Cristian (Sibiu)
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Cristian (German: Grossau) is a commune located in Sibiu County. It is composed of a single village, Cristian, located on the Cibin river. The village was founded in 1223 by German settlers.
A medieval fortified church in Cristian was built in the 13th century (only the Romanesque tower survives). The main volume was built from 1490s and turned into a gothic hall church with three naves and a belfry.
The authorities wanted to build a very solid church to resist to the passing of time and to the merciless attacks and also to respond to the modern architecture of those times. Thus, the very famous stone-mason Andreas Lapicida, known in that region of Transylvania for his craftsmanship was commissioned to perform the works.
Because the settlement was in an open field and it had difficulties in defending itself from the invaders, the church was surrounded by two defense curtain walls and the exterior wall was equipped with five towers. During the attacks the families would withdraw inside the church and defend it, taking their animals and food with them. The lard and bacon were well kept in a specially designed tower, the so-called Lard Tower or Pantry Tower which can still be seen today.
Two underground tunnels allowed villagers to flee from the fortress to the forest or to an old monastery in times of siege.

More about Cristian:
The oldest known writings speak of the city under the Latin name of 'Island of Christ'. Then region was colonized at the request of King of Hungary Geza II during the first wave of colonization between 1141-1161.
In 1493, the city was burned by Turkish invaders.
During 1472-1498, the Romanesque basilica was transformed into a Gothic church with three naves
In 1529, the locality was again burned, this time by soldiers of the boyar of the Dragan mountain, who besieged Sibiu in September.
In 1553, the locality was decimated by epidemics of cholera and plague. Four other epidemics followed in 1706 and 1755.
On September 16, 1599, the fortified church was conquered by Michael the Brave. On this occasion, the priest Heintzius was tortured and hanged in the sacristy.
In 1658, the first invasion of the locality took place by the besieged Tatars in Sibiu. The village was again burned.
In 1690, a meeting of the Transylvanian Diet was held in the fortified church, during which the noble Emerich Tököly was elected Prince of Transylvania.
In 1719 a new baroque altar was built in the church.
Between 1721 and 1736, as a result of epidemics, the population of the village decreased drastically. Of the 176 households enumerated in 1508, only 63 remain.
Reconstruction of part of the wall of the enclosure and, with the help of Inspector Clockner in Sibiu, the church is rehabilitated.
In 1734, under the reign of Charles VI (Roman Emperor and King of Hungary under the name of Charles III) the Protestants (Catholics converted to the Evangelical Lutheran confession) were deported to this region. About  more than 800 people (known as landlers) settled in three villages near Sibiu: Neppendorf (TURNISOR, today district of Sibiu), Gross (Cristian, Sibiu) and Grosspold (Apoldu de Sus, Sibiu). These immigrants came mainly from the Austrian cities of Hallstatt Ischl Gosau and Goisern Lauben. In 1752-1756 a new wave of Landlers immigrants from Upper Austria arrived.
In 1775, the church receives an organ, built by Johannes Hahn.
In 1805, the church tower was restored after an earthquake. The four corner towers are under construction.
In 1891, the village is again victim of a large fire.
In January 1945, the German ethnic population of the village was deported to the USSR. On January 13, 1945, 348 Germans were kidnapped from their homes, 51 of whom died on the road or in the Soviet labor camps. The last survivors returned home in 1952.
In March-June 1945, following the agrarian reform, the German population was deprived of land (98% of which was given to the Romanian population), deprived of Romanian citizenship and voting rights.
In 1972-75, the fortified church was largely repaired and the effects of the earthquake were removed.
Since 1974, Nicolae Ceausescu initiated the emigration of the German population of Transylvania. Of the 2,640 Saxons existing in Cristian in 1974, they were only 1871 during the Romanian revolution of 1989.

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