Church Parishes of Korelsky District in 16th — Early 17th Centuries

Abstract

The study is devoted to understanding the problem of the formation of the parochial system of the Korelsky district, which found itself in the 16th — early 17th centuries at the center of the political and ideological confrontation between the Swedish kingdom and the Muscovite kingdom. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that for the first time, based on a comprehensive analysis of all available sources, the total number of secular parishes and churches that functioned in the region in the late 1560s — late 1570s was clarified, and their localization on the map was carried out. A consistent comparison of the number of secular church parishes in three chronological sections — in the early 1500s, late 1560s — late 1570s and early 1610s — made it possible to supplement the concept of transformation of the parish church system in the region that had developed in historiography and establish that the surge in church building that began in the 1540s continued until the end of the 1570s. It is shown that the construction of new temples developed unevenly: starting in the most populated volosts located along the coast of Lake Ladoga, it continued on the periphery. It is concluded that thanks to the purposeful policy of the Church, with the support of local elites, the Orthodox faith and culture have firmly established themselves among the laity, which played a key role in the fate of the Karelian borderlands.

Keywords

• korelsky county
• northwestern ladoga area
• russian orthodox church
• church parish
• parochial system