Being the capital of Wallachia, Targoviste reminds us about the greatest personalities and events which contributed to shaping and maintaining the Romanian spirit. Ion Ghica said ”From Mircea the Old to Tudor Vladimirescu, every famous name in history was written in blood on Targoviste’s  teritory”.

     A trip to these places, which certify this impressive legacy, must start from the Whole Royal Court. It has been dated since Mircea the Old reigned,the Royal Court being often rebuilt or extended by voivodes. During Vlad Tepes’s reign, the Chindia Tower was built, becoming the symbol of the city. Petru  Cercel built the second  Royal House and the Great Church of the Royal Court. Matei Basarab repaired the Royal Houses, doubled the inner wall and built the hamam. Saint Friday Church and Lady Balasa’s House and also the ruins of Dionisie Lupu’s house lie next to the main inner court.

     In 1517, the Chair metropolitan moved in Targovistre, during Neagoe Basarab reign. He built the old Metropolitan Church, one of the largest and the most beautiful church in that time. During Matei Basarab’s reign, there was a Royal Printing at Targoviste Metropolitan, where important documents, such as “The Great Nomocanon”  or “Rectification of the Law”were printed.

In 1889, the old church was decided to be demolished and replaced by one which can be seen nowadays, designed by the French architect, Le comte de Nouy.

     The Dealu Monastry, situated on a hill above Targoviste, was built under the reign of Radu the Great. It dominates the city and it has been a very powerful place of culture and a symbol of our nation.Macarie’s printing, which made the first Slavonic printings from the Wallachian countries, was here, in Targoviste.

The emperor Rudolf II’s delegates came to the Dealu Monastry to sign the Treaty of Alliance with Mihai the Brave, who was the first  voievode who united the Romanian regions. His head is burried at Dealu Monastry.

You can have a beautiful view of Targoviste from high above. The old central part of the city still has houses of nobles and merchants with beautiful gardens.

     Built on the ruins of a church from the XVI-th century,Stelea Monastry was built in 1645, as a reconciliation pact between Vasile Lupu and Matei Basarab and a reply to Soveja Monastry from Moldavia. In the first part of the XIX-th  century, there was a Greek school, where Vasile Carlova, Grigore Alexandrescu and I.AL.Bratescu-Voinesti learnt, at Stelea Monastry.

Nearby, we can see the old commercial centre, dating from XVII-th or XIX-th century, where you could find merchants’ shops or handcraftmen’s workshops on the groundfloor of their houses.

      The richness of documents and objects which rebuild fragments of Targoviste’s history, can be seen at the National Museum Complex. A lot of buildings, belonging to  the National Museum Complex, are themselves historical and architectural monuments and they shelter museums and exhibitions, which show the local people and the tourists monuments of glory and intense creative activity in Targoviste. So, the first group of museums is made up of the History Museum from Targoviste, the Art Museum and the Ethnography Museum to be, which will be placed in the House of boyar Brancoveanu’s sons.

In the neighbourhood, the museum of Dambovita Writers, which lies in I.Al.Bratescu-Voinesti’s house and the Printing and Old Romanian Books  Museum, which lies in the house of the greatest scholar Constantin Cantacuzino Highsteward.

There are also Stelea Galleries, where there are periodical art exhibitions, conceived by N.Ghica-Budesti. Near the Catholic Church “St.Francisc”, there is Gheorghe Petrascu’s workshop house where you can admire his valuable  painting collection.

      Targoviste Town Hall, dating for over one hundred years, is another example of architecture,designed by the Italian architect Vignosa. Being named “The Wallachian Florence”by one of our local contemporary writers, Mircea Horia Simionescu, Targoviste is waiting for its visitors, being convinced that it has a lot of strong and pleasant impressions to offer and it won’t be easily forgotten and hoping that the ones who came, want to return to rediscover it.