Collective image of the Russian orthodox church episcopate of the second half of the XVIII century (case study of dioceses of the Upper Volga region)

On the basis of the undertaken researches, the article creates an average image of the provincial bishop of the Great Russian diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church of the second half of the XVIII century. The article analyzes biographic data of orthodox hierarches of a number of dioceses of the Upper Volga region: origin, education, age of ordination, procedure of assignment, time spent at one chair, reasons of relocation, etc. Reconstruction of the collective image of a provincial bishop has allowed the author to reveal a tendency of reinforcing intervention of the government in the affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church during the Synod period.