July 1918: Royalty and World War I

by Susan Flantzer

  • Romanov Executions
  • Timeline: July 1, 1918 – July 31, 1918
  • A Note About German Titles
  • July 1918 – Royals/Nobles/Peers/Sons of Peers Who Died In Action

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Romanov Executions

Burial place of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family at the Peter and Paul Cathedral at the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia; Photo Credit – Susan Flantzer

One hundred years ago, in July 1918, thirteen members of the Romanov family were executed. The previous month, on June 13, 1918, Emperor Nicholas II’s brother 39-year-old Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich and Nicholas Johnson, his British secretary, were taken to the woods outside Perm in Siberia, Russia and shot. Their bodies have never been found.

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On July 17, 1918, Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, his wife Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, their five children, along with three of their most loyal servants and the court doctor, were shot to death by firing squad in the basement of the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg, Siberia, Russia.

All seven of the Romanov family plus the family physician Dr. Eugene Botkin and three servants (maid Anna Demidova, cook Ivan Kharitonov, and footman Alexei Trupp) were escorted to a basement room. Chairs were brought in for Nicholas, Alexandra, and Alexei. The family believed they were being evacuated to a new location.

Eight members of the firing squad entered the basement room along with Yakov Yurovsky, the commandant of the Ipatiev House. A few minutes later Yurkovsky informed the prisoners that they were about to be executed. Nicholas arose in shock but was quickly shot down. Chaos ensued as the executioners gunned down the family members and their servants.

Alexandra and her daughters had sewn jewels into their clothing to provide money if the family was sent into exile and these jewels acted for a time as shields against the bullets. Anna Demidova carried a pillow also sewn with jewels. Eventually, the soldiers brought out bayonets to kill the last remaining survivors. After several minutes of ricocheting bullets and stabbings, all eleven members of the party were dead.

Those executed were:

  • Emperor Nicholas II, 50 years old
  • Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, 46 years old
  • Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, 23 years old
  • Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna, 21 years old
  • Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, 19 years old
  • Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna, 17 years old
  • Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich, 14 years old
  • Dr. Eugene Botkin, physician for Nicholas II and his family
  • Ivan Mikhailovich Kharitonov (cook)
  • Alexei Yegorovich Trupp (footman)
  • Anna Stepanovna Demidova (maid)

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On July 18, 1918, the day after the execution of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, elder sister of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, who had started a convent and became a nun, and five other Romanovs along with Varvara Alexeievna Yakovleva, a nun from Elizabeth’s convent, and Feodor Semyonovich Remez, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich’s secretary, were executed by the Bolsheviks. They were taken to an abandoned mine shaft outside of Alapayevsk in Siberia, Russia that was partially filled with water, were then hit in the head and thrown into the mine shaft. When Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich resisted, he was shot in the head and thrown down the mine shaft. When it was obvious that the prisoners were not dead, grenades were thrown down the mine shaft. All was quiet but after a short time, talking was heard and more grenades were thrown down the mine shaft. The prisoners then started singing the prayer “Lord, Save Your People.” This terrified the executioners. They had no more grenades and it was necessary for them to finish their job. The executioners set fire to wood and threw it down the shaft. The hymns and prayers continued for a while and then stopped. The mission was accomplished.

The Romanovs executed were:

  • Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, widow of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, sister of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, 53 years old
  • Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I, 48 years old
  • Prince Ioann Konstantinovich, son of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich who was a grandson of Tsar Nicholas I, 32 years old
  • Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich, son of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich who was a grandson of Tsar Nicholas I, 27 years old
  • Prince Igor Konstantinovich, son of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich who was a grandson of Emperor Nicholas I, 24 years old
  • Prince Vladimir Paley, son of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich, 21 years old

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In addition, four more Romanovs were executed in January 1919.

On January 28, 1919, four Grand Dukes were taken to the courtyard of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia and then escorted towards a ditch that had been dug in the courtyard. As they passed the Peter and Paul Cathedral where their ancestors were buried, they each made the sign of the cross. Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich, who was ill, was carried out on a stretcher. The three Grand Dukes who had walked out were lined up before the ditch, in which there were already bodies. Grand Duke Paul was shot on his stretcher. Grand Dukes Nicholas, George, and Dmitry were all killed by the same blast, causing them to fall into the ditch.

The Grand Dukes executed were:

  • Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I, 59 years old
  • Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I and brother of Nicholas above, 55 years old
  • Grand Duke Dmitri Konstantinovich, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I, 58 years old
  • Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich, son of Emperor Alexander II, 58 years old

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Timeline: July 1, 1918 – July 31, 1918

Postcard showing ruins of a village after the Second Battle of the Marne; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

  • July 4 – Battle of Hamel in Le Hamel, Somme, France
  • July 12 – Haiti declares war on Germany
  • July 14 – Battle of Abu Tellul in Palestine
  • July 15 – August 6 – Second Battle of the Marne and last German offensive on the Western Front which fails when the Germans are counterattacked by the French
  • July 15 – 17 – Champagne-Marne Offensive (consisting of the Fourth Battle of Champagne and the Battle of the Mountain of Reims), a phase of the Second Battle of the Marne. last phase of the Spring Offensive and last German offensive of World War I
  • July 17 – Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family are executed by the Bolsheviks out of fear that they might be released by Czechoslovak and White troops (see above)
  • July 18 – Execution of Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna and five other Romanovs (see above)
  • July 18 – Battle of Chateau-Thierry, a phase of the Second Battle of the Marne
  • July 18 – 22 – Battle of Soissons, a phase of the Second Battle of the Marne
  • July 19 – Battle of Tardenois, a phase of the Second Battle of the Marne
  • July 19 – Honduras declares war on Germany

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A Note About German Titles

Many German royals and nobles died in World War I. The German Empire consisted of 27 constituent states, most of them ruled by royal families. Scroll down to German Empire here to see what constituent states made up the German Empire.  The constituent states retained their own governments, but had limited sovereignty. Some had their own armies, but the military forces of the smaller ones were put under Prussian control. In wartime, armies of all the constituent states would be controlled by the Prussian Army and the combined forces were known as the Imperial German Army.  German titles may be used in Royals Who Died In Action below. Refer to Unofficial Royalty: Glossary of German Noble and Royal Titles.

24 British peers were also killed in World War I and they will be included in the list of those who died in action. In addition, more than 100 sons of peers also lost their lives, and those that can be verified will also be included.

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July 1918 – Royals/Nobles/Peers/Sons of Peers Who Died In Action

The list is in chronological order and does contain some who would be considered noble instead of royal. The links in the last bullet for each person is that person’s genealogical information from Leo’s Genealogics Website or to The Peerage website If a person has a Wikipedia page or a website page with biographical information, their name will be linked to that page.

Friedrich Franz, Graf von Hohenau

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Alexander, Graf von Salm-Hoogstraeten

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