The medieval city of Brasov, the Crown of Transylvania

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http://www.heygo.com 6th March - The medieval city of Brasov, the Crown of Transylvania



Braşov is part of ‘Burzenland’, a historical region in Transylvania. During the Middle Ages, this area fell under the rule of the Hungarian Kingdom. In 1211 King Andrew II struck a deal with the Teutonic Knights (Germans) and gave them unrestricted access to Burzenland. The Teutons built five castles in the region and named Braşov ‘Corona’.

This is one of the many historical names that would follow over the centuries. The Saxons named the city ‘Kronstadt’.

Later the names Brasco, Stephanopolis, and Stalin City followed.

The German-Hungarian history resulted in the fact that up until the First World War almost 70%!o(MISSING)f the local population was Hungarian or German. The two World Wars and the policies of the Soviet Union changed this balance. Today, more than 90%!o(MISSING)f Braşov residents are Romanian.



We entered the medieval city through one of the four city gates - Catherine’s Gate - it was the only gate that could be used by Romanians. Under the rule of the Saxons (Germans), Romanians were only allowed to enter the walled city on certain times, and they could only use this gate. It was even prohibited for Romanians to living within the city walls. The Germans lived inside the walls, the Romanians lived in Schei outside the walls.



The Black Church is the largest Gothic church in Eastern Europe. The name refers to a great fire in 1689. This tragic event not only destroyed the church, but it also turned most of the city center to ashes. Consequently, the walls of the church were blackened, which is the reason for the name.

We weren’t able to go inside but our guide showed a photo of the inside, sadly one fresco survived the fire.



The central square is surrounded by a rainbow of buildings, the square was not always a happy place, up until the 17th century it was the spot for public executions.



Our guide is a great story teller and we heard about Katharina, It is said that Vlad the Third, also known as Dracula or Vlad the Impaler, lived a long yet fierce love story with Katharina Siegel. The young daughter of a weaver, Katharina was of Transylvanian Saxon origin.

Their relationship lasted for more than 20 years, during which they had 5 children, although they were never married.

They met on a cold December morning, when young Katharina was struggling to pull a heavy sledge of food for the soldiers of the Weavers Bastion. Vlad offered his help and fell in love with her instantly.

Everyone was suprised of his reactions and attitude towards her, because no one had ever seen him so jealous before. He wanted her to have the best, so he would bring her the best silk and lace dresses from Venice and Belgium.

Vlad was already married when they met, and after his first wife committed suicide, their marriage plans were ruined by Vlad’s second marriage, one he arranged for political reasons.

Katharina stood by Vlad the Impaler even when he lost his trone, and after he was assassinated, she decided to live the rest of her life in a monastery.



Braşov has one of the narrowest streets in Europe? It is only 111 centimeters wide at its narrowest point. Why is it so narrow? This 17th-century alley was built for firefighters so they could move around the city more quickly to put out fires.



From the main square far in the distance there was a ‘Hollywood’ style sign on the top of Mountain, it had nothing to do with entertainment but to the Soviet past. In the 50’s and 60’s Braşov was called Stalin’s city and the name ‘Stalin’ was written on the Mountain.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, Stalin’s name was replaced by the white Braşov letters.



It was a really interesting tour and great to discover more about Transylvania other than Dracula.

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