Журнал «История: факты и символы»

PRISTHOOD AND CLERGY OF ELETS IN THE XVIII CENTURY

Author: Savvina Olga Alekseevna

The article deals with an under-studied aspect of the ecclesiastical history of Elets in the XVIII century. According to the archive documents it was determined that by the middle of the XVIII century 14 churches existed in Elets: 1) the Cathedral church of Christ's Resurrection, 2) the Archangel church, 3) the Assumption church, 4) the Ascension church, 5) the Transfiguration church, 6) the Protection church, 7) the Dmitry church, 8) the Trinity church, 9) the Kosma and Damian's church, 10) the Nikolai church on Argamach mountain, 11) the Sergiy church in the Black sloboda, 12) the Presentation church, 13) the Saint martyr Georgiy church in Alexandrov sloboda, 14) the Maiden monastery church of the Kursk Virgin. In 1710 the Archistratig Michail church had the status of the Cathedral church, in 1744 - the Resurrection church had this status, and in 1781 - the Ascension church. The statistic analysis has shown that the most crowded parishes in the middle of the XVIII century were those of the Cathedral church of Christ's Resurrection and of the Protection church. A series of new historical facts have been introduced into scientific circulation (the number of staff in the churches was revealed, the names and age of clergymen and priests and also those of their family members were established). The authenticity of these facts is confirmed by wide attracting documents from the Russian state archives of ancient documents and from the State archives of Oryol region. The article shows that the ecclesiastical history of pre-revolutionary Elets was closely connected with history of Russia. In the XVIII century a Russian man's life was spent inside the church fence or in the immediate proximity to it. A territorial unit of the town division was a church parish, within its boundaries not only important spiritual problems but also the public questions and everyday problems of local people were solved.