JANET ROMANOFF

ROMANOFF--Janet. Princess Nikita Romanoff, died in Cairo, Egypt on January 28, 2017 at age 84. She was born Janet Schonwald in Oklahoma, daughter of Emanuel Schonwald and Ethel Diamond. She married HH Prince Nikita Romanoff, grandson of HIH Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna, elder sister of Czar Nicholas II and HIH Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich. They had one son, Prince Theodore born in 1974. Prince Nikita and Prince Theodore both predeceased Princess Janet. Talented in many fields, she attended Barnard College and Stanford University where she met Prince Nikita while pursuing her PhD. Her PhD published in 1974 as a book entitled "V.V. Rozanov" which was critically acclaimed by scholar Professors Yuri Ivask and George Kline and writers W.H. Auden and Robert Lowell. She lived in New York City most of her married life and was a patron of the Russian Children's Welfare Society, the Russian Monuments and Culture Fund, the Russian Nobility Association and The Russian Theological Fund. She collaborated with the Mission of the USSR and the United Nations on an exhibit of photos of Czar Nicholas II and his family. She co- sponsored, with Dr. Gilbert Darlington, head of the American Bible Society, an exhibit of Russian icons at the Society's headquarters. She was also a member of the Cosmopolitan Club in New York City. Princess Janet made a number of trips to Russia where she met distinguished historian and ecologist D.S. Likhachev and participated in bringing the poet Joseph Brodsky to America. Janet also organized a historic interview with Alexander Kerensky, head of the Russian Provisional Government of 1917. After the death of her son, Prince Theodore, in 2007 she moved to Egypt and made Alexandria her home. She became a philanthropist and benefactor of children's education. Her legacy of charitable involvement, her love of literature and culture will be long appreciated. Princess Janet is survived by her sister Barbara Brookes, a niece and nephew, and their children. Janet Romanoff was cherished by all that knew her; she will be profoundly missed and remembered with great admiration and love. A memorial service will be held at Our Lady of the Sign Cathedral at 75 East 93rd Street, NYC on April 24 at 5:30pm.