Prejmer/Tartlau

Prejmer, or with its German name, Tartlau, is the largest and most eastern fortified church, not only of the Bârsa Land, but of Transilvania as a whole. As such, it was protected not only by its strong fortifications, but also by its gateway, through which, every now and then, whole lots of enemies entered the country to plunder and to destroy.

The powerful inner court of the stronghold of Prejmer has been built after 1427. Its walls are 12-14 meters high and, at the basis, 5 meters thick. In their higher part, there have been built crenels and pouring holes. At a height of ten meters, there runs an almost two meters wide battlemented parapet, exactly on the top of the wall. In the south-eastern sector of the parapet, there is a – among our fortresses unique – “death organ”, an oak board, set instead of a window, which can be turned around its own axis and which has on each side five places for muzzle-loading riffles.

While the one series was being fired, the other one could be loaded, and, by turning it quickly, the procedure could be repeated. But the small-bore rifles used more to frighten the enemy away, rather than to kill him.

On the inner court’s side, there are some rooms, laid out on four floors, which were accessible thanks to a system of wooden platforms. On the doors, the house number is still written, as each peasant’s family owned one such room. There were stocked things like corn and bacon, the traditional main nourishment; during war times, the rooms were also inhabited. Two large rooms in the south-eastern corner, still wear the name of the “Old School”, an indication that teaching and learning were not interrupted, even if the enemy on the other side of the walls was.

A 30 meter entry through the gateway, a low tunnel vault, which could be locked by means of a portcullis and oaken doors, forms in the South the entry to the fortress. A drawbridge over the more than eight meters wide and four meter deep canal, connected the fortress to the outside world. The canal was filled up in the second half of the 18th century.

In the 16th and the 17th centuries, a second fortification, on the long entry to the gateway, the so-called Town Hall Yard, the walls of which were, on their outer part, provided with crenels and pouring holes, on their inner side, with rooms, increasing therefore the number of rooms to 267. Very nice is its façade, that shows a double row of blind arcades – a presumably renaissance ornament, as it can be often seen at Romanian churches. In the Town Hall Yard, there opens up an entrance to a tunnel, that connected the fortress with its outside. Today, it can be entered only very little. The other side is not known any longer.

A third part, which was protected by walls, but without any defence purpose, has been built at the beginning of the 18th century. It is the so-called Baker Yard, between the Town Hall Yard and the principal wall. At the same time, there was built the long entrance tunnel with baroque arcades. This tunnel replaces the old drawbridge, which connected the both shores of the canal. The whole community fled in the fortress at the very first signals of the storm bell and the bridge was drawn. All men occupied their defence posts in the towers and in the battlemented parapets. And this happened very often until the 18th century.