Nikon (Patriarch of Moscow)

Timeline

1. 1605–1646Velizh (Novgorod region) · RussiaBorn a peasant, Nikon entered Makaryev Monastery, renowned for his zeal and eloquence, rose to abbot, and gradually entered the court's reformist circle.
2. 1646–1652Novgorod · NovgorodFavored by Tsar Alexei, he first became abbot of the New Savior Monastery in Moscow, then Metropolitan of Novgorod, becoming the church's second figure and paving the way for the patriarchate.
3. 1652–1666Moscow · MoscowElected patriarch in 1652, he presided over church councils in 1654 and 1656, revising service books and the sign of the cross to bring Russian worship closer to Greek models; reforms were resisted by Avvakum and other Old Believers, causing the Raskol schism.
4. 1658–1667Moscow · MoscowAfter relations with Alexei soured in 1658 Nikon retired to a monastery; the Great Moscow Council of 1666–67, with Eastern patriarchs present, deposed Nikon yet confirmed his reforms; in December 1667 he was reduced to a simple monk and exiled to Ferapontov Monastery.
5. 1667–1681Ferapontov Monastery · Vologda OblastNikon spent his remaining years in a northern monastery, still refusing to recognize his successors' legitimacy; he died in August 1681, though the results of his liturgical reforms were formally retained by the church.