The biographies of the Great Princes of the Romanovs attract interest not only due to their lineage but also because of their significant contributions to the development of pre-revolutionary Russia. Among them stands out Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich, known as an incorrigible romantic and admirer of modernism, a Russian general and Cossack Field Ataman during World War I, and later, an eternal exile. He was born on November 24, 1877, was the grandson of Emperor Alexander II, and the cousin of Emperor Nicholas II.

Boris Vladimirovich graduated with honors from the Nikolaev Cavalry School, after which he became an officer and participated in the Russo-Japanese War. He did not limit himself to formal visits to the front but sought to bring real benefit to the army. During the war, a serious conflict occurred between him and General Kuropatkin, ending with a shot fired in the direction of the general. Kuropatkin immediately reported this to the emperor, who ordered action according to the law. By law, Boris Vladimirovich was to be executed, but the commission recognized his state of affect and he was sent back to the capital, where he was long reproached by his royal brother.

In World War I, Boris Vladimirovich entered as a colonel and commanded the Life Guards Ataman Regiment of the Heir Tsarevich. He became so close to the Cossacks that in 1915 he was entrusted with the position of Field Ataman of all Cossack troops and received the Ataman's mace. After the February Revolution, Boris Vladimirovich was arrested but soon managed to escape to Kislovodsk, where he lived with his family. Under the Bolsheviks, he was captured and nearly killed, but future General Shkuro saved the Romanovs from death.

After wandering through the Kabardian mountains, living in Anapa and Crimea, in 1919 Boris Vladimirovich went into exile, where he died in 1943. In exile, he married Zinaida Rashevskaya, losing his rights to the throne but finding happiness in marriage and a daughter, Anna.