Monastery Tvrdoš is located on the right bank of Trebišnjica river, 5 km to the west of Trebinje in the Republic of Srpska. It is dedicated to the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. The monastery was built on the foundations of a church from 4th century and it is one the oldest cultural-historical monuments in the Republic of Srpska.
During 16th and 17th century Tvrdoš was the seat of Hum-Herzegovina – Trebinje episcopacy. During the Turkish-Venetian war the monastery was destroyed, and some relics were moved to monastery Savina (Herceg Novi) and monastery Duži. In 1992 the hand of queen Helen de Anjou, mother of kings Milutin and Dragutin, was moved from Duži to Tvrdoš.
The monastery is also famous for the fact that Vasilije of Ostrog was tonsured in it, becoming a priest. After that, he spent some time serving as a parson of Popovo polje. That is the reason he is called ‘Of Ostrog and Tvrdoš’.
The rebirth of the monastery started in 1955 when the whole complex was renovated. The special characteristic of today’s church is its glass floor, which in a way offers a ‘window to past’, because foundations of the church from the 4th century can be seen through it.
A long tradition of winemaking which dates back to the 15th century has been successfully preserved to this day, thanks to new vineyards, wine cellar and modern winery.
Today the monastery has two cellars. In the old stone cellar from the 15th century, the wine ”Vranac” is maturing in the centuries-old oak barrels, and only ten meters away, along with Trebišnjica River itself, there is a new cellar, equipped with the latest technology and perfectly integrated into the existing complex.
The winery of the Monastery Tvrdoš nurture the traditions of monastic winegrowing and the Herzegovina region, producing wines from indigenous and international varieties in the 15th-century cellar.
TST
