Fiodor of Kiev

Who is Fiodor of Kiev?

Fiodor of Kiev, was a prince of Kiev. He was descendent of the Putivl branch of Olgovichis. Some speculate that he also was the son of Butvydas, and a younger brother of Gediminas, Grand Duke of Lithuania. Only a couple of short notes survive regarding Fiodor's life.

In early 1320s Gediminas won the Battle on the Irpen' River against Stanislav of Kiev and captured the city. The Tatars, who also claimed Kiev, retaliated in 1324–1325. The Lithuanian Chronicles mention that Gediminas installed his deputy Algimantas, son of Mindaugas from Olshanski family. There were some attempts to claim that Algimantas was Fiodor's pagan name, but they are discharged by evidence that Algimantas was baptized as Mikhail.

In 1331 Vasily Kalika, a newly consecrated Archbishop of Novgorod, was traveling from Volodymyr-Volynskyi to Veliky Novgorod. On his way he was stopped by Fiodor, Duke of Kiev, a Tatar tax collector, and fifty men. The presence of a Tatar official led historians to believe that while Kiev was ruled by a Lithuanian, it had to pay a tribute to the Golden Horde. Lithuanians gained full control of the city after the victorious Battle of Blue Waters in 1362. According to the Gustynskaya Chronicle, after the battle Fiodor was replaced as Duke of Kiev by Vladimir, son of Algirdas.