Sighişoara Citadel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| State Party |  Romania |
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| Type | Cultural | |
| Criteria | iii, v | |
| Identification | #902 | |
| Region2 | Europe and North America | |
| Inscription History | ||
| Formal Inscription: | 1999 23rd WH Committee Session |
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| WH link: | http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/902 | |
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1 Name as officially inscribed on the WH List |
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The Sighisoara Citadel is the old historic center of the town of Sighişoara (hu: Segesvár), Romania, built in the 12th century by Saxon colonists under the Latin name Castrum Sex. It is the last inhabited medieval citadel in Europe and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, for its 850 year old testimony to the history and culture of the Transylvanian Saxons.
Birthplace of Vlad III the Impaler, also known as Dracula, Sighişoara (German: Schaessburg) hosts, every year, a medieval festival where arts and crafts blend with rock music and stage plays. The city marks the upper boundary of the Land of Saschen (Germans from Saxony or Luxembourg established in Central Romania in the 12th century). Like its bigger brothers, Sibiu (Hermannstadt - The European Cultural Capital in 2007) and Braşov (Kronstadt), Sighişoara exhibits architecture typical of medieval Germany. During communist era, this German area was preserved and the original architecture is still in place.
