Alexander II memorial

Alexander II is a monumental statue located at the Senate Square in central Helsinki, Finland. The main figure in the statue depicts the Grand Duke of Finland Alexander II giving a speech at the 1863 Diet of Finland that he had assembled, wearing the uniform of an officer of the Finnish Guards' Rifle Battalion. The statue also includes four allegorical sculptures, representing four different virtues - Law (Latin: Lex), Work (Labor), Peace (Pax) and Light (Lux). Ordered by the Estates and designed by Johannes Takanen (1849–1885) and Walter Runeberg, the monument was revealed in April 1894. The revelation was a great patriotic demonstration to the memory of emperor Alexander II, who was instrumental in establishing Finnish statehood, granting Finnish an official status for the first time in history, and who is remembered by the Finns as a liberal ruler supporting limits on the autocracy of the emperor. During the Russification of Finland started in 1899 by Nicholas II of Russia - the grandson of Alexander II - the statue became established as the site of anti-Russian demonstrations, remembering Alexander II who had become popularised as the "liberator emperor". There are currently only two monuments to Alexander II outside Russia on public spaces. The other one is the Monument to the Tsar Liberator in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. A sculpture by Mark Antokolsky is located on the courtyard of the Kyiv National Picture Gallery in Kyiv, Ukraine. There is a monumental column in Shevchenko Park, Odesa, Ukraine. Emperor Alexander II (1818–1881) was a ruler beloved by the Finns, whose reign and influence helped to produce significant societal changes. He died in 1881 as a victim of a bombing assassination, and in 1884 the Diet of Finland held a design contest for a monument placed at the Senate Square. All notable Finnish sculptors at the time were invited to the contest. This was the first sculpture design contest in Finland. Supported by the estate of the peasants, it was won by Johannes Takanen, with Walter Runeberg at second place, so the board of the contest decided to award the task of the final sculpture to both contestants. However, Johannes Takanen died in 1

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