The Beclean Castle

In the centre of Beclean town, in Bistrița-Năsăud County, you will discover the Beclean Castle and a new page in the history of the Magyar noblemen of Transylvania. 

The circumstances of the time when the castle was built are unclear, but, throughout its history, the Beclean Castle witnessed many important events that took place or were known in the area. Count Pál Bethlen, who brought the castle to the current shape in the 19th century, lived most of his life here and held significant administrative positions. 

According to the customs of the time, the Grófs of the Bethlen family supported economic and cultural development in the area: in 1830 Gróf Francisc Bethlen founded a music school in Beclean, with an orchestra that became famous in the area.

In the 1990's, the castle housed a cultural centre and a town library. From 2001 until 2015, the castle was used as the Beclean Town Hall. Today, it is waiting for better times that would put it back on the increasingly developed tourist map of the area.

According to historical documents, the old Beclean fortress was erected around 1543, located in the west side of the locality, on the left bank of the Someș River. The fortress and the town around it were the vital centre of the Bethlen family demesne. Over the centuries, the family erected several castles and mansions here.

Four of the family's residences survived in Beclean. Among them, the most remarkable is the former castle of Count András Bethlen, located in the centre of the town, in Baroque style, erected in the 18th century. Count Béla Bethlen's mansion was built in 1929 and it is still operated as a sanatorium. László Bethlen's castle underwent significant changes in the 20th century and it is now used as a school. Count Pál Bethlen's castle was erected near the old fortress.

Pál Bethlen (1851–1935), a figure associated with the transformation of the castle, came from the Bethlen family, as he was the son of Count Pál Bethlen (1798–1859) and Countess Mária Bethlen (1827–1876). He completed his secondary education in Budapest and his university studies in Zürich. After graduation, he travelled extensively abroad and served five years in the military. In the 1870s, he returned to his property in Beclean. The Count had a first wife, Countess Gabriella Rhédey, with whom he had a daughter named Ida, who tragically ended up drowning near the Beclean mill at the age of just 15. Her memorial is one of the most remarkable works in the Bethlen family cemetery. He remarried in 1885 with Jolán Tisza from Ineu and in 1891 he was appointed supreme county ruler (ealdorman) of Bistrița-Năsăud and Solnoc-Dăbâca counties, which were important positions at the time.

If you come here, you must see the Băile Figa balneary complex. It stretches over 15 hectars, located in a depression surrounded by forests, at just 3 km from Beclean. The salty water, the mud and the aerosols here are the best for your health and the complex also provides a lot of family activities: sports centre, water slides and swimming pools.

For horse riding enthusiasts, the Equestrian Ecotourism Centre at the Beclean Stud Farm in the Rodnei Mountains National Park organises novel horseback riding trips on forest roads and in meadows. You will get a chance to step into The Daffodils Glade, ride on the banks of the Lala Lake, see the Ineu, Ineuț and Roșu Mountain Peaks or have lunch at a sheepfold, together with guides authorised by the Ministry of Tourism.