Description of the attraction
In Cetinje, in the lower reaches of the Eagle Cross Mountain in Montenegro, there is the Cetinje Monastery, which has been the residence of the metropolitans for more than five hundred years.
The monastery was founded and built by Ivan Chernoevich in 1484 at the mountain foothills of Lovcen together with the palace. Subsequently, the residence of the former Zeta diocese, which was founded in 1219 by St. Sava I, was moved here from the Vranjinsky monastery.
The Cetinje Monastery experienced many events, which turned out to be more or less significant and turning points in the fate of Montenegro. The monastery was completely destroyed during the Moray War. In 1688, the monastery was sheltered by the Venetian garrison, after the retreat of which the monastery was blown up, and the spiritual residence of Montenegro was transferred to a monastery located in the center of Montenegro - Dobrska Celia.
At the beginning of the 18th century, the monastery was brought back to life thanks to Metropolitan Daniel, who became the first ruler from the Njegos dynasty. The Cetinje Monastery was built in a new place - on the slope of the Eagle Cross Mountain. The monastery was completely restored only in 1724 after the financial support of Russia. Montenegro in those years was subjected to brutal interventions by the Turks.
Further transformations of the monastery are as follows: in the 1890s, an open-type tomb was added to the outer wall in honor of the ruling dynasty; in 1896, the upper tier of the bell tower is crowned with a clock, over which a small belfry appears; in 1984, a museum exposition of the Cetinian sacristy was housed in the old building of the residence, as a new building was built for the metropolitans.
In the main monastery church, dedicated to the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos, the key shrines of the monastery are kept. There are also the remains of Nikolai and his wife Queen Milena - the last rulers of Montenegro. In addition, the cell of St. Peter of Cetinsky, where a particle of the relics of St. Theodore Stratilates. The interior decoration includes a carved wooden iconostasis, as well as an icon of St. Peter Cetinsky in the place of the patronal image.
The monastery museum contains a collection of unique historical relics related to the history of Montenegro. For example, the vestments of the Metropolitans of Montenegro, gifts from Russian emperors and a collection of valuable books written in the period from the 13th to the 19th centuries, both handwritten and printed, are kept there.
