How the cook of Nicholas II gave his life for the Tsar, sharing the fate of the Tsar's family

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

He could be called a simple cook, but the name of Ivan Kharitonov went down in history as a symbol of unparalleled loyalty to his profession, the Tsar and the Fatherland. After the revolution, he could simply quit his job and stay with his family, but he could not leave the royal family in a difficult time. Ivan Kharitonov followed Nicholas II to Tobolsk, and then to Yekaterinburg, where he was shot along with the imperial family and other servants who remained loyal to the tsar until the very end.

Carier start

The son of the clerk of the Palace Police first crossed the threshold of the tsarist kitchen at the age of 12, being hired at the request of his father for the position of a second-class chef apprentice. For six years, Ivan Kharitonov studied the intricacies of the art of cooking and by the age of 18 he had already become a chef of the second category.

However, in 1891, when Ivan Mikhailovich turned 20, his cooking career was interrupted by the need to pay military duty to the Fatherland. For four years he served in the navy, and after the expiration of the term he was able to return to his duties as a cook in the royal kitchen.

After a very short time, Ivan Kharitonov was sent to Paris to learn the craft from the best French chefs in one of the culinary schools. The specialization in this institution was rather narrow, and therefore Ivan Mikhailovich, upon graduation, received the specialty of "soup soup". Studying in Paris brought the chef, among other things, an acquaintance with the incredibly famous restaurateur and culinary specialist Jean-Pierre Cuuba in France. Their friendship continued in St. Petersburg, where Kyuba arrived, being invited to the post of head waiter of the Imperial court, which he held until 1914.

Family joys

In 1896, Ivan Kharitonov became the spouse of Evgenia Tur, an orphan raised by his mother's grandfather. On the father's side, the cook's wife was from a Russianized German family.

This marriage turned out to be very happy, six children, three daughters and three sons were born in the family. Of all his trips, Ivan Kharitonov wrote letters not only to his wife, but also to all the children in turn, trying to comply with the established order. If he accidentally sent someone a letter “out of schedule”, then after that he invariably apologized to the child and tried to correct the mistake as soon as possible.

The family lived in house number 7 on Gagarinskaya Street, in the summer they rented a dacha in Peterhof or in the neighboring Znamenka. A little later, Ivan Mikhailovich built a house in Taitsy.

Following the king

Ivan Kharitonov was promoted in 1911 and became a senior chef. This post involved not only cooking in the royal kitchen, but also accompanying the Emperor on trips abroad. The chef was distinguished by a creative approach to his profession and did not mindlessly copy recipes, but introduced his own notes into them. He actively used the experience of famous chefs, on the basis of which he created his own dishes. For example, in November, a puree soup made from fresh cucumbers in heat treatment was certainly served at the tsar's table.

He perfectly knew the Orthodox cuisine, but along with it he was familiar with the peculiarities of the preparation of traditional dishes from different countries, because he had to compose a menu and cook not only for the sovereign's family, but also for foreign guests.

Accompanying the tsar on foreign trips, Ivan Kharitonov visited many countries: France and Germany, Great Britain and Italy, Denmark and many others. The impeccable service of the chef was noted not only by Russian, but also by foreign awards.

Ivan Kharitonov did not consider it possible for himself to leave the royal family in those very difficult times when Nicholas II was imprisoned along with all his household in Tsarskoe Selo, and then completely exiled to Tobolsk, and then to Yekaterinburg.

After the February Revolution, Ivan Mikhailovich took the post of head waiter of the Imperial Court, replacing Mr. Olivier, who had left Russia. Not only the members of the tsar's family, but also the servants had no right to leave the Alexander Palace, so the letters that he wrote with enviable regularity became the only connection with the family for Ivan Mikhailovich. He was interested in the health of his dearest wife and children, especially worried about his eldest daughter, who had been a sickly child since childhood.

Not only Ivan Mikhailovich, but also his wife with children, went to Tobolsk after the royal family. In Tobolsk, he cooked with constant zeal for the imperial family, and rented a separate apartment for his own. In 1918, for Christmas, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna presented Evgenia Andreevna Kharitonova with the Gospel, which was lost by the family when a shell hit their home in St. Petersburg.

It became more and more difficult for Ivan Kharitonov to fulfill his duties. To feed the tsar's family, he had to turn to the wealthy residents of Tobolsk for financial help. They mostly refused to help, but lent, scrupulously recording each gram of milk. But ordinary people and clergymen brought the former monarch everything they could share: sour cream, bread, milk, eggs and meat.

In May 1918, the family of Nicholas II went to Yekaterinburg. Ivan Kharitonov was given the opportunity to say goodbye to his family. At the pier, he kissed his beloved wife for the last time and on the steamer "Rus" departed for Yekaterinburg to share the fate of the sovereign and his family.

In Yekaterinburg, Ivan Kharitonov was not immediately admitted to the royal family, and during his absence the august persons ate food from the dining room, which was delivered to them. Having resumed his duties, Ivan Mikhailovich repaired the smoking stove and began to cook again. He managed to cook a full meal out of scarce products and even baked bread, teaching this art to the daughters of Nicholas II. The Grand Duchesses were so carried away by cooking that they even decided to help the chef in the preparation of other dishes.

On the night of July 16-17, 1918, the entire royal family and servants who decided to accompany the sovereign were shot. Ivan Kharitonov to the end fulfilled his duty to the Fatherland and the Emperor, whom he did not renounce, even knowing what kind of end awaits him.

The Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad ranked Ivan Kharitonov among the Holy New Martyrs of Russia who suffered from the power of the godless.

Feasts in Russia were loved and organized quite often, since there were enough reasons: name day, birth of a child, wedding, state events, Orthodox holidays. The feast was a complex ritual prepared in advance, and the royal feasts were striking in their splendor. Everything was important: how the participants sat, at what distance from the sovereign, and even to which of them cutlery was served in advance.