Patriarch Nikon

Patriarch Nikon

Nikon (Russian: Ни́кон, Old Russian: Нїконъ), born Nikita Minin (Никита Минин; 7 May 1605, Valmanovo–17 August 1681, Yaroslavl), was the seventh patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. This was one of the most important periods in the Church's history, as Nikon introduced many reforms which eventually led to a lasting schism known as Raskol in the Russian Orthodox Church.