Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Cantacuzène, Count Speransky (; 29 April 1875 – 25 March 1955) was a Russian general. The title of Count Speransky has been alternatively spelled "Spiransky" and "Speranski".

Early life

Prince Michael (or Mikhail) was Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Cantacuzène, was born on 29 April 1875 in

Poltava Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, then part of

Imperial Russia Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * ...

. He was born at his family's estate which was known as Bouromka, in Poltava. The eldest of four children, he was a son of Prince Mikhail Rodionovich Cantacuzène and Elisabeth Sicard. His two younger brothers were Prince Boris (1876–1905) and Prince Serge (1884-1953) and his younger sister was Princess Daria (1878–1944). A member of the

Cantacuzino family The House of Cantacuzino (; ) is a Romanian aristocratic family of Greek origin. The family gave a number of princes to Wallachia and Moldavia, and it claimed descent from a branch of the Byzantine Kantakouzenos family, specifically from Byzanti ...

, a Russian branch of which is an offshoot of the Moldavian branch, the titles of

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and of Count Speransky were confirmed to Mikhail's grandfather, Prince Rodion Nikolaevich Cantacuzène, in 1865 by Alexander II. The title had formerly been held by his great-grandfather,

Mikhail Speransky Count Mikhail Mikhailovich Speransky (; 12 January 1772 – 23 February 1839) was a Russian statesman and reformist during the reign of Alexander I of Russia, to whom he was a close advisor. Honorary member of the Free Economic Society (1801) a ...

, Russian statesman and one-time adviser to Tsar

Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon from 495 to 454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas, ruler of the Seleucid Empire 150-145 BC * Pope Alex ...

. The Prince's father had inherited the Speransky title, unusually and on basis of special remainder, from his own maternal grandmother,

Elisabeth Bagréeff-Speransky Elisabeth Bagréeff-Speransky (''née'' Elizaveta Mikhailovna Speranskaya; ; 5 September 1799 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S./16 September 1799 (N.S.) – 4 April 1857) was a Russian noblewoman and writer. She was the only child of the stat ...

, who was a daughter of the first Count Speransky. The title of count was confirmed in 1872. The Russian princely titles of the Cantacuzène were inherited via the Romanian line of Cantacuzène, with the service of Michael's great-grandfather Radu, Rodion Matveevich, Cantacuzène, who came from Romania to serve under

Catherine the Great Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

. His mother's family were

French Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

merchants who also emigrated to Russia during the reign of

; her family's wealth included the estate of Bouromka, several apartments in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

, a villa in the

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

, and an apartment in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. His mother was exiled to

Portuguese East Africa Portuguese Mozambique () or Portuguese East Africa () were the common terms by which Mozambique was designated during the period in which it was a Portuguese Empire, Portuguese overseas province. Portuguese Mozambique originally constituted a str ...

(

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

) and was buried in Macequece (now called Villa de Manica). Mikhail attended

Page Corps The Page Corps (; ) was a military academy in Imperial Russia, which prepared sons of the nobility and of senior officers for military service. Similarly, the Imperial School of Jurisprudence prepared boys for civil service. The present-day equiva ...

in St. Petersburg, and later became a graduate of the Imperial Alexandrine Lycée.

Career

His military career formed the basis of his life before and after his diplomatic service, as he served in both the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

of 1904 to 1905, and on the Polish front during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Prince Cantacuzène served as aide-de-camp and later Major-General, and finally General, in the service of Tsar

Nicholas II Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until his abdication on 15 March 1917. He married ...

, while Princess Cantacuzène remained in

. He served with distinction and was wounded in battle in 1914; as commander of the South Russia Cossacks, in 1915 he led 15,000 men in what has been called the last great cavalry charge against a fortified position in military history. The family left Russia in the aftermath of the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

; in 1917, they escaped from

Petrograd Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

with her jewels sewn into her clothing and fled, via Finland, to the United States. The couple moved to Washington, D.C. and attempted to attract support for a counter-revolution in Russia, but after news of the assassination of the Tsar and of his brother,

Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia (; 13 June 1918) was the youngest son and fifth child of Emperor Alexander III of Russia and youngest brother of Nicholas II. He was designated Emperor of Russia after his brother Nicholas II of Russia ...

, ended their activism. The couple relocated to

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

, joining the firm founded by her aunt

Bertha Palmer Bertha Matilde Palmer (; May 22, 1849 – May 5, 1918) was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist. She was the wife of millionaire Potter Palmer and early member of the Chicago Woman's Club, as well as president of the Board of ...

. After his divorce, his former wife's cousins, Honore Palmer and Potter Palmer Jr. (both sons of

), who remained in Sarasota after Bertha's death, expanded their agricultural and business enterprises, and brought (former Prince) Michael Cantacuzene into the Palmer corporate structure. He managed the Hyde Park citrus groves, helped organize the Palmer Bank when it opened in 1929, and became Vice President of the bank.

Personal life

Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Cantacuzène had a distant cousin, Prince Grigorii L'vovich Kantakuzen (1843–1902), who was also a diplomat, serving as Russian representative to the U.S. from 1892 to 1895. But in 1893, Prince Mikhail was attached to the Russian embassy in Rome. In that context, he met Julia Dent Grant, first born grandchild of

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

Ulysses Simpson Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as commanding general, Grant led the Union Army to victory in the American Civil War ...

, who was traveling in Europe with her maternal aunt,

(née Honoré). Aunt and niece travelled throughout Europe to promote interest in the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

as well as to collect art. The couple married in the home of her aunt

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

, on 22 September 1899. Miss Grant assumed her husband's titles and was styled Julia Dent Cantacuzène Spiransky-Grant.Croft, Lee B., Ashleigh Albrecht, Emily Cluff, and Erica Resmer. Entry (pp. 126–121) on Russian Ambassador to the U.S. from 1892 to 1895, Prince Grigorii L'vovich Kantakuzen (1843–1902) in ''AMBASSADORS: U.S.-to-Russia/Russia-to-U.S.'' Capstone Publications. 2010. . Treatment of genealogy of Cantacuzen/Kantakuzen princely line from Russian sources and from Julia Dent Grant's personal writings. Prince and Princess Cantacuzène resided in

(later

) or at their estate in

during their early married years, with the Princess giving birth to their three children: * HH Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Cantacuzène, Count Speransky (b. 1900), who married three times: firstly, to Clarissa Curtis, daughter of Thomas Pelham Curtis and Frances Kellogg Small; secondly, Florence Bushnell Carr; thirdly, Florence Clarke Hall. * HH Princess Barbara "Bertha" Mikhailovna Cantacuzène, Countess Speransky (b. 1904), who married Bruce Smith. She married, secondly, William Durrell Siebern. * HH Princess Zinaida Mikhailovna Cantacuzène, Countess Speransky (b. 1908), who married Sir John Coldbrook Hanbury-Williams, son of Major-General Sir John Hanbury-Williams and Annie Emily Reiss. They divorced on 27 October 1934, after which Mrs. Julia Grant Cantacuzène, having re-established her U.S. citizenship and reverting to non-aristocratic title and style, moved back to her native

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

while Prince Cantacuzène remained in Florida. He later married American Jeannette Draper of Sarasota. Prince Mikhail died on 25 March 1955 and was buried at the Manasota Memorial Park in Sarasota. In Sarasota, he was involved in the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

Elks The Embeddable Linux Kernel Subset (ELKS), formerly known as Linux-8086, is a Linux-like operating system kernel. It is a subset of the Linux kernel, intended for 16-bit computers with limited processor and memory resources such as machines pow ...

Kiwanis Club Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...

, County Fair Association, and Sarasota Chamber of Commerce.

Descendants

Through his son Prince Michael, he was a grandfather of one grandson and one granddaughter from his first marriage. Through his daughter Princess Bertha, he was a grandfather of Bruce Michael Smith (1932–1982). Through his daughter Princess Zinaida, he was a grandfather of one grandson and two granddaughters.

References

;Notes ;Sources {{DEFAULTSORT:Cantacuzene, Prince Mikhail 1875 births 1955 deaths Nobility from the Russian Empire Military personnel from Odesa White Russian emigrants to the United States Royalty from Saint Petersburg People from Sarasota, Florida

Mikhail Michael is a common masculine given name derived from the Hebrew phrase ''mī kāʼēl'', 'Who slike-El', in Aramaic: ܡܝܟܐܝܠ (''Mīkhāʼēl'' ). The theophoric name is often read as a rhetorical question – "Who slike he Hebrew Go ...

Grant family Graduates of the Nicholas Cavalry College