Castle in Romania used as summer residence by a PM of King Carol II, put up for sale

The castle in Zlatna, a town in Alba county, in central Transylvania, was put up for sale by Artmark Historical Estate, the real estate division of the Artmark group.

The castle was the summer residence of Ion Gigurtu, the prime minister of King Carol II. Its starting price is EUR 295,000, the auction house estimating it at EUR 400,000 – 500,000.

A former Romanian engineer and pro-German, right wing politician, Ion Gigurtu was the one who built the castle between 1936 and 1939. His long political career started in 1912 when he was elected deputy of the People's Party. It was 1940 when King Carol II appointed him prime minister, a position he held until September 4 the same year when he handed it over to General Ion Antonescu.

Gigurtu’s life was not easy in the following years, being arrested and released several times. On the night of May 5-6, 1950, he was arrested and imprisoned at the Sighet penitentiary together with other former dignitaries from the interwar period, but also with his wife. He died on November 24, 1959 at the Ramnicu Sărat Prison, at the age of 73.

But Ion Gigurtu was also a well-known businessman of the time, being the general manager of "Mica" company, specialized in the extraction of gold and other precious metals. The castle in Zlatna was originally used as the family’s summer residence and as an administrative centre for the mining company.

The castle witnessed the glory period of the area, being linked to the gold mining activities developed there. However, later on it was used as a school and school camp until 1980s when it became a military unit. Another important aspect is that part of the 1986 drama The Last Assault (Noi, cei din linia intai) directed by late Romanian filmmaker Sergiu Nicolaescu was filmed here.

The castle is set on 8.800 sqm of land, with a built-up area of 1.358 sqm and 19 rooms. A development project comprising 23 apartments is available along the property’s documentation. Moreover, during the last years, a series of consolidation and rehabilitation works took place at the castle. More details are available here.

(Photo source: Artmark Historical Estate)