The Morozovsky Family: Origins, Branches and History

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Origins of the Family and Geographic Distribution

The Morozovsky family (Polish: Morozowski) belonged to the ancient nobility of Podolia and played a key role in founding Moroziv village. According to historical documents, representatives of the Morozovskys are mentioned as early as the mid-16th century as zemians (petty nobility) of Kamianets county of Podolia voivodeship.

Ancestral Seat

It is believed that the ancestral seat could have been in the vicinity of Pokutyntsi village in Podolia, from where came the nobleman Reitko Morozovsky – founder of Moroziv village. He, together with his family, became the founder of Moroziv village (Malyi Mukariv) in the 1540s.

Family Distribution

In the early 17th century, the Morozovsky family took root in Right-Bank Ukraine, particularly in Podolia voivodeship, and later in Volhynia Governorate of the Russian Empire. After the annexation of Right-Bank Ukraine to the Russian Empire (late 18th century), the petty noble Morozovsky family was recognized in the Volhynian nobility.

In the archival lists of Volhynian nobility, the confirmation of nobility of brothers Matvii and Viktor Morozovsky (1816) from Zvyahel/Zhytomyr county is mentioned. In the List of Nobles of Volhynia Governorate (official publication 1906), the Morozovsky surname is entered in the genealogical book as an ancient noble family.

Lithuanian Branch

Separate branches of the family also settled in the territories of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In the 19th century, the Morozovsky surname was recorded in Lida county (now Belarus): a noble Morozovsky family lived in Kulkishky village (Benyakony parish). This testifies to the existence of a “Lithuanian” branch of the family.

Heraldic Affiliation and Mentions in Armorials

Ślepowron Coat of Arms

The noble Morozovsky family belonged to the Polish coat of arms Ślepowron, which is also known as Corvin. According to Polish heraldic tradition, all families of one coat of arms were considered “heraldic brotherhood.”

Coat of arms description: In a blue shield, an image of a crescent crowned with an arrow, and above them – a black raven (crow) with a golden ring in its beak. This coat of arms was used by about a thousand noble families of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, among which Morozowski is mentioned.

Mentions in Armorials

Classical Polish armorials provide information about the Morozovskys as an old, though not wealthy family:

Kasper Niesiecki in his “Herbarz Polski” (first half of 18th century) attributes Morozowski to the Ślepowron (Corvin) coat of arms
Adam Boniecki included the Morozowski surname in his multi-volume “Herbarz Polski” (1899-1913), mentioning the presence of Morozovskys in Podolia and Volhynia

Ukrainian Historiography

In Ukrainian historiography, the Morozovsky family is mentioned as part of the Orthodox (Ruthenian) nobility of Podolia in the 16th century. Historian Leontii Voitovych includes the Morozovskys in the list of Ruthenian noble families of Podolia in the 16th century. Many Podolian nobles of this time (including the Morozovskys) were neglected by later Polish armorials due to their minor status, but belonged to families that grew from the local Orthodox environment.

Possessions and Role in Society

Moroziv Village (Malyi Mukariv) - Main Possession

The most famous possession of the Morozovsky family was Moroziv village (Malyi Mukariv) in the Dniester region. This village was founded in 1542 by the Morozovsky landowners on Mukariv lands, from which it got its name.

Village Foundation

In the lustration of Bar starostvo in 1565, it is mentioned that the following nobles settled in Malyi Mukariv:

Reitko Morozovsky (founder)
Isai Morozovsky
Fedir Morozovsky
Oleksii Morozovsky

Probably, this was one family – father and sons or brothers who jointly held the estate.

Royal Privilege

The founding of the new Moroziv village was carried out according to a royal privilege granted by Bernard Pretvych, the Podolian starosta of Bar. The Morozovskys had the right to settle the village on wasteland, with the condition of performing service for the benefit of Bar Castle.

The documents state that the new settlement was called “Mukariv Malyi alias Morozowce”, and later – Mukariv Nyzhnyi (as opposed to neighboring Velykyi Mukariv and Mukariv Tatarsky).

Loss of Possessions

Moroziv village (Mukariv Nyzhnyi) remained in the possession of Morozovsky descendants throughout the 16th-17th centuries, although due to wars and Turkish occupation of Podolia (1672-1699) it could have temporarily become depopulated.

According to data from the 1830s-1840s, Moroziv village and adjacent areas already belonged to the Vilamovsky family – specifically, Moroziv and Morozivska Guta are mentioned as estates of Jozef and Teodor Vilamovsky. This indicates that the Morozovsky family had lost their former lands in Podolia by the early 19th century, although place names preserved their memory.

State and Military Service

Local Self-Government

The Morozovskys, as petty nobility, rarely held high offices but participated in local self-government and the military. In the Kamianets land court of the 16th century, acts involving representatives of this family appear.

Court Cases

A court dispute from the 1560s between nobleman Roman Karachevsky and the subjects of the Morozovskys from Mukariv is known – this shows that the Morozovskys defended their rights legally.

Military Service

In the registers of the Polish Army, the Morozovsky surname is not very common, but considering their Corvin coat of arms, it can be assumed that some of the Morozovskys served in the noble militia of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

During the Russian Empire period, individual Morozovskys entered military service or served as officials. For example, in the late 18th – early 19th century, Dmytro Morozovsky is mentioned, a lieutenant in Russian service who sought recognition of his nobility in Volhynia.

Modern Period

Already in the 20th century, a descendant of the family, Ignacy Morozovsky, was an active figure in reborn Poland, serving as commissioner (starosta) of Białystok district in 1918-1919.

An interesting fact is that part of the petty nobility of Right-Bank Ukraine transitioned to the clergy (Orthodox, and later Greek Catholic). The Morozovsky surname is found among priestly families in Podolia and Volhynia.

In memoirs about parishes of the late 19th – early 20th centuries, it is mentioned that in one of the Orthodox communities “the more notable families were the Bondaruks, Morozovskys, Tyshetskys…”. This may indicate that the Morozovskys had their representatives in the clerical estate, possibly priests or deacons.

Such social mobility was typical for impoverished nobility in Ukrainian lands, when they became priests of village churches while preserving the memory of their noble origins.

Podolian Branch: Decline and Resettlement

17th-18th Centuries

Throughout the 17th century, descendants of Reitko Morozovsky probably continued to own Moroziv. Direct written mentions of Morozovskys from this period are scarce, but it can be assumed that they, like other Ruthenian nobles of Podolia, survived the difficult times of Khmelnytsky’s uprising and Turkish rule.

After Podolia’s return under Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth rule (by the Treaty of Karlowitz 1699), Moroziv became part of Kamianets county. In the 1711 lustration, the village’s decline is possibly recorded. It is quite likely that in the early 18th century, the Morozovsky family could have sold or lost Moroziv, or died out in the male line.

Resettlement to Volhynia

The further fate of the Podolian branch of Morozovskys: part could have resettled to Volhynia or other governorates after the second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1793). This explains the appearance of Morozovskys among the Volhynian nobility.

In 1802-1830, they were legitimized in the Volhynian Noble Deputy Commission. Specifically, on May 20, 1816, brothers Morozovsky from Zhytomyr county were confirmed in nobility (possibly great-grandsons of that same Reitko). This “proof of nobility” contained their genealogy for ~100 years, mentioning ancestors’ names up to the great-grandfather.

Mentions in Sources and Archival Materials

Lustrations and Privileges

The Morozovsky family left traces in various documents:

Lustration of 1565 recorded Isai, Fedir, Oleksii and Reitko Morozovsky in Podolia
Lustration of 1570 confirmed their possessions
Privilege for settling Mukariv-Morozov (1542), entered in the books of the Lithuanian Metrica

This document is now preserved in the Central Archive of Historical Records (AGAD) in Warsaw and testifies to official recognition of Morozovsky settlement with the imposition of service duties on them.

Court Books

In the court books of Kamianets and other cities of Podolia, lawsuits involving Morozovskys appear – for example, a case about land boundaries with the Karachevsky neighbors in the 1560s. This sheds light on the nature of family relationships and disputes of petty nobility of that time.

Revisions and Censuses

Revisions and population censuses of the 18th – early 19th centuries (such as revision tales) may also contain mentions of Morozovskys, especially if part of the family fell under the category of state peasants or odnodvortsy.

It is known that at least two Morozovskys (Matvii and Viktor) were officially entered in the Volhynian genealogical book by Senate decrees in the 1830s.

Metric Books

Metric books of churches of Podolia and Volhynia in the 19th century may contain records of marriage or birth of representatives of the Morozovsky family, especially if they transitioned to clerical rank. The surname appears among families of UOC priests in Khmelnytskyi region.

Visual Materials and Heritage

Coat of Arms

The following visual evidence related to the Morozovsky family has been preserved:

Ślepowron coat of arms – its image can be seen in old armorials and on seals of nobles of the Corvin coat of arms (raven with a ring).

Archival Documents

Genealogy collections have published photocopies of the “Proof of Nobility” of Morozovskys of Volhynia Governorate from 1816, containing a genealogical chart for 4 generations. There are also digitized fragments of the Lithuanian Metrica, where the privilege to the Morozovskys is mentioned (AGAD, Lithuanian Metrica book IV, folio 68 verso).

Toponymic Heritage

The main heritage of the family is Moroziv village – living historical proof of the existence of the Morozovsky family on these lands. Today Moroziv is a village of Dunaivtsi community in Khmelnytskyi region. The village name is a monument to the family that once took root on this land and wrote its name into its history.

Other Representatives of the Family

Peasantry and Townspeople

In the lists of nobility of Kyiv region, Podolia and Volhynia in the 18th-19th centuries, Morozovskys sometimes appear as small landowners or honorary citizens. After the abolition of serfdom and Polish uprisings, many of them could have lost their status, entering the estate of peasants or townspeople.

Russian decrees of the 1830s about depriving rights of unrecognized nobility (so-called “odnodvortsy”) also affected such families. Probably, not all branches of Morozovskys could prove their privileges – part was classified as peasantry.

20th Century

Despite this, the family name was preserved. In “History of Cities and Villages of the Ukrainian SSR” (1971), it is noted that Moroziv village in Khmelnytskyi region gave its name to the family that founded it, and that descendants of this family lived there and in the vicinity until the 20th century.

Conclusion

The Morozovsky family is an example of ancient Ukrainian Orthodox nobility that, having merged into the Polish noble nation, preserved its name in the region’s history. They left behind a toponym (Moroziv village) and mentions in numerous documents from the 16th-19th centuries.

Historical Significance

The Morozovskys’ belonging to the Ślepowron (Corvin) coat of arms confirms their inclusion in the general noble culture of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Representatives of the family:

Performed military service
Participated in local administration
Some devoted themselves to spiritual service

Family Evolution

The Podolian branch, which owned Moroziv village in the 16th-17th centuries, suffered losses during wars but continued in Volhynia, where its descendants achieved official recognition of nobility.

Cultural Heritage

The history of the Morozovskys is part of the broader history of Ukrainian nobility, which despite all challenges managed to preserve its identity and fit into various state structures of the time.

Their legacy today lives on in local history research and monuments: the name of Moroziv village reminds us of the noble family that once took root on this land and wrote its name into its history.

Successors

After the Morozovskys, the village passed to other noble families:

The Vilamovsky Family — estate owners in the 18th-19th centuries
The Markovsky Family — last owners until 1917, who received the village through marriage with the Vilamovskys

Sources and References

Archival Documents and Research

Podolian Nobility in the Second Half of the 14th – 1570s of the 16th Century - V. Mykhailovskyi’s Dissertation
Grant of Podolian Starostvo to Teodoryk of Buczacz in 1442 - J. Kurtyka on Podolian Documents
Great Land Ownership in Podolia Governorate - M. Epstein on Land Ownership in Podolia

Genealogy and Heraldry

Mrozowski of Ślepowron Coat of Arms - Bureau of Genealogy and Heraldry Nowina
Ślepowron Coat of Arms - Wikipedia (English)