with a sharp mind and regal arrogance, was correlated by readers of “The Queen of Spades” with Golitsyna.

Well, the story of the three cards was told to Pushkin by Natalya Petrovna’s great-nephew. One day he completely lost at cards and rushed to his grandmother with a plea for help. She didn’t give any money, but allegedly revealed the secret of the three cards - and the relative got even. Well, Pushkin wrote to a friend: “My “Queen of Spades” is in great fashion. Players punt on three, seven, ace.”

According to legend, the secret was revealed to the “Moscow Venus” herself in Paris by Count Saint-Germain, but in fact they never met.

At the exhibition you can see cards from the 18th century; by the way, Alexander Sergeevich himself was a gambler. One of his losses is evidenced by a promissory note - a promissory note for 12 thousand rubles!

Knight Tournament

The exhibition features a gold medal made in a single copy with the image of Catherine the Second, which Natalya Petrovna won in the “Court Carousel”.

This “knightly tournament” took place in St. Petersburg in 1766. Such equestrian competitions were in vogue in all European courts. The St. Petersburg “carousel” amazed with its splendor, the participants appeared in costumes of different nations, and, as a contemporary wrote, there were millions of rubles worth of diamonds and other jewelry in their hairstyles and outfits.

Among the ladies, Golitsyna won - she threw a dart at the target with amazing accuracy, for which she received the “first price”. Her friend Anna Sheremeteva became second. Among the men, Grigory Orlov distinguished himself.

The exhibition “Silver and Gold of the Queen of Spades” opened at the Sheremetev Palace. Photo: AiF-Petersburg/ Veronica Takmovtseva

...Natalia and Anna were supposed to get married almost simultaneously, but Sheremeteva died a week before the wedding from smallpox. But Natalya’s life was long, she became the mother of three sons and two daughters. At the exhibition you can see a unique family heirloom - a silver toilette, ordered by Golitsyna in Paris. It was passed down from generation to generation.

The ghost of the Queen of Spades hovers in the exhibition halls of the Sheremetev Palace. And Princess Golitsyna herself seemed to be spying on those who came - her portrait was placed behind the doors. The impression of mystery is complemented by Tchaikovsky's music - a special hall is dedicated to opera performances.

However, the mystery of the Queen of Spades remains unsolved, because Alexander Sergeevich himself admitted to his friend Nashchokin: “It was easier for me to portray Zagryazhskaya than Golitsyna, whose character and habits were more complex.” Well, Countess Zagryazhskaya is a completely different story.

A country Occupation state lady Father Chernyshev, Peter Grigorievich Mother Ekaterina Andreevna Ushakova (-) Spouse since 1766 Vladimir Borisovich Golitsyn
( -) Children 3 sons and 2 daughters Awards and prizes Natalia Petrovna Golitsyna at Wikimedia Commons

Princess Natalya Petrovna Golitsyna, born Chernysheva(January 17 or , Berlin, Germany - December 20, St. Petersburg) - maid of honor “at the court of four emperors”; state lady and cavalry lady of the Order of St. Catherine (in 1801 - 2nd degree, in 1826 - 1st degree), was known in society as “Princesse Moustache” (“Mustachioed Princess”) (from the French moustache - mustache) or “ Fée Moustachine" ("The Mustachioed Fairy"). The prototype of the main character of A. S. Pushkin’s story “The Queen of Spades”.

Biography

Origin

Her grandfather on the male side was the orderly of Peter I, a representative of the poor and humble noble family Grigory Petrovich Chernyshev. The rapid rise of the imperial orderly's career began when Peter I married him to a 17-year-old beauty, dowryless Evdokia Rzhevskaya, giving her a dowry of 4,000 souls. And then he gave money and villages to the sons born from this marriage.

There was a rumor in secular circles that Natalya Petrovna was the emperor’s own granddaughter. Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, like her father, showered the Chernyshevs with special favors, granted them profitable estates, count titles, and soon the Chernyshevs became one of the richest families in Russia. On her mother’s side, Natalya Petrovna was the granddaughter of Count A.I. Ushakov, famous for his cruelty, the head of the investigative office.

Youth

Numerous sources call the exact year of birth of Natalya Petrovna differently - or 1744. She herself wrote in her notes:

Her father, Count Chernyshev, was recalled from Berlin and appointed envoy to London in 1746. So we can say with confidence that Natalya Petrovna was born in 1744.

Life in St. Petersburg

The princess turned her house into a high society salon for the French emigration. F. F. Vigel wrote:

Natalya Petrovna was literally the model of a court lady. She was showered with honors. At the coronation of Alexander I she was awarded the cross of St. Catherine, 2nd degree. At her ball on February 13, 1804, the entire imperial family was present. In 1806 she was already a lady of state. Initially, the sign of the lady of state was received by her daughter, Countess Stroganova, who returned it with a request to grant it to her mother. At the coronation of Nicholas I, she was awarded the Order of St. Catherine, 1st degree. The attentiveness of the authorities to Natalya Petrovna was amazing: when she began to see poorly, enlarged solitaire cards were made especially for her; at her request, court singers could be sent to Golitsyn’s estate in Gorodnya. According to the memoirs of Theophilus Tolstoy, music critic and composer:

Highly willful, Golitsyna was arrogant with her equals in position and friendly with those whom she considered inferior to herself. Another contemporary of the princess, V. A. Sollogub, recalled:

Almost all the nobility were related to her by blood or marriage. The emperors expressed almost filial love to her. In the city she ruled with some kind of unconditional power recognized by all. After being introduced to the court, each young girl was taken to pay her respects; the guards officer, who had just put on his epaulettes, appeared to her as to the commander-in-chief.

Family

...Yesterday was the birth of old woman Golitsyna. I went in the morning to congratulate her and found the whole city there. Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna also came. In the evening the whole city was there again, although no one was invited. Yesterday, it seems, she turned 79 years old, and I admired her appetite and vigor... There is no happier mother than the old woman Golitsyna; you need to see how the children look after her, and the children already have grandchildren.

Here's P's chronicle.<етер>Burgskaya: yesterday we celebrated the centenary of Princess Nat.<альи>Peter.<овны>, there was no dancing, but the convention was quite crowded. Several generations crowded around the great-great-grandmother; homegrown roses twined around a century-old oak tree<…>The Emperor sent the princess two magnificent vases.

Golitsyna and Pushkin

According to legend, Golitsyna’s great-nephew, Prince S.G. Golitsyn-Firs, told Pushkin that he once completely lost at cards and, in despair, rushed to Golitsyna with a plea for help. From her French friend, the well-known Count of Saint-Germain, Natalya Petrovna knew the secret of three cards - three, seven and ace. If folklore is to be believed, he immediately got even.

In St. Petersburg, Golitsyn was never called anything other than the “Queen of Spades.” And the house where she lived (Malaya Morskaya St., 10 / Gorokhovaya St., 10) in the history of the city forever remained “the house of the Queen of Spades.” After Golitsyna’s death, the house was purchased by the treasury for Minister of War A.I. Chernyshev. Architectural monument - Cultural Heritage Object No. 7802352000 // Register of Cultural Heritage Objects of Wikipedia. Retrieved 2012-06-08

A close friend of Pushkin, Pavel Voinovich Nashchokin noted that in the image of the old countess (in addition to Golitsyna), the traits of Natalya Kirillovna Zagryazhskaya were embodied. Pushkin admitted to Nashchokin that in the image of the Countess:

Children

The Golitsyns had three sons and two daughters:

Pyotr Vladimirovich (August 23, 1767 - April 12, 1778)
Boris Vladimirovich (-) - Lieutenant General, participant in the Patriotic War of 1812, died of wounds in