Fortifications and ramparts to visit Romania

Perched on a Carpathian ridge at the foot of the Făgărăș mountains, this ruined citadel is considered the real castle of Vlad Țepeș, the Vlach voivode who inspired the character of Dracula. Built in the ^14th century by Prince Negru Vodă to protect against Ottoman invasions, it has undergone numerous transformations, with the addition of towers and a keep. Vlad Țepeș, in particular, undertook an extension of the fortress during his reign, making it his second home. Legend has it that he took refuge here from the Turks in 1462, when they invaded the region. His wife is said to have thrown herself into the void to avoid ending up in their hands. Falling into the river below, she gave it its name: râul Doamnei, the river of the Princess. The Poienari citadel occupies a strategic position, at the entrance to the Argeș valley. It's reached by climbing a staircase of some 1,400 steps. Up there, you'll enjoy a magnificent panoramic view of the Argeș valley, the Vidraru lake dam and the surrounding mountains.

You'll reach the citadel from the north, via the mythical Transfăgărașan road, or from Curtea de Argeș, some 25 km further south. In winter, as the Transfăgărașan is closed, access is only from Curtea de Argeș. Find out in advance whether the rehabilitation work has been completed and whether the citadel is open to the public again (www.muzeul-judetean-arges.ro/cetatea-poienari/).

They were built in several stages. The first lines date back to 1224, but little remains of them. At the end of the ^13th century, a second line was built, the main vestige of which is the Council Tower. The fortifications visible today date from 1410 and are best preserved in the strada Cetății. The two towers (Olarilor and Dulgherilor) and the wooden and brick parapet walk are superb. Other towers, often named after craft guilds, were added later, such as the Soldisch bastion (1627).

The Alba Iulia citadel was built between 1714 and 1738 by the Habsburgs, who dominated Transylvania at the time. Baroque in style, it covers an area of 70 ha and features seven bastions. The citadel, with its Vauban-style star-shaped defensive system, is very isolated from the city and therefore not very lively. Crossed from east to west by strada Mihai Viteazul, it is nevertheless pleasant, airy and full of flowers. The cloister and cathedral are superb. Also worth a visit is the small wooden Orthodox church (Trinity Church), at the end of the road on the right as you exit to the east. The panorama of the city and surrounding area (including a highly visible factory painted blue and yellow) is very attractive.

Its walls, 12 km long in all, are pierced by three large gates. The first, at the bottom of the mountain, is shaped like a classical triumphal arch. The upper level is richly sculpted in Baroque style. In the center is a pedestal featuring the imperial coat of arms of the House of Austria: a double-headed eagle bearing a sword and scepter. Little remains of the second door, which was blocked up in the early ^20th century. Only two stone pillars remain, while the sculptures that once adorned the building can now be seen at the Union National Museum. The third door is the most impressive, both in terms of size and ornamentation. It is shaped like a double triumphal arch. Four pillars support the arch that surmounts the three entrances.

Subjected to numerous enemy attacks and incursions, the town's inhabitants decided to build truly effective fortifications. From the ^14th to the ^17th century, stone walls were gradually erected all around Brașov (3 km long, 12 m high), along with watchtowers and gates, making it one of the most fortified cities in Transylvania. The best way to appreciate this defensive system is to visit the best-preserved of these bastions, the Weavers' Bastion(Țesătorilor), built in 1436. In its wood-panelled galleries, you can visit a museum, where a huge 1896 model depicts the Brașov of the 1600s. Among the other visible remains, Poarta Ecaterinei, from 1559, once the town's main entrance, is the only gate that has survived the tests of time. Poarta Schei, at the end of the street of the same name, was built much later, in 1827. To the west of the old town, along Strada După Ziduri (the "Street Outside the Walls"), at the foot of Warthe Hill, the Black Tower(Turnul negru) and the White Tower(Turnul alb) served as observation posts. Not far away is the Graft bastion, which served as a bridge over the stream and can also be visited. The construction of the fortifications was financed by the Saxon trade guilds, and the bastions were named after one of them:Postăvarilor,Fierarilor orFunarilor, from which the cable car to Tâmpa departs.

This is the only remaining bastion of the nine in the Timișoara fortress, built in the ^18th century in the Vauban style. The bastions formed the third and final circle of the fortification, the innermost. The whole complex was almost entirely demolished in 1892, to allow for the development of the city. Renovated, the Theresia bastion now houses temporary exhibitions organized by the Banat Museum, as well as bar-restaurants, an art gallery and a museum dedicated to the cartoonist Popa (Wednesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).