aIn that document, King Bela IV turns over to the Cistercians the churches of Feldioara (Castrum Sanctae Mariae), Sanpetru (Sancti Petri), Harman (Mons Mellis) and Prejmer (Tartileri) along with all their income and belongings, in order to serve as help for the annual communitarian contribution they were to give.

The church



When it was taken over by the Cistercians in 1240, the Romanesque three-nave church was probably under construction. Most of the constructive elements from this stage have been preserved. All in all, the interior of the church is fairly heterogeneous, as traces of different styles and periods have been kept, besides the typically Cistercian details as the four-lobed openwork windows above the pointed-arch ones.

The stronghold



The fortification system that surrounds the church was erected in the 15th century. It consisted of three concentric curtain-walls, similar to the ones at Sânpetru. The outermost wall, that used to surround the water ditch, has not been preserved. The second, now exterior wall is 4.5 meters high and was meant to protect the base of the inner mantle wall. The latter is 12 metres high and is reinforced by seven forerunning towers. The entire mantle wall was covered with a wall passage that linked the seven towers, similar to what may be seen at Prejmer and Sânpetru.

You can find more information about this church and many others on this CD dedicated to the fortified churches in Transylvania.