What is Mathilde Kchessinska?
{{Infobox person | image = Camargo-Mathilde Kschessinskaya-1897.JPG | caption = Mathilde Kschessinskaya costumed for the title role in ''La Camargo'', circa 1902 | birth_date = {{birth date|1872|8|31|df=y}} | death_date = {{death date and age|1971|12|6|1872|8|31|df=y}} | death_place = [[Paris]], [[France]] | birth_place = [[Ligovo]], [[Petergof]], [[Russian Empire]] }} '''Mathilde Marie Feliksovna Kschessinskaya''' ({{OldStyleDate|31 August|1872|19 August}}–6&nbsp;December 1971 (also known as ''[[Her Serene Highness]] Princess Romanova-Krasinskaya'' from 1921) was a Russian [[ballerina]] from a family of Polish origin. She was known in the West as '''Mathilde Kschessinska''' or '''Matilda Kshesinskaya'''.<ref>The latter is Beaumont's version, ''The Diaghilev Ballet in London'', 1940.</ref> Her father Feliks Krzesiński and her brother both danced in [[St. Petersburg]]. She eventually attained the highest rank, that of ''[[prima ballerina assoluta]]''.<ref>Mary Clarke and David Vaughan (eds) 1977. ''The encyclopedia of dance & ballet''. Pitmans, London. p. 201</ref> Kschessinskaya was also a [[mistress (lover)|mistress]] of the future [[Tsar]] [[Nicholas II of Russia]]. She had been involved with Nicholas, from 1890, when he was a [[grand duke]] and she was just seventeen. She met him with his family after her [[graduation]] performance. They stayed lovers for three years, until Nicholas married Princess Alix of Hesse-Darmstadt&mdash;the future [[Empress]] [[Alexandra Fyodorovna]]—in 1894, shortly after the death of his father, Tsar [[Alexander III of Russia|Alexander III]].<ref>Kshessinska 1960. ''Dancing in Petersburg''. London, transl Haskell.</ref> == References == {{reflist}} == Other websites == {{Commons|Mathilde Kschessinska}} *[http://www.peoples.ru/art/theatre/ballet/kshesinska/ Mathilde's story on www.peoples.ru] (in Russian) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kschessinskaya, Mathilda-Marie Feliksovna}} [[Category:1872 births]] [[Category:1971 deaths]] [[Category:Russian ballerinas]]