In the vicinity of
Sibiu, in Cedonia area in the year 271 a.c, the presence of a Romanized population on the Dacian territory was confirmed. In the Roman period,
Sibiu was known as Cibiniensis/Cibinum and from this is the name of the river which crosses the town - Cibin - and the Romanian name of the town.
The first mentioning of the existence of this territory under the name of Cibinium dates back to the 20th of December 1191, in a religious document written by pope Celestius the 3rd from Vatican in which he describes the religious organization of the colonists who reached Sibiu in the times of king Geza the 2nd (1141-1162).
The first written mentioning under the name of Hermannsdorf dates back to the year 1223, but there are other mentions of the name Villa Hermanni. In the year 1241,
Sibiu was attacked and conquered by the Mongolian hordes.
In a document dating from 1366
Sibiu was given the statute of civitas (town), and the locality was called for the first time Hermannstadt.
In the XIV century,
Sibiu became an important commercial centre and for many centuries it was the most important German fortress from
Transylvania. The craftsmen from
Sibiu were organized in guilds and in 1376, 19 guilds with 25 professions were known. In the second half of the 16th century there were 29 guilds and towards 1780, 40 guilds were acknowledged.
Around the end of the 15th century, the
University of
Saxons was set up – the head institution of the Saxon administrative hierarchy led by a royal prince, later the ruler of the Saxons.
In 1550, a gothic monument “The Infamy’s pillar” which had at the top the statue of Roland sculptured by Onoforius was installed in Piata Mare.
Starting with 1692, along with the Austrian influence increase,
Sibiu becomes the Capital of Transylvania. This is a booming period for the town and the most important construction of this time is the
Brukenthal
Palace.
In 1745 the
Vienna -
Sibiu mail line is set up with two trips per month.
In 1872 the first railway is built and in 1897 – the first use of electricity in
Sibiu
In the first half of the 19th century a new wave of colonists, landlers, came and settled in
Sibiu,more precisely in Neppendorf. They came from
Salzburg,
Austria.
At the beginning of the 20th century,
Sibiu was a town up to date: it was the 3rd electrified town from the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the 2nd to have introduced the electrical tramway. The first cinema is opened in 1909 and the first public toilettes in 1910.
The name of the town was officially changed into
Sibiu in 1919 and the streets were given Romanian names.
In 1945, after WW2, the Saxons are deported to URSS.
Sibiu becomes the capital of the
Sibiu
County in 1968.
Tourist attractions:
The
Bruckental
National
Museum – the most important museum complex of
Sibiu set up around the oldest museum in
Romania located in the palace which carries the same name and built by the baron Samuel von Brukental between 1778 -1788.
Astra
National
Museum is the home of many representative monuments for the Romanian village values.
Piata Mica with the famous Liars’ Bridge - the first bridge in
Romania to have been cast in iron(1859) and the Council’s Tower.
Piata Mare has been the centre of the city since the 16th century and still impresses visitors with its monuments and historical buildings of which we mention: The Weidner - Reussener - Czekelius House, the Catholic church built by the Jesuits between 1726 and 1733 in early Viennese baroque style, The Blue House which at the middle of the 19th century was occupied by a textile shop “La ducele de Reichstadt”
Sub
Arini
Park is one of the oldest parks in
Romania dates back to the year 1856.
Religious buildings:
Two fortified churches can be found between the districts of Turnisor and Gusterita:
The Evangelical Church of Turnisor (Lutheran) 13th century
The Evangelical Church of Gusterita (Lutheran) 13th century
The
Parochial
Evangelical
Church (Lutheran) is a gothic building constructed in 1520 on the territory previously occupied since the 12th century by a roman basilica
The Orthodox Cathedral, 1906, presents the features of a Byzantine basilica and is meant to be a copy at a small scale of the Saint Sofia Cathedral from
Constantinople.
The
Roman-Catholic
Church from Piața Mare 1726-1733
The
Franciscan
Church on
Selarilor Street (roman-catholic)
The Church from the Hole (orthodox) 1788-1789
The Reformed Church (Calvin) 1786
The
Ursuline
Church
The
Evangelical
Church "Johanniskirche" 1883
The Chapel of the Saint Cross from Piața Gării (roman-catholic)
The Synagogue of the mosaic cult 1888
The Church between the Fir trees built between 1778 and 1788 in baroque style – the first catholic-Greek church in
Sibiu
Surroundings:
Paltinis mountain resort is located only 32 km away from
Sibiu at an altitude of 1442 m, the highest in the country. In the vicinity of
Sibiu you will also find natural monuments and reservations like:
Cindrel
National Park, the Arpasel Fauna Reservation, Balea lake, Hasag mud volcanoes.
