Ekaterinburg, Sverlodvsk Province, Russia, July 21, 2025
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
More than 40,000 believers and 12 bishops participated in the main services of Royal Days 2025 in Ekaterinburg on the night of July 16-17, marking the 107th anniversary of the martyrdom of the holy Royal Family and their faithful servants.
The commemorative events centered around a Divine Liturgy and Royal Cross Procession from the Church-Monument on the Blood to the Monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers, reports the Ekaterinburg Diocese.
The Liturgy was celebrated on the square in front of the Church-Monument on the Blood. The bishops were assisted by numerous clergy from the Ekaterinburg and other metropolitanates. Holy Communion was served from 100 chalices to accommodate the massive congregation.
Following the Liturgy, a procession covering 13 miles took four hours to complete. The multithousand-strong column was led by His Eminence Metropolitan Vikenty of Tashkent and Uzbekistan alongside other hierarchs and the head of the Ekaterinburg Metropolitanate.
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
The Jesus Prayer was chanted throughout the procession.
Participants came from across Russia, as well as from near and far abroad including Italy, France, and New Zealand.
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
The procession concluded with a moleben to the Royal Martyrs at Mine #7, where their remains were initially disposed of after their execution.
Speaking of the significance of the site, Met. Vikenty said: “This land, this place is holy. Sanctified by the feats of the holy Royal Passion-bearers, who accepted a martyr’s death, were raised to Heaven, and there, at the throne of God, they pray for us.”
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
The commemoration marks the anniversary of the night of July 16-17, 1918, when Tsar Nicholas II, his family, and their faithful servants were executed in the basement of the Ipatiev House, where the Church-Monument on the Blood now stands. For Orthodox Christians, the members of the Royal Family have become symbols of love and the revival of Russian Orthodoxy.
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