On 23rd August 2026, a new bust-monument of Emperor Nicholas II was unveiled and consecrated on the grounds of of the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ on the island of Sakhalin in the Russian Far East.

The rite of consecration was performed by Archbishop Nikanor of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and the Kuril Islands.

The service was attended by Senator of the Russian Federation, representative in the Federation Council from the Sakhalin Regional Duma Andrei Khapochkin, members of the diocese, parishoners and local residents.

In his speech, the archpastor stressed that this event is unique, since this monument became the first monument in the history of Sakhalin to the Russian emperor – the only tsar from the Romanov dynasty who was canonized.

His Eminence also thanked Boris Korchevnikov, General Director of the Spas TV channel, and Pavel Astakhov, a Russian statesman and writer, who made it possible to implement this project in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

The installation of the monment in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk is the 11th monument of Russia’s last Tsar, to be installed in Russia this year. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, more than 125 monuments, busts and memorial plaques have been installed in nearly 50 regions of the Russian Federation.

© Paul Gilbert. 24 August 2026