Glozhene Monastery

One of the most interesting monasteries in Bulgaria, the Glozhene Monastery, named “St. George the Victorious” is rising in the marvelous Teteven Balkan on the top of a high cliff amid the natural beaties of the northern Balkan Mountain Range. It is situated some 100 km away from Sofia, a bit off the Sofia-Varna main road, very close to the nearby villages of Malak Izvor and Glozhene. It is pinned on the top of an almost unapproachable rock and hence resembles a medieval castle when viewed from a distance. The monastery church is decorated with beautiful wall paintings, which unfortunately were destroyed in 1913 when an earthquake ruined completely the church. The present-day church was rebuilt in 1951 and represents a relatively narrow but high building.

According to the monastery’s annals, the cloister was built in the 13th century by the Ukrainian prince Georgiy Glozh, chased by the Tatar hordes. He settled in the area with the agreement and help of the Bulgarian King Ivan Assen II. The Bulgarian king let him build Glozhene village and started the construction of the monastery. Soon, close to the village of Glozhene (named after him) and the river of Cherni Vit, Prince Glozh established a cloister, dedicated to St George the Victorious, an icon of whom he carried with him all the way from Ukraine to Bulgaria. Legends tell that shortly after the establishment of the monastery, the icon of St George repeatedly disappeared from the monastery and was found later on a hill close to the village where the monastery lies today. This disappearance of the icon was interpreted by the monks as a sign from god that the monastery had to be moved to the hill. Thus, in the end of the 14th century the monastery was moved to its present-day site.

However, for awhile the two monasteries existed in parallel, connected by an underground tunnel. This shortcut was used numerous times by the Bulgarian Apostle of Freedom, Vassil Levski, in his attempts to escape from the Ottoman persecutors. For many years, especially during the Bulgarian Liberation movement, the Glozhene Monastery served as a place of enlightened and military organizational activities. Besides Vassil Levski, the monastery also sheltered the famous Bulgarian man of letters, Vassil Drumev. On the order of King Ferdinand, Drumev was kept prisoner in the monastery over 15 months.


The complex of the Glozhene Monastery offers accommodation; however, food is not offered there since there are no restaurants or pubs in the complex.