Natalia Pavlovna Hohenfelsen (1905 - 1981)

Born 5 Dec 1905 in Paris XVI, Paris, Seine, France

Ancestors

Wife of Lucien Camille Henri Lelong — married 10 Aug 1927 (to 1937) in Paris XVI, Paris, Seine, France

Died 27 Dec 1981 at age 76 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

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Princess Natalia Hohenfelsen was a member of the aristocracy in Russia.

Natalia Hohenfelsen has Russian Roots. Join: Russian Roots Project Discuss: russian_roots

Biography

Nataliya Hohenfelsen, also known as Countess Hohenfelsen or Princess Natalie Paley, was born on 5 December 1905 at her parents' home, 11 Avenue d'Iéna in Paris (16th arrondissment), France.

She owes the nice address to the fact that her parents were exiled from the court of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia -- her cousin. Nataliya was the daughter of the Tsar's uncle, the Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich Romanov and his second (morganatic) wife, Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, the Princess Paley^[1].

The wedding of the Grand Duke Paul with a common divorcee had caused a great scandal in royal circles, so the news of Nataliya's birth wasn't exactly trumpeted. Indeed her birth was kept quiet, with the result that the details are a bit sketchy.

Some biographies say that she was born at Boulogne, France^[2].

Natalia gained the title of Countess Hohenfelsen at birth. She was also born with the title of Princess Natalia Paley.

ESCAPE FROM BOLSHEVIK REVOLUTION

According to a short biographical sketch by Romuald Leblond and Jessica Vaillat, Natalia "returned to Russia with her family in 1912 and violently lived the Bolchevik Revolution, facing the murders of her brother and father and being raped before managing to escape with her mother and sisters in 1918."

FASHION CAREER IN PARIS

The family who survived escaped to Paris, where Natalia became a famous fashion model. She was one of Coco Chanel's first and most popular models.

"Natalie Paley developed what would be her lifelong mood: a melancholic, eccentric and icy personality. In 1926, the Russian princess met Lucien Lelong who engaged her in his famous couture house and soon married her."

FIRST MARRIAGE

Natalie married Lucien Lelong on 9/10 August 1927 at Paris (16th arrondissement), France^[1].

Lucien "was distant and famous for his homosexual affairs but the situation perfectly suited Natalie Paley who, traumatized by the Russian Revolution and her rape, never appreciated intimate sexual relationships. The beautiful, graceful and elegant muse of the Lelong house promptly dictated her own fashion trends, gracing the pages of Vogue magazine through the lenses of her time's most important photographers."

FILM CAREER

The Internet Movie Database indicates that Natalie also worked briefly as a movie actress in France. She appeared in three films: L'épervier (1933), L'homme des Folies Bergère (1935), and Les hommes nouveaux (1936)

Natalie Paley and Lucien Lelong eventually divorced in 1937.

RUMORS ABOUT LOVE LIFE

"Searching for platonic affairs, Natalie Paley was most often attracted to homosexuals such as Serge Lifar and Jean Cocteau who, to increase his glory, exaggerated their story."

"Surely the most beautiful love story of her life," say Leblond and Vaillat, "was with Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, yet another spiritual affair made of stunning letters."

MOVE TO NEW YORK

To escape France and the many rumours surrounding her love life, she began a short film career and moved to New York in 1937. There she worked for Mainbocher, where she met John Chapman Wilson.

Nathalie Paley married John Chapman Wilson in 1937.

DEATH

Princess Natalia Paley died on 27 December 1981 at age 76 at New York, U.S.A.^[3].

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Birth record/Acte de naissance: #1378, "Nathalie de Hohenfelsen", Naissances 1905 Paris XVIème, Archives de Paris en ligne cote 16N 94_B (vue 24), accessed 17 September 2017
2. ↑ This is contradicted by her actual birth record
3. ↑ "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JB5S-TPN : 20 May 2014), Natalie Wilson, Dec 1981; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).

• "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7B5-4YN : accessed 17 September 2017), Natalie Wilson in household of Paul H Harwood, Fairfield Town, Fairfield, Connecticut, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 1-47, sheet 63A, line 9, family 514, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 495.

BOOKS

• C. Arnold McNaughton, The Book of Kings: A Royal Genealogy, in 3 volumes (London, U.K.: Garnstone Press, 1973), volume 1, page 309.
• Liaut J.-N. Natalie Paley: La princesse dechirée. Paris: Filipacchi, 1996

WEBSITES

• "Nataliya Hohenfelsen, Countess Hohenfelsen" at Peerage.com: http://www.thepeerage.com/p10201.htm#i102001
• "Палей, Наталья Павловна" Russian Wikipedia: https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Палей,_Наталья_Павловна
• "Natalie Paley - Biography" Internet Movie Database: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0657622/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
• "Princess Olga Paley" Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Olga_Paley
• "Vladimir Paley" Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Paley

PHOTOGRAPHS

• Leblond, Romuald and Jessica Vaillat "Natalie Paley (1905 - 1981)" The Redlist [webpage, retrieved 20 June 2015]: http://theredlist.com/wiki-2-24-525-770-942-view-1930s-4-profile-natalie-paley.html