Features of storage of church-parish documentation of the Volyn eparchy the end of the XVIII – early XX centuries

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the preservation of church-parish documentation of the Volyn eparchy of the end of the 18^th – early 20^th centuries.

On the basis of archival materials, legislative acts and scientific literature the main stages of archiving of church documents of the mentioned diocese are traced. The degree of their preservation was also determined, which depended on the place of concentration, historical events in the region and the human factor.

As a result of research it was established that at different historical stages of storage of church documents in the Volyn eparchy great importance was attached. Due to this, the level of their preservation is quite high, despite the numerous relocations of the consistory archive and the turbulent years of wars, revolutions, etc. Exceptions are only those copies that remain in the churches. They were scattered in hundreds of storages, the condition of which did not always meet the necessary storage conditions. In addition, not all clergymen understood the importance of these sources. It did not go unnoticed. As a result, we have received only a few copies of church copies. Most of them were lost in the pre-revolutionary period.

Most of the surviving church and parish documents are now concentrated in the State Archives of the Zhytomyr Region, but isolated copies are also found in the State Archives of the Rivne Region and the State Archives of the Volyn Region.