Union of the Russian People
The Union of the Russian People (URP), a close-to-extremist nationalistic movement formed with substantial overt and covert support from the Russian authorities, was among the first to use this government-owned building for their political gathering. Nine days after the Manifest was proclaimed, on , the URP announced its founding; and in less than a fortnight, on the crowd of about 2000 people gathered under the roof of Mikhailovsky Manège. Orchestral music was playing, the church choir sang "Praise God" and "Tzar Divine", and the leaders of URP addressed the mob from a rostrum erected in the centre of the arena.