Did my grandfather write a memoir which includes meeting the Russian Imperial Family?

I admit, I never thought I would find anything written by my grandfather which included the Russian Imperial Family. After all, it was my grandmother, Olga Woronoff, formally Countess Kleinmichel, who was known to be the writer in the family. She had written her memoir, Upheaval, detailing her life in Russia before and during the Russian Revolution, which I recently updated and was published last year. Of course, she also mentioned Tsar Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra and their children, all of whom she met and some of whom she corresponded with, but it was always my grandfather, Paul Woronoff (Pavel Voronov) who had been close to the Russian Imperial Family with his role on the Imperial Yacht, the Standart. But then, while sorting through documents, I found several pages in my grandfather’s handwriting.

            For those of you who might be reading about my grandfather for the first time, he was in the Russian Imperial Navy and served on the Imperial Yacht the Standart for much of his time. It was on this yacht that he got to know the Russian Imperial Family and grew especially fond of the young Tsarevitch Alexei. You can read more about him in the blog post I wrote here.

Sorting and organising the documents I’ve inherited is nothing new for me, in fact it is pretty much what I do most days. I have managed to reduce the boxes and boxes of documents over time but there are still plenty more for me to sort through. What makes it more difficult for me is that the majority of the documents, letters, certificates and notes are written either in Russian or German, and sometimes in French, and I am not proficient in any language other than English. Add in the fact that most of the documents are handwritten and you might be able to see my dilemma.

Researching facts for my explanatory notes in the 2^nd edition of Upheaval, I had been concentrating on finding anything in my grandmother’s handwriting which is probably why I had put to one side the pages written by my grandfather. Wondering what he might have written about and never dreaming he would mention the Russian Imperial Family, I sent the pages to my translator. Imagine my surprise when what she sent me looked very much like the beginning of a memoir written by my grandfather.

On the first page my grandfather describes meeting the Russian Imperial Family for the first time:

The weather was magnificent, and the Sovereign was wearing the summer uniform of the Guards Naval Crew. The Heir—then six years old—was dressed in the sailor uniform of our crew, while the Empress and the four Grand Duchesses wore white summer dresses topped with white summer sports coats.

A bit later he tells how each of the officers and crew were greeted by the Russian Imperial Family.

            Needless to say I am now looking through the documents yet again trying to see if there are more pages to his memoir and I’m crossing my fingers that I find them!