The monastery was completed in the early 15th century, during the reign of MoldavianHospodarAlexandru I Mușat. It was built as the bishop's seat for the local Armenian Church in 1401, which was founded by Alexandru I. Saint AuxentiusChurch was designed to be the center of the complex. The church was renovated or rebuilt in 1606, when a number of other structures were added, among them the belltower, the gate, and a residential structure with a chapel dedicated to Gregory the Illuminator, all of which survive to this day. The church's interior was decorated with murals in the 18th century.
When James Louis Sobieski (1667–1737) attempted to ascend to the Moldavian throne, he used the monastery as his base of operations. In 1690 it became the headquarters of the Polish Army for all of their operations in Moldavia related to Poland's participation in the War of the Holy League against the Ottoman Empire. Staying at the monastery for several years, the Poles built an extensive network of bastion fortifications, which are well preserved to this day. The monastery's popular name, "Zamca", likely comes from this period; it is derived from zamek, the Polish word for castle.
Bibliography
W. Korsak, J. Tokarski, Rumunia, Pascal 2004, s. 205–206.
Ł. Galusek, M. Jurecki, A. Dumitru, Rumunia. Mozaika w żywych kolorach, Bezdroża 2004, s. 155–156.
M. Jurecki, Bukowina. Kraina łagodności, Bezdroża 2001, s. 192–193.
R. Brykowski, T. Chrzanowski, M. Kornecki, Sztuka Rumunii, Ossolineum 1979, s. 89, 92–93.
J. Demel, Historia Rumunii, Ossolineum 1970, s. 205.
Moldavia is a historical region and former principality in Central and Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially independent and later autonomous state, it existed from the 14th century to 1859, when it united with Wallachia as the basis of the modern Romanian state; at various times, Moldavia included the regions of Bessarabia, all of Bukovina and Hertsa. The region of Pokuttya was also part of it for a period of time.
Bukovina is a historical region, variously described as part of either Central or Eastern Europe. The region is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided between Romania and Ukraine.
Stephen III, commonly known as Stephen the Great ; died on 2 July 1504), was Voivode of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504. He was the son of and co-ruler with Bogdan II, who was murdered in 1451 in a conspiracy organized by his brother and Stephen's uncle Peter III Aaron, who took the throne. Stephen fled to Hungary, and later to Wallachia; with the support of Vlad III Țepeș, Voivode of Wallachia, he returned to Moldavia, forcing Aaron to seek refuge in Poland in the summer of 1457. Teoctist I, Metropolitan of Moldavia, anointed Stephen prince. He attacked Poland and prevented Casimir IV Jagiellon, King of Poland, from supporting Peter Aaron, but eventually acknowledged Casimir's suzerainty in 1459.
Suceava is a municipality and the namesake county seat town of Suceava County, situated in the historical regions of Bukovina and Moldavia, northeastern Romania and at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe respectively. It is the largest urban settlement of Suceava County, with a population of 84,308 inhabitants according to the 2021 Romanian census.
Roman is a city located in the central part of Western Moldavia, a traditional region of Romania. It is located 46 km (29 mi) east of Piatra Neamț, in Neamț County at the confluence of the rivers Siret and Moldova.
According to the 2021 Romanian census, 2,137 Poles live in Romania, mainly in the villages of Suceava County. There are three exclusively Polish villages, as follows: Nowy Sołoniec, Plesza (Pleșa), and Pojana Mikuli, as well a significant Polish presence in Kaczyca (Cacica) and Paltynosa (Păltinoasa). There is also a relatively sizable number of ethnic Poles living in the county seat, Suceava.
Alexander I, commonly known as Alexander the Good was Voivode of Moldavia between 1400 and 1432. He was the son of Roman I and succeeded Iuga to the throne. As ruler he initiated a series of reforms while consolidating the status of the Principality of Moldavia.
Rădăuți is a town in Suceava County, north-eastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. According to the 2021 census, Rădăuți is the second largest urban settlement in the county. It was declared a municipality in 1995, along with two other cities in Suceava County: Fălticeni and Câmpulung Moldovenesc. Rădăuți covers an area of 32.30 km2 (12.47 sq mi) and it was the capital of former Rădăuți County.
Solca is a town in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. Solca is the smallest town in the county and the third-smallest town in Romania, with a population of 2,405 inhabitants, according to the 2021 census. Its name is derived from that of the river flowing through it, in turn derived from Slavic sol ("salt") – in reference to the area's salty springs. Solca is known for its high quality air, for being a former spa, and for the beer that was manufactured here.
The north of the Moldavia region in Romania preserves numerous religious buildings as a testimony of the Moldavian architectural style developed in the Principality of Moldavia starting from the 14th century.
Dolhasca is a town in Suceava County, in the historical region of Western Moldavia, northeastern Romania. Dolhasca is the eighth largest urban settlement in the county, with a population of 11,007 inhabitants, according to the 2021 census. It was declared a town in 2004, along with seven other localities in Suceava County. The town administers seven villages, namely: Budeni, Gulia, Poiana, Poienari, Probota, Siliștea Nouă, and Valea Poienei.
The Neamț Monastery is a Romanian Orthodox religious settlement, one of the oldest and most important of its kind in Romania. It was built in the 15th century, and it is an example of medieval Moldavian architecture. A jewel of 15th-century architecture, the church was built during the reign of Stephen III of Moldavia (1457–1504) and finished in the year when the Moldavian army won the battle against King John I Albert of Poland (1497).
The Dragomirna Monastery was built during the first three decades of the 17th century, 15 km from Suceava, in the Mitocu Dragomirnei commune. It is the tallest medieval monastery in northern Moldavia and renowned in Orthodox architecture for its unique proportions and intricate details, mostly carved into stone. It lies among forested hills of fir and oak. The history of the monastery started in 1602, when the small church in the graveyard was built and dedicated to Saints Enoch, Elijah, and John the Theologian. In 1609 the dedication of the larger church was made to the "Descent of the Holy Spirit".
Simion Movilă, a boyar of the Movilești family, was twice Prince of Wallachia and Prince of Moldavia from July 1606 until his death.
Armenians in Poland have an important and historical presence going back to the 14th century. According to the Polish census of 2021 there are 6,772 ethnic Armenians in Poland.
The Bistrița Monastery is a Romanian Orthodox monastery located 8 km west of Piatra Neamț. It was dedicated in 1402, having as original ctitor the Moldavian Voivode Alexandru cel Bun whose remains are buried here.
Mănăstirea Trei Ierarhi is a seventeenth-century monastery located in Iași, Romania. The monastery is listed in the National Register of Historic Monuments and included on the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Socola Monastery or Schimbarea la Față ("Transfiguration") was a Romanian Orthodox establishment located in the eponymous quarter of southern Iaşi, Romania. Founded during Moldavia's existence as a state, it was erected and dedicated by Moldavian Prince Alexandru Lăpuşneanu in 1562, and originally functioned as nunnery. The establishment acquired a significant historical position in Romanian education during the early 19th century, when it functioned as a seminary and the first-ever institution to provide secondary training in the Romanian language.
Saint John the New Monastery is a Romanian Orthodox monastery in Suceava, Romania. Built between 1514 and 1522, the monastery church is one of eight buildings that make up the churches of Moldavia UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is also listed as a historic monument by the country's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs. Its construction began during the reign of voivode Bogdan III the One-Eyed of Moldavia, after the nearby Mirăuți Church was devastated in 1513. The construction was completed by Stephen IV of Moldavia. The monastery church served as metropolitan cathedral of Moldavia until 1677 and, since 1991, it serves as the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți. The church is dedicated to Saint George and it has frescoes painted on the outside, typical of the region.
The Moldavian vault is an architectural element of religious architecture used from the 15th to the 17th century in Moldavia. It is an arched suspension system on pendentives. It was mostly located above the naos or the main nave of the temple. The vault creates a transition from a square plane to a circular plane leading to a dome or tholobate tower. Consists of four diagonal arches over which pendentives transform square the circle. Four smaller segment arches in turn transform the circle into a square. Gradually they rise above the nave and crown the dome or tholobate tower. The vault allows a significant reduction in the diameter and weight of the tholobate, the dome and the tower itself.
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