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Coat of arms
Script: Latin
Lettering:
O CETATE CU PORTILE MEREU DESCHISE
* GOLDEN WORLD COIN *
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Feldioara is a small town in central Romania, located on the left bank of the Olt River, about 15 km north of Brasov. One of the most interesting attractions of the city are the ruins of a medieval fortified castle (Cetatea din Feldioara) located on the eastern outskirts of the town on the top of a picturesque hill. This stronghold was erected in the 13th century by members of the Order of the Hospital of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the German House in Jerusalem, also known as the Teutonic Order, who were invited here to protect the south-eastern region of the then Kingdom of Hungary in the event of attacks by the Polovtsian and Pecheneg tribes. Their headquarters was also located here. Soon after, they made efforts to free themselves from fief dependence on Hungary and create their own state, for which the king expelled them from Transylvania at the same age. After the departure of the Teutonic Knights, the fortress was taken over by the local Saxon population. Over the centuries, the castle was repeatedly invaded and destroyed. In 1430, it was destroyed by the Turks, and in 1612 by the troops of the Transylvanian prince Gábor Bethlen (1580-1629). For some time the ruins were used as a warehouse, but finally in the eighteenth century they were definitely abandoned. From the walls of the fortress there is a picturesque view of the nearby Brasov and the southern Carpathians. When visiting Feldioara, it is also worth seeing the magnificent medieval fortified church (Biserica fortificată din Feldioara) located in the heart of the town. This temple was erected at the end of the 13th century, and it obtained its present fortified shape during a thorough reconstruction that was carried out a century later by German colonists (later called Saxons).
