The “Saint Michael” Church was built following the act issued by King Carol Robert of Anjou in the 14th century, which offered Cluj a series of privileges, including the city’s right to freely choose its priest and parish priest. The city had reached a development that required the construction of such a building, and the chosen place was the Great Square of the city instead of an old chapel dedicated to St. Jacob.
The “Saint Michael” Church is an impressive historical and religious monument, located in the central area of Cluj, in Union Square. This is an important Gothic style building made in Transylvania, being the second largest Gothic church in Romania. Most of the church is built in Gothic style, but over time the interior has undergone several restorations in the Baroque style. One of the most important ornaments of the church, the door frame of the sacristy, dates from 1528 and is made in the late Renaissance style. Also, the church tower is built in neo-Gothic style, with a height of 80 meters, being the church with one of the tallest towers in Romania.
Historians claim that in the basement of the church there is a crypt, made during the Middle Ages, which houses the tombs of personalities from that period, with important heritage objects. Numerous meetings of the Transylvanian Diet were held in this church and the princes Sigismund Báthory, Sigismund Rákóczi, Gabriel Báthory and Gabriel Bethlen were enthroned in this church.
