Sighișoara

The city of Sighișoara with its seven-hundred-year-old Citadel represents the best example of Saxon culture and architecture in Romania. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sighișoara owes some of its international fame to king Vlad Dracul who was born here. It is among the very few permanently inhabited medieval fortresses in Europe and the only one of its kind in Southeastern Europe.

History of Sighișoara

The first human establishments in the region of Sighișoara date back to the ancient settlements of the Wietenberg culture 3500 years ago. They built and lived in small hamlets on the banks of the river Târnava Mare. In the second century B.C., another people, the Dacians or Geto-Dacians, settled in Sighișoara. Considered a subgroup of the Thracians, the Dacians (“Daci” in Romanian) occupied a large territory North and South of the Danube river. They built fortress walls that were later destroyed during the Roman conquest (101-106 A.D.). Dacia became a Roman province and remained under occupation until 271 A.D..

The kings of Hungary encouraged Secklers, a Hungarian ethnic subgroup, to settle in Sighișoara at the beginning of the 12th century, to protect the frontiers of their kingdom against the Ottoman and Byzantine Empires. Descendants of the Secklers still live in the regions of Covasna and Harghita of Romania today where Hungarian culture and traditions have been preserved.

At the beginning of the 13th century, Saxon colonists arrived in Sighișoara. They came from the Rhine and Moselle river valleys and were welcomed by the Hungarian Kings who saw them as skilled craftsmen and soldiers. The Saxons built houses near the river and on Citadel Hill. The city was still not fortified.

In 1241, the Tatars invaded the city which was later rebuilt with the help of the Saxons. It was not until the end of the 13th century that fortress walls and 14 defense towers were built around the Citadel Hill. Only nine of the towers were preserved. Each tower was named after the craftsmen’s guilds: the Goldsmiths’ tower, the Rope-makers’ tower, the Tailors’ tower, the Clock tower, Shoemakers’ tower, the Blacksmiths’ tower, the Tanners’ tower, the Butchers’ tower, and the Furriers’ tower.

During the second half of the 14th century Sighișoara was officially mentioned as a town for the first time (1347). It gained the privilege of organizing two large fairs every year where farmers and craftsmen from far away regions would meet and sell their products. These activities contributed to the development of the city and the region.

By the 15th century, Sighișoara became one of the wealthiest and most powerful cities in the region, comparable to another notable Romanian-Saxon town, Sibiu. An important defense point, the Citadel saw many armies such as those led by John of Hunedoara and Mathias Corvinus fight the invading Turkish troops. A major force in defending commercial routes through the Carpathian mountains was Vlad II Dracul, the father of Vlad Dracula the Impaler. Born in Sighișoara in 1431, Vlad known as Dracula lived in the Vlad Dracul House located between the Citadel square and the Clock tower, although historians were never able to prove the exact location.

The Clock Tower is the largest of the fortified defense towers, situated above the main fortress entrance. Until 1575, the Clock Tower served as the main space for the Town Hall and at the end of the 16th century as a Court House and finally, in 1899, it became the Museum of History. A symbol of Sighișoara, the Clock Tower is considered unique in the Romanian sphere due to the intricately built clock and its baroque and renaissance styles. Its seven linden wood figurines represent the days of the week, taking the shape of mythological, astronomical, or astrological figures. Sunday is a female representation of the sun; Monday is the Moon goddess, Diana; Tuesday is Mars, the god of war, Wednesday is Mercury, the god of commerce, Thursday is Jupiter, the god of lightning, Friday is Venus, the goddess of love, Saturday is Saturn, the god of fertility. The Tower underwent renovations after it was destroyed by fire during the 17th century. The Museum of History inside the tower contains medieval artifacts, old clocks, furniture, manuscripts, and archeological findings. A small section on the second floor hosts the Medieval Pharmacy Museum displaying antique medical devices and books. The third floor houses an exhibition about the guilds of Sighișoara and their history. On the fourth floor visitors can observe the mechanism of the famous clock.

 

By tradition, the following events take place every year in Sighișoara: the Sighișoara Blues Festival, the Sighișoara Film Festival, the Medieval Festival, the Transylvania Gastronomy Festival,  Harvest Festival, and the Fanfare Festival.

The Medieval Festival 

Every year, on the last weekend in July, the Medieval Festival takes place in the old town. The streets of the fortress are taken over by artists, street musicians, stage actors, merchants, and craftsmen. For a few days, the modern city atmosphere regains a medieval tone through costumes, music, theater, arts, crafts, and local food. The festival attracts crowds from across the country as well as international visitors who come to Sighișoara to explore local German and Romanian cultures and experience a city that offers an atmosphere of modern spectacle in a historic setting.

The ProEtnica Sighișoara Festival

The ProEtnica Sighișoara Festival was created in 2001 and is organized every year at the end of August by the Sighișoara Interethnic Educational Centre for Youth Association in collaboration with other local and international organizations. The festival brings together representatives of Romania’s over twenty ethnic groups and thus represents an “agora of intercultural dialogue with unique value” in the country. The festival agenda aims to promote intercultural expression and dialogue by presenting cultural performances,  conferences, workshops, poetry readings, book fairs, and roundtables.

Learning Activities 

Would you like to test your knowledge about Sighișoara? Take the knowledge quiz!

 

Additional Resources

Sighișoara Medieval Festival:  https://www.sighisoarafestival.com/home

History of Sighișoara: https://www.beyonddracula.com/history-of-sighisoara/

The History Museum of Sighișoara: https://muzet.ro/en/muzeul-de-istorie-sighisoara/ 

Sighișoara Virtual Tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QklG2XsOf38

Sighișoara Beyond Dracula Tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eV0fOmM3R-0 

Sighișoara Film Festival: http://www.infosighisoara.ro/festivaluri-sighisoara-2022/festivalul-de-film-sighisoara