Church

The oldest medieval church in Galati, subjected to many human hazards, but preserving the first form in which it rose on the spur of the hill since the eighteenth century. Being dependent of the Metropolitan Church of Proilavia, the edifice captures the dual utility (ecclesiastical and military) and the ingenious way in which the brick and stone, originating from the Roman Barbosi camp, blends in a synthesis of glorious history and Christian spirituality.

19th-century monumental and significant construction of what the Greek community of Galati meant. The monument is part of an architectural ensemble, to which the Agora has recently been added.

Mavromol Church (from Greek works meaning “black rock”) from Galați has the patron “Adomirea Maicii Domnului” (the Assumption), and its construction was begun by the ruler Gheorghe Duca during his third reign in Moldova (1678-1683) and finished by his son, the ruler Constantin Duca in 1702. This church was dedicated to Mavromol Skite from Constantinopol. After it was burned down by the Turcs in 1736, Grigore Duca, the son of Costantin Duca, dedicated this church to Iași Mitropoly. The current building dates from 1858-1861 and respects the original plan, although the original style has been altered by the introduction of apses, buttresses, windows and niches. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro; http://www.biserici.org/Bogdan Frunză

Testimony of the presence of a Catholic community in the city, the cathedral building impresses with its romantic and cross-shaped architecture and a still functional pipe organ, the first of its kind in the city of Galati.

The Church of St. Dumitru was built by Vasile Lupu, ruler of Moldavia (1634 – 1653). There is no information about the exact year when it was built, but the Catholic missionary Petru Bogdan Bakšic (Deodato), who was in Galaţi in September, the 22nd 1641, notes that in the city "there is a large and beautiful church built by the ruler and dedicated to St. Dumitru, the martyr". The church was built with brick and stone taken from Barboși Castrum, the church was dedicated to the Vatoped Monastery from Mount Athos, built by the same ruler. The construction of the church can be related to the bringing in the relics of St. Paraschiva, which the ruler had received in 1640 from the Patriarchy of Constantinople for the great money help he had provided. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro; http://www.edj.ro/

The Church St. George from Galați was built in 1897 and sanctified in May, the 27th 1897 by Partenie Clinceni, the Bishop of the Lower Danube. The name of the church was inspired by another Church of St. George that was built in 1664, near the Danube River, close to the Church Precista (The Church of the Virgin) which at that moment was gradually collapsing. Since the people in the parish were plowmen, carriers, andcattle breeders, the second patron was St. Patriarch Modest of Jerusalem (5th century), the animals’ protector. The third patron, St. Ecaterina (Catherine), was added in 1929. Representatives for the Church of St. Gheorghe, Modest and Ecaterina in Galați are the big tower, the iconostasis, the special painting style, and the wonderful embroidered epitaph. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro; http://www.edj.ro/

In 1776, Mihai Racovită, the ruler, built the Church of St. Nicholas and dedicated to St Ecaterina from Sinai Mountain Monastery. The church was small and was built after a triconch plan. The construction year is engraved on the foundations and on the nowdays church’s floor. The Church of St. Nicholas has a ship shape plan, divided by two rows of collomns. The west wall and on the first two octagonal columns in the church sustain the Pantocrator Tower with a circular section. The iconostas is wood carved and separates the altar apse from the rest of the church. The painting was refurbished after 1980 in very loud colors. On the outside, the church has several Greek decorative elements: Doric columns, triangular pediments, and denticles. The foundation is made of river boulders, the masonry of brick, the roof truss of wood, and the cover is made of sheet metal. Text and photo sources: //galatituristic.ro/; http://www.biserici.org/

Built at the beginning of the XIX century, St. Spiridon Church has elements specific to the Moldavian religious architecture. The church was built after a triconch plan, with four buttresses and includes a closed porch, covered with a spherical cap and the slightly elongated nave over which there is a tower that reproduces the image of Jesus Pantocrator. Two large towers, with a square base from the wall and continued with timber, rise above the porch and over the nave. On the outside, you can admire a middle girdle of bricks placed on the church’s corners, the same ornamental motif repeating itself at the base of the towers. The foundation of the church was made of river boulders, and a masonry brick over a meter thick, with a sheet of casing and sustained by a roof truss. Over time, the church was subject to several interventions. Just like the other churches in Galați, the church of St. Spiridon was burnt in 1821. The most valuable elements of the church are the rood screen and the icons. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro; https://www.viata-libera.ro

Sfinții Voievozi Church was built between 1857 and 1963 on the highest point of the city, therefore dubbed "Catedrala din deal"(Cathedral from the hill). With an impressive architecture, the church was designed according to the Bolgrad Cathedral plan, at the suggestion of the Bishop Melchisedec Ştefănescu (the first Bishop of the Lower Danube, in 1864), and it is about to become the Cathedral of Galați county. The sanctum was built on the cemetery of the former public hospital, where are buried the bodies of the Russian soldiers fallen on the battlefields in the Russian-Turkish wars, starting with the one from 1806-1812 and ending with the Crimean War (1853-1856). In recent years, the Sfinții Voievozi Church has been restored capitally for the third time, and in 2011 the Church was resanctified. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro/

Vovidenia Church from Galați county, having the patronage of the Entrance of Our Lady to the Church, was built in 1790 by the old governor Ion Cârja, and in the same year was sanctified by the archpriest G. Avram. The church was built using a triconch plan with architectural and decorative elements specific to the Moldavian religious architecture. The narthex is covered with a semi-circular vault, and the nave is covered by the Pantocrator Tower, and above the altar another smaller tower is rising. On the exterior, the church has a belt made of medial girdle consisting of two rows of bricks placed on the corner. The cornice is decorated with niches. The foundation is made of river boulders and concrete, the masonry is made of bricks, the framing is made of wood and the coating is made of sheet-metal. The bell tower on the porch is an addition from 1901. Text and photo sources: http://galatituristic.ro/; http://www.edj.ro/

In more than half a century, the Orthodox community of Galati was rewarded with an impressive Cathedral, with elements of neo-Romanian style and original interior fresco. The monument today is founded by King Ferdinand I of Hohenzollern -Sigmaringen and Queen Mary.

The Jews were concerned, from the beginning of their settlement,with their religion. At first, they met in prayer homes installed in residential homes and then by building synagogues by different categories of parishioners who were frequenting them. Thus, in 1780, the Great Synagogue was set up and also a mikwe with a steam bath was installed. The Great Synagogue also functioned as headquarters for the first Jewish Community in Galati (epitropia).