Râşnov Fortified Church

The bell tower is the only remainder of the former Gothic basilica, which was entirely demolished in 1839 and replaced by today’s neoclassical hall church. A pointed spire and four corner turrets were built on the tower in 1803. Its portal and the rose window originate from an earlier construction phase. Pairs of pillars that support the domical vaults segment the church’s interior. The altar and the pulpit were built at the same time as the church. The assembly is still surrounded by a double deneustadt_i_b2_inschrift1fence wall, which was constructed, enlarged and endowed with nine defence towers across more than three centuries. Only eight towers still stand today. Another remarkable building in Cristan is the neoclassical parish house opposite to the church, as well as the community center from 1926/1927 featuring a curve roof, called „Zollinger roof“ after the name of its inventor.

Only the triumphal arch is preserved from the 13th century Romanesque basilica. A vault carried on stone ribs, which end on consoles decorated with face-masks, covers the late Gothic chancel that was built two centuries later. After the church was destroyed by the troops of Gabriel Báthory, the community needed more than 50 years until it started rebuilding in 1665. The vault of the chancel and the paneled ceiling of the nave were built in that time. More than a century later the bell tower was erected and in the same time the wooden galleries inside the church.
On the baptismal font from 1741 two inscriptions in German and in Latin can be read. They are also mentioned in a church book dating back to the 18th century. A portcullis and a machicolation secured the entrance of the 14th/15th century curtain wall. The view of the main entrance is blocked by the town hall today.
Inside the fortification several good preserved granaries can be visited. An interesting visit can be the one of the Evangelic cemetery located behind the church. The tombs sheltered on the perimeter under a common roof and the stories about those resting there are worth paying a visit.

On the settlement founded in the 13th century by the Teutonic Order, the 15th century Gothic basilica evolved by altering the preceding Romanesque church. Later on it was fortified and surrounded by a curtain wall with five defence towers, an outer bailey, a moat, and the tower of the church was provided with arrow loops. After battle damages, the church was re-built in its original shape in 1658, but the vaults of the nave were added later in 1775. Remaining details of the Gothic period, besides the plan composition of the ground floor, are the Gothic cross rib vault of the chancel and the domical vault of the apse as well as the trefoil tracery windows. In the reconstruction phase the distinctive roof of the tower in form of a truncated pyramid with an open level for the bells was built.
The interior setting was created during the 18th and 19th century. Unique in Transylvania is the 1902 colourful floral and ornamental painting covering all walls and vaults.