Church & monasteryCentral Bulgaria & the Balkan Range

Sokolski Monastery, a Revival-Era Convent near Gabrovo

Sokolski Monastery is a Bulgarian Orthodox convent founded in 1833, set in the Falcon's Cave area on the northern slopes of the Balkan Mountains, about 12 km from Gabrovo. It is known for its large courtyard, a stone fountain with eight taps, frescoes of 1862 and a part in the Bulgarian struggle for liberation. It makes a quiet, atmospheric detour among Bulgaria's hidden gems.

For more than a century this was a monastery for men with over a hundred monks. In 1959 the communist authorities blew up a convent in Gabrovo and its nuns moved here, so it is now a convent.

WhereNorthern slopes of the Balkan Mountains in Bulgarka Nature Park, about 12 km from Gabrovo and 4 km south of Etar

TypeBulgarian Orthodox convent from the Bulgarian National Revival

Best forLovers of Revival architecture and icons, walkers, and anyone tracing the 1876 April Uprising

Getting thereBy road from Gabrovo, with a bus connection, or on foot from Etar along a marked trail in under two hours

The history of Sokolski Monastery

The monastery was founded at the beginning of 1833 by Archimandrite Yosif, who later became known as Yosif Sokolski, a figure in the struggle for church autonomy. He came to his native region from the Troyan Monastery with the hieromonk Agapiy, and both the monastery and its founder take their names from the locality of Sokolova peshtera, the Falcon's Cave, on the upper Yantra river. The church and the first residential building were put up by the well-known master builder Konstantin of Peshtera, who later also built the main churches of the Troyan and Batoshevo monasteries.

The new monastery was solemnly opened on 15 August 1834 by Metropolitan Hilarion of Tarnovo. In 1836 Yosif Sokolski set up a school here, where Neofit Bozveli taught for a short time, and a literary centre was started as well. In 1856 the band of Captain Dyado Nikola settled in the monastery, intending to make it the centre of a planned uprising, and its banner was consecrated here. Vasil Levski is also said to have found shelter within these walls.

For years the church stood without decoration. The Russian vice-consul Nayden Gerov, visiting on the feast day of 15 August 1858, noted indignantly that it had no frescoes and not even a proper patronal icon. This changed in 1862, when Pop Pavel Zograf and his son Nikola from Shipka painted the nave and narthex, and masters of the Tryavna school made the iconostasis with its royal and festive icons. The patronal icon was painted by Hristo Tsokev of Gabrovo, who donated it; the church icon of the Virgin and Child is regarded as miraculous. In the 1860s the stone fountain in the courtyard was built by the master Kolyu Ficheto, and it remains a precious architectural monument.

The monastery was drawn into the struggle for freedom again in 1876. On 1 May the insurgents of voivode Tsanko Dyustabanov gathered here and the Gabrovo band began its fighting march; blessed by the monks, they fought in the villages of Krivenik and Novo Selo. The band was defeated, and eight of the fighters were hanged on the rocks near the monastery. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 the monastery served as a military hospital.

From its foundation until 1959 it was a men's monastery, where more than a hundred monks served under fifteen abbots. In 1959 the communist authorities blew up the Annunciation convent that Yosif Sokolski had founded in Gabrovo in 1839, and the nuns were moved to Sokolski Monastery. In 1968 they arranged the chapel of the Annunciation in the northern part, where the saved iconostasis and icons painted by Zahari Zograf are displayed. A museum of relics from the struggle for liberation belongs to the monastery, which was declared a historic site in 1973 and is an active convent today.

Curious facts about Sokolski Monastery

The name comes from the locality of Sokolova peshtera, the Falcon's Cave; in German the monastery is sometimes called the Falcon Monastery.
The big stone fountain in the courtyard has eight taps and is the work of the famous master Kolyu Ficheto.
The Revival teacher Neofit Bozveli taught for a short time at the monastery school opened in 1836.
Eight insurgents of the 1876 uprising were hanged on the rocks by the monastery, and Tsanko Dyustabanov himself was hanged in Tarnovo.
The geographic centre of Bulgaria is said to lie close by, in the Usana area.
The monastery and the land around it, about 75 hectares of forest, are a protected site, and the monastery stands within Bulgarka Nature Park near Sokolovo cave.

Tours near Sokolski Monastery

Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:

ATV/QUAD Off-Road Tour in Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi

★ 5 (61 reviews) · 1.5 h

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Admission Ticket to Illusions in Museum in Veliko Turnovo

★ 4.8 (41 reviews) · 1 h

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Interactive Presentation about Bulgarian Poets

★ 5 (19 reviews) · 40 min

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Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi day tour from Sofia with pickup

★ 4.9 (19 reviews) · 10 h

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Visiting Sokolski Monastery: what to expect

The large courtyard is surrounded by residential and utility buildings, with the stone fountain at its centre; the church stands in the yard.
Look inside for the frescoes of 1862, the carved iconostasis of the Tryavna school and the chapel of the Annunciation, which is in the northern part of the monastery.
A museum with relics from the national liberation struggle belongs to the monastery. It is an active convent, so dress and behave respectfully and check the current visiting conditions before you go.
From Etar, a marked trail of under two hours leads to the monastery; Etar open-air museum is only about 4 km away.
Other sights in the area include the Shipka Memorial, about 6 km away, the Buzludzha monument and the Tomb of Seuthes III.

Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.

Map: where Sokolski Monastery is

Photos of Sokolski Monastery

Questions

What is Sokolski Monastery?

Sokolski Monastery is a Bulgarian Orthodox convent founded in 1833 by Yosif Sokolski. It stands on the northern slopes of the Balkan Mountains near Gabrovo and is a typical monument of the Bulgarian National Revival.

Where is Sokolski Monastery and how far is it from Gabrovo?

It lies in the Falcon's Cave locality in Bulgarka Nature Park, about 12 km from Gabrovo and about 4 km south of the Etar open-air museum.

Why is Sokolski Monastery important in Bulgarian history?

In 1876 the insurgents of Tsanko Dyustabanov gathered here at the start of the April Uprising in the Gabrovo area. Earlier, in 1856, the band of Captain Dyado Nikola had its banner consecrated here.

Who made the fountain at Sokolski Monastery?

The stone fountain with eight taps in the courtyard was built in the 1860s by the master builder Kolyu Ficheto and is considered a valuable architectural monument.

Is Sokolski Monastery a monastery for monks or nuns?

It was a men's monastery from 1833 until 1959. Since the nuns of the destroyed Annunciation convent from Gabrovo moved here, it has been a convent.

How can I walk to Sokolski Monastery?

A marked trail leads from Etar to the monastery and takes less than two hours. By road it can also be reached from Gabrovo, and a bus service runs to it.