The Donji Brčeli Monastery ( sr, Манастир Доњи Брчели, Manastir Donji Brčeli), also known as Donje Brčele (Доње Брчеле), or simply Brčeli (Брчели), is a

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches. The majori ...

monastery including the Church of St. Nicholas, located near the village of

Virpazar Virpazar ( sr-cyrl, Вирпазар, ) is a village in the municipality of Bar, Montenegro. Overview It is located in the Crmnica region, straddling the Crmnica river, which flows into nearby Skadar Lake. There are various tourist facilities inc ...

in the

Crmnica Crmnica ( Serbian and Montenegrin: Црмница, ) is a historical region in southern Montenegro, one of the communes of the municipality of Bar. It is one of the four sub-regions of Old Montenegro. Geography & Demographics Crmnica is located ...

region of

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

. It was founded by

Jelena Balšić Jelena, also written Yelena and Elena, is a Slavic given name. It is a Slavicized form of the Greek name Helen, which is of uncertain origin. Diminutives of the name include Jelica, Jelka, Jele, Jela, Lena, Lenotschka, Jeca, Lenka, and Alena. Not ...

(1365–1443), the daughter of

Prince Lazar of Serbia Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-cyr, Лазар Хребељановић; ca. 1329 – 15 June 1389) was a medieval Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empire. Lazar's state, ...

Šćepan Mali Šćepan Mali ( sr-cyr, Шћепан Мали ), translated as Stephen the Little, Stephen the Small or Stephen the Humble, ( – 22 September 1773) was the first and only "tsar" of Montenegro, ruling the country as an absolute monarch from 1768 ...

, the impostor pretender of the Russian emperor, was buried here.

Geography

The monastery is located in Donji (Lower) Brčeli, in the Upper Crmnica region, in the Brčeli tribal region (one of seven in Crmnica).

History

It was founded by

(1365–1443), daughter of Prince

Lazar of Serbia Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-cyr, Лазар Хребељановић; ca. 1329 – 15 June 1389) was a medieval Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empire. Lazar's state, ...

and wife of Zetan lord

Đurađ II Đurađ ( sr-Cyrl, Ђурађ, ; ) is a Serbian masculine given name, derived from the Greek ''Georgios''. It is also transliterated as Djuradj. It is, along with the variant '' Đorđe'', the equivalent of the English '' George''. It was widespr ...

. The village of Brčele had earlier been granted by King

Stefan Dečanski Stefan Uroš III ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош III, ), known as Stefan Dečanski ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Дечански, ; 1276 – 11 November 1331), was the King of Serbia from 6 January 1322 to 8 September 1331. Dečanski was the son of ...

(r. 1321–31) to the Monastery of St. Nicholas on the

Vranjina Vranjina ( cnr, Врањина) is a settlement, island, and a hill in Lake Skadar, in the Montenegrin municipality of Podgorica. Until the first half of the 18th century, Vranjina like other islands of Skadar lake, was one of the hills in the Ze ...

island. In 1714, the Ottomans burned down the Bigovo Monastery in the

Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...

, so the ''

hegumen Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen ( el, ἡγούμενος, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called a hegumenia ...

'' and monks found shelter in the Brčeli Monastery.

, the impostor pretender of Russian Tsar Peter III, who managed to rule

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

from 1767 until his death in 1773, was buried in the monastery.

Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Petar II Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Петар II Петровић-Његош, ; – ), commonly referred to simply as Njegoš (), was a Prince-Bishop (''vladika'') of Montenegro, poet and philosopher whose works are widely considered ...

sent Bishop Nikifor of Užice to Brčeli upon his arrival at

Morača The Morača ( sr-cyrl, Морача, ) is a major river in Montenegro that originates in the northern region in Kolašin Municipality under Mount Rzača. It meanders southwards for before emptying into Lake Skadar. Its drainage basin covers ...

from the

Principality of Serbia The Principality of Serbia ( sr-Cyrl, Књажество Србија, Knjažestvo Srbija) was an autonomous state in the Balkans that came into existence as a result of the Serbian Revolution, which lasted between 1804 and 1817. Its creation wa ...

. In 1861, the monastery was reconstructed by Prince

Nikola I Petrović Nikola I Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyr, Никола I Петровић-Његош; – 1 March 1921) was the last monarch of Montenegro from 1860 to 1918, reigning as prince from 1860 to 1910 and as the country's first and only king from 1910 to 19 ...

of Montenegro.

References

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Donji Brceli Monastery 15th-century Serbian Orthodox church buildings Serbian Orthodox monasteries in Montenegro Bar, Montenegro Medieval Montenegro