News about Nicholas II

It is known as the 'royal disease', and for very good reason. The bleeding disorder haemophilia B was unwittingly introduced into the royal families of Europe by Queen Victoria, before nine of her descendants died from the disease. They included her youngest son Prince Leopold, who died a week short of his 31st birthday. But, had Leopold been alive today, there would have been fresh hope thanks to recent news that, after successful trials, a gene therapy once billed as the 'world's most expensive drug' is now being made available to treat the condition. The most significant of the royal haemophiliac deaths was that of Alexei (right, with his father), the much longed-for male heir of Russia's last Tsar, Nicholas II, and his wife Alexandra ('Alix'), who was Queen Victoria's favourite granddaughter. She increasingly sought solace in the mysticism of the Russian orthodox church and would eventually fall under the spell of Grigori Rasputin, the lank-haired, evil-smelling peasant with magnetic eyes. As well as relieving the Empress's emotional suffering, he had a calming influence on Alexei and was believed to help ease the boy's symptoms. In Spain, Queen Victoria Eugenie - granddaughter of Queen Victoria and great-grandmother of King Felipe VI - gave birth to two haemophiliac sons. The first, Alfonso (inset), Prince of Asturias, was heir apparent to the throne of Spain. He died aged 31.

As he turns 82 today, Prince Michael of Kent will likely be celebrating in a low-key fashion with close family. In recent months he and his wife Princess Michael (right, with her husband in 2022) have been supporting their daughter Lady Gabriella Windsor (pictured left with her father on her wedding day) after the death of her husband Thomas Kingston in February. In the weeks after her tragic loss, Lady Gabriella moved back in with her parents at their Kensington Palace apartment. Her father is the first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth, the brother of the Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V and a cousin-twice-removed of Russia 's last Tsar, Nicholas II. In his younger years, Prince Michael was a competitive rower and bobsledder and was even on the reserve list for Britain's bobsleigh team (inset, competing for Great Britain in 1971) at the 1972 Winter Olympics. But unlike his daughter's impeccable public image, Prince Michael - who bears a striking resemblance to Tsar Nicholas - has hit the headlines for the wrong reasons in the past.

Video showed a fire purportedly on a vessel in Sevastopol's Sukharnaya Bay after explosions were heard in the annexed Crimean naval port. One report from Ukrainian Telegram channel Crimean Wind suggested the world's oldest active naval vessel had been hit, the 109-year-old Kommuna, built in the reign of the last Tsar, Nicholas II.

The Russian Imperial Easter Eggs are one of the few treasures that capture the imagination quite as well. Fabergé Eggs have become synonymous with success and exquisite beauty, making them the ultimate royal Easter gift, having been steeped in history and craftsmanship. Their allure lies not only in their stunning aesthetic but also in the enigmatic tales that surround them and the Russian Imperial Family's tragic history, which they commissioned in the 19th and early twentieth centuries.

Phew! I was beginning to feel downright unpatriotic. Hundreds of British citizens have been banned from attending Russian universities, including 213 Conservative and 74 Labour MPs. My name was not on any of the lists until yesterday. 'You been sanctioned too, Hannan?' The MPs will ask, unable to maintain the swagger from their tone. 'No,' I'd mumbled, eyes downcast.' I've only been refused admission to, er, Belarus.' Does that count?'

Andrew Dunlop (inset), 63, whose family farmed Lunsford Farm for four generations and whose land hosts reality show Celebs on the Farm, first applied in 2018 to be listed as the track's owner. Prince Rostislav Romanov (left), the former prime minister of the East Sussex countryside, wanted to prevent his neighbor, Prince Rostislav Romanov (left), from utilizing the track for vehicular access to build his £1 million home. The prince, a 34-year-old landscape artist, intends to cover a portion of a centuries-old route with block-paving as part of his home construction. A property tribunal had previously ruled that Dunlop's appeal should be dismissed, but the farmer now has appealed to the upper tribunal.

You may have associated royals with a world of painful stage direction and countless rules on how to dress and speak. Who on the planet is more closely scrutinised than, for example, the Princess of Wales? So perhaps it's no surprise that Princess Olga Romanoff is delighted that she is not a front-line royal. Rather, the late queen's obnoxious cousin is content to strut around in skinny jeans and a gilet, makeup-free, and smelling of horses. And speaking out on her own. MailOnline looks at Princess Olga Andreevna Romanoff's life and her surprising take on the royal trade.

Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia, 40, and his wife, also 40, have published a collection of photographs from the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. Prince Alexandre Georgievitch Romanov, the country's first child, was born on October 21st and christened in a traditional Orthodox service on December 6th, a significant figure in Orthodox faith and Russian history. (Pictured from left:

The Grand Duke of Russia and his wife have posted adorable snaps of their newborn son. Left: Grand Duke George Romanov, 40, and his mother Victoria, 40, who live in Moscow, all 40, rode up a storm with their son Prince Alexander on Sunday at their lavish home. (bottom right) Prince Alexander of Russia, who was born on October 21, looked cosy as he was wrapped in a blanket and sporting a wool bonnet for the wholesome snaps. (top right)

Teresa Levonian Cole arrives in Geneva on a Saturday to check the city's sights. She admires the mind-boggling exhibits in the Patek Philippe museum and visits the majestic Flower Clock.