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A brief History of Sighisoara Romania - We know that there was already a civilization in this region in the Stone Age. On Turcului Hill (Wietenberg), archeologists unearthed vestiges which can be dated back in the Bronze Age (- exhibited in the Tower Museum).
Later, 200 BC, the so called Dacians settled around Sighisoara. They were defeated around 100 AD by the Romans.
In Danesh – a village 15 km from Sighisoara – the Romans had stationed a double legion called Gemina.
But with the beginning of the Big Emigration of the Nations, even the Romans were defeated – this time by the Gepid, Goths and Huns.
However, in these times there was no sign of the citadel we see today. See our free map for an overview of the citadel.
Saxons arrived in Transylvania, Romania, during the mid 1100s from the Rhine and Moselle Rivers regions, responding to the call of King Géza II of Hungary. For decades, the main task of the German settlers was to defend the South Eastern border of the Kingdom of Hungary. Highly respected for their skills and talent, the Saxons succeeded in time in gaining administrative autonomy, almost unmatched in the entire feudal Europe of absolute monarchies. The result of almost nine centuries of existence of the Saxon (German) community in Southern Transylvania is a cultural and architectural heritage unique in Europe. Transylvania is, even nowadays, a medieval, fairy tale land, home to lots of well-preserved towns and fortified churches built between the 13th and 15th centuries by Saxons.
Only a small church building with wood palisades protected stood on top of the hill. This church was built in the very same place – that the mighty “Church on the Hill” stands today.
It was the German settlers –later called THE SAXONS - who first started building a fortress from stone.
They came in the 12th and 13th century and followed the call of the Hungarian kings.
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10th century Hungarian kings
By the 10th century the Hungarian kings already owned a huge empire which needed to be defended. This was especially true in the East – from Asia to present day Russia. In those times the aggressive Mongols started attacking their kingdom.
The Hungarian kings had enough soldiers, but they badly needed settlers to stabilize the area and to defend it on a long term basis. That’s why King Geza decided to ask for the aid of the Germans.
The “Ruhrgebiet” – a region in current Germany, near the river Rhein - between Cologne and Luxembourg - was already over populated by this time. So it was easy for the Hungarian Kings to convince thousands of craftsmen, miners and farmers, to try their luck as settlers in Transylvania.
Enticed by various privileges the Germans went on a long journey to „The Land beyond the Forests”. The mystical name Transylvania should not be translated any other way.
There were more than 2500 kilometres, full of dangers and perils, between the settlers’ old and new homeland. The distance, which when travelled today takes only two or three days, took one to two months in the 12th century.
It’s assumed that there were guards to protect the settlers from thieves and robbers and this is how another name became associated with this region: The Saxons. Most of the knights, which were guiding the settlers, came from the area of the “real” Saxons in southeast Germany.
Whenever the settlers took a break and came into contact with people in the different towns along their way, the knights were usually the first ones to introduce themselves. Being Saxons, the people thought that not only the guards, but the settlers also came from Saxon. That’s why the name spread over time.
Download a Free map to find out everything you ever wanted to know about the history of Sigisoara and the cidatel.
Discover the so named "Pearl of Transylvania“ with DIGI GUIDE .
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