Leonid Konstantinovich Nikolsky

Leonid Konstantinovich Nikolsky was born in 1876 in the village of Danilovo, Kiyasovsky Uyezd, Vyatka Province (now Udmurtia, Kiyasovsky District).

In 1898, he graduated from the Vyatka Theological Seminary.

In 1901, he was ordained as a priest to serve at the church in the village of Bolshaya Purga (Votkinsky District), where he served until 1917.

He later served in villages of the Vyatka Province: Chumaya (Zurinsky District), Neumonino (Votkinsky District), and Yakshur (Bardgensky District).

In 1930, he was transferred to the village of Nechkino (Sarapulsky District).

On March 27, 1931, he was arrested on charges of anti-Soviet agitation, as part of the group case "the case of priest Leonid Nikolsky and layman Vasily Vakhrin, Vyatka region, 1931."

On August 20, 1931, the OGPU troika of the Ural region sentenced him to five years in labor camps. He was sent to the Visher camps in the Perm region.

In 1932, his sentence was changed to exile until 1934.

After his release, he served in the village of Shvarikha, Nolin district, Kirov region.

On July 22, 1935, he was arrested again on charges of "anti-Soviet agitation over several years," as part of the group case "the case of the church group of the village of Shvarikha, Nolin district, 1935."

On October 17, 1935, a special session of the Kirov regional court in the city of Nolin sentenced him to five years in a labor camp. He was sent to KarLag.

On September 19, 1937, he was arrested in the camp on the grounds that "...he was part of a group of former priests, conducted services, while in 'Tartaul' [a section of KarLag], laid out images of the altar, icons, and crosses on the riverbank, and held services and discussions on anti-Soviet topics. In conversations about the need to work in the camps, Nikolsky said, '...We should not and will not work for the Soviet government, let the fools work, work loves fools.'"

He did not plead guilty to the charges.

On November 31, 1937, the NKVD troika of the Karaganda region sentenced him to the highest measure of punishment - execution by shooting.

He was executed on November 2, 1937, in KarLag.

He was buried in an unmarked mass grave.

On April 28, 1989, he was rehabilitated by the Regional Prosecutor's Office and the KGB Directorate of the Karaganda region for the 1937 repressions.

On July 27, 1989, he was rehabilitated by the Prosecutor's Office of the Udmurt ASSR for the 1931 repressions, and on November 29, 1991, by the Prosecutor's Office of the Kirov region for the 1935 repressions.

He was canonized as a new martyr and confessor of Russia by the Hierarchical Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church in August 2000 for general church veneration.