The Church of the Prophet Samuel () is a

Romanian Orthodox The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the Eastern Orthodox Church. S ...

church located at 28 Mare a Unirii Street in

Focșani Focșani (; ) is the capital city of Vrancea County in Romania on the banks the river Milcov, in the historical region of Moldavia. , it has a population of 66,719. Geography Focșani lies at the foot of the Curvature Carpathians, at a point of ...

, Romania. It is dedicated to the Prophet

Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...

. The church ''

ktetor ''Ktetor'' () or ''ktitor'' (; ka, ქტიტორი ; ), meaning 'founder', is a title given in the Middle Ages to the provider of funds for construction or reconstruction of an Eastern Orthodox church or monastery, for the addition of icons ...

'' was

Constantin Racoviță Prince Constantin Racoviţă (1699 – 28 January 1764) was twice monarch of Principality of Moldavia from Ottoman government: 31 August 1749 – 3 July 1753 and 29 February 1756 – 14 March 1757; and also twice of Wallachia: July 1753 – and 9 ...

Prince of Moldavia This is a list of monarchs of Moldavia, from the first mention of the medieval polity east of the Carpathians and until its disestablishment in 1862, when it united with Wallachia, the other Danubian Principality, to form the modern-day state of ...

; it was built in 1756 on land donated by a painter. The ''Chronicles of the Land of Moldavia'' mention an earlier wooden church on the site. The church gradually became part of a monastery complex, surrounded by a stone wall. In 1789, it offered shelter to Russian and Austrian troops during the

Austro-Turkish War (1788–1791) The Austro-Turkish War, also known as the Habsburg–Ottoman War, was fought from 1788 to 1791, between the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottoman Empire. During the conflict, Habsburg armies succeeded in taking Belgrade (1789) and liberating much o ...

.Description
at the Focșani tourist office site The cross-shaped church, in Wallachian style, has a porch,

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of Early Christian art and architecture, early Christian and Byzantine architecture, Byzantine basilicas and Church architecture, churches consisting of the entrance or Vestibule (architecture), ve ...

, nave and altar. The square spire sits atop the porch. It is decorated with semicircular arches around its windows, and is accessed by a wooden staircase. The facades are divided into two registers by a row of stone. The lower section is decorated with three-lobed arches and columns. The upper features rectangular frames with circles inside. The door stands out in sharp relief. The church and its wall are listed as

historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

s by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs.Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010: Județul Vrancea

Notes

{{coord, 45.70423, 27.18551, format=dms, type:landmark_region:RO, display=title Religious buildings and structures in Focșani Historic monuments in Vrancea County Romanian Orthodox churches in Vrancea County Churches completed in 1756 Former Christian monasteries in Romania