Fortresses and fortified Churches - Harman
Home > Places > Transylvania > Fortresses and fortified Churches > Harman
Harman
HARMAN
Harman (Hönigberg or Hermannsdorf), a parish in the Brasov county, is located in the Brasov Depression, in the valley of the Olt river. Its population notes over 4,200 inhabitants (1996).
( or ), a parish in the Brasov county, is located in the Brasov Depression, in the valley of the Olt river. Its population notes over 4,200 inhabitants (1996).One can reach Harman from Brasov, the capital city of the county, which lies 10 km north-east from Harman.
The place was first mentioned in writing in 1240, during the rule of the Hungarian king, Bela IV.
On the territory of the present Harman were found traces of superposed settlements dating back to the Neolithic age. They belong to the Cris and Cucuteni-Ariusd cultures (7000/5500-2500/2400 BC). At the same time, findings have pointed to a settlement from the 4th century AD, and to another one, dating back to the 8th- 9th centuries, i.e. Protodridu Culture.
During the Middle Ages, the main occupations of the inhabitants at Harman were agriculture, animal breeding and trades.
The most interesting sight at Harman is the Fortified Church, which was built in the first half of the 12th century, following the great Mongolian invasion in 1241.
The plundering raids over the Barsa Country continued until 1285, being followed by those of the Ottomans during the 15th and the 16th centuries, and by those of the Tartars in the 16th century respectively. The 16th century brought about natural disasters like the Black Death, the locusts' invasion, and floods.
The Peasant Fortress, resembling the one at Prejmer by its circular walls, was built by Saxon villagers in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Fortress has the typical aspect of a medieval fortification due to its girdle of walls 10 m high and 1.50-3.50 m thick. They are strengthened by 6 quadrilateral towers (formerly 7). On the inside, along the circular walls, there are many cells that would be used both to shelter the villagers against the besiegers and to store rictuals all the year round (not merely at times of war). These cells are placed next to each other in 4 overlapped rows, and they resemble to a honeycomb.
On the outside, the Fortress is protected by a small, circular wall, which encircles it for over a half of its outer length. The girdle of the curtain walls has a lot of barbicans and loop-holes that once served in the fight against the besiegers. The defensive system is completed by a moat. Access into the fortress is made through a vaulted covered walk, i.e. the zwinger (architectural element originated from Central Europe), to which were added a number of structures with gables and high roofs during the last centuries.
The Church, built in the Romanesque style by Cystercian monks in the 13th century, was featured in the Gothic style after the fire in 1593. It is situated in the middle of the bailey, and has three naves covered with ribbed vaults. It has a bulky tower with thick walls, about 50 m high, alongside four smaller towers in the corners which stand for the right of the Harman village to apply the death penalty, i.e.jus gladii during the Middle Ages. The tower was built on the west side of the central nave (the church has a basilical plan), so that the two aisles flank it on the right and left side respectively. The base of the tower in its western side is made of a wall with moulded huge corbels. The corbels were designed to prevent the displacement of stones caused by shootings. The tower has a beautiful portal made up of 5 simple arches.
Some of the features of the Church, among which its round-shaped windows with a 6 lobed decorations make it look like the Carta Monastery.
The Church still holds several Romanesque capitals in the choir, alongside consoles carved with grotesque heads in the vestry.
The paintings that decorate the funeral chapel of the Peasant Fortress at Harman are especially interesting. Unfortunately, most of them were destroyed due to various uses that were given to this chapel along the years - as a city hall or even a pantry to store ham supplies. In the 30's of the 20th century, four zoomorphic symbols that surround the figures of Virgin Mary were discovered on the southern wall of the chapel. These symbols were interpreted by Erhard Antoni and presented at a scientific session in 1935 the Pelican (who feeds his poult with his own blood), the Phoenix (who rejuvenates through fire), the Lion (who rises to life his born dead whelp) and the Unicorn (who is so wild, that the hunter can get it but with the help of a maid, in whose lap he would gently put his head). These symbols, initially relating to Christ, were later on associated to Mary's virginity. Made in the second half of the 15th century, the murals in the funeral chapel illustrate the "internationalization" of the late Gothic painting in Transylvania, that is a return to the linear style of Italian influence. Made by different master painters in different styles, the murals have all a main iconographic theme, namely the "Last Judgement", with many afferent episodes, of which the "Crucification" or "Virgin's Coronation". Influenced by the Tyrolese and French painting, the three masters' art resembles similar works in Silesia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
One of the moments of glory in the history of the Fortress relates to the villagers' fight against the Transylvanian prince Gabriel Bă¡thory (1608-1613). After he had conquered Brasov, Codlea, Bran, Rasnov, Gabriel Bă¡thory assieged the Fortress of Harman; he ordered his troops to shoot at it so heavily, that about 120 m of its outer wall was fired down. By then, the Fortress was defeated by its guards by means of 50 cannons, and by the villagers led by a brave and clever man, Hans Böhm, a painter and a stranger from those places. He was the one who had the idea of setting a trap to Gabriel Bă¡thory's troops made up of Székelys. Heknew that after the siege they would be starving to death, so that he had the villagers make loaves of bread with firecracks and missles inside. Once baked, the villagers threw them down to the Székelys. When the enemies, hungry and tired, rushed at the loaves of bread, and tried to eat them, the firecracks and missles fired and blew up. They were so frightened that they ran away, and never came back. Gabriel Bă¡thory was constrained to ask for a peace agreement, but by Hans Böhm's advice, the brave defenders of the fortress turned his offer down. Moreover, they mocked at him by hanging down along the Fortress' walls a sow and a goat, both alive, in order to prove that they had enough food and could still hold out. Therefore, Gabriel Bă¡thory had to accept the defeat, and withdrew his army.
Following this victory, the authorities in Brasov granted the inhabitants of Harman the privilege to sell "knot-shaped bread on the markets of Brasov exempt from all taxes" every Friday, but should they have missed one single Friday, they would have lost the favour.
In 1989 the Saxon population of Harman did not exceed 1000 people, whereas in 1999, due to the massive emigration to Germany, only about 150 people of this minority were left in the parish.
( or ), a parish in the Brasov county, is located in the Brasov Depression, in the valley of the Olt river. Its population notes over 4,200 inhabitants (1996).