In the early Middle Ages, Hungarian kings expanded their rule in the region of Transylvania. In the middle of the 12th century, German settlers responded to a royal call to reclaim the land and secure it against invasion. Many came from the Middle Rhine, the Moselle, Flanders and Wallonia. The term “Transylvanian Saxons” probably goes back to the Latin “Saxones” for West German settlers, which they later adopted as their own name. The Transylvanian Saxons preserved their cultural and social identity for centuries. However, the Second World War and the consequences of the post-war period brought their 800-year history to an abrupt end. Today, this oldest German settler community in Eastern Europe and its cultural heritage are in danger of disappearing.

My father's family comes from the Transylvanian village of Rätsch (Reciu) near Hermannstadt (Sibiu). Due to the effects of the Second World War and the political upheavals, they eventually had to leave their homeland and emigrate to Germany. Together with my family, I traveled to Transylvania to discover the traces of our history, to explore the life of this community and to feel the echoes of the past of this vanishing place.

Drawing by my father
Archive photos from my family archive