The Court of Grand Duke Sergey Alexandrovich: a Review of Primary Sources

Unlike the Imperial Court, small (Grand Duke's) courts have not been the subject of separate studies until now. Meanwhile, these institutions played a significant role in the life of each Grand Duke, formed the basis of his entourage and the main support in the various activities of the Grand Ducal couple. If in the correction of positions in the state and military service, Grand Duke Sergey Alexandrovich relied primarily on subordinates who were not part of his Court, the multifaceted social, cultural and charitable activities of Sergey Alexandrovich and his wife, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, to a large extent, provided by the involvement of the ranks of the Court. They played a major role in the history of the formation and development of a number of institutions headed or patronized by Grand Duke Sergey Alexandrovich and Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, including the currently existing the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society and the Emperor Alexander III Museum of Fine Arts (now the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts). A comprehensive study of such a small court as the Court of Grand Duke Sergey Alexandrovich, in institutional and personal dimensions involves the involvement of a wide range of archival sources, many of which were not previously introduced into scientific circulation.