Photos

The interior of Saint Michael's Roman catholic basilica of Alba Iulia(Weissenburg/Karlsburg/Gyulafehérvár).

Pictured here, are the Gothic style of Southern German origin, 15th century tombs of John Huniad Corvinus (János Hunyadi) and of his son, John Huniad the Younger, located in the southern aisle of the cathedral. The tomb of John the Younger is a pseudo-sarcophagus, carved out of a single stone slab without a place for the dead.

In the 15th century, when reconstruction works were underway, Ioannus Huniad Corvinus (János Hunyadi), the ruler of Transylvania and governor of Hungary, donated some of his grand estates to the cathedral, and at the same time expressed his will that his brother and later himself, be entombed in the cathedral.

In 1601 the cathedral was plundered by mercenary troops which did not spare the tomb of Huniad either. Two years later the cathedral was literally besieged and invaded by the armies of the Habsburg imperial commander and governor of Transylvania, Giorgio Basta. In 1658 and 1661 invading Turkish armies brought more destruction, ruining the tombs of of Transylvanian princes, Gabriel Bethlen von Iktár and George Rákóczi I.

The cathedral houses the tombs of many important historic personalities: John Huniad, Ladislaus Huniad, John Huniad the Younger, King János Sigismund (Zsigmond), first prince of Transylvania, and his mother, Queen Isabella Jagello of Hungary, prince Stephen Bocskai, Suzanna Károlyi, Stephen, brother of Gabriel Bethlen, cardinal Frater George Martinuzzi, Andrew Báthori and several bishops of the Middle Ages. Ten bishops of the modern age, the last of them being Áron Márton, are entombed in the crypt under the sanctuary.

PP: resized, distortion correction, brightness and contrast, color adjustment, sharpened, frame, saved for web.