And includes the now destroyed Vsikhsviatskyi Skete (All Saints’ Hermitage), several chapels, stores and buildings where the monks live and work.
The name Sviatohirsk Lavra comes from the name of the hill upon which the monastery was built. Loosely translated it means Holy Hill.
It was built in the 14th century. And has been damaged and restored several times.
The monastery was destroyed in the 1930s during the Soviet purges of cultural and religious attractions throughout the Soviet Union.
After Ukraine gained independence with the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the monastery was restored and rebuilt. In 2004, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church restored the monastery to its status as a Lavra. Today, there are more than 100 monks living at the site.
