The Voljavča Monastery is located three kilometers south of Stragari, on the slopes of Rudnik Mountain. It is dedicated to the Holy Archangels and was built at the beginning of the 15th century by Mihajlo Končinović, a nobleman from Srebrenica. Throughout history, it was set on fire several times by the Turks and was rebuilt several times. The first major reconstruction of the monastery took place in 1530 when the church was thoroughly rebuilt. In the 18th century, it was restored twice, first after 1765, and then after the Kočina Krajina rebellion in 1788. The refectory was built in 1779. Archbishop Grigorije rebuilt the church and constructed new guesthouses with a new refectory in 1794. During 1805, it was the center of the Governing Council until it moved to Bogovađa.
The present-day monastery complex consists of the church, two guesthouses, economic buildings, and a stone fence. The church is triconch, vaulted with a semi-domed roof, and features a dome rising above the central space. The altar apse and side niches are semi-circular both externally and internally and are slightly lower than the naos. A large two-story bell tower was built in 1838 on the western side of the church. The roofs were initially covered with stone tiles and later with galvanized sheet metal. The southern door is the only one decorated with stylized ornaments. The iconostasis is the work of Janja Moler.
The guesthouse, built in the second half of the 18th century in the eastern part of the monastery complex, consists of a basement, ground floor, and upper floor. The first two sections are made of rubble and dressed stone, while the upper floor is in timber-frame construction. The western facade features porticos with beautifully crafted wooden columns.
THE VOLJAVČA MONASTERY
The guesthouse belongs to the general type of Moravian buildings from that period. Karađorđe renovated it, particularly the upper part, for the needs of the Council that convened there in 1805.
The southern guesthouse was built in the mid-19th century on the foundations of an older structure. This building is particularly interesting for its cellars, reinforced with semi-circular stone arches. The guesthouse, which also belongs to the Moravian type of buildings, has a rectangular base with a basement and ground floor, and a large and spacious portico on the northern side.
The Voljavča Monastery was declared a cultural monument by the Decision of the Institute for the Protection and Scientific Study of Cultural Monuments of the NR of Serbia No. 453/49, dated March 18, 1949, and was classified as a cultural heritage of great importance for the Republic of Serbia on April 7, 1979, in the ‘Official Gazette of the RS’, No. 14/79.
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