St Nicholas' Church – Gheorgheni (Gyergyószentmiklós)

St Nicholas' Church – Gheorgheni (Gyergyószentmiklós)

St Nicholas' Church is the oldest monument of Gheorgheni (Gyergyószentmiklós) and the origin of the town's name, which comes from its church dedicated to St Nicholas. Built between 1756 and 1773 on the site of a 15th-century Gothic church, the Baroque parish church remains the centre of Catholic life in the Gheorgheni basin.

The parish already existed at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries and is recorded as Gorgio in the papal tithe register of 1333; its antiquity is also attested by a parchment missal of 1428 with coloured initials, still kept by the parish. The first known church was built in Gothic style at the end of the 15th century: the date 1498, later carved into the lintel of the doorway beneath the tower, marks the time of its construction. The church's bell with a Latin inscription, cast in 1548, also dates from this period. The medieval church was enlarged in 1629 and given a walled churchyard in 1637, but it was badly damaged in the Tatar raid of 1661.

The old church had become too small, and between 1756 and 1773 the present building was erected in its place in Baroque style. The tower, raised three times – in 1733, 1756 and 1837 – now carries a clock and four bells; during the restoration of 1995 a sundial with a Latin inscription was uncovered on its south wall, bearing the motto 'Sunrise, teach us to live rightly'. Excavations in 1964 revealed walled-up Gothic windows, a crypt and the foundations of the old church, 28 metres long.

The church has two porches, three entrances, a side chapel, seven altars and a spacious gallery; its choir façade and side doorways show the characteristic features of the Baroque of the Gheorgheni district. The Baroque high altar, reaching to the ceiling, fills the whole chancel: at its top stands the statue of the patron saint, St Nicholas, with the crowned figure of the Virgin below. One of the larger side altars is dedicated to St John the Baptist, the Rococo altar of St Anne is notable for its rich ornament and the Holy Cross altar for its fine proportions. The organ, set in a pointed-arched case, was bought for the church in 1877 by Mihály Fogarasy, Bishop of Transylvania and a native of the town. The church is surrounded by a stone wall built around 1750 and renewed in 1756; a stone statue of St John of Nepomuk stands by its south side, and a statue of Bishop Fogarasy rises in the axis of the street in front of the church.

Pilgrimage feast: the church's feast falls on St Nicholas' Day, 6 December; since 1990 a St Nicholas' Day procession has also been held in the town on that day.

Visiting: the church stands in the centre of Gheorgheni at 9–11 Márton Áron Street, a few hundred metres from Liberty Square (Szabadság tér) and from the town's other famous sanctuary, the Armenian Catholic church. The town is reached on the DN12 main road from Miercurea Ciuc (Csíkszereda) or Toplița (Maroshévíz), and by the Székely circular railway. For Mass times, enquire at the parish office.

Sources: Wikipedia – Roman Catholic church of Gyergyószentmiklós · Wikipedia – Gyergyószentmiklós (Gheorgheni)

Photo: Pasztilla aka Attila Terbócs / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo: Pasztilla aka Attila Terbócs / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0