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FORMER PREFECTURE
MILITARY ENGINEER GARRISON
October 23, 2017
CORONATION CATHEDRAL
October 23, 2017FORMER PREFECTURE
It is placed in the north-eastern corner of the citadel, overlapping the side of the Roman Castrum (which has the same alignment with the medieval citadel). The edifice was erected over the structure of some older, sixteen century nobiliary house.
The name of “Former Prefecture” comes from the fact that here was in function, after 1929, the Alba County Prefecture which, until then, had the headquarters in Aiud. The first prefect of the county, after the union in 1918, was the Alba Iulia attorney at law Ioan Pop, the one who began the first procedures of moving the prefecture in Alba Iulia by requesting a proper building inside the citadel from the army. However, the moving of the headquarters in Alba Iulia happened under the administration of Emil Pop (1928-1931). A longer mandate was held by Simion Vulcu (1933-1937), the other prefects of that period having, mostly, much shorter mandates. Same as today, in the period between the world wars, the prefect was the representative of the government in the area, but he used to have wider prerogatives, being also the head of the decentralized county administration. Although there were some modifications imposed by the administrative reforms of the interwar period, until the 1938 reform, Alba County (also named „Inferior Alba County” until 1952), kept most of the territories held before 1918, when was part of Hungary, when this administrative unit was named „Inferior Alba County”.
Over time, the edifice supported several transformations until it reached the present „U” shape. Before it became the prefecture, the building was the headquarters of the Fortification Director, then, it became the headquarters of the Sapping Engineering Direction and the Engineering Officers Pavilion. Now, the Alba County School Inspectorate functions here.
Scientific consultant: Tudor Roșu, PhD historian
Translation made by: Ciprian Dobra, PR expert
The building was constructed in the North-eastern corner of the Citadel over the structure of some older noble houses from the 16th century. The edifice overlaps one of the four sides of the former Roman Castrum in Apulum which had the same alignment as the medieval citadel. Over time, the building used to have both civil and military purposes.
The names under the edifice used to be known are in connection to the functionalities it used to have or the personalities it used to shelter. It was the House of the Saxon Thrones when Alba Iulia was the capital of the Transylvania principate. Like other buildings inside the citadel it was transformed so to reflect the political importance of the city.
Most likely it was the place where the Saxon population representatives used to be hosted when sent with different missions in Alba Iulia. The building had famous dwellers as well. For example, in 1736 the Director of the Alba Carolina Fortification used to live here. In the beginning of the 90s the building received a military purpose, status held until 1929.
It is the year in which the Alba County Prefecture was established, until that moment it used to function in Aiud. This is why the building is also known as the „Former Prefecture”. The first prefect of the county, after the Union in 1918, was the lawyer known as Ioan Pop, the one who began the procedures of moving the prefecture in Alba Iulia. Since 2002, the Alba County School Inspectorate has functioned here.
