Showing posts with label Sighişoara. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sighişoara. Show all posts

04 April 2012

Sighisoara - old pictures

Well, while we cannot have pictures from the medieval Sighișoara, we can definitely enjoy this images from 100 years ago with the fortified citadel. The layout of the fortified town was characteristic to the German towns from the late middle-ages. Let's not forget that the first documentary attestation of Sighișoara is from 1291, under the name Castrum Sex ("the town on the hill").

08 June 2009

Sighişoara

Sighişoara is, according to all proofs, the birth town of Vlad III Dracula.
While I never had a video-camera with me while visiting Sighişoara, I finally found one good documentary about the medieval town. The best video presentation I found about Sighişoara so far.


Thanks Angela, for letting the documentary embeddable, and congratulations to you and Dani for all the work you do in presenting the beautiful places in Romania!

Check here a short history of Sighişoara.

29 May 2009

Museums' Night in Sighişoara

Last week it was museum night in Romania, including Sighişara, Vlad Dracula's birth place. Medieval atmosphere was revived for a couple of hours:

26 March 2009

Clock Tower in Sighişoara

Work is going on in Sighişoara, digging under the clock tower, few meters away from the house where Vlad Dracula is supposedly born:
As no specialist from "protection of cultural heritage" is on spot, and some approvals from the Ministry of Culture seem to be missing, this is really concerning.

30 November 2008

The Real Count Dracula

Well, The Real Count Dracula did not exist !! Shocking ? read more...

I was disappointed today to find a video on youtube (I won't link to it but a search on google for The Real Count Dracula would reveal it) with a nice presentation and images from Romania (Braşov , Sighişoara and Poienari Castle ) but a very ...undocumented description by the guys who posted the video. C'mon guys, how can you say that Vlad Dracula "was a minor count in some parts of Transylvania" ?? Are you joking ? First of all Vlad III was NOT a count !
Second, Vlad III Dracula ruled Wallachia, not Transylvania, neither was he a count in Transylvania.
And third, it was not minor at all, he was one of the most important rulers in the XV-th century.

Anyway, the video also presents the commercialism around the myth of Dracula, like the Dracula Hotel, presented as Dracula Castle. Anyway, I would also suggest reading the comments

08 November 2008

Sighisoara images

This video presents images from nowadays Sighişoara, birth town of Vlad Dracula
We see images taken from the clock tower, right near the house where Vlad was supposed to be born, images from the medieval town as well as pictures with the clock tower:

29 November 2007

Lost World of Dracula

Well, folks, I found another nice History Channeldocumentary about Vlad Dracula the warlord that became known allover Europe.
Among other images a scene described as one of the most terrifying landscape in history, a forest of impaled people in front of Vlad's residence in Târgovişte is presented. Also, images from Chindia Tower (The Sunset Tower) in Târgoviste, from Bran Castle or from "one of Eastern Europe's most breathtaking mountain-top castles", from many places in Transylvania or from Bucharest can also be seen.
The computer animation is amazing, it really brings back to life the lost world of Dracula.

Sighişoara, the place where Vlad Dracula was born (in 1431) is presented in details, with images and a short history of the town and of it's inhabitants. Vlad's father, Vlad Dracul, has been killed in 1446 together with his son Mircea.

24 October 2007

Transylanian History

This is the fourth part of the documentary about Tranyslvania. This part speaks about the saxon collonial population, the reason why they left Saxonia and arrived in the eastern part of austro-hungarian Empire. Also while admiring images from Sighişoara, we learn about the way the small town was ruled, the town's defending walls and towers. The tournament is presented as a game of love, as having the motivation in showing the beloved girl what the man is able to do in order to protect his worhiped lover. The apparition of the numerous fortified churches is also explained. Each village fortified the church and even build arond strong defensive fortifications. Even Mattheus Corvin, son of John Huniady, helped the villagers build the fortifications, by temporary cutting the taxes and not asking them to contribute to the king's army. The defending methods are all concentrated around the citadel (example the fortification of Apold). More concentric walls have been built, so if the enemy would succed overpass the first wall it'll be much more difficult to pass the others. When a peril were announced, villagers were brought the assets and cattle inside the fortress, the entrance bridge was closed and the warriors were going to the surveing positions.
Biertan fortified citadel, the most famous of all of them, is also presented, as well as Harman, Câlnic, Sebeş, each of them helping understand the life of the inhabitants and the military defending systems.

23 October 2007

Documentary about Vlad Dracula

Third party of the documentary speaks about the medieval town of Sighişoara, the house where Dracula was born in 1430 - 1431, his strange relation with John Hunyadi, governor of Hungary and ruler of Transylvania, a hero of Christian World. Hunyadi's castle in Hunedoara is also presented, with it's gothic architecture and his evolution in time. The legend explains history of Iancu of Hunedoara (John Hunyadi) by him, killing with an arrow ravens that steal his royal ring. Therefore the Hungarian kind decided to give him the lands around Hunedoara, as well as put the raven on John's coat of arms.
Then we can see the ruins of Vlad's princely court in Târgovişte, his first residence as Wallachian ruler. Chindia Tower is also to be seen near the ruins. While is true what the documentary mentions, that Vlad's punishment methods are similar to the one use during middle-ages by other rulers like Ivan Third, Luis 11th, Families of Visconti, Sforza and Borgia, Richard IIIrd or The Inquisition. However I'd say the punishments of Dracula spread allover Europe because he exposed them, he used terror to impose law and order in Wallachia. Is unbelievable people were used to this, were watching this "spectacles" with a strange joy, satisfaction and happiness.
While we are not sure about how Vlad Dracula died, the theory presented (his killing by one of his men) could be true, but there are no proofs to sustain this.


19 June 2007

The Blacksmiths' Tower, Sighisoara

The Blacksmiths' Tower, Sighisoara


The Blacksmiths' Tower is one of the 14 defending towers protecting the medieval town.


(c) April 2007 - dracula-transylvania.blogspot.com



One can see the shooting windows on the upper part and the way the tower is emerging from the defending wall.

Interesting archaeological research revealed some great detailed design can be viewed at http://www.cimec.ro/Arheologie/CronicaCA2001/web_cronica_foto/187/index.htm The one to the left is looking at the tower nearly from the same angle as this photo.

Also check my images of the Tinkers' Tower in Sighişoara

10 June 2007

Dracula related places -Sighisoara, Bran Castle, Targoviste

Places related to the story of Vlad Dracula


Understanding the real life of Vlad Dracula means also contextualizing the facts, trying to imagine him in the medieval age, with people, habits, culture and the places of that age. Therefore this corner presents that places, at least what is still existing today.

SIGHIŞOARA - the medieval town


Sighisoara is the birth place of Vlad III, and the place where the future Dracula spent it's childhood. Have a look at this posts to have a better image of Sighisoara:



Poienari Castle



If we know today that Bran Castle can hardly be connected with Vlad III Dracula, than which is the real Dracula Castle ?


Targsor Prahova

is less known as being connected with the myth of Dracula, therefore is the less touristy of all Dracula places.



Medieval Saxon Citadels


A great cultural heritage of Transylvania are the medieval citadels and fortified churches. Few people know, but there are about 1000 middle-age fortifications in Romania.

In April number National Geographic Romania published some great images aiming reconstitue the way this fortification looked.

Snagov Monastery


Vlad Tepes' buildings: Snagov, Comana, Târgovişte, Poienari, Bucharest Old Court

Slide-show presenting Snagov Monastery and Lake

07 May 2007

Medieval Saxon Citadels

In the April 2007 number, National Geographic Romania publised two very interesting related articles, featuring the medieval Transylvania: one about the saxin citadels, and one about Medieval Sibiu.
The saxon fortifications are presented in a very nice graphical presentation by Radu Oltean. Medieval towns as well as fortified churches are presented here. One can admire the XIII-th century peasants churches of Câlnic, Prejmer, Cisnadioara and the fortified church in Biertan, but also the graphical representation of Medias, Brasov or Sighisoara.

Here you can admire some photos from this great article.

23 March 2007

Dark Prince The True Story of Dracula

The short sequence below is the movie closest to the historic truth about Dracula. There are some doubts, like the Gothic church where he has to face the heads of the Orthodox church (it is presented like a church in the middle of the lake and the same church of that type is the one in the middle of Snagov Lake, an orthodox one, of course !




here is Part 2 of the movie

07 March 2007

Informative video about Dracula

I found this very nice short documentary about Dracula:


While is true that Vlad did not live in Bran Castle, the rest of the documentary is correct and I recommend it for having a first idea about Vlad III - Dracula !

The narrator says about Snagov Monastery: "there is no way to get there but by boat", however in the winter of 2005 I guided two American photographers there and passed on the ice covering the whole lake! Also the villagers in the movie don't look like Gypsy (as he says) :). Maybe one of them is the guy that walked next to us in the winter and took the biggest risk of an ice crash. (he was fishing in the lake).
Also there are very intense controversial about Snagov Monastery being the place where the body of Vlad the Impaler is buried.

21 February 2007

Images from Sighisoara Medieval Town

This video compilation is a slideshow with images from what is considered not only by Romanians as the most beautiful medieval town in Central and Eastern Europe – Sighisoara, the birth place of Vlad III Dracula.


The slide-show starts with images of the Clock Tower, the symbol of the medieval town (seconds 6 – 19, 178 - 180) then continues with images from the street turning left from the opposite side of the main square, (seconds 20 – 40) , images of the middle age houses still inhabited.


Image of the house where Vlad Dracul lived from 1431 to1436 are to be seen at seconds 84 - 97, but one can also notice the stair going uphill, the gateways, the church on the hill.


Also the statue of Vlad Tepes (Dracula) , the orthodox cathedral, the Saxon graveyard on top of the hill.

Pictures of Legenda guesthouse (used by outdoor holidays in it's tours in Transylvania) anbd of Burg Hostel are also presented.

The remaining towers from Sighisoara defending system can also be seen (the image at 08:29 – 09:20 are taken from the clock tower), as well as an overview of the old and of the new town.



Enjoy:

15 February 2007

Sighişoara - birth place of Vlad III Dracula

Sighişoara in the medieval era


Before presenting Dracula’s life I think it would be interesting to have an idea about the nice town he lived in: Sighisoara. Attested for the first time in 1280 under the name of Castrum Seg (the town on the hill – in Hungarian Seg means hill). Although I encountered many times the name of Castrum Sex, I prefer to use Castrum Seg (sincerely I haven’t seen the original document). From which Segsburg and the actual German name Schassburg, with the same meaning, the town on the hill. Is easily understandable the name, as it is really placed on a small hill, near Târnava River. One would have to climb the clock tower to have a perfect view of the geography of the place. Even the Romanian name seems to come from the Hungarian name (Segesvár)



Fourteen square towers were placed on the wall protecting the citadel. A second defending wall has been built around the lower town by the end of the XIVth century.
During Vlad‘s life the town was counting about 2000 inhabitants, so much fewer than Braşov (6000) and Sibiu (4000). The first official census, dates from the end of the XVth century. Sighişoara was sheltering 638 families, so about 3000 inhabitants. The majority of them were Saxons (hospites in Latin), 600 families.


The inhabitants were organized in guilds (bresle in Romanian). Each guild was having it's own tower. They were shoe-makers, coopers, goldsmiths, tinsmiths, spurs-makers, woodcarvers, leather dressers, butchers, carpenters, etc. Nowadays some of the towers are still preserved, and, more than this, still inhabited.




The town was being governed by a local judge, with power over the 16 neighboring communities forming the Stuhl (headquarter of the justice).The judge was seconded by the mayor and the local council (formed of 12 wise old-men). The population was speaking one of the Germanic dialects called Saxons. This was common to the 35 villages around, grouped in three ecclesiastic communities.



What characterized the Saxons in the 240 German villages is Transylvania is although the clothes they used to wear. As mentioned by Dávid FRÖLICH in Medulla Geographiae Practicae (1639) the men’s clothes are almost identical to the Hungarians’, except the men like larger clothes. The sacerdotes were using a purple coat, a blue or red belt, a dark-color cape called “reverenda”. The women were wearing tight clothes, with the shoulders uncovered.



A short video from a parade of middle-age wearing in Sighisoara is to be seen here:
The quality of the video is not the best, but at least we can have an idea: