Introduction
The area of present-day Ohrid, in the Republic of North Macedonia, was part of the Eastern Roman Empire after the division of 395. From the 6th century onward, it was settled by South Slavic tribes, who gradually merged with the existing population. The city, known in antiquity as Lychnidos, retained this name until the Early Middle Ages. In the 9th century, during the expansion of the First Bulgarian Empire, the name Ohrid appeared. Byzantine writers referred to it as Achrida or Achris.
The city soon emerged as a major cultural and spiritual centre of the Slavic world. In 886, Saint Clement of Ohrid, a disciple of Saints Cyril and Methodius, founded the Ohrid Literary School, regarded as the first Slavic university, which played a decisive role in the spread of Christian learning, literacy, and the use of the Glagolitic and Cyrillic alphabets across the Balkans. In the late 10th and early 11th centuries, Ohrid served as the capital of Tsar Samuel’s empire and as the seat of the Bulgarian Patriarchate.
In 1018, following Samuel’s defeat, Ohrid was reincorporated into the Byzantine Empire, where it remained, with occasional interruptions, until 1203. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the city changed rulers several times, falling under the Second Bulgarian Empire, the Despotate of Epirus, the Empire of Thessalonica, the restored Byzantine Empire, the Serbian Kingdom (later Empire), as well as local Albanian nobles. In 1395 it was conquered by the Ottomans, under whose rule it remained until the 20th century.
Ohrid is renowned for its wealth of medieval architecture. Very little survives from the first Byzantine period apart from the ruins of some Early Christian basilicas at the sites of Plaošnik and Manchevci. A major wave of building occurred in the late 9th and early 10th centuries under Saint Clement (e.g., the original Church of Saint Panteleimon at Plaošnik), and again around 1000, when the city served as the Bulgarian capital (e.g., the Fortress of Tsar Samuel).
Most of the surviving churches in Ohrid date from the late 13th and 14th centuries and belong to the Late Byzantine architectural tradition. This style, which flourished under the Palaiologos dynasty, is characterised by compact cross-in-square plans crowned with domes, façades enlivened with brick and stone ornamentation, and richly painted interiors filled with vivid, emotionally expressive frescoes. In Ohrid, the Palaiologan style found particularly fertile ground, blending imperial forms with local traditions and producing some of the finest examples of medieval art in the Balkans.
As in other Eastern Orthodox regions, this style continued after the Ottoman conquest in the form of the so-called Post-Byzantine style.
Sites
This portfolio presents photos of ten churches from the city of Ohrid, highlighting the most significant examples while leaving out some of the smaller ones.
- Church of Saints Clement and Panteleimon at Plaošnik | Kaneo-Plaošnik path (north) | before 916 (original church); 2000-2002 (reconstruction)
- Church of Saint Sophia | Ilindenska & Kosta Abraš | 9th century (?); 990s (?); mid-11th century; 1317 (exonarthex)
- Church of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Front Gate | Hristo Uzunov (east) | 13th century or before; until 14th century (paintings)
- Church of Saint John the Theologian at Kaneo | Kaneo-Plaošnik path (south) | late 13th or early 14th century
- Church of Saint Mary Peribleptos | Klimentov Univerzitet (northwest) | Michael Astrapas & Eutychios (paintings), 1294-1295; 1365 (side chapels & aisles)
- Church of Saint Nicholas of the Hospital | Tsar Samoil (north of Lower Gate) | 1313-1314; 1345 & 1480-1481 (later paintings)
- Church of Saint Mary of the Hospital | Tsar Samoil (north of Lower Gate) | 1368-1370; early 15th century
- Church of Saints Constantine and Helena | Klimentov Univerzitet (northwest) | late 14th century
- Church of Saint Demetrius | Klimentov Univerzitet (northwest) | 14th century
- Church of Saint Mary at the Front Gate | Klimentov Univerzitet & Hristo Uzunov (east) | 14th century; 19th century (porch & bell tower)
The most notable omission from the wider Ohrid region is the Monastery of Saint Naum, located less than 30 km south of the city.
Map
See the mentioned sites on the map.
Portfolio
Photos
Taken in June 2023