Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus'

The Metropolis of Kiev and all Rus' (russian: Митрополит Киевский и всея Руси, Mitropolit Kiyevskiy i vseya Rusi; ) was a metropolis of the Eastern Orthodox Church that was erected on the territory of Kievan Rus'. It existed between 988 AD and 1596 AD and later between 1620 AD and 1686 AD. Canonically, it was under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The episcopal seat (''cathedra'') was located in the city of Kiev.

History of Kievan Rus' to the Mongol invasions

Christianization of Kievan Rus'

The history of the Orthodox Church in the region of Kievan Rus' is usually traced to the Baptism of Rus' at Kiev. While the date of this event is commonly given as 988, the evidence is contested. In that year, Grand Prince of Kiev — Vladimir the Great — together his people, were baptised in the river Dniper by clergy of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. There is a legendary account that the first bishop might have been dispatched to Kiev in 864 by the Patriarch Photios I.Lencyk, W.
Christianization of Ukraine
'. Encyclopedia of Ukraine If true, it would have occurred after Kiev had been captured by the Varangians in 860. It is possible that a Prince of Kiev — Askold — might have been baptized due to the existence of the church of Saint Nicholas at Askold's Grave. During a rule of Prince Igor of Kiev, in Kiev existed the Saint Elijah Church, while during signing the 944 treaty with the Greeks some Ruthenians took an oath on the Bible.

Establishment of the metropolitan see

It is not known for certain known when the Metropolis of Kiev was established. The earliest recorded metropolitan bishop is Michael of Kiev (988-992). He was appointed by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople — Nicholas II of Constantinople. He was given the title of Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus'. The ''cathedra'' was located in the city of Kiev (or possibly Tmutarakan).

Fragmentation of Kievan Rus'

By the late 12th century, Kievan Rus' was beginning to fragment into a number of principalities. One of the most influential of these was the Grand Duchy of Vladimir under the Rurik dynasty. Grand Duke Vladimir II Monomakh founded the eponymous city of Vladimir which is located east of Moscow. In 1113 he was popularly acclaimed as the supreme ruler of the Kievan Rus. Mstislav I of Kiev, who reigned from 20 May 1125 to 15 April 1132, was the last undisputed ruler of all Kievan Rus'. After his death, the throne of Kiev became an object of struggle between various territorial associations of Rurikid princes.

The younger son of Vladimir II, called Yuri Dolgorukiy (George), was the Grand Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal. Under his rule, the principality gained military strength. In the Suzdal-Ryazan war of 1146, it conquered the Ryazan Principality. Later in the 1150s, George twice occupied Kiev and seized the throne. He last ruled Kiev from August 1150 to winter 1151. His rule marked the effective end of the Rus' as a unified entity. From that time onwards, the lands of the northeastern Rus' played an important role in the politics of Kievan Rus'.

In March 1169, a coalition of native princes led by the Grand Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal — Andrey Bogolyubsky — sacked Kiev and forced the ruling prince — Mstislav II of Kiev — to flee to Volhynia. Andrei appointed his brother — Gleb of Kiev — as Prince of Kiev while Andrei himself continued to rule his realm from Vladimir on Klyazma. From that time onwards, north-eastern Rus', which was centered on the city of Vladimir, became one of the most influential Rus' lands. Following the Mongol invasions, three powerful states remained as the successors of Kievan Rus': the Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal in the north-east — which would evolve into the Principality of Muscovy; the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia in the south-west; and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to the north.

Kievan Rus' under the Mongols

Following the Mongol invasion and the sack of Kiev in 1240, communications between Kiev and Constantinople deteriorated. Shortly after Kirill III of Kiev (1250–1281) was appointed as metropolitan, the founder of the Golden Horde — Batu Khan — demanded that he transfer the ''cathedra'' from Kiev to the city of Vladimir. The transfer did not occur until 1299 under Kirill's successor, Maximos. The hierarchs continued to be styled "Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus"; they were supposed to be responsible for all Orthodox Christians in Rus, including those in Galicia, which became a kingdom in 1253, and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania which had gained control of the former Principality of Polotsk." In 1324, his successor — Peter of Moscow — again transferred the cathedra, this time to Moscow.

The Princes of the Grand Duchy of Vladimir effectively controlled the metropolitan see with the permission of the Khan of the Golden Horde. The most important Rus prince (usually the Prince of Moscow, but sometimes a Tver or another principality) continued to be styled the "Grand Prince of Vladimir". The Grand Princes were originally crowned in Vladimir's Cathedral of the Assumption. After the Mongol destruction, Vladimir never fully recovered. By the 14th Century, Moscow had superseded Vladimir as the seat of the Grand Prince. The title had become an honorific symbol of majesty. The princes chose to be crowned in the Cathedral of the Assumption in the Moscow Kremlin. This cathedral was loosely copied by the Italian architect Aristotele Fioravanti from the original in Vladimir.

Establishment of new metropolitan areas

Having escaped the brunt of the Mongol invasions, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania expanded into neighbouring areas that had been weakened by internal strife and by the Mongol predations. Sometimes these expansions were voluntary. For example, the dukes of the Principality of Turov began to cooperate more and more with the Grand Duchy and by the early 14th century the Principality non-violently joined the Grand Duchy. In 1320, most of the principalities of western Rus' were either made into vassals or were directly annexed by Lithuania. In 1321, Gediminas captured Kiev, sending Stanislav, the last Rurikid to rule Kiev, into exile. Gediminas also re-established the permanent capital of the Grand Duchy in Vilnius, presumably moving it from Old Trakai in 1323. The state continued to expand its territory under the reign of Grand Duke Algirdas and his brother Kęstutis, who both ruled the state harmonically.

Later the Grand Dukes of Lithuania requested the Patriarch of Constantinople to establish a separate diocese that was independent from Moscow. The request was initially granted but later rescinded and the Lithuanian eparchies were returned to the jurisdiction of the Metropolis of Kiev and all Rus'.

History from the Mongol invasions to the Union of Brest

In 1325, the metropolitan seat was moved from Vladimir to Moscow by Metropolitan Peter of Moscow under the instruction of Grand Prince Ivan of Moscow. During the 14th century, the church was ''de facto'' split in two or three. Starting from the 15th century, the church was finally reunited and continued to be governed from Moscow by the Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus, despite being located in a neighboring country.

First Union with Rome

An Ecumenical council of the Church — the Council of Florence — took place from 1431 to 1449. Although he resisted at first, the Grand Prince of Moscow — Vasily II of Moscow — eventually permitted the Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus — Isidore of Kiev — to attend the council. Isidore, who was of Greek origin, submitted to the articles of the Bull of Union with the Greeks which united the Orthodox Church in Russia with the Latin Church. The Great Prince of Moscow voided the union and imprisoned Isidore for some time.

Parallel successions

Following that incident, the next Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus' — Jonah — who was not approved by Constantinople, unilaterally changed his title to "Metropolitan of Moscow and all Rus'" in 1448. From that date until 1589, sixteen hierarchs with that title were locally appointed without being recognised by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

Notwithstanding, the Ecumenical Patriarch continued to appoint metropolitans for dioceses of the ''Ruthenian'' Orthodox ChurchSlocombe, G.
Poland
'. T. C. & E. C. Jack. 1916FRICK, D.A.
Meletij Smotryc'kyj and the Ruthenian Question in the Early Seventeenth Century
'. Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute. 1984 in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The next hierarch of the ''Ruthenian'' Orthodox Church in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was Gregory the Bulgarian who was consecrated by a Latin Patriarch of Constantinople. In 1469, his appointment was also approved by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople — Dionysius I. The episcopal see of the new hierarch was located in Vilnius, Grand Duchy of Lithuania. With the appointment of Gregory, the title was changed to Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' () uniting both the Metropolis of Halych (also known as Galicia) and the Metropolis of Lithuania which existed in the 14th century. The Grand Duchy of Moscow decided to appoint their own metropolitans without the approval of the Ecumenical Patriarch. After 1458, all Muscovite metropolitans were styles as Metropolitans of Moscow and all Rus'.

Second Union with Rome

In 1588–1589 Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Jeremias II of Constantinople when traveling across Eastern Europe, visited both Moscow and Vilnius. In Moscow Jeremias confirmed autocephaly of the Russian Orthodox Church and for the first time since 1448 consecrated Job of Moscow as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia. Later Jeremias stopped in Vilnius and consecrated Michael Rohoza as Metropolitan of Kiev, Halych and all Ruthenia, thus again confirming division of the former Russian Orthodox Church. Soon thereafter, in 1596 the Metropolitan of Kiev and other top clergymen of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth signed the Union of Brest turning the Russian (Ruthenian) Orthodox Church under jurisdiction of the Latin Church and converting to the Ruthenian Uniate Church.

As the previous Florentine union, the Union of Brest was not accepted by all orthodox clergymen causing some eparchies (dioceses) to continue their operations as Eastern Orthodox. In 1620 the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophanes consecrated Job as the new Metropolitan of Kiev, Halych and all Ruthenia and Exarch of Ukraine. This appointment revitalized Eastern Orthodox churches and deepened the schism. On the other hand, the episcopal see was returned to Kiev for the first time since 1299. In 1646 the last remnants of the Russian Orthodox Church in Carpathian region joined the Union of Uzhhorod and converted into the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church. At the same time, the eastern territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth which today part of Belarus and Ukraine entered a great turmoil and eventually were occupied by the Tsardom of Muscovy. Soon after occupation of Ukraine (Cossack Hetmanate), in 1685 the Ruthenian Orthodox Church was transferred from under jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople to under jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Moscow. The newly appointed metropolitan Gedeon was titled as Metropolitan of Kiev, Galich and all Little Rus. This transfer successfully terminated any remnants of the original Russian Orthodox Church centered in Kiev.

The last Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' Michael Rohoza accepted the Union of Brest in 1596, which created the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (which at the time was called "Ruthenian" rather than "Ukrainian") and changed Rohova's title to "Major Archbishop of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus.

In 1620, at least partially to accommodate Christians who had refused the Union of Brest, the Eastern Orthodox title and metropolis were recreated and granted to Job Boretsky, who became the Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The last Exarch of the Ecumenical throne in Kiev, approved by the Ecumenical Patriarch in 1676, was Metropolitan . His successor, Gedeon Chetvertinsky, was ordained by Patriarch Joachim of Moscow in 1685, and transferred into the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Moscow by the Ecumenical Patriarch, Dionysius IV, in 1686. This resulted in a large Council that convened in Kiev declaring the election invalid and the ordination illicit and a 'canonical offense' because it occurred without the knowledge of the Ecumenical Patriarch. Patriarch Dositheos of Jerusalem, whose role as a negotiator between Constantinople and Moscow proved critical, declared to the Russian ambassador Nikita Alexeyevich that Kiev had been granted "in trust (''ἐπιτροπικῶς'') to the Moscovite due to the prevailing tyranny, until the day comes for divine reckoning"."Patriarchal Letter to the Kings of Russia"
THE ECUMENICAL THRONE AND THE CHURCH OF UKRAINE - The Documents Speak
(September 2018), pp. 35–39 (English translation based on
the text published in: ''Собрание государственных грамот и договоров, хранящихся в государственной коллегии иностранных дел'' 'Collection of state documents and treaties kept in the Collegium of Foreign Affairs''], Part Four, Moscow, 1826, 514–517).

See also

* Bishop of Kyiv (disambiguation)
* Cossack Hetmanate
* List of metropolitans and patriarchs of Kyiv

References

Further reading

* Pliguzov, A. I. (2023). ''Documentary Sources on the History of Rus´ Metropolitanate: The Fourteenth to the Early Sixteenth Centuries'' (Harvard Series In Ukrainian Studies). Cambridge: Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.

External links

Annexation of the Kiev metropolis by the Patriarch of Moscow: How it was
bogoslov.ru



Ecclesiastical titles
Metropolitans of Kiev and all Rus'
Eastern Orthodoxy in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth