The Cathedral of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel (Catedrala Sfinții Arhangheli Mihail și Gavriil) is the principal Romanian Orthodox cathedral in Mediaș, standing on opposite the Forkesch Gate Tower just outside the medieval center.
The cathedral grew out of the expansion of the city’s Orthodox community after the union of Transylvania with Romania in 1918. Plans initially called for a large new church on King Ferdinand I Square, but concerns about building within the historic Saxon center led to a compromise, and the parish received the present site in 1928. Construction began the following year and continued until 1935, creating a much larger place of worship than the older Orthodox church that had served the community elsewhere in the city.
Architect George Plăcinteanu Liteanu designed the cathedral in a Byzantine-inspired style, with a triconch plan centered on a large dome and a monumental western entrance framed by two bell towers. The interior follows the same emphasis on scale, with the central space opening beneath the dome and the sanctuary extending into the eastern apse.
Painting of the interior began before construction was fully complete, with Gheorghe Belizarie starting the first murals in 1933. The decorative program was finished decades later, between 1986 and 1988, when Virginia Vidia and Gheorghe Zaharia completed the remaining paintings. The cathedral was first consecrated on July 28, 1935 by Metropolitan Nicolae Bălan and was reconsecrated after the completion of the interior decoration in 1988.
The cathedral remains one of the main Orthodox churches of Mediaș and an active center of religious life. Visitors can enter to see the painted interior, central dome and iconostasis, while the twin towers and broad façade make the building one of the most prominent landmarks immediately outside the historic center.
