Pavel, Before the Revolution

Tambov, Russia, 1916. This is the last photo of Pavel that we have.

Babos Receptai (Part 3)

My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, was a Russian aristocrat. Her father, Pavel, served as one of Tsar Nicholas II's regional governors (Pavel also was a friend of Tolstoy's, but I'll leave that story for another day). Pavel was working in Omsk when Tatjana was born. Later, he served in Tambov. When the Russian Revolution erupted, the Bolsheviks executed Pavel and (we believe) one of Tatjana's brothers.

Tatjana's aristocratic roots crept through many corners of her life. She was proud of her lineage, and she drew sharp lines about what sort of behavior was appropriate for descendants of the noble class. For instance, before I went on my first "date" (an afternoon, picnic outing to Brookfield Zoo), she observed that only a prostitute would hold hands with a man in public.

Tatjana also, like other Russian aristocrats of her era, admired and monkeyed French culture. She insisted, for example, that I learn the French language, and she fluidly quoted French novels and poetry. Tatjana often spoke of Catherine the Great's mastery of French culture. Many years after Tatjana died, I worked with a fellow whose grandparents (or possibly great-grandparents) had found exile in Paris after the Russian Revolution. His experience made me wonder whether Tatjana wouldn't have been happier living in France.

Tatjana's love of French culture, however, did not influence her cooking. French food was rarely on the menu. The only French item Tatjana sometimes made was Pâte à Choux. When Tatjana made choux pastry, she usually filled the puffs with Jell-O Cook & Serve Vanilla pudding (because instant pudding is for unaccomplished cooks). When she made the filling from scratch, she used this recipe: 

Cooked Cream for "Petit Schout"

                        and for Napoleon

Melt one stick of butter with 2-1/2-3 tablespoons flour. Gradually pout in 1 cup milk and 1 cup half-and-half. Cook, mixing constantly (like you would for a white sauce), until everything is heated through and cooked.

Beat together 3 egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar. Slowly mix this with the cooked cream mixture, and cook again, as you would ice cream, just until the mixture starts to show blisters. Then cool the mixture over ice, mixing well, and then adding vanilla, or orange rind, or almond extract.

[At the bottom of the page—in lighter colored ink—Tatjana added the recipe for the choux pastry:] 

Slowly heat 1 stick of butter and 2 spoonfuls (tablespoons) sour cream with 4-1/2 cups flour. Mix until the dough starts to hold together. Remove from heat and, mixing with your hands, divide the mixture into six pieces. Place in the refrigerator, then back at 400^oF until the pieces are cooked through.

Russian Roots, Revisited

Tambov, Russia, about 1905. I posted a photo of Pavel and Nina K.—the parents of my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana—when I first started the blog. The image was one my Dad had rephotographed. Dad had zoomed in on the subjects' faces, cropping out a good part of the photo.

I recently found the original print stored in the envelope called "Babos šeima Rusijoi"—Grandma's family in Russia. I post the image here: the original gives a better view of my Great-Grandparents, sitting in front of their house. Pavel has a newspaper on his lap, and Nina K. holds some work; I wonder if it's mending.

Facing Revolution

This is how my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, looked around the time she attended the St. Petersburg university. She was the first woman to graduate from the institution with a degree in Chemical Engineering:

Tambov, Russia, 1916. My Grandmother, Tatjana, poses for a passport photograph.

*     *     *     *     *

This is how Tatjana looked three years later, after she watched the Russian Revolution unfold, witnessed the execution of her father, searched for his remains, feared deportation to Siberia, and fled to Lithuania:

Russia, 1919. Tatjana wears the locket in which she kept the portraits of her Grandparents.

Army Cadet

Tsarist Russia, 1915 or 1916. My maternal Grandfather, Jake, while he was a cadet-student at the prestigious military college of the Russian Imperial Army. Mom refers to the military college as "Russia's West Point."

Why did a Lithuanian graduate from a Russian military college? During this time, Lithuania was part of the Russian Empire. Young men in the non-Russian provinces could wait to be drafted or enroll in one of the colleges. Enrollment would ensure a career as an officer upon graduation.

Jake's career in the Russian Imperial Army did not unfold as he anticipated. Shortly after he graduated, the Russian Revolution erupted. He served for a short time in the "White Russian Army," the forces the combated the Bolsheviks. When the Bolshevik victory appeared imminent, Jake fled to his native Lithuania.

In Lithuania, Jake continued his military career. Between 1918 and 1940, he served in the Army of an independent Lithuania. He would wear a Russian uniform once more later in life, when the Soviets occupied Lithuania in 1940, and drafted Jake into service.

We often use the uniform that Jake wears in particular photos to identify from about what year the photo dates.

I think Jake is extraordinarily handsome here. He has descendants who have the same eyes.

Six Siblings

Tambov, Russia, 1910 or 1911. My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana (top row, far left), with her five siblings. These are the children who witnessed the execution of their father, Pavel.

Russian Roots

Tambov, Russia, around 1905. These are two of my Great-Grandparents, Pavel and Nina, the parents of my paternal Grandmother. Pavel served as one of Tsar Nicholas II's fourteen governors.

The Bolsheviks executed Pavel during the 1917 Russian Revolution. They shot him in front of his wife and his six children.

Fresh Off the Troika

Tambov, Russia, Winter 1913. My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, her Brother, Lev, and her Father, Pavel. Of all the photos we have, this one is in the poorest condition. That's because Grandmother carried the snapshot slipped between the pages of a Russian Orthodox prayer book that jiggled in her pocket as she escaped Russia during the 1917 Revolution.

Grandmother fled on horseback to Lithuania—newly emancipated from the Russian Empire—catching a ride with a Lithuanian cavalryman, Vytautas, who was retreating from the collapsing Imperial Russian Army.

Grandmother settled in Lithuania, married the cavalryman, and gave birth to twins, my Father and my paternal Aunt.

UPDATE: It was a Roman Catholic prayer book, not a Russian Orthodox one.