On February 5, 1891, proceedings in a widely publicized legal case in Kiev drew public attention to an accusation that would be labeled a “ritual murder” or blood libel. The charge—that Jews had killed a Christian child for ritual purposes—echoed older medieval accusations but in the late 19th century it took on new significance amid rising nationalist politics, economic tension, and institutional antisemitism across the Russian Empire. The specific 1891 Kiev case involved the death of a young boy and allegations brought by local authorities and parts of the press that Jewish individuals were responsible as part of a ritual. Contemporary historians note that accusations of ritual murder had circulated in Europe for centuries; what distinguished late 19th-century cases like Kiev’s was their occurrence within modern legal systems and mass-mediated public spheres. Trials attracted large crowds, intense newspaper coverage, and interventions by civic and religious leaders, amplifying social repercussions beyond the courtroom. Legal outcomes in such cases were often ambiguous or contradictory. Some defendants were acquitted or released for lack of reliable evidence; in other situations, charges catalyzed mob violence, expulsions, or official discrimination against Jewish communities. The Kiev affair must be situated in a broader pattern: between the 1870s and early 20th century, Eastern Europe saw multiple high-profile ritual-murder accusations that fueled pogroms, shaped antisemitic policies, and influenced emigration. Modern scholarship emphasizes caution when treating any single trial as the “first” ritual murder case. Blood libel narratives date back to medieval Western Europe—well before 1891—so descriptions that call the Kiev trial the inaugural instance are inaccurate. However, historians often identify late-19th-century trials such as those in Kiev as formative for how ritual-murder accusations were processed and publicized under modern legal and media conditions in the Russian Empire. Primary-source records, contemporary press accounts, and later historical analyses show how the Kiev trial intersected with broader themes: the precarious legal status of Jews under imperial law, the role of nationalist and religious rhetoric in shaping public opinion, and the power of sensational reporting to mobilize violence. Scholarly treatments place the 1891 proceedings among several emblematic cases that together illustrate a transition from localized folklore to politicized courtroom spectacle. Because records from the period can be fragmentary and interpretations contested, it is important to avoid definitive claims beyond what evidence supports. The Kiev trial of February 1891 is best understood not as the absolute first ritual-murder trial in history, but as a prominent late-19th-century example that highlights how old antisemitic myths adapted to modern institutions and mass media, with lasting consequences for Jewish communities in Eastern Europe.