Case study sibiu and its development

Sibiu is a city that dates back from the 10th century, located in Transylvania, Romania. This city was divided into two different parts, the Upper City (where the religious centre and the cemetery were located) and the Lower City (the older part of the city). Sibiu was surrounded by walls of rudimentary fortification. A minority of people living in this city were the Transylvanian Saxons (sasi), that were religiously independent (had a different religion than the locals), being subordinated to the pope. This city was promoted to the status of Civitas in 1332, having its own benefits and thus being an independent city. Like other medieval cities, Sibiu had a nucleus and began extending its boundaries around it, builiding up to the fortifications. Sibiu had three types of squares, religious, commercial and civic. Not until the 15th century did Sibiu become a mature city with rights to become fully fortificated and to have different architectural programs. Besides the obvious programs (residential, public etc), Sibiu hosted 6 other typologies: gates (Poarta Elisabeta), common squares (Piata Mare), administrative buildings (Town Hall), brotherhood halls (Hala Macelarilor), hospitals (Spitalul Sf. Spirit).