# Cristian Fortified Church

[Romania](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/attractions) › [Transylvania](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/region/transilvania) › [Brașov County](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/county/brasov) › [Cristian](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/locality/cristian)

> A Saxon church fortress in the Burzenland, near Brașov: a 19th-century Neoclassical church ringed by a double medieval wall with eight surviving defensive towers.

**At a glance:** Monasteries and churches in Cristian, Brașov County. Information verified on 1 October 2026.

## Key facts

- **Opening hours:** No visiting hours are published by official sources. Arrange your visit in advance with the Lutheran parish, through the parish office in Vulcan, which also looks after Cristian.
- **Address:** Piața Libertății, Cristian, Brașov County
- **Coordinates:** 45.6256, 25.4803
- **Phone:** +40 268 256 477
- **Website:** https://kirchenburgen.org/ro/location/neustadt-bei-kronstadt-cristian/
- **Wikipedia:** https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biserica_fortificat%C4%83_din_Cristian,_Bra%C8%99ov
- **Wikidata:** https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21815199
- **Categories:** [Monasteries and churches](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/manastiri-si-biserici), [Fortresses and fortifications](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/cetati-si-fortificatii)

## About Cristian Fortified Church

In the centre of Cristian, beside the road from Brașov to Râșnov, a yellow bell tower with a pointed spire rises between grey stone towers. The village, called Neustadt by the Saxons, was founded in the 13th century, in the years when the Teutonic Knights had settled the Burzenland. The first church, a basilica dedicated to Saint Nicholas, was built around 1270, and its round-arched portal and the rose window above it survive, set into today's tower.

In the 15th and 16th centuries the community surrounded the church with a double wall, strengthened over time with nine towers and a barbican, and a moat fed by the Ghimbav stream ran around the fortress. Towards the end of the 18th century the moat was filled in, and in 1792 the cemetery was laid out on its site. The basilica, weakened by earthquakes, was pulled down in 1839 and replaced by a Neoclassical hall church, consecrated in 1848; only the bell tower was kept, which had already been given its spire with four corner turrets in 1803.

### What you can see

Eight of the nine towers have survived, each of a different shape: some semicircular, others rectangular, with gun loops and traces of battlements. The walls and towers are best seen by walking around the fortress, and the former gate tower has become the parish house. Until 1899 storerooms for provisions lined the inner face of the first wall, as at Prejmer; today only the walls remain, partly covered in ivy.

The church interior is bright, with galleries on arcades, biblical inscriptions in German on the parapets and an altar dominated by a statue of Christ giving his blessing. The stained-glass windows beside the altar show Martin Luther, Johannes Honterus and the apostles Peter and Paul. Behind the altar is the gravestone of Anna May, the pastor's wife, who died in 1631, and above the nave hangs an iron chandelier put up in memory of the villagers killed in the First World War. The west gallery holds the organ built in the mid-19th century by Heinrich Maywald.

### Good to know

The church has no published visiting hours; arrange your visit in advance with the Lutheran parish. Cristian combines easily in a day with Râșnov, Brașov, Hărman and Prejmer.

## Don't miss

- The bell tower, the only part left of the medieval basilica, with its 13th-century round-arched portal and rose window.
- A walk around the fortress, past the double enclosure and its defensive towers of different shapes.
- Anna May's gravestone from 1631, behind the altar.
- The iron chandelier put up in memory of the villagers killed in the First World War.

## Good to know before you go

### Getting there

**By car:** from Brașov take the DN73 towards Râșnov and Bran; the church is in the centre of Cristian, ~12 km (~20 minutes) from central Brașov. Râșnov is another ~6 km south on the same road.

**Public transport:** RATBV metropolitan buses 130 and 131 (Brașov – Râșnov, via Cristian) stop in the village centre. Regional trains between Brașov and Zărnești call at Cristian station.

### Facilities

five-room guesthouse in the former parsonage, run by the parish

## Details

- **Construction period:** 13th–19th centuries
- **State of preservation:** good
- **Denomination:** Evangelical
- **Architectural style:** Neoclassical

## Frequently asked questions about Cristian Fortified Church

**How do I get to Cristian Fortified Church?**

Cristian Fortified Church is located at Piața Libertății, Cristian, Brașov County. By car: from Brașov take the DN73 towards Râșnov and Bran; the church is in the centre of Cristian, ~12 km (~20 minutes) from central Brașov. Râșnov is another ~6 km south on the same road. Public transport: RATBV metropolitan buses 130 and 131 (Brașov – Râșnov, via Cristian) stop in the village centre. Regional trains between Brașov and Zărnești call at Cristian station.

## Nearby attractions

- [Râșnov Fortress](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/cetatea-rasnov) — Fortresses and fortifications · Râșnov, BV · 10 lei · Top 100 · 5 km
  A medieval peasant fortress on a rocky hill above Râșnov, looking out to the Bucegi and Piatra Craiului mountains; the upper enclosure is under restoration, but the Fortress Garden and Báthory Tower are open.
- [Valea Cetății Cave](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/pestera-valea-cetatii) — Caves · Râșnov, BV · 35 lei · ½ – 1 hours · 6 km
  A lit cave on the slopes of Postăvarul, between Râșnov and Poiana Brașov, with a great hall over 20 m high, visited with a guide and sometimes used for concerts.
- [Poiana Brașov](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/poiana-brasov) — Resorts and thermal baths · Brașov, BV · Free · 5½ – 6 hours · 9 km
  Romania's best-known ski resort, above 1,000 m beneath Postăvaru: 12 slopes, cable cars almost to the summit and, in summer, forest trails and views over Brașov.
- [Zărnești Bear Sanctuary](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/sanctuarul-de-ursi-zarnesti) — Zoos and aquariums · Zărnești, BV · 95 lei · 1 – 1¼ hours · 10 km
  The Libearty Bear Sanctuary, on 69 hectares of forest near Zărnești: home to more than 120 brown bears rescued from captivity, visited only on guided tours. It is not a zoo.
- [First Romanian School](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/prima-scoala-romaneasca) — Museums and memorial houses · Brașov, BV · 20 lei · ½ – 1 hours · 10 km
  The old school in the courtyard of St Nicholas' Church in Șcheii Brașovului, now a museum: a classroom with wooden benches, a replica of Coresi's printing press and Romanian books five centuries old.
- [St Nicholas Church in Șchei](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/biserica-sfantul-nicolae-din-schei) — Monasteries and churches · Brașov, BV · 45 min · 10 km
  The Orthodox church of the Romanians of Șcheii Brașovului, built from 1495 on the site of a wooden one, with Gothic-Baroque towers, painted façades and Nicolae Titulescu's grave in the churchyard.

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Last updated: 1 October 2026
Source: Pe Plaiuri (https://peplaiuri.ro/en) — Guide to tourist attractions in Romania