Princes Victor and Basile Kotchoubey (Dikanka, 1882)

Who they are

The two young princes Kotchoubey of Dikanka, neighbours of Gavrontsi, whom Marie's family hopes to marry her to in the autumn of 1882: «les princes Kotchoubey, ils sont deux; jeunes, orphelins, chevaliers-gardes et immensément riches» (096.0014, 4 August 1882). The elder is Victor, the younger Basile (Vassily): «L'aîné Victor est mince, brun… Le cadet Basile est aussi grand, beaucoup plus gros, très blond» (096.0407); «le cadet a vingt-et-un ans à peine» (096.0462). Their «quasi-sœur» (097.0046) is Mme Volkovitsky, the natural daughter of Prince Serge Kotchoubey (066.0244), who comes «avec ses frères de Dikanka» (097.0045): they are thus the two sons of Prince Serge Kotchoubey, the widower Marie met at Dikanka in 1876. The Mon Journal t.15 index lists «Kotchoubey (prince Basile)», «Kotchoubey (prince Victor)» and «Kotchoubey (les)»; t.16 «Kotchoubey (prince Basile) : 128» and his wife «née Serran».

They are very probably Prince Viktor Sergeyevich Kochubey (1860-1923) and Prince Vasily Sergeyevich Kochubey (1862-1911), Chevalier-Guards officers (genealogical sources cited in Pomar); Marie's first names, ages, regiment and Dikanka all agree (0.8).

«Les Pomar»

Marie uses «Pomar», the name of the Duke de Pomar, the rich catch of Nice in the spring of 1882, as a joke name for them: «moi et Basile Kotchoubey… Ils ont bien du voir que je suis jolie ces deux Pomar de malheur» (096.0470); «les deux Kotchoubey… même Pomar cadet est assez amusant» (097.0045); «Les Pomar partent demain pour Pétersbourg» (097.0046). The t.15 index has a separate heading «Pomar (les) : 95-96, 103, 105, 107, 111-113» on the same pages as the Kotchoubey entries. They are not the Duke de Pomar.

In the diary

• August-September 1882 (096.0014, 096.0184, 096.0199): the plan; Basile «est celui qui avait volé mon portrait à Michka» (096.0199).
• October 1882, Gavrontsi and Dikanka (096.0328-0473): the long wait (096.0384-0400), the visit of 19 October with Michka Eristoff (096.0406-0413), the hunt cancelled (096.0422-0427), the baptism of Paul's son on 29 October (096.0459-0473), Victor's long talk «sur les Tartares» (096.0472).
• November 1882, Poltava (097.0006-0089): dinner at Dikanka (097.0009), the evenings at the hotel (097.0044-0046), their departure for St Petersburg; Marie's bitter «on ne trouve jamais en cherchant des Pomar» (097.0053); jokes about Basile on the journey (097.0066-0076).
• 1884-01-23 (103.0100-0101): «C'est aujourd'hui que s'est marié Basile Kotchoubey, il a épousé Melle Serran, la fille du maréchal ambassadeur» — Marshal Francisco Serrano, Duke de la Torre, Spanish ambassador in Paris in 1883-84.

Sources

Marie Bashkirtseff, Journal, carnets 096-097, 103; Mon Journal indexes t.15, t.16; for the genealogy see the sources listed in POMAR.md (histpol.pl.ua, baza.vgd.ru).