The Fortified Church of Saschiz (Keisd), Mureș County

October 4, 2022October 5, 2023 Koen 0 Comments

In this destination guide we will visit the Saxon fortified church of Saschiz (Keisd) in Mureș County, Romania.

From Sighișoara to Saschiz

After a decent night of sleep at Casa Wagner, it was time to leave Sighișoara again and to continue my road trip along the Saxon fortified churches of Transylvania.

Although I had a short walk around the old town of Sighișoara the evening before, I couldn’t resist to take another stroll on the beautiful cobblestoned streets of the citadels.

Sighișoara is at its absolute best on an autumn morning like this as the rising mist creates a mystical atmosphere and makes for some wonderful views.

It was tempting to stay around longer but as I have visited Sighișoara many times before, I nonetheless decided to pick up my car from the parking lot and drive to the nearby town of Saschiz, which is located 21 kilometres to the east.

sighisoara old town centre — *The old town centre of Sighișoara in the early morning. ©Paliparan*

sighisoara old town citadel — *Cobblestone streets of the old town citadel of Sighisoara. ©Paliparan*

sighisoara citadel — *View towards the upper part of the citadel. ©Paliparan*

sighisoara romania — *Streets of Sighisoara. ©Paliparan*

sighisoara old town — *Walking through the old town of Sighișoara in the early morning on a crisp autumn day. ©Paliparan*

sighisoara bastion — *Sighisoara morning walk. ©Paliparan*

tailors tower — *I left the old town through the Tailors’ Tower in order to pick up my car again from the parking lot. ©Paliparan*

Saschiz

The small town of Saschiz (named Keisd in German) is located on the main road (DN13) between Sighișoara and Brașov.

In fact, the main road goes right through the heart of Saschiz so even from the car window you really can’t miss the massive fortified church towering high above the town.

I’ve taken the DN13 many times before and although I must have driven through Saschiz dozens of times, I never actually stopped in the town until now.

There is plenty of space to park your car right next to the fortified church if you want to explore the town.

saschiz dn13 keisd — *Saschiz and its fortified church as seen from the main road. ©Google Streetview*

Saschiz fortified church

Although it’s not as picturesque as other churches in Transylvania due to its location right next to a busy road, the Saxon fortified church of Saschiz is impressive when it comes to its size.

The fortified church of Saschiz was built in late Gothic style in 1493.

Most of the walls and defensive structures have been dismantled, although the impressive North Tower with its fine spiral and clock still stands tall.

The church building itself feels just as massive as the tower and is strengthened by 22 buttresses.

The inside of the hall church is in baroque style, although unfortunately I didn’t manage to actually visit it as the doors were firmly shut and I didn’t manage to contact the keyholder.

saschiz saxon fortified church keisd — *Although it doesn’t have the most picturesque location, the Saxon fortified church of Saschiz is still impressive. ©Paliparan*

fortified church saschiz keisd — *Saschiz fortified church. ©Paliparan*

fortified church keisd — *Side view of the fortified church. ©Paliparan*

saschiz fortified church keisd — *Fortified church entrance. ©Paliparan*

A walk through town

Saschiz is rather small and although the town has a couple of pensions, a grocery shop or two and a school it was all rather quiet when I visited.

It’s however still worth it to walk a bit around the town centre to admire the fine Saxon houses around the church.

transylvanian saxon houses saschiz keisd — *Traditional Transylvanian Saxon houses in Saschiz. ©Paliparan*

saschiz fortified church — *Saxon houses around the fortified church. ©Paliparan*

saschiz keisd — *Houses in Saschiz, which is known by the German-speaking Saxons as Keisd. ©Paliparan*

saxon houses saschiz — *Saxon houses in Saschiz. ©Paliparan*

village streets saxon fortified church — *Walking through the village streets. ©Paliparan*

saschiz saxon fortified church — *Saschiz. ©Paliparan*

Saschiz fortress

Besides the Saxon fortified church, the hilltop fortress is worth seeing as well in Saschiz.

Even though the fortress is in a badly ruined state, the views over Saschiz makes a drive or walk up the hill worth the effort.

Currently the fortress itself is being renovated and therefore closed for visitors for the time being.

When the works will be finished it should however make for a nice visit.

saschiz fortress keisd — *The hilltop fortress can easily be seen from the town centre. ©Paliparan*

saxon town — *As the fortress is still quite an uphill hike from the fortified church, I decided to drive up. ©Paliparan*

saxon town houses — *Saxon town houses along the road up the hill. ©Paliparan*

transylvania countryside fortified church — *View over the surrounding countryside. ©Paliparan*

rough road — *The roads on the hill are a bit rough. ©Paliparan*

keisd saschiz — *Upper part of the village. ©Paliparan*

saschiz castle — *From the road, you still have to walk on a track through the forest to reach the fortress. As the fortress was anyway closed during my time of visit, I decided not to walk any further. ©Paliparan*

saschiz keisd transylvania — *Even from points halfway up the hill there are some fantastic views over Saschiz. ©Paliparan*

saxon fortified church saschiz — *The Saxon fortified church of Saschiz towers high above the town. ©Paliparan*

Conclusion

Due to its location on the main road between Sighișoara and Brașov, the Saxon fortified church of Saschiz is almost impossible to miss.

No matter how you construct your Transylvanian itinerary, you are likely to pass through this town if you explore the region by car.

Although Saschiz (called Keisd in German by the local Saxons) isn’t the most idyllic of the Saxon towns thanks to the busy road running right through it, stopping here is well worth your time.

The fortified church itself is one of the bigger ones in the region, although none the defensive bastions and walls apart from the North Tower remain.

If you visit Saschiz, you should definitely walk or drive uphill to admire the fine views and to visit the fortress.

Trip report index

This article is part of the ‘Visiting the Saxon Fortified Churches of Transylvania‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters: