2026 Unity Day

Unity Day on November 4 commemorates the 1612 popular uprising, led by the merchant Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, that expelled Polish-Lithuanian forces from Moscow's Kremlin and ended the Time of Troubles. It was established in 2005, replacing the Soviet-era Revolution Day on November 7, and coincides with the Orthodox feast of the Kazan icon of the Mother of God. The President lays flowers at the monument to Minin and Pozharsky on Red Square and presents state awards to foreign citizens for services to Russia. Around the country, cities hold folk festivals, concerts, ethnic food fairs and exhibitions celebrating Russia's many nationalities, often under the slogan 'Russia unites', and the Kremlin churches hold services. It is a public holiday, and since it usually links with a weekend into a three-day break in early November, it is a common time for short trips. This countdown ticks to midnight Moscow time on November 4.