Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia—known in Hungarian as Gyulafehérvár—is one of Transylvania’s most historically significant cities. Today it is the county seat of Alba County in central Romania, but its importance reaches far beyond administrative functions. Over many centuries it served as a Roman urban center, a medieval ecclesiastical hub, the political capital of the Principality of Transylvania, a major Habsburg military stronghold, and—after 1918—a symbolic place in modern Romanian national history. Its layered heritage is still clearly visible in the city’s architecture, institutions, and memorial landscape.
Buildings
The Princely Palace (Palatul Principilor or Palatul Voievodal)
The episcopal palace of Gyulafehérvár, built in the 12th century, was transformed into a princely residence by John Sigismund.
The Alba Carolina - Citade Alba Iulia Fortress
Fehérvár, whose name also reflects the dignity title “gyula” of its builder, was constructed on the foundations – and partly from the stones – of a Roman castrum dating back to the 2nd century.