The monument to Ivan the Terrible, the first in Russia dedicated to this tsar, was unveiled in Oryol on October 14, 2016. It is located on the embankment near the Epiphany Cathedral, not far from the confluence of the Oka and Orlik rivers, where in 1566, by the order of Tsar Ivan IV, the fortress of Oryol was founded. The tsar is depicted riding a horse, holding a cross in his raised right hand and a sword pointed to the ground in his left, indicating the site of the future fortress. The monument was created by a group of sculptors: Andrey Sledkov, Alexey Petrov, and Alexey Dmitriev, under the guidance of the honored artist of Russia and corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Arts Oleg Molchanov. It was made for the 450th anniversary of the founding of the fortress city at the Moscow plant of electromechanical equipment, with funding provided by the sponsorship of the International Fund for Slavic Writing and Culture. The consecration ceremony was conducted by schemamonk Iliya.

Initially, the monument was planned to be installed in front of the Free Space Theater (formerly the Young Spectator Theater), but due to dissatisfaction from residents and public figures who considered the location to be environmentally protected, the authorities changed their decision. City council deputies also expressed concerns that the monument would block the facade of the theater building, so it was decided to place it on the embankment by the bridge over the Oka. The opening ceremony was attended by guests such as State Duma deputy Nikolai Zemtsov, writer Alexander Prokhanov, political figure Sergey Kurginyan, president of the bikers' association Alexander Zaldostanov, as well as the project's author Oleg Molchanov and sculptor Andrey Sledkov. The event was covered by more than twenty Russian and foreign media outlets.