Background
She was born Stella Zoe Whishaw in Saint St. Petersburg to Robert Cattley Whishaw and Mary (née Gisiko). Her father was British and her mother hailed from an Anglo-Russian family who had made their home in Russia for several generations.
She was born Stella Zoe Whishaw in Saint St. Petersburg to Robert Cattley Whishaw and Mary (née Gisiko). Her father was British and her mother hailed from an Anglo-Russian family who had made their home in Russia for several generations.
Stella"s brother was Montague Law Whishaw. Another relative, James Whishaw, was a British businessman in Street St. Petersburg, who published his memoirs, A history of the Whishaw family, in London in 1935. Arbenina and Meyendorff had three children, Georgi, Helena and Irina.
During the Russian Revolution the family suffered greatly under the Bolsheviks.
Their possessions were seized and they were imprisoned. Through efforts by the Baltic Germans Committee they were released from prison and finally permitted to leave Russia at end of 1918.
They settled briefly in Estonia where they lived on a remnant of the family estates. Arbenina acted in theatres in Tallinn and Tartu, and also in Berlin, in from 1921 to 1922.
In 1923 she arrived with children to London, where she permanently settled, appearing in English stage and film roles.
In 1930, she released her memoirs, Through Terror to Freedom, which describes her experiences during the Russian Revolution.