Memorial Church is the Bulgarian Patriarchal Cathedral. It was built with voluntary national donations in memory of the soldiers who lost their lives in the Russian-Turkish liberation war (1877-1878). The patron of the cathedral – St. Alexander Nevsky – is the heavenly patron of the Russian emperor Alexander II who waged war on the Ottoman Empire. The decision to erect the church monument was made during the Constituent Assembly in Tarnovo in 1879. The foundation stone was laid in 1882 and the construction work took place between 1904 and 1912. The Balkan Wars (1912-1913) and the subsequent First World War (1914-1918) delayed its consecration, which took place in 1924.

The design of the church – a five nave, cruciform domed basilica in Neobyzantine style – was by the Russian architect Alexander Pomerantsev. Russian and Bulgarian painters worked on its frescoes’ layout. Materials of the greatest quality were imported from all over the world for its internal decoration.
The cathedral is the second largest Orthodox church in the Balkans. The main cupola is 45 metres high. The 12 bells, which weigh 23 tonnes overall, were made in Russia. In a special reliquary in front of the main altar, one can see part of the holy remains of St. Alexander Nevsky – a gift from the Russian Orthodox Church.

In the crypt of the cathedral there is a permanent exhibition of magnificent iconographic patterns from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance which have been collected from various parts of Bulgaria.