The mysterious Hunyadi Castle
One of the most important medieval castles in Transylvania has gone through some real struggles during its long history.
There’s a castle in the Transylvanian region of Romania that could easily be used as a film set for “Game of Thrones.” Its violent past might even be a source of inspiration for the scriptwriters of that famous series. Moreover, it is said that the castle might be haunted by those who were unfairly executed within its walls. Located in Hunedoara, Hunyadi Castle (also known as Corvin Castle) is one of the most important Gothic-secular style buildings in all of Transylvania. And, whether haunted or not, walking through its halls certainly gave us goose bumps.
The castle, which dates back to the second half of the 13th century, originally served as a royal fortress. Since then, Hunyadi Castle has been destroyed by fire five times and has undergone several reconstructions, resulting in modifications to its architecture. After a disastrous fire in 1854, restoration work began which would not be completed until 1914. The work started again in the 1960s, after which the castle opened as a museum (in 1974). This remains the main function of the building today.
Its name is related to the Hunyadi noble family, who owned the castle until the 1500s, followed by 22 different owners before the 18th century. It later became the property of the Habsburg Empire, at which point the building was turned into an administrative headquarters for iron mines and a storage house for iron products.
A full tour of Hunyadi Castle took us about one hour. The castle is famous for its dramatic past. It is said that hundreds of prisoners have been tortured here. The dungeon and the torture chamber of the castle had a real impact on us; we got goose bumps imagining all the atrocities that took place in that very spot a long time ago. Considering the tragic end of so many prisoners, there is no wonder that the castle is believed to be haunted. (We don’t actually believe these stories, but it seems to be a good marketing strategy.)
Besides the dungeon, there were other impressive interiors, such as the Ladies’ Chamber, which features beautiful 19th-century furniture, and the Knights’ Hall, where we admired a small collection of armor and weapons dating back to the Middle Ages.
Under the Knights’ Hall, we saw the dungeon where some say that Vlad the Impaler (aka Dracula) was imprisoned for several months, a period that made him go insane. There is no historical proof for this theory, but this might be the reason why Hunyadi Castle is sometimes mentioned as a source of inspiration for Bram Stoker, the author of “Dracula.” Outside we got to see the so-called “Bear Pit,” where it is said that two hungry bears were kept to devour the condemned.
We left the castle with a strange feeling that the place is shrouded in mystery, hiding a secular secret that no one ever knew, except perhaps those who lived there. But, we can conclude by admitting that Hunyadi Castle was one of the most impressive places we’ve ever seen. We would definitely go back anytime.
Written by Alexandra Palconi.
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We have also written about Gauja National Park, Kuressaare, Ruhnu, Zadar, Mostar, Tartu, Wigry National Park, Krk Island, Budva, Mileştii Mici Winery, and Ljubljana.
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