The Sebeș Lutheran church (; ) is a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

fortified church A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such church (building), churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls, battlements, and embrasures. Others, such as t ...

. It is located at 5 Piața Primăriei in the town center of

Sebeș Sebeș (; German: ''Mühlbach''; Hungarian: ''Szászsebes''; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Melnbach'') is a city in Alba County, central Romania, southwestern Transylvania. Geography The city lies in the Mureș River valley and straddles the river ...

(''Mühlbach''), itself situated in

Alba County Alba County () is a county (județ) of Romania located in the historic region of Transylvania. Its capital is Alba Iulia, a city with a population of 63,536. Name "Alba", meaning "white" in Latin and Romanian, is derived from the name of the ...

, in the

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

region of

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. The church was built by the

ethnic German Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The constitution of Germany, implemented in 1949 following the end of World War ...

Transylvanian Saxon The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sași ardeleni/transilvăneni/transilvani''; ) are a people ...

community at a time when the area belonged to the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. Initially

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, it became Lutheran following the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

Description

Saxon colonists began a Romanesque basilica during the 12th century, but this was destroyed during the 1241-1242

Mongol invasion of Europe From the 1220s to the 1240s, the Mongol Empire, Mongols conquered the Turkic peoples, Turkic states of Volga Bulgaria, Cumania and Iranian peoples, Iranian state of Alania, and various principalities in Eastern Europe. Following this, they began ...

. It was subsequently rebuilt in Gothic style, fortified and endowed with walls. An imposing choir was added in the second half of the 14th century, during a period of local prosperity. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Sebeș became a center for craftsmen, who worked on extending the church. During World War I, the bells were confiscated, melted and turned into munitions; they were replaced in 1925.Sebeș/Mühlbach
at biserici-fortificate.org The church is listed as a

historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs, with Saint James's Chapel (''ca.'' 1420), the parish house and the walls being listed as separate entries.Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010: Județul Alba
/ref> Sebes Biserica evanghelica (4).jpg, Portal Altar Bis evanghelica Sebes.jpg, Altar Ansamblul bisericii evanghelice din Sebeș 2.jpg, Nave Ansamblul bisericii evanghelice din Sebeș 3.jpg, Organ Jakobskapelle sebes.jpg, Saint James's Chapel

Notes

Lutheran churches in Romania Lutheran churches converted from Roman Catholicism Historic monuments in Alba County Fortified church buildings in Romania Gothic architecture in Romania 13th-century churches in Romania Sebeș {{Lutheran-church-stub