Franciscan Monastery

The Franciscan Monastery is located in the center of Bač; the complex consists of a monastic ensemble arranged as a square with an inner courtyard, and the Church of the Assumption of Virgin Mary. In 1169, in the very center of Bač, on the foundations of an old cathedral, the Crusader Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem built their monastery and church. In terms of size and architectural style, it is among the finest examples of Romanesque architecture. Its five-sided apse, combination of stone and brick, columns decorated with animal heads, roof “gargouilles” (water spouts), and enameled roofing tiles set it apart. The interior was designed as an early Christian basilica—bare, unplastered walls. Everything corresponds to Western European designs, similar to buildings found in the Rhine valley in Germany. The authenticity of the Crusader construction is confirmed by underground “claws” that provide additional stability to the structure. No other medieval building in the region features such protruding foundations. The foundations are more than two meters wide, made of Roman red brick. The Regular Canons of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem had their provostry in Bač. Their shorter name, “Canonici cruciferi”, refers to their origins in the time of the Crusades - they wore a cross on their habit, hence the name “cruciferi.” To distinguish themselves from other Crusaders, they wore one large red cross with four smaller ones on a white cloak. In 1241, the Mongols–Tatars devastated the monastery. After that, until the end of the 13th century, a major restoration of the church and monastery was undertaken, and the entire complex was additionally fortified. The church received a Gothic ceiling with arches made of carved stone, and the remains of a Gothic arch can still be found in the corridor beside the church, which was once decorated with frescoes. A bell tower in the Romanesque-Gothic style was built, and the monastery was transformed into a fortress. Archaeological excavations revealed the presence of a water-filled moat, additional walls, and towers. At that time, cities and monasteries across Hungary were being fortified.

After the fall of the Latin Kingdom in Jerusalem, the pilgrimages of the Crusaders came to an end, and the monastery in Bač lost its significance as a stop on the road to the Holy Land. By the decree of the Hungarian king Andrew III Árpád, the monastery became Franciscan in the year 1300. At Mohács in 1526, the Ottomans defeated the Hungarian army. The condition of Bač during the Ottoman period is far better known to us than its medieval history. In addition to Ottoman tax registers (defters) and the travelogue of Evliya Çelebi, there are also reports - accounts by church visitors and bishops who toured these regions of southern Hungary under Ottoman rule. The Ottoman travel writer Evliya Çelebi, describing the town of Bač in 1665, wrote about the fate of the Franciscan Monastery and church: “This town has eight Muslim places of worship. The largest is the old mosque, which was formerly a great monastery (deyr), and after the conquest it was turned into the Suleiman Khan Mosque. It is exactly 40 paces long and 30 paces wide. The tower, which in earlier times was a church bell tower, is now a Muslim minaret. The pointed roof at the top of the minaret is artistically made of lead and resembles the cap worn by the imperial gardeners in Constantinople. The other places of worship are mesjids. When Suleiman Khan seized the town of Bač, several thousand Christians, together with their treasure and families, locked themselves inside this mosque, which was then a church. For seven days a great battle was fought. Here, several thousand Muslim warriors drank the cup of martyrdom. In the end, on the eighth day, the church was taken. The Muslim warriors captured several thousand slaves and seized thousands of purses filled with immense treasure. The Muslim army was satisfied with such a multitude of captives.”

In 1688, when a larger group of believers and Franciscan friars from Gradovrh arrived in Bač, the main mosque of Bač was once again turned back into a church. The Gradovrh Monastery was reestablished in Bač. The monastery chronicle records that three friars arrived. They immediately turned the mosque into a church and built a monastery quickly from non-solid materials. Just after the monastery was restored, Rákóczi’s uprising broke out against Austrian rule. During this rebellion that lasted from 1704 to 1711, the monastery suffered severe damage. In 1711, the guardian of the Franciscan Monastery in Bač, then residing in Vukovar, Friar Marko Dragojević, began rebuilding the monastery and church in Bač. After the construction of the west wing, the administration of the Province of Bosna Srebrena allowed the Franciscans to move from Vukovar back to Bač (from where they had moved to Vukovar during Rákóczi’s uprising) in the autumn of 1715. The novitiate was reestablished in the period from 1716 to 1728. The west wing, or tract, was built quickly and from poor materials. The partitions were made of wicker and mud. On the ground floor there were the refectory (dining hall), kitchen, infirmary, all facing west. On the upper floor there were twelve rooms. Construction of the south and east wings began in 1734 (the present-day monastery). The building materials and funds had already been secured in 1730 by Friar Franjo Vukovarac. He collected 1,777 florins in cash, 526 urns of lime, and bricks. The construction and interior arrangement of the monastery were completed in 1758. In the same year, the sacristy on the ground floor next to the bell tower was arranged. All rooms were vaulted with arches. Every detail of the construction and interior is thoroughly documented.

The monastery received its present appearance between 1734 and 1768. Everything was built through the contributions of the parishioners of Bač and other parishes administered by the Franciscans of Bač. The greatest contribution was made by Friar Augustin Stopić, parish administrator of Sonta. Thanks to him, the west wing, the corridor along the church, the choir loft, and the chapels in the church (the side aisle) were built. Thus, the Franciscan Monastery of Bač achieved a harmonious wholeness, into which the medieval structures—the church and bell tower—were seamlessly integrated. All under one roof, with all structures unified and a large cloister in the center, the monastery became a typical Franciscan complex, one of the larger ones in the present Franciscan province. Both the archive and the library were organized, the latter containing books dating from the 15th to the 20th century. Since the Franciscans have not left the monastery for 300 years, numerous old objects, utensils, textiles, liturgical vestments, and many small items have been preserved, all testifying to an unbroken continuity from the Middle Ages and, it can be said with confidence, even from Roman times (the lapidarium in the corridor next to the church). A separate study could be written about this. The first organ, installed in 1716 (the earliest known organ in Vojvodina), was replaced in 1827 with a new, large organ: two manuals, 16 registers, and about 1,000 pipes, which are still in use today, although in need of restoration. The craftsmen were from the Franciscan organ workshop in Baja.