Ljubostinja Monastery
A place of Princess Milica's love and solace
An endowment of widows
The name Ljubostinja derives from the word “ljubvest” or “ljubostinja”, meaning a place of love. According to tradition, Prince Lazar and Princess Milica first met here.
The monastery is the endowment of Princess Milica, built just before the Battle of Kosovo. After the tragedy of 1389, Ljubostinja became a refuge for the widows of the Serbian nobles who fell at Kosovo. Princess Milica took monastic vows here (as the nun Evgenija), as did Jefimija, the first Serbian woman poet (widow of Despot Uglješa Mrnjavčević).
Encomium to Prince Lazar
It was right here, in the quiet of Ljubostinja, that the nun Jefimija embroidered in gold thread on silk the famous “Encomium to Prince Lazar”, one of the most significant works of Serbian medieval literature. The monastery holds the graves of Princess Milica and Jefimija.
Details
- Dedicated to:the Dormition of the Mother of God
- Year:1388
- Builder:Rade Neimar
- Location:Trstenik
- Style:Morava School
At a glance
Related
Literature and sources
This list is for further reading and verification. Online sources were checked on 30 September 2026; books and medieval sources are recommended reading, not sources for individual statements on this page.
Online sources
Further reading
- Sima Ćirković, Srbi među evropskim narodima. Beograd: Equilibrium, 2004.
- Sima Ćirković, Rade Mihaljčić (ur.), Leksikon srpskog srednjeg veka. Beograd: Knowledge, 1999.
Medieval sources
- Danilo III, Slovo o knezu Lazaru.