Historical Churches (Self Guided), Dubrovnik

On May 17, 1520, Dubrovnik received a rather forceful reminder that the earth beneath it could move. A strong earthquake shook the city, damaging several buildings and claiming around twenty lives. Tragic, yes—but the Senate of the Republic of Ragusa looked at the aftermath and concluded that things could have been far worse. Subsequently, they decided to build a church as a thank-you note to heaven. Thus, a small votive church was ordered, dedicated to Christ the Saviour, as a gesture of gratitude for what the city saw as divine mercy.

The commission went to architect Petar Andrijić, who came from the nearby island of Korčula. His design placed the new Church of Saint Saviour just beside Pile Gate, where many visitors still pass today. The building itself is modest but elegant: a single nave covered by a Gothic ribbed vault, with slender windows shaped in pointed Gothic arches. Yet the front façade hints at a different fashion—Renaissance style—that was quietly entering Dubrovnik at the time.

Give it a closer look, and you will see the mix. The curved, three-lobed gable at the top of the façade and the semicircular apse belong firmly to the Renaissance design. The main portal is framed by slim columns that support a triangular pediment, while above the doorway runs an entablature carved with a Latin inscription thanking God for sparing the city from greater destruction. In other words, this church is both a prayer and a piece of architecture.

Then came the year 1667. Another earthquake struck Dubrovnik—this one far more devastating. Around 5,000 people lost their lives, and much of the city collapsed into rubble. Yet, remarkably, Saint Saviour’s Church survived almost untouched. Even its delicate rose window remained intact.

So, today, seeing this quiet little church near the gate, you are looking at something quite rare in Dubrovnik: a building that witnessed catastrophe, survived it twice, and still stands almost exactly as it did centuries ago...

Dubrovnik’s Franciscan Monastery is a quiet complex that carries nearly eight centuries of history. A document from 1235 mentions a Franciscan monastery dedicated to Saint Thomas in the suburb of Pile, outside the city walls. Amid growing tensions with King Uroš II of Serbia, the friars decided it would be safer to move inside Dubrovnik’s defenses, and thus, in 1317, they rebuilt the monastery within the city walls. The destructive earthquake of 1667 damaged much of the complex, and the church was restored in the Baroque style seen today.

The monastery unfolds around two elegant cloisters. The upper cloister reflects Renaissance design, with graceful arches and semicircular vaults. The lower cloister is older and combines Romanesque and Gothic elements. Its courtyard is surrounded by galleries supported by double columns, while the carved capitals above them show detailed decorations of plants, animals, and geometric patterns.

This lower cloister was in the early 13th century and remains one of the monastery’s most admired features. It contains 120 columns and twelve large pilasters arranged around the courtyard. At the center stands a fountain and a statue of Saint Francis, creating a calm focal point where monks once gathered.

One of the monastery’s greatest treasures is the Minor Friars Pharmacy. Operational since 1317, it is considered one of the oldest pharmacies in Europe. Inside, visitors can see original cabinets and furnishings crafted in Siena and Florence during the 15th and 16th centuries. Glass jars, instruments, and handwritten prescriptions reveal how medicines were prepared long before modern laboratories.

The monastery museum displays presses, mortars, scales, and even a 14th-century distillation still used to produce medicine. The onsite library preserves copies of medieval manuscripts and chorales, along with paintings by lesser-known masters.

Among the most unusual relics are a 14th-century head of Saint Ursula and a collection of ex-voto jewelry—devotional offerings created from antique elements. Together, these objects show that the monastery served not only as a place of worship, but also as a center of healing, learning, and daily life in medieval Dubrovnik.

The Orthodox Church is a relatively new addition to the town, in terms of the local churches. It was constructed in 1865. The reason for this is that the local Serbians were not allowed to build a formal house of worship within the city limits until just a few years before the construction of the building. After that point, it has remained a house of prayer since. There are not as many members around anymore, as many of the Serbians left the area during the war of 1991.

Anyone of any denomination is allowed to purchase and light votive candles here. The local congregation is happy to share that honor.

Upon entrance, one will be able to see the many icons of Cretan and Byzantine origin here. Just next door, there is also a museum that displays even more of the old icons from the church. Go up to the second floor to see them.

The church is free to visit for anyone who wishes to come. The museum has a nominal entrance fee. The building is open seven days a week.

Climb the broad staircase in Ruđer Bošković Square, and you might feel a sudden sense of déjà vu. That's no accident. The steps leading up to the Church of Saint Ignatius were clearly inspired by Rome’s famous Spanish Steps. At the top, waits a church that would look perfectly at home in the heart of Italy. Built for the Jesuit order in 1725, this church follows the Roman Baroque style and was designed by the Jesuit architect Ignazio Pozzo as a single-nave space meant to impress rather than whisper.

Once inside, the ceiling quickly steals the show. Baroque frescoes painted by Gaetano Garcia unfold above, illustrating scenes from the life of Saint Ignatius. Later additions brought in more layers to the interior. In 1885, a small grotto dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes was painted by Jesuit artist Antonio Moscheni. Balconies and small gallery boxes line the sides, while daylight gently filters through the stained-glass roof, filling the church with a soft glow that highlights every painted surface.

Outside, the façade delivers full Baroque drama. Free-standing columns frame the central section, while sculpted angels gather around an ornate portal designed by architect Marino Groppelli. The result feels theatrical, as if the building itself is making a grand entrance.

Right next door stands the Jesuit Collegium. Its first version appeared in 1662, though the great earthquake of 1667 prompted its major reconstruction between 1669 and 1725. One of the institution's most famous teachers was the celebrated scientist and philosopher Ruđer Bošković, whose ideas traveled far beyond Dubrovnik’s walls. Today, the building still serves education, housing the Classical Gymnasium High School of Dubrovnik—a vivid proof that even centuries-old Jesuit classrooms can continue shaping new generations...

Here’s a story that starts with a king, a storm, and a fortunate escape. In 1192, Richard I of England—better known as Richard the Lionheart—was sailing home from the Third Crusade when his ship was wrecked near the island of Lokrum, just off the coast of Dubrovnik. Surviving the accident, Richard promised to give thanks for his deliverance in a meaningful way. He pledged to fund the construction of two churches, one of which became the Romanesque Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Dubrovnik.

That first cathedral stood for centuries, until the catastrophic earthquake of 1667 destroyed much of the city and reduced Richard’s church to rubble. The Senate of Dubrovnik then commissioned Italian architect Andrea Bufalini to design a new cathedral. Bufalini created a Baroque structure with a wide central nave, two aisles, and a large dome. Later, Friar Tommaso Napoli of Palermo refined the design by adding cross vaults and tall windows that allow more light to enter the upper level.

The façade reflects the elegant Baroque style. The entrance portal is framed by Corinthian columns, and above it sits a central window set within a triangular gable decorated with a balustrade and statues of saints. In nearby niches stand the statues of Saint Blaise, the patron saint of Dubrovnik, and Saint Joseph, holding the Child.

Inside, the cathedral opens into a high nave supported by large columns that separate the space into three aisles. Three apses form the sanctuary area, and a dome rises above the crossing where the nave meets the transepts. The main altar features an impressive polyptych painted by Titian in 1552, depicting the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Side altars around the church display paintings created by both Italian and Dalmatian masters.

The Cathedral Treasury adds another layer of history. It contains 182 reliquaries dating from the 11th to the 18th centuries, crafted by artists from Dubrovnik as well as from Byzantium, Venice, and Asia Minor. Among the most notable relics are the gold-plated arm, leg, and skull of Saint Blaise, along with a fragment believed to come from the True Cross.

In Dubrovnik, one name appears everywhere—from statues to festivals to flags fluttering above the old streets. Saint Blaise, or Sveti Vlaho, if you want to make it sound Croatian, was a bishop, martyr, healer of animals, and—according to local legend—the city’s personal guardian.

Back in the year 971, he reportedly appeared in a vision to a priest named Stojko and warned him that the Venetians were planning a surprise attack. This warning ultimately saved the city, and Dubrovnik, in gratitude, has been honoring Saint Blaise ever since. His church stands proudly in Luža Square, right in the ceremonial heart of the Old Town.

The present Saint Blaise’s Church was completed in 1715, designed by Venetian architect Marino Groppelli. It rose on the site of an earlier Romanesque church that had stood here for centuries before that. The new building follows a Greek-cross plan, meaning that all four arms of the cross are the same length. The single nave leads toward the apse, which is framed by two sacristies, while an oval dome sits above the center like a crown placed carefully on the structure.

The exterior announces itself in confident Baroque fashion. Four Corinthian columns frame the lower façade—two beside the main entrance and two marking the outer edges. Above them rises a curved gable and balustrade, a kind of stone balcony for the sky. At the top stands Saint Blaise himself, calmly watching over the city. On either side are symbolic companions—Faith and Hope—quiet reminders that Dubrovnik has needed both more than once...

Inside, the church feels richly theatrical, as Baroque interiors often do. The barrel-vaulted ceiling draws the eye upward, while marble surfaces reflect soft light across the space. At the main altar, made from white and multicolored marble, stands a particularly important figure: a 15th-century statue of Saint Blaise. In his hand, he holds a small model of the older Romanesque church that once stood here—destroyed by fire during the great earthquake of 1667.

It’s a subtle detail, but a meaningful one: the city’s protector calmly holding a reminder of what was lost—much as of what Dubrovnik has managed to rebuild...

One of Dubrovnik’s quieter historical corners, the Dominican Monastery, was founded in 1315. Like many big projects in small medieval cities, it was very much a community effort. The local government provided much of the funding, while many local builders volunteered their skills to help the Dominican Order settle in. Things were going smoothly for a few centuries—until the great earthquake of 1667 struck and damaged large parts of the complex. The monastery survived, but several sections thereof had to be rebuilt.

Architecturally, the complex is a bit like a timeline carved in stone. At its center is a Gothic cloister, peaceful and symmetrical, surrounding a medieval well that once supplied water to the community. Nearby stands the monastery’s bell tower, which mixes several architectural styles—Romanesque foundations, later Gothic touches, and Baroque additions layered in over time. In other words, the building didn’t grow all at once; it evolved, just like the city around it.

Inside, the monastery hides some rather impressive treasures. The onsite library holds more than 200 incunabula, which are the books printed before the year 1501. Alongside them are illustrated manuscripts, archival documents, and an art collection reflecting centuries of Dubrovnik’s religious life. Among the highlights is a statue of Saint Dominic, founder of the Dominican Order, along with a later Gothic arch and a striking statue of Christ.

The monastery complex itself was one of Dubrovnik’s earliest multi-purpose construction projects, combining religious, residential, and defensive functions. Tucked within the grounds is a small museum, hidden down a narrow passage behind Sponza Palace. Because of its discreet location, many visitors walk right past the museum without realizing it’s there. Those who do step inside, though, are rewarded with a wealth of religious paintings, church vessels, triptychs, and even a reliquary said to contain the skull of King Stephen I of Hungary—which is not something you would expect to find on a casual afternoon stroll...

One practical tip: if you plan to visit several museums in Dubrovnik, consider the one-day Dubrovnik museum ticket, which includes entry here. This is a convenient way to explore more of the city’s history without constantly reaching for your wallet.