Fortresses and fortified Churches - Biertan

BIERTAN

 

 

The parish of Biertan (Birthälm) lies in the north-eastern part of the Sibiu county, in the Tarnavelor Plateau and on the riverside of Biertan. It is a land of hummocks, 567 m at its highest.

Access by road is possible from Medias (25 km) and Sighisoara (26 km) on DJ141B, a southern branch of DN14.

The history of the settlement can be traced back to ancient times. Archeological finds are relating to a Roman rural establishment from Dacia Superior. The Christianization process in Dacia after the withdrawal of the Roman administration (271 A.D.) is proved by a bronze donarium (an object presented to gods) dating from the 4th century B.C., which was discovered on Biertan's present-day territory. The donarium is made of a rectangular plate with an ear which writes in Latin "Ego Zenovius votum posui", that is "I, Zenovius have kept my promise". The circular locket attached to it has Jesus Christ's monogrammed cross inside it.

Biertan as a settlement was first mentioned in a written document in 1283, alongside Mosna and Medias. It became a borough in 1397, whereas the right to hold a weekly fair on Saturday was bestowed upon it in 1418. Due to the privileges the Saxons benefitted from the Hungarian kingdom, they set up in Biertan powerful guilds which would compete with those in the surrounding area, and even with the corporations in Sighisoara. This is shown by the carved or painted heraldry that one can see in the church today.

as a settlement was first mentioned in a written document in 1283, alongside Mosna and Medias. It became a borough in 1397, whereas the right to hold a weekly fair on Saturday was bestowed upon it in 1418. Due to the privileges the Saxons benefitted from the Hungarian kingdom, they set up in powerful guilds which would compete with those in the surrounding area, and even with the corporations in Sighisoara. This is shown by the carved or painted heraldry that one can see in the church today.

In 1486, a document called "Andreanum", issued by the Hungarian king Mathias Corvinus (1458-1490) exempted the able-bodied man of Biertan from war duties, so that they could remain in the village and defend it in case of need.

On May 6, 1572 Biertan became the seat of the Saxon Episcopate. Lucas Unglerus, a local minister, was elected as a high administrator of the Evangelical community in Transylvania.

Since then, Biertan served as a seat to the Saxon Episcopate, that is until 1867, when Sibiu would replace it, subsequent to bishop Georg Paul Binder's death.

Nowadays, the parish comprises three villages and a population of some 2,800 inhabitants (according to the 1995' census).

Biertan is best known for having one of the largest and best preserved fortified churches in Transylvania. Its Fortified Church belongs to UNESCO World Heritage (since 1995) due to its unique artistic and historical value.

is best known for having one of the largest and best preserved fortified churches in Transylvania. Its belongs to UNESCO World Heritage (since 1995) due to its unique artistic and historical value.

Placed high on a hillock, overlooking the village, the Church was built in the late Gothic style between 1492 and 1516. Considered to be the most representative Fortified Church in the Tarnave area, it is surrounded by defence walls shaped as a spiral. Its walls are stregthened here and there by towers and defence bastions that actually make up the peasant stronghold. The fortification, made of three curtain walls provided with six towers and three bastions, was built between 1492 and 1522; later on, that is during the 17th century, it underwent several changes.

The Fortress, whose records show that it has never been conquered by enemy troops, has three concentric precincts, built in such a way as to prevent landslides. The site on which it stands formerly held a Romanesque basilica dedicated to Virgin Mary. The inner curtain wall, provided with three defence towers (risen in tiers at the beginning of the 16th century), was built during the 14th century.

The Clock Tower is four storeys high and has a defence wall-walk with a wooden parapet. The tower holds the scaffolding of the fortification's bells, of which only three have been preserved to the day. Two were made between 1432 and 1439, whereas the third, the bell of the clock tower proper, was made in 1508.

The north-eastern tower, dubbed the Mausoleum Tower, is three storeys high. It holds tombstones of the Lutheran bishops at Biertan starting with the 16th century. In 1913, their earthly remains were relocated from the choir crypt wherein they had been formerly buried. The slabs are adorned with in intaglio or life-size likenesses of the deceased. The oldest slab belongs to bishop Johannes (1520).

In the southern corner of the tower a coiled stairway mounts to a cylindrical turret that screens a battlement

The Catholics' Tower is placed in front of the southern portal of the Church, on the edge of the plateau. This tower used to serve as a chapel, as Mary's Tower at Medias. It holds frescoes that are illustrative of the transition from the Gothic to the Renaissance art styles in Transylvania. Its southern wall depicts scenes like the "Annunciation"or the "Magis' Worship". On the western wall one can see the "Judgement Day", painted, unlike the other murals of the Fortified Church, in a Byzantine Orthodox manner. In olden times the defence wall-walk of the tower was reached by means of ladders.

In the southern part of the Fortress, in-between the Mausoleum Tower and the Catholics' Tower, stands the Eastward Bastion two storeyed, which is placed on the hill slope.

The second curtain wall that encloses the hill slope, a little lower than the first precinct, was raised in the 15th century. It is defended by a tower on its south-western side. The western side of the curtain wall is provided with a defence wall-walk that led to the battlements. The latter have a special shape deep recesses covered by two slabs, each having a semicircular slit which served to shoot down the enemy.

The construction of the third precinct started in the 16th century. It encloses the western, southern and eastern sides of the Fortress. To the south-west and south-east two crossed walls separate the "zwinger" into three different-sized baileys. The southern yard, alongside the cells of the prison, make up a fortified pile directed to the market-place of the village.

In the middle of the pile stands a hall-type Church. It comprises three equally tall naves, which are 22 m long. The late Gothic style of the Church blends with Renaissance elements, e.g. the framings of the Church's northern and southern portals. The construction proper of the hall Church was started in 1402, when Pope Bonifacius the 9th granted indulgences to the Virgin Mary's Church at Biertan and to the Church in Aachen. Towards the end of the 15th century, the frail naves of the former construction were replaced with a hall-church in the Gothic style. After 1500, the choir was vaulted with a network of rhomboidal ribs, 3 m lower than the vaults of the naves. The terracotta rib network is stellary, and rests on three pairs of octagonal chords. The five windows of the choir have framings decorated in the late Gothic style. The absence of keystones may be justified by the unusual height of the vault itself, a fact related to the setting of the church on a hilltop. Amongst its treasures, it is worth mentioning the Renaissance pulpit, a work of art ascribed to master stone carver Ulrich from Brasov. Its sides depict, in alto relievo, scenes inspired from the Ordeal of Christ, i.e. Simon's Prophecy, the Crucifixion and the Prayer in the Garden. Incidentally, prophet Simon's features are those of bishop Johannes. This pulpit is considered to be a masterpiece of the Transylvanian carving art at the beginning of the 16th century. Due to its intricate aspect, it is also illustrative of the history of Gothic carving styles in Transylvania. The main attraction of the Church is the polyptychal altarpiece, the largest in Transylvania. The altarpiece is made of 28 polychrome wooden carved panels with likenesses of saints and scenes from the lives of Mary and Christ (1515-1524). Their pictorial style resembles the composition and iconography of Flemish paintings. The Crucifix of the altar piece must have been made by a disciple of the renowned medieval painter and carver, Wit Stwosz.

The interior of the Church is rich in stone carvings; it also exhibits an earthenware fireplace decorated with blue floral motifs, alongside pews made by master Johannes Reymuth in 1514.

The northern wall of the choir holds a vestry door set in a rectangular stone frame with crossed mouldings in the late Gothic style. The step corniche of the vestry door is adorned with a Renaissance denticular frieze. Johannes' coat of arms is inscribed on the door (1515). The huge iron lock of the door has two bolts, and 13 other bolting systems that can be operated simultaneously. This wonder of medieval engineering was awarded at the Paris World Exhibition in 1937.

On the double portal of the Church, which resembles the one of the Evangelical Church at Bistrita, over the crossed mouldings of the framing are cast the coats of arms of the Hungarian king Ladislas II (1490-1516) and of John Szapolyai, Transylvania's ruling prince between (1511-1540). Two keystones are fastened to the western wall of the church. They both originate in the old Romanesque church (1402); while the former represents a hand taking an oath of loyalty (the emblem of the Saxon Schul of Medias), the latter displays a crescent with a star.

The northern and southern portals are decorated in the Renaissance style.

Two turrets with coiled staircases that mount up to the church attic are to be found in the western corners of the naves.

as a settlement was first mentioned in a written document in 1283, alongside Mosna and Medias. It became a borough in 1397, whereas the right to hold a weekly fair on Saturday was bestowed upon it in 1418. Due to the privileges the Saxons benefitted from the Hungarian kingdom, they set up in powerful guilds which would compete with those in the surrounding area, and even with the corporations in Sighisoara. This is shown by the carved or painted heraldry that one can see in the church today. is best known for having one of the largest and best preserved fortified churches in Transylvania. Its belongs to UNESCO World Heritage (since 1995) due to its unique artistic and historical value.