Visit the Stavropoleos Monastery and Cotroceni Palace by Cryptocurrency hotel booking at XcelTrip

Cotroceni Palace

This palace has a fascinating history. It began as a monastery in the 17th century, after which it became the summer residence of King Carol I. Constructed from 1888–93 at the behest of Romania’s first king, Carol I, Cotroceni Palace has since 1991 been the official residence of the Romanian President. Built on the site of a former monastery (the foundations and cellars of which remain, and form part of the tour of the palace), the palace was designed by a French team of architects, led by Paul Gottereau. The design would form something of a blueprint for Romanian domestic architecture for years to come. It served as the Bucharest residence of the Romanian royal family until 1939.

The part that serves today as the president’s office, and official home, however, was added after the great Bucharest earthquake of 1977, and bears the stamp of local architect Nicolae Vladescu. Part of the palace is open to the public, and can be visited on a tour. During the construction of the new wing in the 1980s, ruins of the original monastery church were discovered, including part of the original interior frescoes. The church has been partially rebuilt and can be visited without joining the full palace tour.

Visit the Stavropoleos Monastery

In the heart of the center you will find a building that is quite different from the other buildings: the Stavropoleos Monastery. Surprisingly the church, originally built in 1724 by a Greek monk, managed to survive the fire of 1847. Not many buildings in the center of Bucharest were able to escape that fire.

It was even able to survive Ceauşescu’s communist era when religion was not encouraged, and he even tried to abolish the church. However, since the church and state had a deal where they would not openly attack each other, he couldn’t openly order the monastery’s demolition. Instead, he tried to make the whole neighborhood move, and the only way the church could remain is if it moved as well. Now… can you imagine trying to move a church? It’s kind of impossible! However, a group of inventive Romanians managed to make it possible. They moved the entire church to where it stands now!

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