A ''culă'' (plural: ''cule''; from Turkish ''kule'' "tower, turret") is a semi-fortified building found in the

Oltenia Oltenia (, also called Lesser Wallachia in antiquated versions, with the alternative Latin names ''Wallachia Minor'', ''Wallachia Alutana'', ''Wallachia Caesarea'' between 1718 and 1739) is a historical province and geographical region of Romania ...

region of

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

with a number of examples located in the historical province of

Muntenia Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Românească'', and the seldom used ''Valahia'' are synonyms in ...

. They were originally built as homes for the ruling

Boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgaria, Russia, Wallachia and Moldavia, and later Romania, Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. Boyars were s ...

class to defend against violent raids by rebels from the south of the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , ...

during the

eighteenth century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave tradin ...

and also against riots by local population against the boyars (e.g.

Osman Pazvantoğlu Osman Pazvantoğlu (1758 – January 27, 1807 in Vidin) was an Ottoman soldier, governor of Vidin after 1794, and a rebel against Ottoman rule. He is also remembered as the friend of Rigas Feraios, a Greek revolutionary poet, whom he tried to ...

). Similar constructions exist throughout the Balkans, see

Tower houses in the Balkans A distinctive type of Ottoman tower houses ( sq, kullë; bg, кули, ; sr, kуле, ro, culă, all meaning "tower", from Arabic (, “fort, fortress”) via Persian , meaning "mountain" or "top", and Turkish ) developed and were built in ...

List of cule

: *''Cula Barbu Poenaru'' (1750), from

Almăj Almăj is a commune in Dolj County, Oltenia, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the w ...

, Dolj *''Cula Izvoranu'', from Brabova, Dolj *''Cula Crăsnaru'' (1808), from Groşerea, Aninoasa, Gorj *''Cula Cornoiu'' from Curtişoara, Gorj *''Cula Cartianu'' from Cartiu, Gorj *''Cula Grecescu'' (1818), from Şiacu, Slivileşti, Gorj *''Cula Cuţui'' (1815) from Broşteni, Mehedinţi *Cula

Tudor Vladimirescu Tudor Vladimirescu (; c. 1780 – ) was a Romanian revolutionary hero, the leader of the Wallachian uprising of 1821 and of the Pandur militia. He is also known as Tudor din Vladimiri (''Tudor from Vladimiri'') or, occasionally, as Domnul Tudo ...

(1800) from Cerneţi, Mehedinţi *''Cula Nistor'' (1812), from Cerneţi, Mehedinţi *''Cula Galiţa'' (1790), from Câmpu Mare,

Dobroteasa Dobroteasa is a commune in Olt County, Muntenia, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Batia, Câmpu Mare, Dobroteasa, and Vulpești. Natives * Virgil Calotescu Virgil Calotescu (16 January 1928 – 6 May 1991) was a Romanian film dir ...

, Olt *''Cula Bujoreanu'' from Bujoreni, Vâlcea *''Cula Greceanu'' from Măldărești, Vâlcea (the oldest in Romania, approximately 1517) *''Cula Zătreanu'' from Zătreni (1754), Vâlcea Muntenia: *Cula ''Racoviţa'', from Mioveni, Argeş *Cula ''Drugănescu'' from Retevoieşti,

Pietroșani, Argeș Pietroșani is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Româneasc� ...

Culă (Ansamblul culei Drugănescu )
/ref> *''Cula lui Costea'', from Frăsinet, Teleorman

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20160124230850/http://www.kule.ro/en/ Romanian kulas * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cula Oltenia Architecture in Romania