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Types of Kulas

There are three types of traditional Romanian defensive towers called kulas described in the document: 1. Hideaway kulas that served as temporary shelters and were built near manor houses for protection. They had very thick walls, iron-reinforced doors, and internal defenses. 2. Vigilance kulas constructed in the 19th century to watch for raids and signal attacks. They had no permanent housing and were placed on hilltops for visibility. Men were hired to survey from these high, wooden balcony-equipped towers. 3. Permanent dwelling kulas where owners lived year-round. These provided defense but also had heating, kitchens, and plumbing. They were two stories with m

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Paula Iftimescu
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63 views

Types of Kulas

There are three types of traditional Romanian defensive towers called kulas described in the document: 1. Hideaway kulas that served as temporary shelters and were built near manor houses for protection. They had very thick walls, iron-reinforced doors, and internal defenses. 2. Vigilance kulas constructed in the 19th century to watch for raids and signal attacks. They had no permanent housing and were placed on hilltops for visibility. Men were hired to survey from these high, wooden balcony-equipped towers. 3. Permanent dwelling kulas where owners lived year-round. These provided defense but also had heating, kitchens, and plumbing. They were two stories with m

Uploaded by

Paula Iftimescu
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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TYPES OF KULAS

Hideaway, defence or temporary dwelling kula


Used by the owners as a safe dwelling just in case of need
They were built - within the limits of a manor house (Groserea, Beharca,Babeni,
Gorunesti, Borascu, Bujoreni, Tamasesti, Crainici, Almaj)
-as close as possible to the manor houses, on a hill, so that one could
overlook a very large area (Siacu, Curtisoara, Maldaresti, Tatomiresti)

Characteristics: - One meter thick walls


- Massive wooden oak doors enforced with iron sheets and locked
with massive wooden bars
- Bulwarks, ramparts placed along the internal staircases and on the
corridors
- These bulwarks offered good visibility and defence at every level of
the kula
- A loggia at the upper level as a vigilance place
- Limited dwelling place
- Lack of buildings a house needs in order to be inhabited for a longer
time

Vigilance, signalling and warning kula


They were built in the first part of the XIXth century follow up the disaster made by the
muggers of Pazvantoglu (Pazvan-Oglu) who often used to make capture raids in Tara
Romaneasca (Gorj county is part of the former historical region Tara Romaneasca)
These function was carried out by all kulas
The surroundings were cleared , no trees or bushes were allowed for a good visibility
The settlement was chosen to be on crests of hills, along and nearby the rivers Jiu, Olt,
Teslui, Gilort, Blahnitei and the left bank of the Danube.
Characteristics: - There were no rooms for permanent dwelling
- They served for surveying the places suspected to be penetrated by
the muggers
- The surveying service was made by men specially hired to warn
people in case of invasion
- They were usually very high, often having 4 levels
- These kulas used to have wooden balconies placed on the vigilance
side
- These kulas were built ‘in chain’, starting from places close to the
Danube because the danger was coming from here
Examples: Kula Zavalu- 4 levels : made possible the survey from Danube valley to
Bistrita valley and Jiu valley to north down to Robaia monastery
Tower in Foisoru-3 levels- made possible the survey further onto the Jiu
Valley through the Tuglui Kula, which from its 3 rd level, one could see down tot Jitianu
Monastery in Branistea Craiovei.

Permanent dwelling kula


These types of kula carried out other functions too, such as signaling and defence-
these kulas were those in which the owner lived all year long.
Characteristcs: - The rooms were fitted with heating machines, and chimneys arising
over the roof
- There was also a kitchen, a still room and sanitary annexes attached
at the exterior but with access from the interior (exception: Kula in
Curtisoara and Lupoaia, which had sanitary towers detached from
the main building, but linked to the house by a corridor on the first
floor)
- Massive walls and 2 levels
- The loggia on the upper had masonry round columns with foiled or
semicircle arch (Kula Buzesti in Vladaia, Savoi in Lupoaia, Izvoranu
in Brabova)
- The ground floor has narrow windows for light, bulwark type, and he
upper floors have small windows enforced with iron grills

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