Constantine Ostrogski was a Grand Hetman of Lithuania, one of the most outstanding military commanders of the 16th century, and one of the most generous benefactors of the Kyiv Cave Lavra. Over the course of his life he fought in 35 battles, suffered defeat only twice, and gained renown for his victory over the Muscovite army at the Battle of Orsha in 1514.
Constantine Ostrogski cared not only for the defense of the state but also for the development of the Orthodox Church and the Kyiv Cave Monastery. Thanks to his petitioning, the king granted the Lavra a privilege by which the archimandrite was elected by the monks themselves with the participation of the nobility. This became an important step in counteracting the sale of church offices and restoring canonical order.
According to his will, after his death Constantine Ostrogski was buried at the Kyiv Cave Lavra. His son, Vasyl-Kostyantyn Ostrogski, erected a magnificent tomb monument over his father’s burial site in the Dormition Cathedral, which adorned the church for almost four centuries.
After the destruction of the Dormition Cathedral in 1941, the tomb monument was considered lost. In 2015, Ukraine and Lithuania launched a joint project to restore it. By the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence, the first stage of the reconstructed tomb monument was presented.
In 2023, the memory of the great hetman was honored with another memorial — a bas-relief dedicated to the 509th anniversary of the Battle of Orsha was installed on the southern facade of the Dormition Cathedral.
More about the life of Constantine Ostrogski and the contribution of the princely family to the history of Ukraine can be learned at the exhibition “The Princes Ostrogski. The European Dimension of Ukrainian History,” on display in Building No. 4 of the National Reserve “Kyiv Cave Lavra.”
Among the exhibits are knightly armor, antique weapons, early printed books from the Ostrog printing house, a reproduction of the painting “The Battle of Orsha,” and a model of the reconstructed tomb monument of the prince.