Snagov Monastery, Orthodox monastery in Snagov, Romania

Snagov Monastery is a monastery complex on a former island site surrounded by marshland, featuring defensive walls, five towers, and a central church dedicated to Saint Nicholas. The complex combines fortress architecture with religious structures.

The monastery was first documented in 1408, probably founded under Mircea cel Bătrân, on the site of an 11th-century wooden monastic settlement. Vlad Țepeș built a defensive wall, a bridge, a prison and an underwater escape tunnel around 1456. The present church was built by Neagoe Basarab in 1521 after an earthquake destroyed the previous one.

The monastery was a major Orthodox printing centre. Under Matei Basarab a press was installed in 1643, and Abbot Antim Ivireanul printed books in Romanian, Greek, Arabic, Slavonic and Georgian between 1694 and 1705. He produced the first Romanian book with Latin movable type, the Orânduiala slujbei Sfinților Constantin și Elena.

The monastery is located about 33 kilometers from Bucharest and welcomes visitors with guided tours covering the church, defensive towers, and surrounding gardens. Visiting during daylight hours helps you see the architectural details clearly.

In 1933 the tomb attributed to Vlad Țepeș in the naos, before the royal doors, was opened and held only horse bones and a ring bearing the arms of Wallachia. The monastery also kept one of Wallachia's coin-minting centres, which earned it the popular name "bănie".