Peter of Krutitsy - Imprisonment and Death

Imprisonment and Death

In November 1926, Peter was sentenced to three year exile to the Ural region, which in May 1928 was extended to two more years. His exile by no means implied his lack of involvement in the church affairs – thus, in December 1929, he sent a letter to Metropolitan Sergius, reprimanding him for exceeding his powers as a "deputy", and reminding him that he, Peter, is still technically the head of the Church.

In 1930, Peter was arrested again. After rejecting the offers to resign his position and to become a GPU agent, he was sentenced to five years of hard labor. Some time before the sentencing, Peter suffered a partial paralysis caused by the harsh prison conditions. He spent the years 1931 to 1937 in solitary confinement in the Verkhneuralsk prison. In July 1936, his confinement was extended to three more years, while Metropolitan Sergius was given a false report of Peter’s death and therefore assumed the full leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church.

On October 2, 1937, the NKVD troika for Chelyabinsk Oblast sentenced Metropolitan Peter to death. He was executed by shooting at 4 p.m. on October 10, 1937, and buried in the city of Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinsk region.

Metropolitan Peter of Krutitsy was canonized as Hieromartyr and Confessor by the decision of Hierarchical Council of the Russian Orthodox Church on February 23, 1997. His feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, October 10 (N.S.).