Thebaine was converted to oripavine in three steps by employing two different modes of protection of the diene moiety; as an iron tricarbonyl complex and as a Diels-Alder adduct with thioformyl cyanide. The two C-ring-protected thebaine derivatives were subjected to 3-O-demethylation by four different protocols, providing oripavine derivatives, which yielded oripavine after deprotection. Oripavine was then converted to hydromorphone by a three-step process of ketalization, hydrogenation, and deprotection, without the isolation of intermediates.