237:
thirteen years at the time of his death and of a young woman who was roughly between the ages of eighteen and twenty-three years old. Anastasia was seventeen years, one month old at the time of the assassination, while her sister Maria was nineteen years, one month old and her brother Alexei was two weeks shy of his fourteenth birthday. Anastasia's elder sisters Olga and
Tatiana were twenty-two and twenty-one years old at the time of the assassination. Along with the remains of the two bodies, archaeologists found "shards of a container of sulfuric acid, nails, metal strips from a wooden box, and bullets of various caliber". The bones were found using metal detectors and metal rods as probes.
224:, her gravestone did not bear the name Marga Boodts but, rather, was inscribed (in German) with text that translated as "In memory of Olga Nikolaevna, 1895-1976, eldest daughter of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia". As there were no direct descendants to pay for its maintenance, the gravestone was destroyed in 1995. In the epilogue of that same book, Marie Stravlo clarifies that Boodts' remains were not placed in a mass grave, as was told in the past. The bones were carefully transferred to another grave, under the supervision and custody of the Italian family that took care of Boodts until she died.
87:(1859–1941), who recognized her as Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna. He apparently provided her with financial support for the remainder of his lifetime. She recalled that she had also promised the former Kaiser that she would never reveal her Imperial identity, and would "keep the secret of my survival throughout my life". According to Boodts, the former Kaiser chose the daughter of a friend, Baroness Elisabeth von Schevenbach, to pick her up upon her arrival to
200:
of doubt, that she really was the first-born daughter of the Czar". This book was published in
September 2012 by Martinez Roca Editorial in Spain. It has an extensive introduction by historian and researcher Marie Stravlo, who found the manuscript in Italy in 2010, together with thirty five thousand documents which supposedly prove that the woman known as Marga Boodts was indeed Olga Nikolaevna. The book is available in Spanish.
118:, "we spoke about so many familiar matters that an outsider could not have known about, because they were things that had happened between us two". They maintained correspondence until 1976 when she died. There are 530 letters kept in a private archive in Italy as evidence of that relation. In 1958 Princess Charlotte Agnes of Saxe-Altenburg also visited Marga Boodts, together with her brother
177:, Boodts insisted that she had seen "her sister Anastasia" executed at Yekaterinberg, and had now come forward in an effort to discredit the "impostor" in Germany. She further stated that she was considering legal action of her own against Anderson, and was willing to "step into the Hamburg Courts to unmask her". Boodts, at that time was very aware that her benefactor,
196:" in 1903. Mrs de Graaf's son stated that Boodts not only met his mother but acknowledged her claims, because Boodts herself had been old enough to remember the pregnancy in 1903. Both women exchanged correspondence during ten years. When Mrs. de Graaf's son and his wife subsequently visited Boodts themselves, she reportedly "welcomed them as nephew and niece-in-law".
185:) cited Prince Sigismund's support of Boodts to discredit him as a witness in the Anderson case. For her own part, Anderson herself once admitted, in a taped interview with journalist Alexis Milukoff, that there was a possibility that Boodts may indeed be her "sister". The two women, however, never met.
219:
on
October 13, in a nursing home at Sala Comacina, Como, Italy, at the purported age of 81 years. It is said that the money for her grave had been set aside by her former benefactor, the Hereditary Grand Duke of Oldenburg, who had himself died six years earlier. According to the prologue written by
199:
In 1960, Boodts also revealed to the press that she was currently working on her memoirs in collaboration with a close friend, Gräfin
Brigitte von Harrach. Their ambitious project was described as "a 300-page book containing a number of very important documents allegedly proving, without any shadow
232:
Boodts' claim to be the Grand
Duchess Olga, which was taken seriously by some people during her lifetime, was disproved thirty years later, when archaeological investigation and scientific testing confirmed that all seven members of the Russian imperial family had been murdered at Yekaterinberg in
236:
On August 23, 2007, a
Russian archaeologist announced the discovery of two burned, partial skeletons at a bonfire site near Yekaterinburg that appeared to match the site described in Yurovsky's memoirs. The archaeologists said the bones are from a boy who was roughly between the ages of ten and
161:
to publish her memoirs "Io Vivo" (I am alive) as a book. In spite of the contract the book was never published in Italy but in Spain in 2011 by
Editorial Martinez Roca becoming a sensational editorial success. Close friends of the Grand Duchess blamed
148:
Living in Lake Como, Boodts remained in relative obscurity for many years and thus managed to avoid the sensational press coverage (and the suspicion of surviving
Romanov descendants) that had long plagued her rival Imperial pretender, the notorious
58:
By her own account, Marga Boodts survived the execution at
Yekaterinberg when a member of the firing squad, whom she identified only as Dimitri K., knocked her unconscious and pretended that she was dead. Dimitri K., who had been a
67:. Boodts claimed that upon her arrival to Vladivostok she was received by a German elite commando, and from Vladivostok, she reputedly said to have traveled through China and later she was taken by sea to Germany.
110:(1897–1970), a godson of Tsar Nicholas II, who provided her with financial support until his own death in 1970. In 1974, Prince Sigismund remained convinced of Boodts' authenticity. As he told journalists
207:. She reportedly declined to speak about herself, or past events, and that "nothing at all emerged from the meeting to support the notion that she was either the Grand Duchess Olga, or even a Romanov".
63:
soldier, replaced her missing corpse with that of a young woman who had been caught stealing from the bodies of the other members of the
Imperial family. He later accompanied her to
50:
on July 18, 1918. She stands out, however, as one of very few who claimed to have been Grand Duchess Olga, the Tsar's oldest daughter. She was also known as Maria Bottcher.
182:
145:, declared in 1983 to have witnessed the special meetings between Boodts and the Pope and said that he acknowledged her as the real Grand Duchess Olga of Russia.
154:
107:
221:
178:
103:
462:
31:
166:
for interfering with the publication, due to a legal case pending at the Tribunal of First Instance of the Vatican and the alleged Olga Romanov.
20:
130:
was indeed Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia. During that period, Boodts is also said to have received financial support from
91:, and asked her to take care and provide Mrs. Boodts with accommodation. Boodts lived with Frau von Schevenbach for a few years at
119:
233:
1918. This was disputed by the Russian Orthodox Church, which requested new DNA testing, authenticating the original findings.
203:
In 1975, journalists Anthony Summers and Tom Mangold visited Boodts at her Lake Como villa as part of research for their book,
39:
79:
on May 5, 1926 and divorced two years later. It was also while living in Germany that she claimed to have traveled to
189:
192:, who claimed to have been the hitherto unknown fifth child of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, born after an alleged "
467:
174:
84:
422:
158:
437:
181:, was also a firm supporter of Anderson's claims. Indeed, some of Anderson's strongest opponents (including
395:
106:(1896–1978), who was a first cousin of the actual Grand Duchess Olga. He, in turn, introduced Boodts to
43:
457:
452:
193:
302:
Olga Nicolaievna "Estoy Viva memorias ineditas de la última Romanov" Martinez Roca, Spain, 2012;
246:
138:
35:
88:
427:
111:
220:
historian and researcher Marie Stravlo in the book "Estoy Viva", following directions of
188:
By contrast, Boodts is alleged to have met up with a far lesser-known Romanov pretender,
336:
446:
150:
142:
131:
47:
115:
75:
Boodts took her surname from Carlo Boodts, a German officer whom she married in
64:
432:
423:
http://elcomercio.pe/edicionimpresa/html/2008-10-11/rusia-mejora-su-imagen.html
173:
Courts, Boodts decided to make her own claims public. In an interview with
216:
127:
123:
102:
Boodts' claim gained further credence from 1957, when she was recognised by
96:
438:
http://ad-orientem.blogspot.com/2012/07/patriarch-kyril-announces-new.html
19:
163:
60:
170:
92:
76:
30:(February 18, 1895 – October 13, 1976) was a woman who claimed to be
80:
274:"Woman claims she is daughter of Czar, survivor of execution",
339:; www.les-derniers-romanov.com. Retrieved January 12, 2010.
95:, and later moved to Berlin. She also lived in a state near
396:"Fresh DNA tests authenticate bones of Russia tsar, family"
38:
who emerged from various parts of the world following the
122:. Prince Sigismund and Princess Charlotte both provided
428:
http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=7420
169:
Again in 1960, when Anna Anderson took her case to the
8:
433:http://www.caracol.com.co/nota.aspx?id=18620
362:Giornale Il Tempo, Italy, November 17, 1983.
298:
296:
294:
292:
290:
288:
286:
284:
270:
268:
266:
264:
262:
108:Nikolaus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Oldenburg
34:. She was one of a considerable number of
377:
375:
373:
371:
369:
332:
330:
120:Prince Frederick Ernst of Saxe-Altenburg
18:
258:
32:Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia
316:
314:
312:
310:
308:
157:. In 1955 she signed a contract with
7:
278:(Florida), February 12, 1960, p 20a
320:Summers, Anthony and Tom Mangold.
14:
463:Deaths from pneumonia in Lombardy
350:The Romanovs: The Final Chapter
83:, the Netherlands, and visited
71:Re-emergence and life in Europe
1:
383:Anastasia: The Lost Princess
159:Mondadori editorial of Italy
54:Purported escape from Russia
222:Prince Sigismund of Prussia
190:Suzanna Catharina de Graaff
179:Prince Sigismund of Prussia
104:Prince Sigismund of Prussia
484:
175:United Press International
126:that the woman living at
153:, who claimed to be the
155:Grand Duchess Anastasia
99:, in eastern Germany.
24:
381:Lovell, James Blair.
215:Marga Boodts died of
22:
322:The File on the Tsar
276:St, Petersburg Times
205:The File on the Tsar
194:hysterical pregnancy
46:and his family at
36:Romanov pretenders
25:
468:Romanov impostors
385:, pp 225-26, 426.
247:Romanov impostors
139:Pascalina Lehnert
85:Kaiser Wilhelm II
475:
410:
409:
407:
406:
392:
386:
379:
364:
359:
353:
348:Massie, Robert.
346:
340:
334:
325:
318:
303:
300:
279:
272:
183:Lord Mountbatten
44:Tsar Nicholas II
16:Romanov impostor
483:
482:
478:
477:
476:
474:
473:
472:
443:
442:
419:
414:
413:
404:
402:
394:
393:
389:
380:
367:
360:
356:
347:
343:
335:
328:
319:
306:
301:
282:
273:
260:
255:
243:
230:
213:
141:, governess of
112:Anthony Summers
73:
56:
17:
12:
11:
5:
481:
479:
471:
470:
465:
460:
455:
445:
444:
441:
440:
435:
430:
425:
418:
417:External links
415:
412:
411:
387:
365:
354:
341:
337:"Marga Boodts"
326:
324:, pp 192, 347.
304:
280:
257:
256:
254:
251:
250:
249:
242:
239:
229:
226:
212:
209:
72:
69:
55:
52:
15:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
480:
469:
466:
464:
461:
459:
456:
454:
451:
450:
448:
439:
436:
434:
431:
429:
426:
424:
421:
420:
416:
401:
397:
391:
388:
384:
378:
376:
374:
372:
370:
366:
363:
358:
355:
351:
345:
342:
338:
333:
331:
327:
323:
317:
315:
313:
311:
309:
305:
299:
297:
295:
293:
291:
289:
287:
285:
281:
277:
271:
269:
267:
265:
263:
259:
252:
248:
245:
244:
240:
238:
234:
227:
225:
223:
218:
210:
208:
206:
201:
197:
195:
191:
186:
184:
180:
176:
172:
167:
165:
160:
156:
152:
151:Anna Anderson
146:
144:
143:Pope Pius XII
140:
135:
133:
132:Pope Pius XII
129:
125:
121:
117:
113:
109:
105:
100:
98:
94:
90:
86:
82:
78:
70:
68:
66:
62:
53:
51:
49:
48:Yekaterinberg
45:
41:
37:
33:
29:
21:
403:. Retrieved
399:
390:
382:
361:
357:
349:
344:
321:
275:
235:
231:
214:
204:
202:
198:
187:
168:
147:
136:
101:
74:
57:
28:Marga Boodts
27:
26:
23:Marga Boodts
458:1895 births
453:1976 deaths
164:The Vatican
116:Tom Mangold
65:Vladivostok
447:Categories
405:2019-07-30
253:References
124:affidavits
217:pneumonia
128:Lake Como
97:Stralsund
40:execution
400:phys.org
352:, p 147.
241:See also
171:Hamburg
137:Mother
93:Potsdam
89:Hamburg
61:Cossack
228:Legacy
77:Berlin
211:Death
81:Doorn
114:and
42:of
449::
398:.
368:^
329:^
307:^
283:^
261:^
134:.
408:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
