This November 30, 2024, young, well-born women from around the world hit the runway at Shangri-La Paris for the first time, adorned with high jewelry and haute couture gala dresses. Among the debutantes at the famous Paris Ball, there was a most prestigious Greek-Russian couple: Marilia Vamvakidis, descendant of Prince Felix Youssoupov, had Prince Alexis Obolensky as her date.
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The granddaughter of the heiress of Prince Felix Youssoupov at the Paris Ball
The Debutante Ball is one of the most anticipated social and charitable events at the end of the year. This November 30, the Shangri-La hotel, former home of Prince Roland Bonaparte, once again welcomed young women and noble cavaliers who perpetuate the tradition of high society balls. Daughter and son of Asian or American businessmen, descendants of Cinecitta stars, archdukes, princes and princesses meet for an evening in Paris, selected by Ophélie Renouard and her team.
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This Friday, a couple formed for the occasion attracted all eyes. Marilia Vamvakidis wore a dress from the famous Belgian fashion house Natan to make her debut. Marilia's rider was Prince Alexis Obolensky. Baron Edouard Vermeulen, owner of the Natan house, is used to dressing his clients to attend gala evenings. Queen Mathilde of Belgium, Queen Máxima of the Netherlands and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa are regulars at the house.
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Marilia Vamvakidis is the daughter of Anthony Vamvakidis and Tatiana Sifris, herself the daughter of Princess Xenia Sheremetieva-Youssoupova. Very attached to the Greek origins of her father, the young debutante is also a descendant of White Russians, having as an illustrious ancestor Prince Felix Youssoupov, grandfather of her maternal grandmother. Prince Youssoupov, renowned for being “richer than the tsar”, was the embodiment of dandyism. This elegant man, born at the end of the 19th century under the Romanov Empire and died in France in 1967, had an extraordinary life. He also played a political role in changing history, having contributed to the fall of Rasputin.
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The nobility of the Russian Imperial Empire meets at the Paris Ball
The story of Prince Felix Yussoupov is almost beyond comprehension. Coming from his mother's noble family dating back to the 16th century, Felix Youssoupov is descended through his father from Prince Potemkin and could also be, by natural descent, the great-grandson of the King of Prussia Frederick William IV. His mother, Princess Zénaïde, was renowned at the Imperial Court as being one of the most beautiful and richest women in the country. Prince Felix Youssoupov, esthete and great admirer of Oscar Wilde, met him at a ball in Oxford in 1912. In 1914, Prince Youssoupov joined the imperial family by marrying Irina, niece of Tsar Nicholas II . The prince will be part of the group of conspirators who will plot the assassination of Rasputin, the occult barley who held Tsar Nicholas II and his wife under his control.
The murder of Rasputin marked the house arrest of members of the Yussoupov family, who, after the abdication of the Tsar, took the road to exile, via Crimea, Italy then England and finally France. The strong couple he forms with Irina will allow them to withstand all trials, including the loss of part of their fortune. Together, they founded the fashion house Irfé, named after Irina and Félix. With their only daughter, also named Irène, or colloquially “Baby”, the couple shined on the social and artistic life of the time.
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We say the Youssoupov family, or Ioussoupov, descendants of Mohammed, descended from the khans (leaders) of the Nogaï Horde (present-day Kazakhstan). The Youssoupov family, having the good graces of the Tsar, was elevated to princely rank in the 17th century by Tsar Fyodor, following the conversion to Orthodoxy of one of its members, Dimitri. The famous Prince Felix Youssoupov descends from this family through his mother. His grandfather, also Felix, was named Felix Nikolayevich Elston at birth. He could be a natural son of Countess Catherine von Tiesenhausen and her lover, the future King Frederick William IV of Prussia. Félix Youssoupov's mother being the last heiress of the Youssoups, she received authorization to transmit her name to her descendants, mainly for questions of inheritance.
Felix and Irina have an only daughter, Irina Felixovna Ioussoupova, who took over all the titles. She married Count Nikolai Dmitrievich Sheremetiev. Together, they again had an only daughter, Xenia, born in 1942. Xenia Sheremeteva-Iousoupova married Ilias Sfiris in 1965. Tatiana Sfiris and Anthony Vamvakidis are the parents of Olga, Marilia and Yasmina.
Like his debutante, Prince Alexis Obolensky is of Russian origin but also of Greek origin through his mother. This couple formed for the evening evokes the friendship which linked the two noble families. Princess Zénaïde, mother of Prince Felix Youssoupov, was a close friend of Mariya Narychkina Obolensky, Alexis's great-great-great-aunt. The Obolensky family donated many politicians and military men to the Russian Empire. Through its high functions, the family was elevated to princely rank in 1720 by Tsar Peter I.
The Debutante Ball is not only a social event that allows young people to meet people. It is also a charity event. This year again, the funds raised will go to the Necker-Enfants Malades hospital and its Association for Research in Cardiology from Fetus to Adults (ARCFA).
Hotel: Shangri-La Paris
Joaillier : V MUSE Jewelry
Hairdresser: Maison Carita
Champagne : Laurent-Perrier
The charities of the Ball:
The Necker-Sick Children hospital
ARCFA – Association for Research in Cardiology from Fetal to Adult
Nicolas Fontaine
Editor-in-chief
Nicolas Fontaine has been a designer-editor and author for numerous Belgian and French brands and media. A specialist in royal family news, Nicolas founded the site Histoires royales of which he is the editor-in-chief. [email protected]
