History

The Church of the Annunciation is a church in Nazareth, in northern Israel. It was established at the site where, according to Roman Catholic tradition, the Annunciation took place.

The current church is a two-story building constructed in 1969 over the site of an earlier Byzantine-era and then Crusader-era church. Inside, the lower level contains the Grotto of the Annunciation, believed by many Christians to be the remains of the original childhood home of Mary.

The first shrine was probably built sometime in the middle of the 4th century, comprising an altar in the cave in which Mary had lived. A larger structure was commissioned by Emperor Constantine I, who had directed his mother, Saint Helena, to found churches commemorating important events in Jesus Christ’s life.

The second church was built over the ruins of the Byzantine era church during the Crusades, following the conquest of Nazareth in 1102 by Tancred, the Norman leader of the First Crusade who later became Prince of Galilee. The Crusader era church was never fully completed. In 1260, Baybars, the fourth Sultan of Egypt and his Mamluk army destroyed the church during their attack on Nazareth. A small number of Franciscans managed to stay in the city though, and with the support of local Christian families they took care of the church in the three centuries that followed.

In 1620 they constructed a small structure to enclose the holy grotto. In 1730 construction of a new church was permitted, which became a central gathering place for Nazareth Latin community. The church was enlarged in 1877, and then completely demolished in 1954 to allow for the construction of a new basilica, which was completed in 1969. In this basilica is a gallery with mosaics representing some of the most important Marian devotions in different countries.