During this period there were great fluctuations in church-building, related to the more general social and economic developments in the Ottoman Empire. A period of decline, roughly from 1430 to 1530, was followed by a period of intensive building activity. This was particularly noticeable on Mount Athos, which enjoyed a privileged situation within the Empire.
This development was interrupted by the decision of Selim II, in 1568, to confiscate church and monastery property, as well as by the economic crisis that afflicted the Empire from 1586. The gradual growth of mountain communities led to the founding of new churches and monasteries in these regions from the late 16th and throughout the 17th centuries.
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