The Romanovs and the Russian Orthodox Schism of the 1660s

In this episode of The Romanov Dynasty, Lucas and Luna explore a pivotal yet often overlooked chapter: the Raskol, or Great Schism, that tore through 17th-century Russia. Patriarch Nikon's sweeping liturgical reforms—correcting misspelled names, altering the number of prostrations, mandating three fingers instead of two for the sign of the cross—triggered a fierce backlash from traditionalists led by the fiery archpriest Avvakum Petrov. Thousands of Old Believers, or starovery, were exiled, tortured, burned at the stake, or fled to remote forests to preserve the old rites. The Schism fractured Russian society for centuries, creating a parallel church that survived into the Soviet era and beyond. We trace the crisis from Nikon's appointment in 1652 through the Great Moscow Synod of 1666–67, the epic siege of the Solovetsky Monastery, and the tragic mass self-immolations of the late 17th century. We also examine how Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich's support for reform was entangled with his imperial ambitions, and how the Old Believers became a symbol of resistance to state power. This is the story of a devout empire tearing itself apart over the right way to make the sign of the cross. #Romanovs #RussianHistory #Raskol #Nikon #Avvakum #OldBelievers #OrthodoxSchism #17thCentury #TsarAlexeiMikhailovich #SolovetskyMonastery #GreatMoscowSynod #Starovery #ReligiousHistory #EasternOrthodox #History #FexingoHistory #Podcast #RussianChurch Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo