The Church of the Intercession is a wooden church in the village of Horbuliv, Cherniakhiv hromada, Zhytomyr Raion, 25 km from Cherniakhiv. Built in 1746, it has survived nearly three centuries and remains one of the oldest wooden churches in the Zhytomyr region. Horbuliv itself is known as the birthplace of the Sokolovsky otamans, who fought for an independent Ukraine in 1918–1920.
The 1746 Church
The date of the church's construction is evidenced by a 1783 visitation record of the Radomyshl deanery: the wooden church was erected in 1746. At that time, the parish was Uniate, and in 1795, when most parishes in the region were annexed to Orthodoxy, Horbuliv did not convert — influenced by the Radomyshl dean.
A Village on the Hills
The name of Horbuliv comes from the hills that formed a watershed between the Teteriv and Uzh rivers. Particularly prominent among them was Divych-hora with the remains of ancient buildings. According to local legends, Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky founded a monastery here as early as 1151. The village was first mentioned in documents in the 1580s, when it was owned by the Tysha-Bykovsky family.
In the 19th century, Horbuliv also had a Roman Catholic church, built in 1857 on the site of an older one from the 1790s. Only ruins remain today — our article "Lost Sanctuary of the Zhytomyr Region: The Roman Catholic Church in Horbuliv" tells their story. Near the Verkholuzhzhia River, labradorite rocks crop out at the surface, and paving stones were taken from the Horbuliv quarry in the 1970s even for Red Square in Moscow.
The Sokolovsky Otamans
During the Ukrainian Revolution, an insurgent unit fought against the Bolsheviks in Horbuliv and surrounding villages. It was led by the Sokolovsky brothers and sister — Dmytro, Oleksa, and Oleksandra. All three died in 1919. On September 5, 2009, a monument to the fighters for Ukraine's freedom was unveiled in the village — honoring the residents of Horbuliv who fought under the leadership of the Sokolovskys.
How to Get There
Horbuliv is located 25 km from Cherniakhiv and the Horbashi railway station, and 3 km from the village of Torchyn. The trip can be combined with a visit to the Trinity Church in Trokovychi and Holovyne. You can find other nearby places in the article about Zhytomyr Raion.
