The patriarchate was abolished in 1721 by Peter the Great and replaced with the Most Holy Synod as the supreme governing body of the ROC, before being restored on 10 November [O.S.

[6] The current version of the title was first used in 1589 and restored beginning in 1917 until suspended by Soviet authorities in 1925, and since being reinstated with the election of Metropolitan Sergius as the patriarch in 1943.

[7] The history of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) begins with the Christianization of Kievan Rus' in 988 during the reign of Vladimir the Great.

[22] Peter believed that Russia's resources, including the church, could be used to establish a modern European state and he sought to strengthen the authority of the monarch.

[27] However, the October Revolution and resulting civil war disturbed the unity of the ROC as Tikhon was unable to maintain communication with various dioceses.

[27] In 1990, Alexy II was elected as the patriarch of Moscow and he oversaw the revival of the ROC with the reopening of numerous dioceses and the restoration of thousands of churches and monasteries.

Between terms, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church elects the chair from among its permanent members of the locum tenens of the Patriarchal throne.

The candidate for the patriarch must be a bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, not younger than 40 years old, have a "higher theological education, the expertise of the diocesan administration".

In 2011, the Presidium of the Inter-Council Presence reviewed the draft document "The procedure and criteria for the election of the Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus'" and decided to send it to the diocese for comment and publish the discussion.

Kirill I was elected on 27 January 2009 by the ROC Local Council (the 2009 Pomestny Sobor) as Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, with 508 votes out of 700.