A Statement from the Chancellery of the Head of the Russian Imperial House, H.I.H. Grand Duchess Maria Wladimirovna

In connection with the many inquiries that have been received by the Chancellery regarding the operating procedures of the House of Romanoff and of those organizations that are loyal to it, the Chancellery of the Head of the Russian Imperial House, H.I.H. Grand Duchess Maria Wladimirovna, has been authorized by Her Imperial Highness to issue the following clarifying statement:

The Russian Imperial House is by its nature a non-partisan national historical institution that is open to friendly dialogue and cooperation with all its fellow countrymen, regardless of their religious, national, political or other affiliations. While holding firm to its Faith and principles, the Russian Imperial House openly declares and defends, but never imposes, its principles and is ready to discuss and cooperate with those holding other views and convictions, provided that discussion and cooperation are in the best interests of the nation and strengthenits inter-confessional, international, and domestic civil peace and harmony.

The Russian Imperial House rejects any limitations on freedom of conscience, thought, and self-expression, and is convinced that the idea of Monarchy, the worldview inherent in it, and the way of life it embodies, should be affirmed only by the heart and by reasonable arguments, without any coercion whatsoever.

However, there is no doubt that organizations and individuals that have consciously adopted the system of monarchical values in their entirety and that declare loyalty to the Russian Imperial House and embody these ideas, and furthermore, have taken oaths of loyalty to the Head of the Russian Imperial House and to Her legitimate Heir, willingly accept the duty before God and man to follow the direction of the grand duchess, to execute Her instructions, and to conform their activities with the institutions that have been created by the Russian Imperial House, and with those individuals who are its appointed and responsible representatives.

Authority, hierarchy, and discipline, which are important and useful in any sphere of human activity, areabsolutely essential and indispensable in a monarchical system.

Organizations and individuals who openly profess monarchist views are often associated in people’s minds with the Russian Imperial House, and so they bear a special moral responsibility to conform their activities to the principles that have been articulated by the Head of the Dynasty. Responsibility for coordinating these activities has been assigned by the Head of the Russian Imperial House to Her Chancellery.

H.I.H.’s Chancellery, which is the main official institution of the Russian Imperial House, never imposes itself upon any of these organizations, never censors them, and never interferes in their internal affairs. However, the Chancellery has the right to receive from legitimist organizations information about their public statements or activities BEFOREHAND, and must be permitted, when necessary, to point out to these organizations which of their proposed statements or actions conforms, and which conflicts, with the publicly stated positions of the grand duchess.

No organization or individual who is loyal to the Russian Imperial House is free from being criticized, including, of course, H.I.H.’s Chancellery. It is fair to criticize mistakes made in carrying out the instructions of the Head of the Russian Imperial House or the lack of effectiveness in implementing the grand duchess’s instructions. If, however, organizations and individuals who proclaim their loyalty to the principle of legitimacy criticize otherssimply for following the instructions of the Head of the Russian Imperial House, then this is obviously an absurdity.

One also cannot see as constructive and useful the complaint often expressed as “I can’t exactly say why I know it, but I am sure you are making a mistake.” The foundations behind various claims and commentaries must be proven by presenting concrete and well-considered alternatives.

The Head of the Russian Imperial House understands that no one is immune from making mistakes, and She listens to all opinions, but She gives credence only to those views that are logical, are not internally inconsistent, and are soundly argued.

The free exchange of viewpoints on various questions among monarchists is not only permitted, it is encouraged. However, a participant in such discussions can be called a legitimist only if he, regardless of his own personal opinion in the discussion, strictly adheres to the position expressed by the Head of the Russian Imperial House on any given position ordecision.

The growth of communications and the media today is such that one can very easily receive information and, if needed, obtain clarifications on any relevant question immediately from H.I.H.’s Chancellery.

Despite this, some monarchists have from time to time unfortunately ignored the clear and direct instructions of the Head of the Dynasty, allowing themselves indirectly and directly to contradict the grand duchess on key questions (such as: the unity of the Russian Orthodox Church, the rehabilitation of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers, attitudes toward the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, the decision not to transform the monarchist movement into a political party, the stated position of the Imperial House not to seek or accept any financial restitution for lost properties, and so on).

Serious violations of appropriate behavior and in the code of honor among those who are loyal to the grand duchess have been tolerated—the exposing of internal disagreements to public view, the inciting of conflicts on secondary and minor issues, unbridled personal ambition, double standards, and so on.

For some time, the Russian Imperial House tolerated this behavior, hoping that gradually those acting this way would come to know better over time, and therefore the response of the Imperial House has been limited to personal and private admonitions. However, this tolerance was taken for a “lack of will” and so some ventured to act even more boldly and without regard for the public positions of the Russian Imperial House.

Experience has shown that this approach gradually and inexorably leads to the ultimate destruction of the most important monarchist principle of service to the God-ordained, Legitimate, hereditary sovereign, and even to the actual violation of the holy oath taken by the Assembly of the Land of 1613, the breaking of dynastic laws, andviolation of oaths sworn by all subjects.

Attempts to resolve the problem through face-to-face negotiations and personal correspondence between the Chancellery and the leadership of one of these organizations—an organization whose lack of internal discipline and excessive self-interest have reached a critical level—did not produces good results. On one legitimist website and in some other media outlets, this organization continues to post highly provocative material which is meant to represent the general opinion of all legitimists.

In this regard, then, the Chancellery of Her Imperial Highness must declare that neither the Russian Imperial House, nor H.I.H.’s Chancellery and other institutions affiliated with the dynasty, nor legitimist social organizations shall bear any responsibility for the pronouncements of organizations or the actions of individual persons, if these actions and pronouncements diverge from the stated positions of the Russian Imperial House.

Legitimist organizations have the right to make pronouncements of their own, in their own name. But no one except the Russian Imperial House and its Chancellery have the right to speak for the legitimist movement as a whole.

Any pronouncements or actions of an extremist or unlawful nature blatantly contradict the position of the Russian Imperial House.

The genuine beliefs and opinions of the Head of the Russian Imperial House on any issue can be ascertained only from the lips of the Head of the Russian Imperial House Herself, or from signed or otherwise approved documents issued by Her Imperial Highness.

If certain monarchists issue any sort of new statements or declarations on topics about which the Head of the Russian Imperial House has yet to make any public comments, then only the H.I.H.’s Chancellery has the right to issue official clarifications about whether such statements and declarations conform to the position of the Dynasty.

Organizations and individuals that declare their allegiance to legitimism and loyalty to the Legitimate Sovereign, but do not put their allegiance and loyalty into practice, cannot enjoy the confidence of the Russian Imperial House.

Her Imperial Highness hopes that those to whom this statement is directed, will recognize themselves, will act judiciously, will come to the right conclusions in a timely way, will find within themselves the strength to acknowledge openly the mistakes they have made, and will make efforts to correct these mistakes, so that the Russian Imperial House will not find itself in the position of having to dissociate itself officially and publicly from specific organizations, information resources, and individuals, who are wittingly or unwittingly undermining the legitimist movement from the inside, and exposing the Russian Imperial house to attack from the outside.

This Statement is to be published in full in all legitimist media outlets, both electronic and print.

A.N. Zakatov
Director of H.I.H.’s Chancellery

Moscow
January 14, 2012