Grab my hand and prepare for another piece of history.

You may wonder where we are going today. Well… today we will visit an old fortress, or should I say, an old citadel.

We will first enjoy a walk through nature because, as you may have noticed, most fortresses are built on top of hills.

Why? Well… for defence purposes, of course. It is much easier to defend a place when your enemies first have to climb a hill before reaching you.

This place has a long history, so prepare your soul for another walk through history.

But first…Take a moment to enjoy the view.Maybe catch your breath after the climb.Now…Brace yourself. Today we shall meet knights.

What kind of knights?The Teutonic Knights.These guys arrived here during the 13th century. It is believed that they built the fortress on the remains of an older one. Historians think the citadel was built between 1211 and 1225, although, as always, what really matters is the first written document. The fortress is mentioned for the first time in 1335.

Like every old fortress, Râșnov had both good and bad days.Its first difficult moments came when the Tatars invaded.Later, in 1421, the Ottomans laid siege to the fortress for the first time.The fortress didn’t give up.They failed.A few years later, between 1436 and 1441, they tried again.Guess what?They failed again.

I know what you’re probably thinking…“Good for them! They resisted.”Well…Let’s travel two centuries forward, when things didn’t go quite so well.Now we shall meet the army of Gabriel Báthory.This time they succeeded.Most probably because they had some secret information.The poor fortress resisted, but the attackers played dirty.

Instead of attacking the walls, they blocked access to the secret spring outside the fortress.Sometimes water is more important than walls.Eventually, the people paid a ransom to get their fortress back.

After that, they learned an important lesson.In 1623, they started digging a well inside the fortress itself.The well was used until 1850.You can still look down into it today.Who knows…Maybe if you say “Hi!” someone might answer. 😊

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the end of the fortress’s troubles.In 1802, a powerful earthquake caused several towers to collapse.Later, during the Revolution of 1848–1849, the fortress became a refuge once again while the Hungarian army was present in the area.Another earthquake struck in the 1940s.Poor fortress…

It never seemed to catch a break.

Finally, between 1955 and 1956, it was restored.After surviving wars, sieges, earthquakes, rain, snow, sunshine… and people…I think it deserved that.Just imagine standing here for more than seven hundred years.Watching history unfold.Watching generations come and go.That is really something built to last.

Now let me tell you something interesting.In 2003, archaeologists discovered a hidden treasure beneath one of the towers.They found three tin cups, weapons, iron tools, stone cannonballs, ceramics, a golden hairpin, and 416 silver coins.Probably quite a nice little fortune.

I always wonder…Who buried it?And why did they never come back for it?

This fortress has also had another interesting role.It became a film star.You can probably imagine why.Just look at it.Many films were shot here, including the Romanian classics Nemuritorii, Dacii, Mihai Viteazul, Columna, and even the international film Cold Mountain.

But the best thing about Râșnov isn’t the films.It is that you can come here yourself.You can walk through every tower.Every courtyard.Every corner.You can imagine how people lived here.How they survived.How they celebrated.How they feared the next attack.Sometimes I wonder…How many stories could these walls tell?How many books could be written from everything they have seen?How many photo albums could be filled with the beauty of this place, where history and nature meet so perfectly?So…Grab my hand… and let’s enjoy some time here together.