“I Remember the Days of Old; I Meditate [on All Thy Works]”

Abstract

This article analyzes the short book The Origin of the Law of Succession in Russia (1925) by St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco (1896–1966, canonized 1994) for its treatment of succession to the throne in Kyivan, Muscovite, and Imperial Russian history. In it, St. John makes the case for the gradual and intentional development of primogeniture in Muscovy and sees the Petrine Law of Succession of 1722 as a fundamental violation of customary norms about the succession. He also sees the Pauline Law of Succession of 1797 as a restoration of those norms and a step forward in the regularization of the succession. St. John discusses how the Russian Revolutions of 1917 affected the Romanov dynasty and concludes that the Pauline Law was and would continue to be a vital legal instrument for maintaining the dynasty in exile. He also recommended the elimination of the Law’s equal marriage requirement and the addition to it of a requirement that all members and spouses of members of the dynasty be Orthodox. St. John’s book became an important reference work for generations of surviving Romanovs after 1917, even if his suggested changes to the Law have yet to be implemented.