Nikolay Kapterev

Who was Nikolay Kapterev?

Kapterev, Nikolai Fyodorovich was a church historian, professor at the Church Academy, and corresponding member of the Imperial Academy of Sciences. He is especially known for his publications refuting the theory of the Russian State Church regarding the causes of the Schism of 1666–67. Many of his works are being referred to by the Old Believers when explaining and defending their point of view of the Schism in the Russian Orthodox Church.

Nikolai F. Kapterev started his study at the Church Institute of Zvenigorod and continued his studies at the Vnifansky Church Academy. At this Academy he took his first degree, after having written a thesis on worldly assistants of Archbisshops in ancient Russia. Then he was employed as a teacher at the history department of the Moscow Church Academy. At this time he did intensive research work in archives. In 1883 he started publishing his monography "The character of Russia's relationship with the orthodox East in the 16th and 17th century." In fact, he planned to write his second thesis on this subject. In this monography the author, referring to this elaborate research in archives, came to the conclusion that "the Russians... had... reasons to have a suspicious attitude towards the Greek piety of that time and even to Greek Orthodoxy itself" and that "Patriarch Nikon should not have had so much faith in the Greek who arrived to Moscow and who advised him to correct our old rites and books." For that time, this was a sensational statement to make. Only after interference of Ioaniky, the metropolite of Moscow, Kapterev's monography could be published. Kapterev was granted a Doctor's degree, and in 1885 his monography was published in book form. Professor N.I. Subbotin, a defender of the "official" Russian Orthodoxy, informed the Chairman of the Holy Synod, K.P. Pobedonostsev, against Kapterev and his publication and his Doctor's degree was cancelled by the Holy Synod.