Ulcinj Church-Mosque, Ulcinj, Montenegro

During the rule of the Venetians the Church of St. Maria was built in the Old Town in 1510. It was turned into a Mosque of the Sultan Selim II as soon as the Turks conquered Ulcinj in 1571. It used to be the so-called Xhamia Mbretrore – Imperial Mosque, as it did not have any Wakf from which it could have been financed at the beginning, so that its employees were paid from the state budget.

Hajji Halil Skura added a minaret in 1693 made of nicely cut stone, in the lower part, on a rectangular base, which was made narrower on top. The religious purpose of this mosque ended in 1880, when the Montenegrins liberated Ulcinj. This religious building also had a maktab. All the Ulcinj reises (captains) would gather there when an important decision had to be made.

This building is the most beautiful monument incorporating a combination of the West and the East in the architecture of Ulcinj. It hosts the town museum.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in Montenegro

User Reviews

Dijar Smajli (11 months ago)
A very peaceful ? and loving place, people are very welcoming and friendly

Adis Suljic (3 years ago)
Beautiful mosque :)

Recep Bahcivan (4 years ago)
Ottoman mosque

Mahmoud Abdellatif (4 years ago)
One of the Mosques in Ulcinj just in front of the public sandy beach

Ahmed G. A. Gammo (6 years ago)
One of the first mosques in continental Europe. One of the locals told me that it was built after some locals converted to Islam after trading with some muslim Algerian traders who sail the Mediterranean. It was destroyed in the first world war. The Muslim Association in Montenegro started rebuilding it in 2008. The mosque reopened 1st June 2012.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Infomastern

Historic Site of the week

Visby Cathedral

Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.

Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.

There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.

Ulcinj Church-Mosque

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

Visby Cathedral