Fortified Church in Apold

The fortified church in Apold

Last week, when returning to Sighișoara after driving on the Transfăgărășan Highway, we drove through the village of Apold, which is 15 km from Sighisoara.

Like many villages around Sighișoara, Apold was founded by German settlers in the 12th-13th centuries. The Saxons, as these German settlers are known, gave this region of Transylvania its cultural identity for centuries.

The church in Apold was constructed between the 13th-16th centuries. Like all the Saxon churches of that period, it would have been constructed as a Roman Catholic church. Following the Protestant Reformation, the Saxons in Transylvania followed the majority of Germany in converting to Lutheran Protestantism. Around 1600, defense towers and walls of protection were added to fortify the church in case the village were attacked. There are dozens of other Saxon churches which have been fortified in this area, including Biertan and Viscri. These churches were used for defensive purposes until approximately the end of the 18th century.

One of the defense towers

The 20th century saw the end of Saxon culture in Transylvania as it had been for 700 years. The Saxons started emigrating from Romania during World War II. This trend continued during the Communist era. In the early 1990s, following the fall of Communism in Romania and the reunification of Germany, the vast majority of remaining Saxons emigrated to Germany.

Towns and villages that were once predominantly Saxon, are now left with only a handful of Saxons -- mostly elderly. Romanians and a large number of Roma (Gypsies) have moved into these villages. However, they do not share the same cultural heritage as the Saxons and do not carry on the Saxons' traditions.

In recent years, a number of Saxon churches have fallen into disuse and disrepair. However, there are organizations which are trying to restore these cultural heritage sites and find ways to maintain them. The church in Apold is one of them; the "Corona" organization from Germany has been working to restore the Saxon church in Apold. They hope to find sustainable ways to maintain it (e.g. tourism, cultural events) in the realities of the 21st century as a cultural landmark.

Interior of the church

The bells

View from the bell tower (click picture to view larger)