Saint Feodor of Vladimir

Fyodor Yaroslavich (Russian: Фёдор Ярославич; c. 1219 – Veliky Novgorod, June 5, 1233) was a Russian nobleman and the elder brother of Alexander Nevsky. He is considered a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church. Heir to Prince Yaroslav II of Vladimir, he died suddenly at approximately fourteen years of age. In 1614, what was believed to be his body was found incorrupt, leading to his veneration as a saint in Russian popular tradition. However, 20th-century forensic analysis identified the remains as those of Dmitry Yuryevich Shemyaka, who died two centuries later and whose body had been altered by arsenic poisoning. The Russian Orthodox Church does not accept this version and continues to venerate the relic as that of Fyodor Yaroslavich.