144 ANDREW J. SHIPMAN MEMORIAL 



politan of Moscow," but made him merely a servant of the 

 Holy Synod. To emphasize the new order of things more 

 strongly, it is related that Peter himself sat on the patriarch's 

 throne, saying in grim jest : "I am the patriarch." Not until 

 1748 was the Eparchy or Metropolitanate of Moscow canon- 

 ically established by the Holy Synod under the new order of 

 things. In 1721 Peter published the "Ecclesiastical Regula- 

 tions" (Dukhovny Reglament), providing for the entire re- 

 modelling of the Russian Church and for its government by a 

 departmental bureau called the Holy Governing Synod. This 

 body, usually known as the Holy Synod, has existed ever since. 

 Its members are required to swear fidelity to the Tsar by an 

 oath which contains these words: "I confess moreover by 

 oath that the supreme judge of this ecclesiastical assembly is 

 the Monarch himself of all the Russias, our most gracious 

 Sovereign" {Reglament, Prisiaga, on p. 4, Tondini's edition). 

 The Holy Governing Synod is composed of the Metropolitans 

 of St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Kieff, several other bishops, 

 and certain priests, but its active affairs are carried on by lay 

 government officials (the bishops act rather as consultors or 

 advisors), and the Chief Procurator, a layman, directs its 

 operations, while none of its acts are valid without the ap- 

 proval (Sokvoleniya) of the Tsar. No church council or de- 

 liberative church organization has been held in Russia since 

 the establishment of the Holy Synod. 



The chief and most historic buildings in Moscow are situ- 

 ated in the Kremlin, which is a triangular enclosure upon a 

 hill or eminence on the north bank of the Moskva. It is sur- 

 rounded by a high wall of brick and stone, provided with high 

 towers at intervals, and has five gates, one (for pedestrians 

 only) in the wall on the river side and two in each of the other 

 walls of the triangle. The most celebrated gate is the Spassa- 

 kaya Vorota, or Gate of the Saviour, opening out upon the 

 Red Square. It contains a venerated image or icon of Christ, 

 and all persons passing through the gate must remove their 

 hats in reverence. Inside the Kremlin are churches, palaces, 

 convents, a parade ground, a memorial to Alexander II, also 

 the Senate (or law courts building), the arsenal, and the great 

 Armory. Directly inside the Gate of the Saviour is the Con- 

 vent of the Ascension for women, founded in 1389 by Eu- 



