The Cathedral of St Alexander Nevsky, the second largest Orthodox church in the Balkans, is considered by many to be one of the architectural symbols of Sofia. This church was built in honour of Russian Emperor Alexander II, much respected by Bulgarians for helping the country gain its national independence during the war of 1877-1878, when the Russian army helped Bulgaria free itself from Ottoman oppression. The cathedral is named after St Prince Alexander Nevsky, a great military leader who is a symbol of military valour and military glory of Russia. Initially the temple was planned to be built in the ancient capital of the country (XII-XIV centuries), the city of Veliko Tarnovo, but Tsar Alexander of Bulgaria (Battenberg) insisted on the construction of the temple in the new administrative centre - Sofia. The funds for the construction were partly allocated from the state treasury, and partly were donated by patrons of the arts and residents of the city (by the way, the Tsar himself allocated for this purpose 6 thousand gold levs of his personal money).
In 1882, the first stone was ceremonially laid in the foundation of the building, but the construction itself began somewhat later - in 1904, and was completed only in 1912. The cathedral was consecrated even later - in 1924.
The church was built according to the project of the famous Russian architect Alexander Pomerantsev. The area of the building - more than 3000 square metres, capacity - about five thousand people. In the rich exterior, the most attractive are the facade cladding with white stone and gilded domes. The height of the bell tower is 53 metres, it has 12 bells, the heaviest of which weighs about 12 tonnes. The interior of the cathedral will also not leave the sophisticated visitor indifferent: many valuable icons and frescoes, made mainly by Bulgarian and Russian artists, massive marble iconostasis, skilfully made patriarchal and royal thrones, ambo. Another pride of the church is a mosaic panel depicting King Ferdinand and Queen Eleonora. Beneath the cathedral building is a crypt that houses a large collection of icons, many of which can safely be called artistic masterpieces.
St Alexander Nevsky Cathedral holds daily, Sunday and festival services, but does not hold christenings, weddings and funerals (due to its status as a monument, the church does not have a clearly defined parish).
