REGHIN

Located on the shores of the Mures River, Reghin is a city full of green areas, parks and gardens,
all perfect places to relax surrounded by nature. The natural landscape is dominated by two main
attractions, the river banks and the Rotunda Forest (The Round Forest), both offering all
necessary conditions for tourists visiting these places. The Rotunda Forest is a green oasis in
Reghin, a beautiful oak forest also declared a natural reserve and protected by law, the most
popular place among locals for picnic trips, hiking and a heaven for birdwatchers. The river
banks welcome visitors with numerous alleys shaded by tall chestnut trees and willows, the
pleasant sound produced by the numerous birds and insects especially in summer.
The city was created by the 1926 union of the German-inhabited (formerly Szszrgen) and the
Hungarian-inhabited (formerly Magyarrgen) city, and later joined with the two smaller
communities of Apalina (Hungarian: Abafja; German: Bendorf) and Iernueni (Hungarian:
Radntfja; German: Etschdorf), added in 1956. Formally, the latter two are separate villages
administered by the city.
The city has a population of 33.000 out of which 62% are Romanians, 25% Hungarians, 6%
Rroma and 7% Germans, Jews and others. Reghin has a total surface of 7282 hectares and it is
situated 368 km from the capital, Bucharest. The closest airports are the ones from Tg. Mures (35
km) and Cluj Napoca (100 km).

HISTORY
Reghin was first mentioned in 1228 in a charter of Hungarian King Andrew II as Regun however, evidence of its strategic location and defense system suggests that the town might have
been considerably older, possibly founded by Ladislaus I.
Despite the devastations of the city during the Mongol invasion (1241) and during the Tatar and
Cuman incursions (1285), the town developed rapidly: already in the second half of the 13th
century the city was the residence and power center of the families Tomaj and Kacsik, to whom
the nearby lands were awarded by the Hungarian Crown. Reghin became a minor ecclesiastical
center in 1330, with the building of the Gothic church (Roman Catholic at the time, it now serves
the Protestant community) in the German part of the city; it is still the largest church in the area,
and hosts the oldest Medieval Latin inscription of any church in Transylvania. The Hungarian
part of the city has an even older church, initially built in the Romanesque style.
At the beginning of the 15th century the settlement gained city rights, and, from 1427, the right
to hold fairs. In the 16th and 17th century Reghin was devastated by Habsburg and Ottoman
troops on several occasions. It burned to the ground in 1848. In 1910, the population of the city
included 7,310 inhabitants, of which 2,994 were Germans (Transylvanian Saxons), 2,947
Hungarians, and 1,311 Romanians.

In 1920 Reghin was assigned to Romania by the Treaty of Trianon, together with the rest of
Transylvania. In 1940, as a consequence of the Second Vienna Award, the city became part of
Hungary, together with the North of Transylvania. Almost 30% of the inhabitants were Jews at
that time. In May 1944, the Jews were gathered in the Reghin ghetto and on June 4, 1944 were
deported to Auschwitz. In 1945, the city again became part of Romania.
After World War II, Reghin lost some of its former Transylvanian Saxon character - as many
Germans left for Western Germany during the latter stages of Communist Romania - and ethnic
Romanians were settled in their place. The data of the 1992 census showed a population of
24,601 Romanians, 12,471 Hungarian, 1,790 Romani, and 346 Germans. In 1994 Reghin was
declared a city.

ECONOMY
The industry of Reghin is closely related to the traditions of the medieval trades and of the
modern cooperative associations. Starting with the resources in the close vicinity, rich in wood
and farm produces, the goods of the private producers from Reghin are in the market all over
Romania and abroad. The wood processing industry is represented by companies such as Larix,
Gralemn, Remex, Bucin-Mob, Prolemn/Kastamonu, Dalin, and Amis. Reghin is well known for
the industry of the musical instruments, especially of violins. There are many companies that
produces instruments using the famous resonance wood from Calimani and Gurghiu forests. The
violins made in Reghin are used abroad. The "Hora" Company is the first to manufacture
instruments. In time, other companies were set up among which "Gliga Instrumente Muzicale".
There are several other local companies that produce shoes, tractors, apple juice, etc.

CULTURE
The "Petru Maior" municipal library has more than 130,000 books, among which one dating
from the 16th century. Another important book is Petru Maior's "History of the Romanians'
Origins in Dacia".
The building in which the "Alexandru Ceusianu" secondary school functions was constructed in
1870 and housed the local law court. Lately in the post-war period, there was the Hungarian
pedagogical school. Close by, was the house of the writer and magistrate Alexandru Ceusianu.
The Ethnographic Museum has a rich patrimony, grouped in 49 collections of ethnography, folk
art, artistry, records. The edifice is a monument of architecture built in 1892. The items exhibited
concern trades, national costumes, and tradition specific to the upper cours of Mure River,
Gurghiu valley and part of the Transylvanian Plain.

The "Eugen Nicoara" community centre was built between 1938 and 1939 when Dr. Eugen
Nicoara was the president of the Reghin department of Astra Foundation. Theatrical shows are
held in this building because there is no theatre building in town. Still, numerous touring
companies, local or from the nearby Targu Mures come here and organize great shows. The most
present touring companies on the local stage are the Ariel Touring Company from Targu
Mures, Targu Mures National Theatre and Reghin Popular Theater. Sometimes the audience is
made up of children because several times a year special plays are performed for kids usually on
special occasions, performances given by touring companies like Ariel Childrens Theatre or
other.

ARCHITECTURE AND LANDMARKS

With such rich history, Reghin houses numerous old buildings, most of them architecture or art
monuments of national importance. Among them the most significant are the Evangelic Church,
the Saint Nicholas Wooden Church, the building housing the Ethnography Museum, the Roman
Catholic Church and several old houses dating from the eighteen and nineteen century. The city
also offers plenty of cultural events most of them housed by the local Culture House,
Ethnography Museum, small art galleries and churches.
Reghin possesses some of the architectural elements that are unique in Transylvania. The stylistic
details and the wrought iron balconies in the center of the town are examples that prove the
artistry of the local craftsmen. One passes everyday by the apparently modest, yet defining signs
of an ancient civilization. They personalize almost each and every building from the center of the
town, making the visitor feel the fragrance of times gone by.
One of the most impressive religious edifices in Reghin is the Evangelic Church, also known as
the "Saxon church", dating back to 1330 and offering tourists a beautiful sight of a gothic
building with all characteristic features. For centuries the churchs 47m high tower has
dominated the small hill from the center of the city. The four smaller towers are proofs of the
town's "Right to the sword". The church has a historical and artistic importance, due to the
numerous gothic elements and frescoes found on both its exterior and interior walls. The
construction of the church began at the end of the 13th century. Over the years, the architecture
was modified because the church underwent many dramatic events. It was set on fire in 1400,
1630 and 1778. The documents reveal the use of several styles of early and transition gothic
style. The church was consolidated in 1501 and since 1551, when the Saxons adopted the
Lutheran Reformation, on the main wall are written the words: "Redemption cometh not from
war, it is for peace that we all pray. Inside the church there is an organ with 20 registers that
dates from 1784.
Another important building is the Wooden Orthodox Church located at the periphery, dating back
from 1744. The churchs structure is made of unvarnished timber and throughout time went

through numerous changes, first in 1760 and so on until 1857. The building is an art monument,
a living proof of the talent that carpenters and wood manufacturers had in those times. The
interior is breathtaking, with numerous decorations carved in wood, old wood paintings made by
a famous local artist in 1760 which can still be admired in several spots on the ceiling and altar.
The Huszar Castle, former Bornemisza, situated in Apalina dates from the 13th-14th centuries
and was restored in the 19th century. In the old mansion of the castle lived between 1584 and
1592 Gyulai Pl of Apalina (1559-1592). He was a royal diplomat, historian, chronicler, doctor
and classical poet. The castle was built in the Renaissance style with baroque elements. In 1953
the castle was taken over and used by different educational institutions for disabled persons. It
has recently been returned to its owners according to the new laws of property.
Other local landmarks can be grouped according to heritage.
Traditional German architectural heritage:
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the Protestant (Lutheran) church, built in 1330 in honour of Saint Mary. Burnt down in
1708 and in 1848, after which it had been rebuilt.
the Roman Catholic Church, which was consecrated in 1781.

Traditional Hungarian architectural heritage:

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the Protestant (Calvinist) church, 13th century, in 1910 completely rebuilt.

a Calvinist church built in 1890.

Traditional Romanian architectural heritage:

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the Greek-Catholic church, built in 1744, nowadays Romanian Orthodox.

the Greek-Catholic church, built between 1811 and 1813, nowadays Romanian Orthodox.

TOURISTIC ATTRACTIONS CLOSE BY

Trgu-Mure is the seat of Mure County in the north-central part of Romania and it is located 35
km from Reghin. It is the 16th largest Romanian city, with 134,290 inhabitants as of 2011. Targu
Mures has a twin city in Turkey Gzelaml (near Kuadas).
One of the most important attractions in Tg. Mures is the fortress in the town center which was
erected in 1492 upon order of Transylvanian voivode Stephen Bthory. Having a pentagon plan,
surrounded by a defense wall, the Citadel has seven forts, five of them bearing the names of the
guild which according to tradition supported its maintenance: the leather dressers, the
tailors, the butchers, the ironmongers, the coopers.
The Rkczi staircase is another interesting monument in Tg. Mures. It has 70 steps and was
built in 1902 by Sos Pl. It was named after Francis Rkczi II who led the Hungarian
revolution at the beginning of the 18th century against the Austrian rule in Transylvania. In 2014

the stair was painted with traditional motives and it appears on the list with the most beautiful
stairs in the world.
The Tg. Mures Zoo is the largest and te most beautiful zoo in Romania (40 ha). It hosts over 500
animals in 120 different species and it recieves over 100.000 visitors per year.
The Bear Lake is a lake in the town of Sovata (40 km from Reghin). The lake is unique in
Europe, its water being helio-thermal and salty, with well-known therapeutic effects (for chronic
gynecological symptoms, severe rheumatic pains, peripheral nervous system and post-accidental
motor diseases).
The Sighioara Citadel (80 km from Reghin) is the old historic center of the town of Sighioara,
built in the 12th century by Saxon colonists under the Latin name Castrum Sex. It is the single
inhabited medieval citadel in Europe. In 1999it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site
for its 850-year-old testament to the history and culture of the Transylvanian Saxons. Birthplace
of Vlad III the Impaler (the Romanian ruler on whos personality the character of Dracula was
created), Sighioara hosts, every year, a medieval festival where arts and crafts blend with rock
music and stage plays.
The Lapusna Castle, located in the Gurghiu Mountains at 815 meters altitude, 40 km from
Reghin, was built between 1925 and 1926, but its completion and decorations became a fact only
in 1933. The castle belonged to Romania's Kings Ferdinand and Carol II. During the rule of
Nicolae Ceausescu, the Castle in Lapusna has been used as a hunting lodge hosting major
political figures, such as Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev, secretary general of the Soviet Union
Communist Party, Todor Jivkov Hristov, president of Bulgaria and leader of Bulgaria's
Communist Party or Josip Broz Tito, former leader of Yugoslavia. Its current owners, who
bought the castle as a result of the privatization process, kept its royal features, its genuine
Romanian architecture. The castle is now a tourist attraction for the holidaymakers interested in
exploring the rooms once occupied by kings, queens, princes or high-ranking politicians. The
Lapusna complex is located in a fairy-tale natural setting in the middle of a pine forest. It is made
up of a castle that includes 6 building blocks with 23 rooms, a hunting lodge with 12 rooms and a
forest land stretching over 4 hectares.

OTHER INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT REGHIN

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The Rotunda Forest (the round forest) is rather square than round
Reghin is known as The Town of Violins
Yehudi Menuhin used a violin made in Reghin
Augustin Maior, the inventor of multiple telephony, was born in Reghin. The physicists
invention permitted multiple calls to be conducted by a single phone line.
In the Mocear forest near Reghin we can find the oldest oaks in Romania