Цетиње

Cetinje is an odd mix of capital cityand overgrown village, where single-storey cottages and mansions share the same street. Indeed, the main street, empty in the rain, ressembles a small market town and has an attractive feeling even in the rain.
The city was founded in 1482 by Ivan Crnojević, the ruler of the Zeta state, after abandoning his previous capital near Lake Skadar, Žabljak Crnojevića, to the Ottomans. Cetinje was the capital of Montenegro until the country was subsumed into the first Yugoslavia in 1918. After WWII, when Montenegro became a republic within federal Yugoslavia, it passed the baton – somewhat reluctantly – to Titograd / Podgorica.
Ambassadors appointed to the Royal Court, (a Grade 4 posting at best,) built the mansions - if that is the right word for middle-class 18th C town houses. The town lies in a valley at the base of the Lovcen mountain and is the base camp for numerous long hikes in the hills. Definitely worth coming back to do one some day.
In 1864 the remains of the small, XV century church of the Birth of the Holy mother of Good, (probably they added an 'o' in enthusiasm,) were covered by a new one, not much larger. Vlachs Church, as it is now known for unexplained reasons, is famous for its establishment under canon law. The fence surrounding it was made from the barrels of guns confiscated in the wars against the Turks in 1858 and 1876 – 1878.Read more