Marianne Erikovna (von Pistohlkors) von Zarnekau (1890 - abt. 1976)

Born 30 Jun 1890 in St. Petersburg, Russia

Ancestors

Wife of Peter Petrovich Durnovo — married 1908 (to 1911) in Saint Petersburg Governorate, Russian Empire

Wife of Nikolai Konstantinovich von Zarnekau — married 30 Oct 1917 (to 1930) in Tsarskoe Selo, St. Petersburg, Russia

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Countess Marianne von Pistohlkors was a member of the aristocracy in Russia.

Marianne (von Pistohlkors) von Zarnekau has Russian Roots. Join: Russian Roots Project Discuss: russian_roots

Biography

Marianne von Pistohlkors, b. 30 June 1890 at St. Petersburg, was the daughter of Maj. General Erich von Pistohlkors and Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, who later became the Princess Paley.

When Marianne was a little girl, her mother Olga began a love affair with Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich Romanov, the youngest son of Tsar Alexander II. Paul was then a widower, with two children. But Olga was married, and their adulterous affair caused a great scandal in St. Petersburg society.

The scandal became so embarrassing to the royal family that Tsar Nicholas II felt compelled to act forcefully. He gave his uncle a simple choice: Leave this woman or leave Russia.

Incensed, Grand Duke Paul refused to abandon Olga, choosing instead to leave Russia. He and Olga moved to Europe, living for a time at Livorno, Italy, then Boulogne and Paris, France.

Marianne moved with them, and as one might imagine in a case where the presence of children seemed inconvenient to adults carrying on a romance, Marianne was often left in the care of English nannies, sent to visit relatives, or shunted off to private schools.

She, her brother Alexander Ericovich and her sister Olga Ericovna grew up in luxury. But they were often neglected and they endured a great deal of emotional confusion.

On 9 Jan 1897, Marianne gained a little brother. Olga Valerianovna gave birth to a child fathered by Grand Duke Paul: Vladimir Pavlovich. This little boy, In later life, became a famous Russian poet.

Olga obtained a divorce from Gen. von Pistohlkors before 1902, and she finally wed Grand Duke Paul on 10 October 1902 at Livorno, Italy.

On 21 Dec 1903, Marianne gained another sibling, a little sister named Irina Pavlovna.

Unable to obtain a Russian title at the time of their marriage, Grand Duke Paul covered his new wife's social shame by obtaining for her the German title Countess Hohenfelsen. This title and a coat of arms were obtained in 1904 through Prince Regent Leopold of Bavaria.

Marianne's little brother and little sister were therefore called Vladimir Pavlovich Hohenfelsen and Irina Pavlovna Hohenfelsen. On 5 Dec 1905, Olga gave birth to another little girl, who became Nataliya Pavlovna Hohenfelsen.

After 1905, the family and its six children were allowed to move back to St. Petersburg, where they lived in the palace owned by Grand Duke Paul.

When Marianne returned to Petersburg, she gained two additional siblings: Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich Romanov and Grand Duchess Marie Pavlovna,

Dmitri and Marie were the Grand Duke's "legitimate" children by his first marriage. They had stayed in St. Petersburg with Romanov relatives whilst their father and his mistress had lived abroad.

One might have expected some frostiness between the two groups of children, but in fact they got along fairly well.

Once settled in Petersburg, Marianne began to attend some very nice schools, She also began to attend society balls, and to flirt with boys.

Her mother, the Princess Paley, was very hungry for social approval, and began to throw lavish dinner parties, avidly cultivating a salon of famous guests. Thus, between 1905 and the beginning of the World War, Marianne's family stood at the very epicenter of St. Petersburg's belle monde.

BROTHER'S MARRIAGE

Marianne's older brother, Alexander Erikovich Pistohlkors, married ca. 1910 to Alexandra Taneyeva, the sister of the Tsarina's favorite lady in waiting, Anna Vyrubova.

Alexander E. Pistohlkors and his wife Alexandra were thus drawn into the social circle of the Empress, and they joined the circle of people who surrounded and supported Gregory Rasputin.

The conversation of A.E. Pistohlkors and his wife, at family gatherings, strongly affected the opinions of the Princess Paley and the Grand Duke Paul.

MARIANNE'S FIRST MARRIAGE

According to Burke's Peerage, Marianne wed her first husband, Lt. Col. Peter Petrovich Durnovo, in 1908.

Peter and Marianne's brother, Alexander Ericovich von Pistohlkors, may be found in the attached photograph of the officers of the prestigious Gardes-a-Cheval (Horse Guard) in 1915. They were apparently friends, which explains how Marianne came to meet Peter.

Peter was the son of the formidable Peter Nicholaevich Durnovo, head of the Tsar's Okhrana (secret police).

In the 1915 photograph, Peter Petrovich is sitting next to Vladimir Ivanovich Derfelden, apparently a relative of Marianne's second husband, Christopher Derfelden.

FIRST DIVORCE

Peter and Marianne did not stay married long. They divorced ca. 1911. It seems that Marianne fell in love with one of Peter's closest friends and brother officers, Christopher Derfelden

SECOND MARRIAGE

Burke's Peerage indicates Marianne married Christopher Derfelden in 1912.

Surprisingly, Peter Durnovo showed little or no anger or hatred toward either of the two. In the gallant manner of Russian gentlemen from this period, he politely stepped aside.

His love for Marianne was very real.

In fact, according to the memoirs of Marianne's mother, the Princess Paley, it was Peter Durnovo who later rescued Marianne and her sisters, arranging for their escape to Finland in 1917 -- at very great risk to his own life.

WIDOWED?

There is no record of Marianne's divorce from Derfelden, One may therefore deduce that Christopher Derfelden was killed while serving in World War I.

This must have been a crushing blow to Marianne, and it seems that she, like millions of Russians, blamed the Russian army's tremendous losses on a single man: Rasputin.

PARTICIPATION IN MURDER OF RASPUTIN

Following the near annihilation of the Russian army in 1915, senior officers of the Russian general staff began to grow paranoid. How was it that the Germans could anticipate their every move on the battlefield?

Clearly, the Germans had excellent sources (spies) near the very heart of Russia's war ministry. For all practical purposes, they were stealing the Russian army's war plans right off the drawing board.

How had they done this?

Suspicious eyes began to fall upon the Tsarina -- a German princess -- and her "spiritual advisor" Gregory Rasputin.

It was not long before Rasputin became public suspect No. 1.

Russian newspapers began to suggest that Rasputin was a sinister Svengali who had seduced the Empress and who secretly exercised tremendous spiritual influence over the nervous and hysteric mind of Empress Alexandra, Through her Rasputin was constantly calling the Tsar in order to give him bad advice. They were both interfering with Russia's war plans!

Considering it their duty to defend the empire and the honor of the imperial family, several members of the Romanov family and politicians within the Imperial Duma began to plot against Rasputin.

Marianne von Pistohlkors and her step-brother Prince Dmitri Pavlovich were allegedly present in the palace belonging to Prince Felix Yussupov on the night that Rasputin was lured to his death, 17 December 1916. "Malanya's also taking part," Yussupov wrote to his wife Princess Irina of Russia in the weeks before the murder.

Marianne's nickname was Malanya. She and her half-brother Dmitri were certainly arrested by the Tsar's secret police following the murder.

However, the Tsar later ordered her release. Sympathies were on Marianne's side, according to her mother's memoirs, Memories of Russia 1916-1919.

"When we arrived at 8 Theatre Square, where Marianne lived, we were stopped by two soldiers who let us through only after taking down our names. All the highest society was at Marianne's! Some ladies she barely knew arrived in order to express sympathy with her. Officers came up to kiss her hand."

None of the male co-conspirators ever publicly denounced Marianne or the other woman suspected of involvement, ballerina and film star Vera Karalli. Neither were these women prosecuted in the subsequent legal trials.

According to historian Edvard Radzinsky, the Tsar kept their names out of the case because he did not want more public displays of sympathy for the murderers of Rasputin. He also knew that his sickly uncle Grand Duke Paul was very upset by Dmitri's involvement in the murder and was taking badly the Tsar's decision to exile Dmitri to the Persian front.

The Tsar presumably did not want to add to the grand duke's suffering by also charging his stepdaughter, Marianne.

THIRD MARRIAGE

At the age of 27, Marianne married Count Nikolai Konstantinovich von Zarnekau, another handsome member of the Tsar's Guard. They were married at Tsarskoe Selo on 30 October 1917.

Nicholas was the son of Duke Konstantin Petrovich of Oldenburg and his morganatic wife, Agrippina Djaparidze, the first countess von Zarnekau.

In March 1918, Marianne's half-brother, the poet Prince Vladimir Paley, was arrested by the Bolsheviks and sent to the Urals. He was executed there on 18 July 1918. His body dumped in a mine shaft near Alapayevsk.

At about this time, Marianne and her new husband, Count Nicholas von Zarnekau, made an effort to help the remaining family of the Grand Duke Paul to escape.

According to the memoirs of Marianne's stepsister, the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, "Once in the beginning of July [1918], late at night, when we had been long asleep, there was a knock at my door. Waking, I saw upon the threshold of my bedroom Marianne Zarnikau, one of my stepmother's daughters by her first marriage. She explained that we must immediately dress and go to Petrograd. She had come from there in an automobile to fetch us. According to information which had come to her the uprising of the Bolsheviks was set for the next day . . . "

It proved a false alarm. The family returned to their homes in St. Petersburg, a decision that was a fatal error. The Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich was arrested in August 1918, sent to the St. Peter and St. Paul Fortress, despite constant pleas for his release made by Princess Paley to the head of the Secret Police, Moses Uritzky.

In September 1918, Count Alexis von Zarnekau participated in the assassination of Uritzky, as part of the "Lockhart Plot" led by Sidney Reilly. This plot also involved the shooting of Vladimir Lenin.

During the wave of massive reprisals that followed, Count Alexis himself was hunted down and murdered.

Marianne's younger sister, Nathalia, was raped,

Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich was shot on 29 January 1919 and buried in a mass grave. His remains were not discovered until 2011.

The Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna and her second husband, Prince Roman Putiatin, chose to stay in St. Petersburg, finally escaping to Romania in 1919.

Marianne's mother, Princess Olga Paley, escaped via Finland in 1920, and died in Paris on 2 December 1929, age 64.

ESCAPE FROM RUSSIA

Marianne and Nicholas von Zarnekau managed to escape Russia some time after 1923 with the help of her first husband, Peter Dournovo, who arranged for their passage to Finland. They settled in Belgium, and Marianne is mentioned in Anthony Summer's book The File on the Tsar:

"Countess de Zarnekau, an ex-patriate living in Brussels, told how in about 1923 a nun arrived at their home in Moscow and announced mysteriously that the Tsar and all the family were alive 'somewhere close to the border'. She asked for, and was given, wooly socks to warm the imperial feet. Those who had been able to deal with the little matter of the Tsar's rescue were now apparently having trouble in getting him the right size in socks."

THIRD DIVORCE

Marianne and Nicholas were divorced in 1930.

ACTING CAREER

Marianne launched her acting career in Europe under the stage name "Mariana Fiory." In February 1930, she appeared at the Theatre Mathurins in Paris, starring in the role of a German soldier's grieving fiancee in "The Man I Killed," a dramatization of the war novel L'Homme que J'ai Tue. Playwright Maurice Rostrand reportedly wrote the play specifically for Marianne. The show was a hit and won glowing reviews. Marianne went on to Rome, to star opposite Emma Gramatica, a popular Italian film actress of the 1930s.

1936 MOVE TO AMERICA

Mariana Fiory, the former Countess von Zarnekau, arrived in the United States in 1936. She first appeared on the New York stage in February 1937 as the lead in Michel Dulud's play "Dans le Noir" at the Barbizon-Plaza theatre. Mariana then appeared in "The Shining Hour" with a stock company in New Hampshire, and apparently decided to settle in the U.S.

Through a friendship with Wally Castlebarco, the daughter of composer Arturo Toscanini, the ex-Countess was signed to appear on NBC. The Schenectady NY Gazette for 7 January 1938 reported "One of Europe's noted actresses, Mariana Fiory, once a member of the Russian royal family, is to make her first appearance in American radio when she plays in the Radio Guild on WJZ-NBC at 2. The production is Ibsen's Rosmersholm' '."

In late 1938 Marianne played "Tessie Konstantin" in the Broadway production of the satire "Waltz in Goose Step" at the Hudson Theatre.

The Brooklyn NY Daily Eagle spotlighted her with a brief interview on 5 November 1938. "The Countess Mariana Zarnekau, daughter of Grand Duke Paul and cousin of the late Russian Czar, scorns titles, knows nothing about dictators, and has no quarrels with Stalinists, but 'adores' the stage and the Brooklyn waterfront."

Marianne told the reporter she was "very, very ready" to discourse at length on the worthlessness of royal connections. "What did the revolution do for me? Why it set me free, and gave me the chance to fulfill a lifelong ambition to enter the old Imperial Dramatic School and study for the stage."

In October 1939, Hollywood columnist May Mann caught up with Mariana Fiory at a smart Russian perfume bar on Fifth Avenue and heard a similar story. "I was too young. I did not know what the revolution was all about. We left our palaces and lived crowded in rooms. We were glad to have our lives. . . . I married Count Zarnekau, and we were terribly poor. All of our properties had been seized and we had nothing. I helped to found the first dramatic school in Communistic Russia. Then I went to Paris and starred many seasons on the stage. . . . This spring I starred in 'Window Panes.' I do not long for the old Russia. America is so much more interesting."

During World War II Marianne moved to California, where she appeared with Robert Taylor and several Russian actors in the MGM movie "Song of Russia" (1944), the story of an American symphonic conductor, trapped in Russia during World War II, who helps with the resistance. Marianne plays "Nina." Produced by Joseph Pasternak and directed by Gregory Ratoff, "Song of Russia" premiered in February 1944.

DEATH

Marrianne died 14 May 1976 in the United States.

Sources

Books

Burke's Royal Families of the World, Vol. 1, Burke's Peerage, 1977, p. 244ff

C. Arnold McNaughton, The Book of Kings: A Royal Genealogy, in 3 volumes (London, U.K.: Garnstone Press, 1973), volume 1, page 309

Radzinsky, Edvard, The Rasputin File (New York: Doubleday, 2000), pp. 476-477.

Online Sources

Marianne Erikovna von Pistohlkors - Geni.com family history site

Nikolai Konstantinovich von Zarnekau, Count von Zarnekau at Peerage.com:

Olga Valerianovna Karnovich at Peerage.com

Spiridovich, Gen. Alexander "How Rasputin Met the Imperial Family," Alexander Palace Time Machine

Newspaper Sources

"Rostand Builds War Play That Elicits Weeps," Oakland CA Tribune, 2 Feb 1930 p. 3

Portsmouth NH Herald and Times, 15 July 1937, p. 11

"Russian Stars in Rye Beach Play," Portsmouth NH Herald and Times, 15 July 1937, p. 11

"Waltz in Goose Step (1938)" BroadwayWorld.com

Mann, May "Sparkling Dark Eyes," Ogden UT Standard Examiner, 27 October 1939, p. 10

Photos Online

Olga Paley - Gorod.Tomsk.ru website

"Olga Paley" - LiveInternet [Russia] - high definition

12 November 1936 Arrival in New York on board S.S. Rex

Marianna Zarnekau in the New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957

• Name: Marianna Zarnekau
• Arrival Date: 12 Nov 1936
• Birth Date: abt 1895
• Birth Location: Russia
• Birth Location Other: Pietrograd
• Age: 41
• Gender: Female
• Ethnicity/ Nationality: Italian;Russian (Italian)
• Place of Origin: Italy
• Port of Departure: Naples, Italy
• Port of Arrival: New York, New York
• Ship Name: Rex

Source Citation Year: 1936; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Microfilm Roll: Roll 5899; Line: 9; Page Number: 73

Source Information Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

Original data: Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C. Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957. Microfilm Publication T715, 8892 rolls. NAI: 300346. Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; National Archives at Washington, D.C.

11 March 1938 Arrival, Miami Florida on board S.S. Florida

Mariana Zarnekau in the Florida, Passenger Lists, 1898-1963

• Name: Mariana Zarnekau
• Gender: Female
• Age: 43
• Birth Date: abt 1895
• Arrival Date: 11 Mar 1938
• Port of Arrival: Miami, Florida, USA
• Ship: FLORIDA

Source Citation The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Series Title: Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Miami, Florida; NAI Number: 2788508; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787 - 2004; Record Group Number: 85

Source Information Ancestry.com. Florida, Passenger Lists, 1898-1963 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2006.

Original data: Selected Passenger Lists and Manifests. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

1938 Declaration of Intention to Become a U.S. Citizen

Marianna Zarnekau in the California, Federal Naturalization Records, 1887-1991

• Name: Marianna Zarnekau
• Gender: Female
• Record Type: Declaration
• Birth Date: 13 Nov 1895
• Birth Place: Petrograd, Russia
• Declaration Number: 414813

Source Citation National Archives at Riverside; Riverside, California; NAI Number: 594890; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: 21

Source Information Ancestry.com. California, Federal Naturalization Records, 1887-1991 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.

Original data: Naturalization Records. National Archives at Riverside, Peris, California. Naturalization Records. National Archives at San Francisco, San Bruno, California.

Description This database consists of naturalization records for California from U.S. District Courts.

December 1941 Petition for Naturalization [Santa Monica, California]

Marianna Zarnekau in the California, Federal Naturalization Records, 1887-1991

• Name: Marianna Zarnekau [Mariana Fiory]
• Record Type: Petition
• Birth Date: 13 Nov 1895
• Birth Place: St Petersburg, Russia
• Petition Number: 112500

Source Citation National Archives at Riverside; Riverside, California; NAI Number: 594890; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: 21

Source Information Ancestry.com. California, Federal Naturalization Records, 1887-1991 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.

Original data: Naturalization Records. National Archives at Riverside, Peris, California. Naturalization Records. National Archives at San Francisco, San Bruno, California.

Description This database consists of naturalization records for California from U.S. District Courts

11 February 1944 U.S. Naturalization

Marianna Zarnekau in the U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791-1992 (Indexed in World Archives Project)

• Name: Marianna Zarnekau
• Birth Date: abt 1896
• Age at event: 48
• Court District: California
• Date of Action: 11 Feb 1944

Source Citation National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Naturalization Index Cards of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Central Division (Los Angeles), 1915-1976 (M1525); Microfilm Serial: M1525; Microfilm Roll: 113

Source Information Ancestry.com. U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791-1992 (Indexed in World Archives Project) [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.