The president of the European Demidoff Association was delighted to accept an invitation from Dr. Maria Harwood to present at the City University Club in London on Thursday, 25 June 2026. Dr. Harwood is a long-standing friend and co-founder and Chair of the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Romanov Society, a UK registered charity. We have worked together in the past to publish articles on the Demidoffs that appeared in the Society's magazine. In addition, a presentation was given at the Society's conference entitled, "Crimea: War and Peace, 1853-56", which took place at St. Benedict, St Leonards-on-Sea on 22 October 2022. The presentation examined Anatole Demidoff’s humanitarian aid during the war, which helped inspire the founding of the International Red Cross.
The presentation at the City University Club was on the rise of the Demidoff industrial empire as well as on the family's passionate and long-standing engagement in the arts and philanthropy. The story started in the late 17th Century when Nikita Antufiev Demidov became the primary supplier of arms to the armies of Peter the Great. The story then effectively closed in July, 1955 with the passing of Princess Maria Pavlovna Demidova at Pratolino, Italy. Spanning seven generations over two centuries, the Demidoffs consistently demonstrated entrepreneurial skills, built art collections of Western civilisation's greatest masters, and pursued philanthropic endeavours. Today, their story is largely forgotten, surviving only amongst a few dozen scholars based primarily in Italy and Russia, along with art museum directors and curators worldwide.
It was Nikolai Nikitich Demidoff (1773–1828) who was the first "European Demidoff " when, in 1801, he moved his young family to Paris in his role in the Foreign office. This was during the time of Napoleon Bonaparte whom both Nikolai and his wife, Elisabeth Stroganoff, ardently supported. The family, however, were recalled to their homeland in 1812 during the French invasion. Upon meeting with Tsar Alexander I, Nikolai agreed to raise, fund, and lead two militias that fought with distinction at the Battle of Borodino.
Following Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo, Nikolai Demidoff returned to Paris, where he turned to the workshops of Jean Baptiste Odiot and Pierre Thomire to commission stunning neoclassical furnishings that combined gilded bronze and malachite. In 1822, Nikolai settled in Florence with his two boys, where he began constructing his own palace, Villa di San Donato, located on the outskirts of Florence, to house and display his immense collections of art. Unfortunately, Nikolai passed away in 1828 prior to the completion of the palatial compound. It would be Nikolai's younger son, Anatole Demidoff (1813-1870), who took a serious interest in Villa di San Donato but only after his marriage to Princess Mathilde Bonaparte in November, 1840. Villa di San Donato would become their princely palace where an eclectic collection of masterpieces of art filled its fourteen rooms over three floors.
It would be Anatole's nephew, Paul Pavlovitch Demidoff (1839-1885), who inherited the estate in 1870 and who would sell Villa di San Donato, together with its grounds, library, and the great majority of the family's collections, over a two-week public auction that took place in 1880. Paul Pavlovitch would settle his young family of six children at Villa Pratolino, now known as Villa Demidoff, a former 16th Century Medici palace and hunting estate. It would be Paul Pavlovitch's daughter, Princess Maria Pavlovna, who inherited Villa Demidoff in 1903 and who closes the final chapter of the story with her passing in July, 1955. Today her beloved estate is recognised as the "Parco Mediceo di Pratolino", a protected UNESCO World Heritage site maintained by the Metropolitan City of Florence.
In closing, it was wonderful to see old friends at the event in London, which included the historians John Harwood and Robert Jarman. It was equally wonderful to meet the many distinguished guests, that included, amongst others, Natalia Rubtsova, a gifted and talented playwright; Margarita Bagrova, founder and Editor-in-Chief of Afisha.London; Edward Hilary Davis, author and former president of The Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society; Svetlana Cameron, one of the UK's most established portrait artists; and Dmytro Tupchiienko, a UK‑based Global Governance Expert. A special thanks also is extended to Hasita Senanayake, Secretary and CEO of the City University Club, who, together with his team, provided consistent, professional service to all those who attended.
