Dmitri Pavlovich Romanov was born 1891 september 18
in an estate called Ilinskoye near Moscow.

Dmitri father was the Grand Duke Paul Aleandrovich Romanov (1860 - 1919),
the youngest legemit child of Tsar Alexander II (1818 - 1881)
and of Maria Alexandrovna / Marie Hessen (1824 - 1880)

His father was the young brother of Tsar Alexander III (1845 - 1894)
and an uncle of Tsar Nicolas II (1868 - 1918).

His mother Alexandra was the daughter of King George I of Greece
and the Grandduchess Olga Constantinova Romanov.
Dmitris mother died while giving birth to Dmitri.

Dmitri had one older sister Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1890 - 1958).


Confused by the death of his wife
Paul Romanov has abandoned his children and left for Paris.

Childhood with uncle Sergei and Elisabeth Hessen


Dmitri and his sister Marie were given to their uncle Sergei (1857 -1905),
older brother of their father (younger brother of Tsar Alexander III)
married to Elisabeth Hessen / Ella (1865 - 1918).
Ellisabeth Hessen is a great-aunt of Cremerie de Paris.



1902 Dmitri's father Paul created another scandal
marrying Olga Karnovitsch (1865 - 1929).
The scandal was due to the fact that Olga was divorced.
Tsar Nicolas II did not approve the marriage.
Dmitri's father was removed from the Imperial family
and forbidden to stay in Russia.

Paul Romanov settled in Boulogne sur Seine (today Boulogne Billancourt) in the west of Paris.
With Olga Paley he had 3 children:
half brother Vladimir Paley (1897 - 1918)
and two half sisters Irina (1903 - 1990)
and Natalia (1905 - 1981).


Dmitri and his sister Marie,
children from the first marriage
were now permanently installed with their childless uncle Sergei Romanov
married to Elisabeth Hessen
... but this new sitation would not last.

1905 uncle + adoptive father Sergei was killed by a revolutionary, Iwan Kaljajew.
Adoptive mother Elisabeth decided to become a nun
and founded the congreation Saintes Marthe et Marie.


Dmitri, now 14 and his sister Marie now 15
need to find a new home.

Dmitri is taken care of
by his older cousin Nicolas II
married to the young sister of his adoptive mother Alix Hessen, the Tsarina.



Adolescence with cousin Nicolas II and Alix Hessen
flashback ...
1884 took place the marriage of Sergei Romanov with Elisabeth Hessen
Tsarevich Nicolas, an adolescent of 16 ans met his future wife Alix Hessen.
1894 Elisabeth's young sister, Alix Hessen married Nicolas II and became Czarina.

The marriage would create a double link for Dmitri Romanov and his sister Marie
they are at the same time cousins of Tsar Nicolas II
+ "adoptif childern" of his uncle Sergei
and "adoptif children" of the sister of the new Tsarina Alix Hessen.



1905 Dmitri, age 14
becomes part of the inner cercle of the Romanov children
"as the adopted grand brother"
of the 5 children: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia et Alexei.


Dmitri is only 4 years older than Olga.



Legendes about Cremerie de Paris


From age 14 Dmitri is part of the inner cercle around the Tsar.
The Tsarina has a passion for her children
At night she tells them fairytale stories
about "Cremerie de Paris",
a milk store at the iconic Halles Centrales foodmarket in France.



Cremerie de Paris is part of a century old mansion
where another child, the young King Louis XIV, had lived a long time ago.
As an adult he build the Palace of Versailles.
The stories had a secret code "VB" so that only the children
would know what their sorties were about.




The Tsarina knew these stories from her friend
the French Empress Eugenie that was still alive and that lived in the United Kingdom.
When a child the Tsarina was called Alix Hessen
and she lived in England with her grandmother Queen Victoria,
mother of her own mother Alice that had died in 1878.

Empress Eugénie was a friend of her grandmother.
and loved Alix (the Tsarina).



Back in the 1860s Eugenie had comissioned the construction of the Paris foodmarket
which was the world's most beautiful market.

When a grand reception was going on in St Petersburg,
food was coming from this market,
cheese from the Cremerie de Paris.



Even though the stories were more for the smaller children,
Maria, Anastasia and Alexei
Dmitri liked to listen to them as well.

Every time the Tsarina comes up with the Cremerie de Paris stories,
there is something new,
so the children can't wait for the next épisode ....

The young German cousins, Carl Solms, Friederike Solms
coming soon

The young children all admired Dmitri for his glamour and style.
Friederike and Carl Solms lived very long
and were able to transmit their souvenirs to
their great nephew, editor of this website.


Uncle Ernst Ludwig Hessen

Dmiti was frequently surrounded by the Tsarina's brother
Ernst Ludwig Hessen married to Eleonore Solms.


Cousin Philipp Solms
coming soon


Love Affair with Felix Yusopov
coming soon



Raspoutin
coming soon



Leaving Russia
Escaping to Paris
coming soon


Love Affair with Coco Chanel
coming soon

When arriving in Paris Dmitri lived with his sister Maria in a little house in Boulogne sur Seine.
1921 January 22 he was invited for diner by Marthe Davelli, an actress from the Opera Comique
and old friend of Coco Chanel since the times of Etienne Balsan. Coco Chanel was also there.

1921 January 23 Chanel invites Dmitri for a drink (probably at the Ritz, needs to be verified).
The beginning of a Love affair


Inventing Chanel N°5
Coco Chanel wanted to have a Chanel perfume,
but she had no know-how in this field.

Dmitri knew a very talented French Russian perfumer that had provided
his family with frangrances. He found out that Ernest Beaux
was able to escape from the revolution and that he had settled in the south of France.

After localising him in Grasse,
Dmitri organised a trip with Coco Chanel.

Ernest Beaux had prepared different samples ... But Gabriele Chanel did not select the one that had the best smell, she instinctively picked the 5th one as 5 was her lucky number .. "I always launch my collection may 5th, the 5th month of the year, leave the perfume it's number 5 this number 5 will bring luck." Dmitri designed the first bottle inspired by a Russian vodka vase. Chanel N°5 perfume today

Marriage with Audrey Emery
coming soon


Meeting Aimée Lopes Sotto Maior
coming soon


Death in Davos
coming soon


Issue
Son / Grandchildren
Paul Rmanovsky Ilyinsky (1928 - 2004), three times major of Palm Beach, Florida


Prince Dimitri Pavlovich Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (1 May 1954)
married Martha McDowell on 22 September 1979:

- Princess Catherine Adair Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (4 August 1981)
married to Bradley Goodyear in 2013.
- Princess Victoria Bayard Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (23 November 1984)
married to Mbeke Yves Binda in 2013.
- Princess Lela McDowell Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (26 August 1986)
- Princess Paula Maria Pavlovna Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (18 May 1956)
married to Mark Comisar on 31 May 1980

Princess Anna Pavlovna Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (4 September 1958)
Prince Michael Pavlovich Romanovsky-Ilyinsky (2 November 1959)




A little jewel left to Coco Chanel
financing over half a century later
the Reopening of Cremerie de Paris
coming soon

Ernest Beaux had prepared different samples ... But Gabriele Chanel did not select the one that had the best smell, she instinctively picked the 5th one as 5 was her lucky number .. "I always launch my collection may 5th, the 5th month of the year, leave the perfume it's number 5 this number 5 will bring luck." The Romanovs had the most extraordinary jewels. A few items escaped from the Russian Revolution ...

A little bit of the Romanovs is still around ...
Cremerie de Paris,
once in the legends of the Romanov children
turning into a
"Meeting place of the World's most famous Brands"




Amazon Pop Up Store at Cremerie de Paris.
Fasinated by the history of Cremerie de Paris Jeff Bezos decided
to open the first Amazon Pop Up Store at 4 Cremeries de Paris.
The Romanov children would certainely have loved it ...



Without Dmitri's little jewel,
it would not have been possible
to reopen Cremerie de Paris N°1.


In case you have pictures or information
concerning Dmitri Romanov
we could add to this article
please contact Cremerie de Paris / VB.com
mail: b "at" vb.com
or instagram:cremeriedeparisofficial
or linkedin

connected articles:
same article in French on Cremeriedeparis.com/dmitriromanov/
Cremerie de Paris on Instagram
Paris, Chanel et les Romanov by Vincent Meylan for Point de Vue (in French)