The Shipka monastery ‘The Birth of Jesus’ is located in the outskirts of the town of Shipka.

The idea for its foundation belongs to the Russian diplomat Count Ignatiev and to the mother of General Skobelev – Olga Skobeleva. The funds for the construction were donated by the people of Russia and the residents of the town of Shipka contributed with the terrain. The construction began in 1885 and was completed in 1902. In 1902 was also painted the main temple of the monastery. The monastery was Russian until 1934 when the Soviet government gave it to Bulgaria. Today the Shipka monastery is a part of park-museum ‘Shipka – Buzludzha’.

The temple was declared an architectural and contruction monument in State Gazette No. 33/1970.

The church is cruciform, with a square nave and three apses. On the walls of the temple and in the galleries outside are put 34 marble slabs with the names of the army officers and volunteers who died during the Russo-Turkish war in 1877-78, the most of bitter battles of which were in the Shipka passage not far from the town of Shipka.  To the Western part of the church is a 53 meters high bell tower. The total number of the bells in it is 17 and the biggest of them weights 1643 kg.

The Shipka monastery is an active one. Its patron saint’s day is on 25-th of December. The monastery does not offer accommodation. In the churches visitors can buy information leaflets, souvenirs.

Contacts:

Shipka monastery

Telephone: +359 4324 20 47

e-mail: yakov84@abv.bg