Where was the last church of the Nicholas II family located?

Anna Popova

Apr 15 2025

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In the Winter of 1908, Nicholas II paced the clearing on the outskirts of the park in Tsarskoye Selo. He did this with all seriousness: The monarch was determining the size of the future church. Less than a year later, in the presence of his family, he laid the first stone in the foundation of the Feodorovsky Cathedral.

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The last Romanovs lived permanently in the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoye Selo from 1905. But, surprisingly, there was no house church there. Chance helped: the regiments of the emperor's personal guard – His Imperial Majesty's Own Convoy and the Life Guards Combined Infantry Regiment of His Imperial Majesty, which were stationed next to the Alexander Palace, also needed their own church.

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The first architect of the cathedral was Alexander Pomerantsev, author of the legendary GUM department store on the Red Square. But, his project turned out to be too large-scale, so the tsar settled for a more modest version by Vladimir Pokrovsky.

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Soon, a cathedral built in the spirit of Old Russian architecture appeared in Tsarskoye Selo.

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Externally, it resembled the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin, and the interior decoration resembled paintings of ancient churches of Yaroslavl and Rostov the Great. The upper church was consecrated in the name of the Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, who was considered the patroness of the Romanov House. And the lower, cave church, in the name of St. Seraphim of Sarov.

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In 1914, the church received the status of the Sovereign’s church – it became the house church of the Romanovs.

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It was also a regimental church. Therefore, different entrances and even different places inside were intended for them. A special “royal room” was set up in the lower church. Ordinary parishioners could only enter it on major holidays and only by special invitation.