St. Marina

 

Tradition claims that originally this church was situated along the Maritza River, in place of Imaret mosque.

 

When the mosque was erected in 1444, the Ottomans destroyed the temple, and allowed the Christians to build a new one elsewhere.

 

Thus, "Saint Marina" was re-exported to where it is today, south of the "Tree Hills" area.

 

This legend is doubtful, as until the 15th century the site of the present Imaret mosque was far beyond the city's boundaries.

 

According to the visiting city of Plovdiv in 1578, Stefan Gerlach had eight churches in the town, the main one of which was "St. Marina".

 

It was regularly attended for a ministration, and there was also the seat of the Metropolitan.