Kendeffy Castle is located in Sântămăria Orlea, Hunedoara County, being built by the Kendeffy family in 1782. Kendeffy was a family of very rich nobles at that time, who needed a residence in Țara Hațegului. The beautiful building was nationalized in 1946 by the communists, and in 1982 the castle was taken over by the Hunedoara county administration and transformed into a hotel. The castle is listed on the list of historical monuments in Hunedoara County (2010). Kendeffy Castle is one of the most beautiful castles in Transylvania and was built in 1782 by Count Elek Kendeffy, a member of a family of very rich nobles. The access can be made from the national road Simeria - Hațeg - Petroșani that crosses the village Sântămăria-Orlea, in the center of the village on the right on the road to Vadu and Săcel. The castle is private property.

The history of the Kendeffy family

The Kendeffy family was of Cumanian origin, the first documentary attestation of which dates from 1236. Ioan, son of Kende from Râu de Mori, was exempted from any princely service by the Transylvanian voivode in 1406, and in 1415 he already had noble privilege. King Sigismund gives a coat of arms to the aforementioned Ioan.

Ioan had two sons, so the family split into two branches, the Kendeffy and the Kenderessy. Both brothers received the broadsword right from King Matthias Corvinus. The raising of the family politically and economically was possible especially through marriages, carried out with members of the families of high nobles, in this way the Kendeffy family procured large estates in the southern part of Hunedoara county, in the Haţeg region. The family owned three imposing residences in the area, including the castle from Sântămăria-Orlea, which had several construction phases. The first written proof of the constructions made at Sintămăria-Orlea is a contract from 1777, referring to the construction of the building. The commemorative plaque placed above the main entrance, which marks the date of 1782, also refers to this construction phase.

The beauty of the castle - past and present

Kendeffy Castle is located near the center of the village, rising above the road that connects the villages of Râu de Mori and Sântămăria-Orlea. The building has an almost rectangular plan and is composed of three units, and draws attention mainly due to its monumental tower. The castle, placed on a height delimited by a parapet built of stone and brick, and accessible by two ramps, has a predominantly neo-Gothic aspect, through the following architectural elements: the tower, the battlemented railing, vials, broken arched windows, the small balcony, and due to its asymmetrical composition. The old furniture of the castle has almost completely disappeared. Based on the written inventories and the few photographs from the period, it can be said that at the end of the 19th century carved oak pieces of furniture dominated, and in the rooms with representative function (such as the living room and the smoking room), on In addition to the pretentious furniture, a series of art objects, books, weapons, game trophies were on display. Using coats of arms and painted shields, the interiors tried to evoke the Middle Ages, this trend joining organically the romantic way in which the facades of the building were designed.

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The Castle is abandoned, no visiting