The Temple Monument of "The Birth of Christ"

"Rozhdestvo Hristovo" - Russian Church, Shipka

The Temple Monument of the Birth of Christ (Храм-паметник „Рождество Христово“, Hram-pametnik „Rozhdestvo Hristovo“), better known as Shipka Monument Church or Shipka Monastery is a Bulgarian Orthodox Church built near the town of Shipka in Stara Planina between 1885 and 1902 by Antoniy Tomishko under the direction of architect Alexander Pomerantsev. It is, together with the other parts of the Shipka Monument complex, dedicated to the Russian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian soldiers that died for the liberation of Bulgaria in the Russo-Turkish War, 1877-78.

The church's bell tower reaches a height of 53 m and its bells, the heaviest of which weighs 12 tons, were cast from the cartridges that were collected after the battles. In the temple itself, the names of the Russian regiments and Bulgarian volunteers are inscribed on 34 marble plates. The remains of the perished are laid in 17 stone tombs in the church's crypt.

Surely this is one of the most beautiful churches in my native country Bulgaria and not for nothing it is one of the most visited places in Bulgaria. And not so far from the picturesque church, just over the top of mountain there you can go, visit and see the Shipka Monument connected to the battle between Russian and Bulgarians soldiers against Turkish soldiers in Shipka pass in 1878. And the view from Shipka Pass is spectacular in all the directions.

Going down to the part north of the Pass Shipka you can go and visit many other churches, many monasteries in this area - Sokolski Monastery, Drianovski Monastery and the Cave just nearby "Bacho Kiro", Gabrovo, Veliko Tarnovo with all the churches and monasteries nearby, many villages like Arbanasi and Bojentsi, which saved the history architecture of Bulgaria and the small special village, which is an Open Air Museum called "Etara - Architectural-Ethnographic Complex". In the near future I will try to present you also these interesting places.

This is one HDR image but it is not this I prefer to do so much. Howsoever in this case it was better to see in someway this marvelous church.