After Helsinki was made into the capital of Finland in 1812,
Alexander I decreed in 1814 that 15 percent of the salt import tax were to be collected into a fund for two churches, one Lutheran and one Orthodox. The cathedral was built on the site of the smaller 1724–1727 , which had been dedicated to its patroness,
Ulrika Eleonora,
Queen of Sweden.
Helsinki Old Church was built between 1824 and 1826 in nearby
Kamppi to serve the parish while the Ulrika Eleonora Church was being demolished and until the consecration of the new cathedral. The bells of the old church were reused in the cathedral. Construction of the cathedral began in 1830, although it was only officially inaugurated on 15 February 1852. Engel died in 1840. The building was later altered by Engel's successor
Ernst Lohrmann, whose four small domes emphasise the architectural connection to the cathedral's models,
Saint Isaac's Cathedral and
Kazan Cathedral in
St. Petersburg. Lohrmann also designed two extra buildings to the sides of the steps: looking from the square the left building is a
bell tower and the right building a chapel. He also erected larger-than-life sized zinc statues of the
Twelve Apostles at the apexes and corners of the roofline in 1849. They were sculpted by
August Wredov and
Hermann Schievelbein and cast by
S. P. Devaranne in
Berlin in 1845–1847. The altarpiece was painted by
Carl Timoleon von Neff and donated to the church by Emperor
Nicholas I. The cathedral crypt was renovated in the 1980s by architects
Vilhelm Helander and
Juha Leiviskä for use in exhibitions and church functions; Helander was also responsible for conservation repairs on the cathedral in the late 1990s. Today, the cathedral is one of Helsinki's most popular tourist attractions. In 2018 there were half a million visitors. The church is in regular use for services of worship and special events such as weddings. Finland's national
Saint Lucy's Day celebrations are held at the cathedral. ==In popular culture==