Rača Monastery, one of the important medieval monasteries of the Serbian Orthodox Church, had a very important spiritual, cultural, educational and historical role for the serbian people in the past.
The monastery is located at the foot of Mount Tara, 3 km from the Drina River. According to legend, the monastery was built by King Dragutin in 1276. Rača Monastery suffered several times, mostly during the fall of the Despotovina (1459) and during the first great migration of Serbs (1690).
Rača copying school
During the Middle Ages, the Rača copying school worked in the monastery. Turkish travel writer Evliya Çelebi noted that hundreds of copyist monks worked in the copying school. The monastery was first renovated at the end of the 18th century, and the last major renovation took place in the middle of the 19th century.
A person who is inextricably linked to the monastery is its archimandrite Hadji Melentije, who organized the restoration and gathered the faithful around the monastery. Melentije Stevanović, as his real name was, was one of the leaders of the true Serbian uprising and the duke of the Sokol Nahija. The new painting and iconostasis come from the middle of the 19th century, when the large bell tower was built.
Miroslav’s jevanđelje
During World War II, the monastery was burned by the Bulgarians when the treasury was looted. On this occasion, Miroslav’s jevađelje (The most important Cyrillic monument of Serbian-Slavic literacy from the 12th century), which kept in the monastery during the war years was not taken away. Patriarch Pavle one of the most beloved spiritual leaders from the end of the 20th century stayed in the Rača monastery several times while he was a monk. The beautiful surroundings of the monastery in the embrace of the mountains are the right place for peace and prayer.
These are just some of the reasons why the Rača Monastery should be an unmissable place of visit for those who visit these parts of Serbia and why we included it in our popular tour Wooden City & Sargan Eight Train tour
