Three Princess-Nuns in Jerusalem
This April, the passing of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband to Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, was marked with great solemnity across the world. Connected by birth or marriage to most of the existing royal families of Europe, at the age of 99, Prince Philip had formerly been a member of both the Danish and now-defunct Greek royal family through German noble families on both his paternal and maternal families. Yet many will be surprised to discover that among the many places in the world that Prince Philip had a strong family connection with, the Russian Orthodox convent of Mary Magdalene was ranked among the most significant.
St. Elizabeth the Martyr
Bordering the Franciscan Church of All Nations heading up towards the summit of Gethsemane, the convent of Mary Magdalene was built on land purchased by the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission of the Russian Orthodox Church in the latter half of the 19th century. Noted for its ornate stonework and glimmering onion domes, the church of the convent, dedicated to Mary Magdalene is one of the most iconic symbols of Jerusalem and its environs. Within the compound, several dozen nuns carry on much as they have for over a hundred years, participating in daily services, welcoming pilgrims and visitors, and tending to the monastery church, chapels and buildings. While the convent is best-known for being part of the Garden of Gethsemane where Christ prayed before his arrest, it also contains the resting place of the great aunt and mother of Prince Philip; Saint Elizabeth Feodorovna, born Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, and Princess Alice of Battenberg.
Princess Alice of Battenberg
Princess Elisabeth was born in what would become the modern state of Germany in the 19th century and was married to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, the brother of the last Emperor of Russia, taking a Russian name and converting to the Russian Orthodox faith. As a young couple, the two visited the Holy Land and visited the newly-established Church of Mary Magdalene on Gethsemane, for which had been its primary financial patrons. Years later, following the assassination of the Grand Duke, the Grand Duchess became a nun and was known for her piety and charitable works until her brutal murder by Bosheiviks during the Russian Civil War in 1918. Her remains were transported via China to Jerusalem, where they were interred in a reliquary in the church of Mary Magdalene, where she once remarked that she would like to be buried. In the Orthodox church, this German-born princess is now called Saint Elizabeth Feodorovna, New Martyr of Russia. Years later, her niece, Princess Alice (mother of Prince Philip) herself a remarkable and charitable woman who also became an Orthodox nun in her later years, requested and was granted permission to be buried in the crypt below the church. As a result, Prince Philip and his son, Charles, Prince of Wales and his grandson, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge have all visited the convent to pay respects to their two family members buried there.
Abbess Tamara Romanova
A short distance to the north of Gethsemane at the summit of the Russian Orthodox Ascension Convent on the Mount of Olives, known for its iconic bell tower, a third princess is also buried. Grand Duchess Tatiana Konstantinovna Romanova, another princess of the Romanov royal family, also found her way from Russia to Jerusalem, was tonsured a nun, and became Abbess Tamara of Ascension convent, the sister-convent of Mary Magdalene. She was buried on the convent property in 1979. To this day, their graves and relics are visited by pilgrims and visitors alike, who can pause for a moment and reflect on the lives of these three remarkable women who each found their final place of rest so far from their homelands, but lie content in the hills overlooking the city of Jerusalem.
Be Not Afraid!
Good Shepherd Travel offers trips to Gethsemane and Mount of Olives in Jerusalem as part of their Holy Land tours. Rome, Lourdes, Fatima, Ireland, and many other destinations are among our most popular programs. For more information on how to begin preparing for a pilgrimage in late 2021 and 2022, contact Tony AbuAita at Tony@goodshepherdtravel.com. We will return to pilgrimage – and we hope to see you with us!