Patriarchy Hill

The town where I live is laid out on the plain, it's laid out like a tray. Curiously, close to its center is a rise, a small hill. The top of the hill, the highest place in the city, is occupied by an architectural and historical complex, in fact, an important institution of the country, the Patriarchate! The Patriarchate of Romania and the city is Bucharest, of course, the capital of the country!

I've been walking around downtown after a break of more than a year. I walked at night. At night it is more pleasant to walk, the city is less crowded and the city lights add to the beauty of the view. The darkness also hides many imperfections and flaws, many ugly places. The walk took me to Patriarchal Hill and, for that reason, this post has only night photos. I hope you will like it too!

The Patriarch's Hill is an important historical, cultural, architectural, touristic, and especially confessional site. As the name says, it is the place where the Romanian Patriarchate is located, i.e. the leadership of the Orthodox Christian Church in Romania.

This architectural complex is composed of the following objectives

Patriarchal Church

The bell tower of the Patriarchal Hill

Patriarchal Palace ( ex Palace of the Chamber of Deputies )

Residence of the Patriarch

A little history...

The first information about this hill dates back to 1650, when there were vineyards here, belonging to both rulers and monks... which proves what doesn't need to be proved. That the Romanians, since ancient times, have loved the wine! On the old ruins of a monastery was built the church in the middle of the complex.

In Romania, most of the historical buildings left from the past are religious buildings. Churches and monasteries. These large and beautifully finished buildings, including gold and precious stones, were very expensive, requiring large amounts of money and many builders. In the Middle Ages, only the rulers, the great lords and... the church had these resources. The church, which also received money from the lords and the rulers!

The night walk took me to the Metropolitan Hill and the beautifully lit church immediately stands out. This place, crowded and full of worshippers during the day, is deserted at night. This gave me the opportunity to photograph as much as possible, unfortunately only the exterior.

The characteristic of these Romanian churches is the exterior painting. Some churches in the north of the country, in Bucovina, are painted on all exterior walls but most are painted only inside and on the porch at the entrance.

As I said, during the day there are many believers praying here but at night it is quiet. However, I surprised a woman who prayed alone outside the church. I don't know what her motives were, perhaps she sought privacy, which I violated. Trying to photograph this incident I managed to capture many other images of the church.

The Patriarchal Palace has a story of its own. It was built on the site of the former Assembly of Deputies. This Assembly of Deputies was a kind of parliament of the Romanian Country in the mid-1800s. Interestingly, this building was built in the middle of the Patriarchate for a practical reason. First of all, it had to be located in the middle of the city, secondly because the Patriarch was the president of the landlords and, by tradition, he could not leave his residence.
The old Assembly of Deputies was replaced in 1907 by a much more spacious building, the Palace of the Chamber of Deputies. It was built according to the plans of a Romanian architect and was a novelty for Romania, reinforced concrete was used for the first time.

A neo-classical building, 80m long, it has a high ground floor and an imposing entrance, supported by six Ionic columns, grouped in pairs.

Finally, this complex closes or opens, depending on which side you enter from, with the bell tower, built-in 1698.

Under this tower, the Prime Minister Barbu Catargiu was shot in 1862. He was the only Romanian politician assassinated during his term of office. A place full of history, a walk through this place always helps to remember these moments.

Beyond history, these buildings form a complex full of beauty and it is a joy that it still exists today, despite various events that could have destroyed it, such as earthquakes, fires, or wars. Moreover, the state has taken care to repair and restore these monuments on several occasions.

Under this tower, Prime Minister Barbu Catargiu was shot in 1862. He was the only Romanian politician assassinated during his term of office. A place full of history, a walk through this place always helps to remember these moments.

Beyond history, these buildings form a complex full of beauty and it is a joy that it still exists today, despite various events that could have destroyed it, such as earthquakes, fires, or wars. Moreover, the state has taken care to repair and restore these monuments on several occasions.

Patriarchy Hill, one of the places in Bucharest worth visiting.