After a century of waiting, Russians witness a royal wedding once more
St. Petersburg, Russia — Descendants of the Tsarist Romanov dynasty were married in the first royal wedding in over a century — kicking off a weekend of lavish events that sparked public curiosity, awe, and derision in seemingly equal measure.
Under the dome of Saint Issac's Cathedral in Russia's former imperial capital city, Grand Duke George Mikhailovich Romanov, 40, married his Italian bride, Victoria Romanovna Bettarini, 39, in an Orthodox ceremony on Friday before priests and several hundred assembled guests.
Tsarist trappings included an engagement ring "traditionally exchanged in the House of Romanov," according to a press release. "The ring centers a ruby cabochon gemstone that represents love and nobility and two diamond brilliants that represent purity and strength."
The Russian Orthodox Church's top official in St. Petersburg, Metropolitan Varsonofy blessed the ceremony.
The clout of Russia's ultra-conservative movement was also on display — with the controversial "orthodox oligarch," Konstantin Malofeev, taking a prominent role in the ceremony and the nationalist philosopher Alexander Dugin among prominent guests.
"It's a kind of imperial wedding. A remembrance of eternal Russia — of sacred Tsars and patriarchs and (the) church," Dugin said in an interview with NPR.
"In an age of 'cancel culture,' when everybody in the West tries to forget your own identity — your own history — Russia offers an alternative process.," he added. "We are trying to return to our roots."
St. Petersburg, Russia — Descendants of the Tsarist Romanov dynasty were married in the first royal wedding in over a century — kicking off a weekend of lavish events that sparked public curiosity, awe, and derision in seemingly equal measure.
Under the dome of Saint Issac's Cathedral in Russia's former imperial capital city, Grand Duke George Mikhailovich Romanov, 40, married his Italian bride, Victoria Romanovna Bettarini, 39, in an Orthodox ceremony on Friday before priests and several hundred assembled guests.
Tsarist trappings included an engagement ring "traditionally exchanged in the House of Romanov," according to a press release. "The ring centers a ruby cabochon gemstone that represents love and nobility and two diamond brilliants that represent purity and strength."
The Russian Orthodox Church's top official in St. Petersburg, Metropolitan Varsonofy blessed the ceremony.
The clout of Russia's ultra-conservative movement was also on display — with the controversial "orthodox oligarch," Konstantin Malofeev, taking a prominent role in the ceremony and the nationalist philosopher Alexander Dugin among prominent guests.
"It's a kind of imperial wedding. A remembrance of eternal Russia — of sacred Tsars and patriarchs and (the) church," Dugin said in an interview with NPR.
"In an age of 'cancel culture,' when everybody in the West tries to forget your own identity — your own history — Russia offers an alternative process.," he added. "We are trying to return to our roots."
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