HOLY MARTYR DIMITRIUS OF UGLICH, A PATRON SAINT OF ALL CHILDREN

Among the Synaxis of our saints are people of all ages, including children. On 16 June, we commemorate Saint Dimitrius of Uglich, a child saint. He was a member of the Russian royal dynasty of the Rurikovichs and is venerated as a martyr for the Orthodox faith.

Dimitry was the son of the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible and Maria Nagaya. The Church had not sanctified their marriage, and Dimitry could not inherit the throne from his father. Therefore, Ivan's son Fyodor succeeded him on the throne, while the infant Dimitry was exiled to Uglich with his mother. Yet the exile of Dimitrius did not diminish the fears of Fyodor's supporters, as Fyodor had no sons.

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