Sighișoara (; hu, Segesvár ; german: Schäßburg ;

Transylvanian Saxon The Transylvanian Saxons (german: Siebenbürger Sachsen; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen''; ro, Sași ardeleni, sași transilvăneni/transilvani; hu, Erdélyi szászok) are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania ...

: ''Schäsbrich''; yi, שעסבורג, Shesburg; la, Castrum Sex) is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

on the Târnava Mare River in

Mureș County Mureș County (, ro, Județul Mures, hu, Maros megye) is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania, with the administrative centre in Târgu Mureș. The county was established in 1968, after the administrative ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. Located in the historic region of

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the A ...

, Sighișoara has a population of 28,102 according to the 2011 census. It is a popular tourist destination for its well-preserved walled old town, which is listed by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

. The city administers seven villages: Angofa, Aurel Vlaicu, Hetiur, Rora, Șoromiclea, Venchi, and Viilor. Sighișoara was part of the Hungarian Kingdom until 1918.

History

During the 12th century,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

craftsmen Craftsman may refer to: A profession *Artisan, a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative *Master craftsman, an artisan who has achieved such a standard that he may establish his own workshop and take o ...

and

merchants A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as industry ...

known as the

Transylvanian Saxons The Transylvanian Saxons (german: Siebenbürger Sachsen; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen''; ro, Sași ardeleni, sași transilvăneni/transilvani; hu, Erdélyi szászok) are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania ( ...

were invited to Transylvania by the

King of Hungary The King of Hungary ( hu, magyar király) was the ruling head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 (or 1001) to 1918. The style of title "Apostolic King of Hungary" (''Apostoli Magyar Király'') was endorsed by Pope Clement XIII in 175 ...

to settle and defend the frontier of his realm. The

chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and ...

r Krauss lists a Saxon settlement in present-day Sighișoara by 1191. A document of 1280 records a town built on the site of a Roman fort as ''Castrum Sex'' or "six-sided camp", referring to the fort's shape of an irregular hexagon.Adrian Room, ''Placenames of the World'', p.347. McFarland, 2006, . Other names recorded include ''Schaäsburg'' (1282), ''Schespurg'' (1298) and ''Segusvar'' (1300).Cristian Tălângă (ed.), ''Transilvania, Maramureș, Bucovina'', p.27. Editura Semne, Bucharest, 2007. By 1337 Sighișoara had become a royal center for the kings, who awarded the settlement urban status in 1367 as the ''Civitas de Segusvar''. The city played an important strategic and commercial role at the edges of

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...

for several centuries. Sighișoara became one of the most important cities of Transylvania, with artisans from throughout the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

visiting the settlement. The German artisans and craftsmen dominated the urban economy, as well as building the fortifications protecting it. It is estimated that during the 16th and 17th centuries Sighișoara had as many as 15

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometim ...

s and 20

handicraft A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...

branches. The

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

sculptor Elias Nicolai lived in the city. The

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ro, Țara Românească, lit=The Romanian Land' or 'The Romanian Country, ; archaic: ', Romanian Cyrillic alphabet: ) is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and s ...

n ''

voivode Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the me ...

Vlad Dracul Vlad II ( ro, Vlad al II-lea), also known as Vlad Dracul () or Vlad the Dragon (before 1395 – November 1447), was Voivode of Wallachia from 1436 to 1442, and again from 1443 to 1447. He is internationally known as the father of Vlad the Impa ...

(father of Vlad the Impaler (Dracula)), who lived in exile in the town, had coins minted in the city (otherwise coinage was the monopoly of the Hungarian kings in the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coronation of the Hungarian monarch, c ...

) and issued the first document listing the city's

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania ** Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...

name, ''Sighișoara''. The Romanian name is first attested in 1435, and derives from the Hungarian ''Segesvár'', where ''vár'' is "fort". Old picture of Piata Hermann Oberth

The city was the setting for George I Rákóczi's election as

Prince of Transylvania The Prince of Transylvania ( hu, erdélyi fejedelem, german: Fürst von Siebenbürgen, la, princeps Transsylvaniae, ro, principele TransilvanieiFallenbüchl 1988, p. 77.) was the head of state of the Principality of Transylvania from the last d ...

and

in 1631. Sighișoara suffered military occupation, fires, and plagues during the 17th and 18th centuries. An important source for the history of 17th-century Transylvania, for the period of 1606–1666, are the records of Georg Kraus, the town's notary. The nearby plain of Albești was the site of the

Battle of Segesvár The Battle of Segesvár (Transylvania, now Sighișoara, Romania), also called the Battle of Fehéregyháza, was a battle in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, fought on 31 July 1849 between the Hungarian revolutionary army under the command of Li ...

, where the

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

Hungarian army led by

Józef Bem Józef Zachariasz Bem ( hu, Bem József, tr, Murat Pasha; March 14, 1794 – December 10, 1850) was a Polish engineer and general, an Ottoman pasha and a national hero of Poland and Hungary, and a figure intertwined with other European patriot ...

was defeated by the Russian army led by Luders on 31 July 1849. A monument was constructed in 1852 to the Russian general Skariatin, who died in the battle. The Hungarian poet Sándor Petőfi is generally believed to have been killed in the battle, and a monument was constructed in his honor at Albești in 1897. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

Sighișoara passed with Transylvania from

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

to the

Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...

. Central Sighișoara has preserved in an exemplary way the features of a small

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

fortified city. It has been listed by

as a

. Each year, a Medieval Festival takes place in the old citadel in July. sighisoara2

In Eastern Europe, Sighișoara is one of the few fortified towns that are still inhabited. The town is made up of two parts. The medieval stronghold was built on top of a hill and is known as the Citadel (). The lower town lies in the valley of Târnava Mare river. The houses inside Sighișoara Citadel show the main features of a craftsmen's town. However, there are some houses that belonged to the former patriciate, like the Venetian House and the House with Antlers. Between 2001 and 2003 the construction of a

Dracula ''Dracula'' is a novel by Bram Stoker, published in 1897. As an epistolary novel, the narrative is related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist, but opens with solicitor Jonathan Harker taki ...

theme park in the ''Braite'' nature preserve near Sighișoara was considered but ultimately rejected, owing to the strong opposition of local civil society groups and national and international media as well as politically influential persons, as the theme park would have detracted from the medieval style of the city and would have destroyed the nature preserve.

Demographics and name

Ethnic groups in 2011:2011 census data
/ref> *Romanians (75%) *Hungarians (17.6%) *Roma (5.3%) *Germans (1.5%)

Sights

Sighisoara de pe lunca postii by blackasmodeus.jpg, View of Sighișoara from Lunca Poștei

Sighișoara is a popular tourist destination for its well-preserved walled old town, which is also listed by

as a

. The main Citadel's attractions are certainly the towers.

Towers

According to ancient military architectures writings, the defence towers had to be a fortification system for the mutual defense, and, at the same time, each tower was supposed to be an independent

fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

: a break at the base of a tower did not mean entering into the city, capturing a tower did not have to lead to the conquest of the city. Most of these towers were hollow and equipped with elevators and underground galleries. * Sighișoara Clock Tower (''Turnul cu Ceas'') – the landmark of the city is a 64 m-high tower built in the 13th century. Today it is a museum of history. * The Tinsmiths' Tower (''Turnul Cositorarilor)'' * The Butchers' Tower (''Turnul Măcelarilor)'' * The Bootmakers' Tower * The Tailors' Tower (''Turnul Croitorilor'') * The Furriers' Tower (''Turnul Cojocarilor'') * The Ironsmiths' Tower (''Turnul Fierarilor'') * The Ropemakers' Tower (''Turnul Frânghierilor'') * The Tanners' Tower (''Turnul Tăbăcarilor'') * The Face Tower – tower on the route to Târgu Mureș, out of the citadel, but still worth visiting thanks to its story.

Churches

* The church on the hill (''Biserica din Deal'') – is undoubtedly one of the most valuable architectural monuments of the city and has been one of the most representative buildings of the gothic site of Romania. * The

Monastery Church A church, church building or church house is a building used for Christian worship services and other Christian religious activities. The earliest identified Christian church is a house church founded between 233 and 256. From the 11th thr ...

('' Biserica Mânăstirii Dominicane'') – is a gothic style architectural monument which is placed in the neighbourhood of the Clock tower and it was built at the beginning of the 13th century. It is the only church without a bell: the reason is basically that the Saxons weren't great spenders and thought that one bell, the one of the Church on the hill, was enough for the whole city. * The Saint Joseph Roman Catholic church * Leprosy Church (''Biserica Leproșilor'') * The Orthodox Cathedral of Sighișoara (Catedrala Ortodoxă) * The old Orthodox church

Civil architecture

Most of the 164 houses in the city having at least 300 years old, are considered historical monuments : the City Square, with its rectangular plan, was once inhabited by noble families of the city, though it has undergone to many transformations over time. The best houses are the ones that have kept their original shape. Strada 1 decembrie 1918

* House on the Rock (Casa de pe stâncă) * House with shingles (''Evert'') – is dedicated to craftsmen for Educational Interethnic Centre for Youth. * Venetian House or Green House (''Casa Venețiană'') * Vlad Dracul's House * Sighișoara City Hall * Sighișoara hotel complex – built between 1886 and 1889 was the seat of city hall. * Indoor wooden staircase or the Scholar's Stairs * School on the Hill * The Stag House (''Casa cu Cerb'') * The Citadel Square (''Piața Cetăți'') * Casa Asociatiei Mestesugaresti (La Perla) * Joseph B. Teusch Building (Hotel Central Park)

Natives

Johann Michael Ackner Johann Michael Ackner (January 25, 1782 – August 12, 1862) was a Transylvanian archaeologist and nature researcher. Biography A Saxon born in Schäßburg (Sighişoara), a town in the Habsburg province of Transylvania (now Romania), Johann ...

, Transylvanian Saxon archaeologist * Doina Cojocaru, handball player *

Friedrich Grünanger Friedrich Grünanger (25 January 1856 – 14 December 1929) was a Transylvanian Austrian architect who worked primarily in Bulgaria. Born in Schäßburg in Austria-Hungary (today Sighişoara in Romania), Grünanger studied at the Academy of F ...

, architect *

Ralph Gunesch Ralph Gunesch (born 2 September 1983) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Career Gunesch moved to Germany when he was very young. From 2001 to 2003 he played for Alemannia Aachen. In 2003, he was transferred t ...

, German football player * Adrian Ivanițchi, folk guitarist *

Johannes Kelpius Johannes Kelpius (; 1667 – 1708) was a German Pietist, mystic, musician, and writer. He was also interested in the occult, botany, and astronomy. He came to believe with his followers – called the "Society of the Woman in the Wilderness" � ...

, a German intellectual, musician, and mystic who founded a religious community when he immigrated to the American colony of Pennsylvania in the late seventeenth century * Gabriel Mureșan, footballer * Marie Stritt, German feminist and suffragist * Georg Daniel Teutsch, Lutheran bishop * Vlad III the Impaler, prince of Wallachia, inspiration for fictional

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

Count Dracula Count Dracula () is the title character of Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. He is considered to be both the prototypical and the archetypal vampire in subsequent works of fiction. Aspects of the character are believed by some ...

* Radu Voina, former handball player, currently coach

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Sighișoara is twinned with:

Gallery

File:Banca Transilvania - panoramio (1).jpg, Transilvania Bank File:Colegiul National Mircea Eliade - panoramio.jpg, Mircea Eliade National College File:Sighisoara festivala medivala.jpg, Sighișoara medieval festival File:Sighisoara vedere spre cetate de pe podul peste Tarnava.jpg, File:Sighisoara - panoramio.jpg, File:Piata Cetatii - panoramio (1).jpg, Citadel square File:Primaria Sighisoara - hdr.JPG, Sighișoara town hall File:SighisoaraTowerNight.JPG, Tailors tower by night File:Liceul Teoretic Joseph Haltrich Sighisoara - panoramio.jpg, Joseph Haltrich gymnasium File:Sighisoara._Biserica_din_deal.jpg, Central Sighișoara in the winter File:Sighisoara 1740 reconstituire.PNG, 19th century reenacted drawing of Sighișoara File:Sighisoara - Turnul cu Ceas - iarna 1.jpg, Sighișoara clock tower by night

Notes

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

''
Images from Sighișoara by Canadian Photographer Carey Nash

(2012) HDR Photos of Sighișoara by Moldavian Photographer Dumitru Brinzan

Tourist informations, photo gallery and webcam from Sighisoara
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sighisoara Cities in Romania Populated places in Mureș County Localities in Transylvania Capitals of former Romanian counties Populated places established in the 12th century

History

Demographics and name

Sights

Towers

Churches

Civil architecture

Natives

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Gallery

See also

Notes

External links