The Saxon Fortresses of Transylvania: Walled Cities and Medieval Trade

In the heart of Transylvania, seven walled citadels built by Saxon settlers still stand — Biertan, Sibiu, Brașov, Sighișoara, Mediaș, Sebeș, and Alba Iulia. This episode walks through their founding in the 12th century under King Géza II, the legal privileges in the Andreanum charter, and how these fortified towns became a bulwark against Ottoman expansion while controlling trade routes between Central Europe and the Levant. We look at the 1438 Ottoman raid that destroyed Sighișoara's suburbs, the 1658 attack on Sebeș, and the architectural ingenuity of the fortified churches — including a look at Biertan's fortress with its 15-foot-thick walls and a medieval divorce room. We also examine the decline of Saxon power after the 1848 revolutions and the emigration wave of the 1990s. A conversation about how a tiny German-speaking community shaped the history of modern Romania.

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