A community of Franciscan monks arrived in Živogošće in 1563 following the destruction of their monastery in Herzegovina by the Turks. In 1620 they finished building their monastery and church just uphill from the beautiful seashore, by a source of fresh water. The Turks attacked again in 1647, sending the monks into hiding on Hvar island. They returned and rebuilt, improving the church and monastery and adding a bell tower. In 1967, when the population of the coast swelled after the big earthquake destroyed many homes in the hinterland, the monastery’s Church of the Holy Cross became the parish church serving the population for miles around.