Memorial to the Holy Royal Martyrs in the Monastery of Dajbabe in Montenegro

NOTE: All of the articles pertaining to Nicholas II and his family which were originally published in my Royal Russia News blog, have been moved to this Nicholas II blog. This article was originally posted on 25 May 2018 in my Royal Russia News blog – PG

The Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro and devotees of Romanov dynasty have marked the anniversary of the murder of Nicholas II and Russia’s imperial family.

The Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro has commemorated the centenary of the killing of the Russian imperial family at Ekaterinburg with numerous events held under the slogan “The Romanov Family – 100 years of Holiness”.

Ending on Wednesday, the church held four days of masses for the Romanov family across the country, organized roundtables, exhibitions and book promotions while hosting the Russian Church and state officials.

In the monastery of Dajbabe, near the capital, Podgorica, the Serbian Church also erected a memorial (see photo above) to the Russian imperial family who were murdered by the Bolsheviks one year after the revolution that ended 300 years of Romanov rule.

Russia’s last tsar and his family were shot on the night of 16/17 July 1918. Besides Nicholas II, they killed the Empress Alexandra and all their children, Alexei, Olga, Tatyana, Maria and Anastasia.

The Russian Church canonized the imperial family in 2000 and their remnants are now held in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg. The Serbian Church also considers the martyred Romanovs as “saints“.

The Serbian Orthodox Church said on Wednesday that people in Montenegro should never forget their gratitude to the Tsars.

“Without the help of Russia, there would have been no liberation of our people from Ottoman slavery… We are aware of this, and with the great gratitude we remember the great love of the Russian people and the Russian tsar for Montenegro,” Joanikije, the Bishop of Budimlike-Niksic, said.

The masses and other events were attended by delegates of the Patriarch of Alexandria, Theodore, Moscow Patriarch Kiril, representatives of the Orthodox Palestinian Society, Russian scholars, academics and former state officials from Moscow.

The Serbian Orthodox Church’s senior bishop in Montenegro, Amfilohije, said that the murder of the imperial family had been a great crime.

“They killed the emperor and the empress, and even though the emperor had given up power to save his people, they killed their children … You can imagine what a crime that was,” Amfilohije said.

The Russian and Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro cherish close relations dating back to the 19th century, during the rule of the Montenegrin prince-bishop, Njegos.

© Paul Gilbert. 9 December 2019