The city of Bistrita town-residence of Bistrita-Nasaud’s county, is situated in the Bistrita’s depression, on the inferior Bistrita’s river, at a height of 358 m.
Located at the foot of the Bargau Mountains, not far away from Borgo Pass which connects Transylvania to Bucovina, the town of Bistrita (find out more about Bistrita) is one of the oldest in the region. Saxon colonists, who settled in the area in 1206, helped develop the town into a flourishing medieval trading post.
The name Bistritz mentioned in 1241 got the first attestation into a document in 1264. There were times of economical development, broken by troubles and wars. So that, during 1241-1242, in their migration to the Central Europe, the Tartars devasted town and neighbourhood.
The old town’s quaint 15th and 16th century merchant houses, the remains of the 13th century fortress walls, and the city’s unhurried pace have preserved some of Bistrita’s once-thriving medieval atmosphere. Not to be missed attractions include: the 14th century Saxon Evangelical Church; the arcaded Sugatele row; the Silversmith’s House; Coopers’ Tower; and the County History Museum.
The Bistrita-Nasaud County Museum, located in a former barracks, contains Thracian, Celtic, and German artifacts.
The arhitecture proves the encreasing of prospere town. Facing the time some monuments could be seen still today: the XIII-th century Church, the lutteran Cathedral with a 75 m high tower (246 ft.), built during 1470-1564, Sugalete – comercial archway store and Silverman’s House marking the XVI-th century.
Because of hard times, in order to defend and preserve the social estate, it became a fortress. At about 1465 stood up 18 towers and bastions. Great names of dukes and kings cossed the name of town: Iancu de Hunedoara, Matei Corvin, Stefan cel Mare and Petru Rares.
In Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, the character Jonathan Harker visits Bistrita and stays at the Golden Krone Hotel (Coroana de Aur). Although no such hotel existed when the novel was written, a hotel of the same name has since been built for tourists. Over the recent years, Bistrita saw a rebirth, while embracing its many centuries of history to become a tourist and investor attraction; to this effect, it used European funds.
Sursa foto: wikipedia.org
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