List of metropolitans and patriarchs of Kyiv

Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia and all Rus
Metropolitan Mykhailo
Seat	Vilnius, Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Appointer	Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
Precursor	Metropolitan of Halych (Lithuania) Metropolitan of Kyiv, Moscow and all Rus
Formation	1458
First holder	Gregory
Final holder	Michael
Abolished	1595
Succession	Ruthenian Uniate Church Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia and all Rus

In the 14th century, Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos sanctioned the creation of two additional metropolitan sees: the Metropolis of Halych (1303)[14] and the Metropolis of Lithuania (1317).[15]

Metropolitan Roman (1355–1362) of Lithuania and Metropolitan Alexius of Kiev both claimed the see. Both metropolitans travelled to Constantinople to make their appeals in person. In 1356, their cases were heard by a Patriarchal Synod.[16] The Holy Synod confirmed that Alexis was the Metropolitan of Kiev while Roman was also confirmed in his see at Novogorodek. In 1361, the two sees were formally divided. Shortly afterwards, in the winter of 1361/62, Roman died. From 1362 to 1371, the vacant see of Lithuania–Halych was administered by Alexius. By that point, the Lithuanian metropolis was effectively dissolved.

Following the signing of the Council of Florence, Metropolitan Isidore of Kiev returned to Moscow in 1441 as a Ruthenian cardinal. He was arrested by the Grand Duke of Moscow and accused of apostasy. The Grand Duke deposed Isidore and in 1448 installed own candidate as Metropolitan of Kyiv — Jonah. This was carried out without the approval of Patriarch Gregory III of Constantinople. When Isidore died in 1458, he was succeeded as metropolitan in the Patriarchate of Constantinople by Gregory the Bulgarian. Gregory's canonical territory was the western part of the traditional Kievan Rus' lands — the states of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland. The episcopal seat was in the city of Navahrudak which is today located in Belarus.[17] It was later moved to Vilnius — the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. A parallel succession to the title ensued between Moscow and Vilnius. The Metropolitans of Kiev are the predecessors of the Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' that was formed in the 16th century.

Metropolitan Vladimir

According to the Russian Orthodox Church, the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox metropolis was transferred from the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the Moscow Patriarchate in 1686 thereby establishing the Metropolis of Kiev (Patriarchate of Moscow). This interpretation is disputed by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (see 2018 Moscow–Constantinople schism).

• Gedeon Chetvertinsky, 1685–1690 [34] (Former bishop of Lutsk, Gedeon Chetvertinsky was elected by the sobor initiated by the Hetman Ivan Samoilovych and later went for consecration to Moscow instead of Constantinople)
• Metropolitan Varlaam, 1690–1707 [34]
• Ioasaph, 1708–1718 [34]

In 1718 Peter the Great abolished metropolitan.

• Varlaam (Vanatovich), 1722–1730, [34] archbishop
• Raphael, 1731–1747, metropolitan since 1743

In 1743 metropolitan was reinstated.

• Timothy, 1748–1757 [34]
• Arsenius, 1757–1770 [34]

In 1767 Catherine the Great stripped the Metropolitan Arsenius of title "of all Little Rus"

In 1770, the Romanov civil authorities stripped the metropolis of its suffragan sees. The title became an honorific with no practical sense of governing an ecclesiastical territory beyond its own geographic remit. This is a list of bishops who retained this empty title:

• Gabriel, 1770–1783 [34]
• Samuel, 1783–1796 [34]
• Hierotheus, 1796–1799 [34]
• Gabriel II, 1799–1803 [34]
• Serapion, 1803–1822 [34]
• Eugene, 1822–1837 [34]
• Philaret, 1837–1857 [34]
• Isidore, 1858–1860 [34]
• Arsenius II, 1860–1876 [34]
• Philotheus, 1876–1882 [34]
• Platon, 1882–1891 [34]
• Joanicius, 1891–1900 [34]
• Theognostus, 1900–1903 [34]
• Flavian, 1903–1915 [34]
• Vladimir, 1915–1918 [34]
  • Nicodemus, 1918 (as bishop of Chyhyryn)
• Anthony, 1918–1919 [34] When of Gen. Pyotr Wrangel′s White Army was defeated in South Russia in November 1920, Anthony emigrated. In 1921 he settled down in Sremski Karlovci, Serbia. Along with several other Russian bishops in exile, he established an independent Russian church administration that sought to embrace all Russian Orthodox diaspora, known as the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR).
  • Nazarius Blinov, 1919–1921 [34]

Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine (Exarchate of Ukraine)
Incumbent Metropolitan Onuphrius since 2014
Seat	Kyiv, Ukraine (formerly the Ukrainian SSR)
Appointer	Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus'
Precursor	Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia and all Rus, Exarch of Ukraine
Formation	1921
First holder	Michael Yermakov

The Russian Orthodox Church erects exarchates which have a limited autonomy within a defined geographical territory (e.g. Belarusian Exarchate). Such an exarchate was erected for Kyiv in 1921. This is a list of exarchs of the Patriarchate of Moscow to date:

• Michael Yermakov, 1921–1925,[34] bishop in 1921–27 exarch of Ukraine 1921–1929
• Georges Deliev, 1923–1928, [34] bishop acting
• Macarius Karamzin, 1924, [34] bishop acting
• Sergius Kuminsky, 1925–1930, [34] bishop acting
• Demetrius Verbitsky, 1930–1932, [34] archbishop
• Sergius Grishin, 1932–1934, [34] archbishop
• Constantine Dyakov, 1934–1937,[34] exarch of Ukraine 1929–1937
• Alexander, 1937–1938 [34]
• Nicholas Yarushevich, 1941–1944,[34] exarch of Ukraine 1941
  • During World War II, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was occupied by Nazi Germany. Exarch Nicholas moved to Moscow. The rest of bishops loyal to the Moscow Patriarchate created the Ukrainian Autonomous Orthodox Church (UAOC) which was recognized by Metropolitan Nicholas. When the German armies retreated from the SSR, the UAOC was dissolved; the exarchate was reinstated.
  • Oleksii Hromadskyi, 1941–1943 (Ukrainian Autonomous Orthodox Church)[35]
  • Panteleimon Rudyk, 1943–1944 (Ukrainian Autonomous Orthodox Church)[34][36]
• John Sokolov, 1944–1964,[34] exarch of Ukraine
• Ioasaph II, 1964–1966,[34] exarch of Ukraine
• Filaret II, 1966–1990,[34] exarch of Ukraine

In 1990, the Russian Orthodox Church accorded a limited form of self rule to the Ukrainian Exarchate. The additional freedoms were not enumerated. The church is currently styled the "Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)" (UOC-MP). The metrpolitan is styled "Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine". There have been three metropolitans of the UOC-MP to date:

• Filaret Filaret II (1990–1992) Following differences with the Patriarchate, he left [34] and joined the newly formed Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate. In 1997, he was excommunicated by the Moscow Patriarchate.[37]
• Volodymyr II Sabodan (1992–2014)[34][38]
• Onufriy Berezovsky,[38] 2014–incumbent

In 1923, a split occurred in the Patriarchate of Moscow. A majority (initially) of bishops associated themselves with a wing of the Church that was supported by the OGPU (the Soviet secret police). A minority, called "The Living Church", was spread across the territory of the USSR. Many episcopal sees in the 1920s and 1930s had 2 parallel bishops: one from the Living Church, another from the Moscow Patriarchate. The Living church had its headquarter in Kharkiv and was active in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.[39]

• Tikhon (Vasilevsky), 1923
• Nikolay (Fedotov), 1923–1924
• Aleksandr (Shcherbakov), 1924
• Innokentiy (Pustynsky), 1924–1929
• Iuvenaliy (Moshkovsky), 1928–1929
• Pimen (Pegov), 1929–1935
• Aleksandr (Chekanovsky), 1935–1937
• Vladimir (Zlobin), 1938–1941

• Vasyl Lypkivsky, 1921–1927
• Mykola Boretsky, 1927–1930 [40]
• Ivan Pavlovsky, 1930–1936 [40]

Due to Soviet pressure, the UAOC is liquidated in 1936, some of its members emigrated to the United States.

Created in 1923, the church was part of all-Soviet Renovation movement (Obnovlenichestvo).[41] It was liquidated in 1935, but after the remaining communities were headed by acting primate.

• Pimen (Pegov), 1923-1935
• Oleksandr (Chekanovskyi), 1935-1937

In 1925 there was created another organization which opposed both the Living Church and Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. After 1937 it disappeared.[42]

• Feofil Buldovsky, 1925–1937

In 1942, UAOC was re-established with help of the Polish Orthodox Church during occupation of Ukraine by the Nazi Germany. Polikarp Sikorsky was consecrated by Dionizy (Waledyński).

• Polikarp Sikorsky, (Administrator of the Church under the title of Metropolitan of Lutsk and Kovel), 1942–1944 [35]

This relative freedom lasted till the return of the Red Army in 1944, after that the UAOC was again liquidated and remained structured only in the diaspora. In 1944 the Orthodox Metropolitan of Warsaw, Dionizy Waledynski, was appointed "Patriarch of All Ukraine", but the Soviet Union did not allow any operation in Ukraine.

Patriarch Mstyslav (Stepan Ivanovych Skrypnyk) was the Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus' and the primate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv Patriarchate) (UOC–KP) from 1991 to 1993. After Mstyslav's death in 1993, the temporary union ended; the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church separated. After being dismissed in 1992 by the Archhierarch Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the Ukrainian Metropolitan Filaret joined the UOC–KP under Patriarch Mstyslav. The primates of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church–Kyiv Patriarchate continue to style themselves as patriarch:

• Mstyslav (1991–1993)
• Volodymyr (1993–1995)
• Filaret II Denysenko (1995–2018; 2019–present) (see Conflict between Filaret and Epiphanius)

In 1989 the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church was legally registered in the Ukrainian SSR. This was made possible by the President Gorbachev's policies of Perestroyka. Previously, only the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow was allowed to function in Ukraine. It was not in communion with the Patriarchate of Moscow. It was disestablished in 2018. It had four metropolitans during that time:

• Mstyslav (1991-1993)
• Dymytriy (1993-2000)
• Mefodiy Kudriakov (2000–2015)
• Makariy Maletych (2015–2018)

On 15 December 2018, the UAOC along with the UOC–KP merged into the unified Orthodox Church of Ukraine.