More than 1,000 protesters across Russia as thousands responded to a call by opposition leader Alexei Navalny to hold a anti-corruption demonstrations, according to witnesses at the scene.

Pepper spray has been used on protesters shouting 'Putin is a thief' in central Moscow, as other confrontations took place in St Petersburg and elsewhere around Russia.

Navalny was arrested earlier in the day as he tried to leave his home in Moscow ahead of the planned anti-Kremlin protests, his wife Kira Yarmysh said, but she called for the demonstration to go ahead all the same.

Thousands of protesters gathered for an anti-corruption demonstration in Moscow on Monday, which happens to be Russia Day, which marks the country's emergency from the USSR a quarter of a century ago

Russian police on Monday detained more than 118 protesters in the city where people had turned up to demonstrate against official corruption

Russian police officers detain a participant of an unauthorized anti-corruption rally at the Marsovo Field on Russia Day in central St. Petersburg

Russian officers carry a man to be detained as a young man and woman follow closely in St Petersburg

Riot police stand guard next to children in a stroller during an anti-corruption protest organised by opposition leader Alexei Navalny, on Tverskaya Street in central Moscow

Russian liberal opposition leader and anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny has called his supporters (pictured) to hold a protest in Tverskaya Street, which leads to the Kremlin

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was arrested on Monday outside his Moscow home while on his way to an unsanctioned protest demonstration

As many as 750 protesters were held in Moscow where police and national guard special forces used batons to break-up a pro-democracy rally.

Navalny's Fund for Fighting Corruption throughout Monday had been providing updates on protests against what the opposition leader says is a corrupt system of rule overseen by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Moscow authorities had agreed to a location for a protest rally in the capital, but Navalny at the last minute called changing it to one of Moscow's main thoroughfares, citing interference in building a stage at the agreed-upon rally site.

After the change, Moscow police warned that 'any provocative actions from the protesters' side will be considered a threat to public order and will be immediately suppressed'.

It is unknown where Navalny, who once called Putin 'the Tsar of corruption', was taken following his arrest, but officials have said he could face up to 15 days in jail for failing to follow police orders.

Putin's security service chief Alexander Bortnikov, head of the FSB, accused 41-year-old Navalny of a 'provocation' by moving a scheduled rally in Moscow to the city centre, close to the Kremlin, at the last minute.

Navalny, pictured in May with his wife Yulia (in red) and son Zahar (in front of his mother) during a protest, had made a last-minute location change for a protest rally in Moscow against against what he says is a corruption overseen by President Vladimir Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin gives a speech during the state awards ceremony at the Grand Kremlin Palace on June 12

Protestors are blocked by riot police during a demonstration in downtown Moscow, Russia, on Monday

The Moscow protest was just one of several across the country which saw thousands of demonstrators nationwide

The protesters' (one pictured above being detained) path was blocked by police barriers put in place as part of a festival of historical costumes on Tverskaya Street, Moscow's central thoroughfare

Russian police officers detain a participant of an unauthorized opposition rally in Tverskaya street in central Moscow

Putin's security service chief Alexander Bortnikov, head of the FSB, accused 41-year-old Navalny of a 'provocation' by moving a scheduled rally in Moscow to the city centre, close to the Kremlin, at the last minute

From the Baltic to the Pacific, pro-democracy activists and their supporters were hauled into custody in a major clampdown by the Kremlin's security services

Police detain a woman as she covers her face an head at a rally at the Marsovo Field on Russia Day in central St. Petersburg

Four police officers carry a man by his arms and legs as they detain him at a rally in St Petersburg

In a statement reported by state news agency Tass, police said Navalny would be charged with failure to follow police orders and violation of public order following his arrest.

Hundreds of police were on standby in central Moscow on Monday to break up the planned mass protest.

Monday is Russia Day, a public holiday, a factor that may boost turnout.

Around 1,000 protesters started to move from the square towards the Kremlin on Monday, but their path was blocked by police barriers put in place as part of a festival of historical costumes on Tverskaya Street, Moscow's central thoroughfare.

A regional security official, Vladimir Chernikov, told Ekho Moskvy radio that police would not interfere with demonstrators on the street as long as they did not carry placards or shout slogans.

Russian police officers detain a participant of an unauthorized opposition rally in Tverskaya street in central Moscow on Monday

The location of the protest was changed at the last minute, provoking clashes between riot police and demonstrators

Russian police have created blockades to keep protesters from unauthorized locations during the protests

As police detained demonstrators, hundreds of others shouted slogans including 'Putin is a thief' and 'Shame!'

Police used pepper spray on protesters as they tried marching toward the Kremlin on Monday

Many protesters appeared to have to be carried to detaining vans as police arrested them on MOnday

A woman gestures during an unauthorized opposition action in Tverskaya street in central Moscow on Monday

A woman wearing a flag around her shoulders carries a globe through protests in Moscow on Monday

But police, who used loud hailers to tell protesters to disperse, detained dozens of people as the demonstration continued.

Russian opposition figure Ilya Yashin was one of the dozens taken into custody after the demonstration began.

As police detained demonstrators, hundreds of others shouted slogans including 'Putin is a thief' and 'Shame!'

There were anti-Putin rallies in more than 180 towns and cities including Russia's Pacific capital Vladivostok where 22 were detained.

In Putin's home city of St Petersburg, there were around 300 arrests by 3pm local time on Russia Day, which marks the country's emergency from the USSR a quarter of a century ago.

About 1,000 people had gathered Monday in the city's Mars Field park for a protest that was part of a nationwide wave of demonstrations.

Russian liberal opposition leader and anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny has called his supporters to hold a protest in Tverskaya Street, which leads to the Kremlin, instead of the authorized by Moscow officials Sakharov avenue. Changing the location has provoked clashes with the police

Russian police pat down a anti-corruption protester in in Tverskaya Street, which leads to the Kremlin, during a rally on Monday

Shortly after the rally began on Monday, police started detaining anti-Kremlin protesters in Moscow's central Pushkin Square

Authorities in Moscow, where the largest protest is likely to be held, started detaining demonstrators shortly after the protests began. Pictured above, riot police detain Russian opposition figure Ilya Yashin during the protest

Yashin gives a peace sign to riot police and demonstrators at the anti-corruption rally as he's detained by police

A man waves Russian Flag as he sits on top of a cover of an entrance during an unauthorized opposition rally in Mosco

Officers hold detainees down by their heads and shoulders as they're arrested in Moscow on Monday

After the detentions, the protest appeared to be breaking up, but some demonstrators remained.

In Vladivostok, the country's Pacific capital seven time zones east of of Moscow, 22 were held.

Local media said roughly 3,000 people protested in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk.

Smaller rallies also gathered in Krasnoyarsk, Kazan, Tomsk, Vladivostok and many other cities.

Schoolchildren and students in Russia have been warned that they could face legal problems if they attend Navalny protests.

In March, Navalny, who is mounting a long-shot bid to unseat Putin in a presidential election next year, organized a similar protest in which thousands took to the streets across Russia.

Those protests were the largest since a wave of anti-Kremlin demonstrations in 2012 and resulted in over 1,000 arrests, putting rare domestic pressure on Putin, who is expected to run for and win re-election next year.

Russian police officers detain participants of an unauthorized anti-corruption rally at the Marsovo Field on Russia Day in central St. Petersburg

Russian police officers detain a participant as they confront others in Moscow's city centre on Monday

Riot police clash with protesters as others look on during an anti-corruption protest in Moscow

Russian police detain a man as others look on in Moscow amid hundreds of other arrests on Monday

There were anti-Putin rallies in more than 180 towns and cities including Moscow (pictured above) and Russia's Pacific capital Vladivostok, where 22 were detained

Riot police detain a man dressed in a t-shirt depicting opposition leader Alexei Navalny, during the protests on Monday

Around 1,000 protesters started to move from the square towards the Kremlin, but their path was blocked by police barriers put in place as part of a festival of historical costumes on Tverskaya Street, Moscow's central thoroughfare

A Reuters journalist at the scene saw people detained by police, who were using loud hailers to tell them to disperse

The scale of the protests will show if Navalny, who is mounting a long-shot bid to unseat Putin in a presidential election next year, can build on the success of a similar event in March, in which thousands took to the streets across Russia

Authorities in Moscow, where the largest protest is likely to be held on Monday, had authorized a venue away from the city center ahead of the rally but arrests came after the protest was moved to an unauthorized location.

Navalny said late on Sunday that the authorities had pressured firms into refusing to supply him and his allies with sound and video equipment, a move he said was designed to humiliate protesters.

For that reason, he said he was unilaterally switching the venue to Tverskaya Street, Moscow's main avenue near the Kremlin.

The police branded his move 'a threat to public order', as a festival planned for Tverskay had turned the area into a pedestrian zone by actors re-enacting periods of Russian history with props such as World War Two jeeps and artillery guns.

Ahead of the protests, Reuters reporters saw a heavy advance police presence on and around the avenue with bus loads of riot police parked nearby, side roads blocked, and airport-style metal detectors installed at pinch points.

Polls suggest Navalny has scant chance of unseating Putin, who enjoys high ratings. It is unclear too if the Kremlin will even let Navalny run for the presidency.

Hundreds of police were on standby in central Moscow on Monday to break up the planned mass protest. Monday is Russia Day, a public holiday, a factor that may boost turnout

Moscow authorities had agreed to a location for a protest rally in the capital, but Navalny at the last minute called changing it to one of Moscow's main thoroughfares, citing interference in building a stage at the agreed-upon rally site. Pictured above, riot police detain a man covered with Russian national flag during an anti-corruption protest organised by Navalny

After the change, Moscow police warned that 'any provocative actions from the protesters' side will be considered a threat to public order and will be immediately suppressed'. Pictured above, riot police detain a man covered with Russian national flag during an anti-corruption protest organised by Navalny

Navalny said late on Sunday that the authorities had pressured firms into refusing to supply him and his allies with sound and video equipment, a move he said was designed to humiliate protesters. Pictured above, riot police detain a man during an anti-corruption protest organised by Navalny

The Navalny-led protest threatened a festival planned for Tverskaya which has already been turned into a pedestrian zone by actors re-enacting periods of Russian history with props such as World War Two jeeps and artillery guns. Pictured above, Interior Ministry soldiers walk past the Manezh Square with the Kremlin at the background in Moscow

But the 41-year-old lawyer turned political street campaigner hopes anger over corruption may boost his support.

A video he made accusing Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, a Putin ally, of living far beyond his means has garnered over 22 million online views to date.

Medvedev said Navalny's allegations were politically motivated 'nonsense' and called him a charlatan.

Navalny, who had a green liquid thrown in his face in April, robbing him of some of his sight, said hundreds of people had attended demonstrations in Russia's Far East on Monday morning.

In January, he told the BBC that he believed that Russian officials had used $50billion of government funds a year in corrupt dealings.

He said that Putin is 'the Tsar of corruption'.

He's the basement of corruption,' he added. 'He's personally involved in the corruption and he's encouraging our officials in corruption because it's his way of ruling the country.'

'I want changes,' wrote Navalny in a blog post last week. 'I want to live in a modern democratic state and I want our taxes to be converted into roads, schools and hospitals, not into yachts, palaces and vineyards.'