The Patriarchal Cathedral was destroyed after the Ottomans captured the Bulgarian capital after their Siege of Tarnovo on 17 July 1393. The church was fully reconstructed in the 20th century; reconstruction works were carried out by a team under architect Boyan Kuzupov. These commenced in 1978 and were finished in 1981, to mark Bulgaria's 1300th anniversary. However, it was not until November 1985, when the contemporary murals were finished, that the church was opened once again for visitors. The church's ruins have been protected as a national antiquity since 1927; in 1967, they were proclaimed an architectural monument of culture of national importance.