Contact
After visiting the church we went to visit the staff rooms. We had the chance to see rooms that were workshops for processing different materials in order to produce tools and weapons as well as storage sheds. In other rooms we found furniture from those times that showed the way of life of the people. There are rooms equipped as a bedroom, kitchen or living room. We even found the school in the fortification
I visited the Harman Fortified Church in May 2026 and overall I was pleasantly impressed. The visit began by passing through the imposing gate and through the tunnel that connects to the inner courtyard of the fortification. Right at the end of the tunnel at the entrance, on the left side there is the ticket office and a small souvenir shop where a lady is present to issue entrance tickets and sell small souvenirs.
Right at the entrance, on the left wall, there are 3 posters displayed, which can also be purchased, representing the map of the fortified churches in the area and the equipment of the soldiers from those times. After entering the fortification, I started my visit by climbing the guard road. The climb is made on some wooden stairs, it must be done very carefully, because there is a risk of accidents, the railing is a great help. I entered the guard road. The first impression - very good - is artificial lighting to enjoy and admire the fortification. I walked along the old soldiers' road and admired the place which is beautifully restored. The works consisted, as far as I know, of repairing the walls and defense slits, changing the wooden structures, building a safe walkway for tourists. Very nice, as if we were soldiers doing our rounds on the fortification wall. The guard road is built all around the fortification but we visited, I think, half of it. After finishing the visit to the guard road, we visited the interior of the fortification, admiring the way the walls were built, the alleys inside and the set of rooms for the staff. The alleys are built around the church, which is the central building, imposing in its grandeur. Inside we could admire the altar and the organ of magnificent dimensions. In the church everything was orderly and very clean. There were even different pillows of the people who came to the service.
The fortified evangelical church in Hărman, Hărman commune, Brașov county, was built in the 13th century on the basis of an old Roman basilica dating from the 12th century. The fortified evangelical church ensemble is a historical monument, code LMI BV-II-a-A-11715. The locality Hărman formerly Herman (in the Saxon dialect Huntschprich, in German Honigberg, in translation "Honey Mountain", in Hungarian Szászhermány, in Latin Mons Mellis) is a village in the eastern part of Brașov county, in the Brașov Depression. The seat of the Hărman commune. The locality of Hărman is located in Țara Bârsei, about 10 km east of the municipality of Brașov. It is especially known for its impressive fortified church. The history of the Hărman fortress is linked to the presence of the Order of the Teutonic Knights in Țara Bârsa in the first decades of the 13th century in Feldioara, Prejmer, Râșnov and Sânpetru. However, the first documentary attestation of the settlement dates back to March 21, 1240, 15 years after the expulsion of the Teutonic Knights from these territories. In a document written at that time, King Béla IV says ...we have decided to give to the holy and venerable convent of the Cistercian monastery, as aid for its expenses, which will be made every year for the public benefit, of the chapter of the entire order, some churches in Țara Bârsa in the parts of Transylvania, namely the fortress of Feldioara (Castrum Sanctae Mariae), Sânpetru (Sancti Petri), Mount Hărman (Mons Mellis) and Prejmer (Tartilleri) with all the income, rights and things related to them….
In addition to the fragments of paintings inside the church or in the window embrasures, an important ensemble of paintings is found in a chapel in the east tower. The painting here, made between 1460-1470, was covered with lime after the Reformation and cleaned in the 1920s. The iconography of this painting stands out through a remarkable synthesis between Western and Byzantine painting. The dominant theme of this ensemble is the Last Judgment. Other scenes are inspired by the life of the Virgin Mary, but figures of holy apostles also appear, as well as the scene of the Crucifixion of Jesus.[1]
The Romanesque basilica with three naves was probably under construction in 1240, when it was taken over by the Cistercians from Cârța. Most of the construction elements from this stage are preserved. The interior of the church is quite heterogeneous, so that in addition to the Cistercian elements (the windows with four tracery lobes above the broken arch ones) a series of elements from various other periods are also preserved. The central nave, originally covered with a ceiling, was vaulted in 1595, after a fire that devastated both the commune and the fortress. The side aisles were originally cross-vaulted, and the semicircular triumphal arch was transformed into a broken arch with the vaulting of the nave. The eastern side aisle has a beautiful portal with an embrasure with a trilobed arch in the late Gothic style. The choir retains the original cross vault, and the apse a semi-skull. At first, the choir was flanked by two Cistercian chapels intended for the monks' prayer, but in the 15th century the northern chapel was transformed into a sacristy. This is a hipped vault with terracotta penetrations and ribs.
The vault rises from consoles in the shape of men's heads with mustaches and women with their mouths half-open. Visible here is the Church, an overall view. In its lunette, a symbol of sacrifice is painted on a cobalt-blue background, the pelican feeding its chicks with its own flesh. On either side of the portal, both inside and outside, two small towers in the form of sacnasiums stand out, which house the spiral staircases leading to the stands. In the 15th century, the community attempted to transform the basilica into a Gothic style, but the works did not continue beyond the addition of a storey to the bell tower, which with its 32 meters became the tallest in Țara Bârsei. On the ground floor, the bell tower is presented as a cross-vaulted portico with thick ribs with a typical Cistercian profile. The third level has three niches with ramparts, as does the next, with the bells being on the fifth level. The upper levels were added two centuries later and are built of limestone tuff. The guard road survived until the 18th century. An interesting element is the single-hand clock, which indicates the hours and dates from the 16th century. The turrets at the corners of the roof signified, as in the case of other churches, the authority of ius gladii that Hărmanul had. The picturesque exterior of the church is made up of the provision chambers raised above the collaterals and their movable staircases.[1]
The fortification surrounding the church was built in the 15th century. It consists of a triple cordon of concentric curtains, similar to the fortification at Sânpetru. The outer wall, shorter, with a height of only 4.5 meters, was intended to defend the base of the enclosure. At the same time, it established the limit of the moat with water that surrounded the fortress. The third cordon of curtains that surrounded the moat with water is no longer preserved. The inner wall, 12 meters high, was equipped with seven advanced towers. The entire enclosure was covered with a guard road, as in Prejmer or Sânpetru, which communicated with all the towers. Here, the machicolations were alternated with ramparts with wooden frames that closed. Because there was a marshy area in the north, the fortress wall was lower in height and was equipped only with pouring openings. In front of the entrance was a barbican with two portcullises, and above it was the butchers' tower. At the beginning of the 17th century, the building with the short entrance corridor, similar to the one at Prejmer, was erected.[1]
Harman Fortified Church
Daily schedule 07.00 -22.00 (Romanian time) Departure location - Brașov
Discover the beauties of Transylvania in an unforgettable adventure in the Romanian countryside by choosing a private tour or planning your own tour as you like. Call or send a message on whatsapp. 0040771238939
A website created in the WebWave website builder.