Reșița (pronounced[ˈreʃit͡sa]ⓘ; German:Reschitz;Hungarian:Resicabánya;Croatian:Ričica;Czech:Rešice;Serbian:Решица/Rešica;Turkish:Reşçe) is a city in westernRomania and the capital ofCaraș-Severin County.[3] It is located in theBanat region. The city had a population of 58,393 in 2021. It administers six villages: Câlnic (Kölnök), Cuptoare (Kuptore), Doman (Domány), Moniom (Monyó), Secu (Székul;Sekul), and Țerova (Krassócser).
The name ofReșița might come from the Latinrecitia, meaning "cold spring", as the historianNicolae Iorga once suggested, presuming that theRomans gave this name to Reșița, from a water spring on theDoman valley. A much more plausible version, according toIorgu Iordan, would be that the name is actually coming from aSlavic word: people living in the neighbouring village ofCarașova 15 km (9.3 mi) away, referring to this place, that in those days was a similar village to theirs, as being "u rečice" (at the creek). It can also be noted that almost all Slavic countries have places with the name ofRečice (pronounced Recițe inRomanian).[4]
Historically, the town has its origins in the 15th century under the name ofRechyoka andRechycha. Archaeological research found traces of habitation going back to theNeolithic,Dacian, andRoman eras. In theMiddle Ages, the area was part of theKingdom of Hungary. Following the death of theJagiellonKing of HungaryLouis II at theBattle of Mohács in 1526, the Hungarian crown would be inherited by theHabsburg monarchy, but this was contested by much of theHungarian nobility, resulting in the formation of theEastern Hungarian Kingdom, encompassing much of Transylvania and the Banat. In 1553, the area was incorporated intoTemeşvar Eyalet of theOttoman Empire. The town is mentioned in 1673 under the name ofReszinitza, whose citizens paid taxes to the Ottomanbey (governor) inTimișoara (Turkish:Temeşvar; Hungarian:Temesvár).
Following theBattle of Vienna in 1683, Ottoman influence north of the Danube would contract. and the Habsburg and by the years 1690–1700, it was mentioned as being part of the District ofBocșa together with other towns in theBârzava Valley. In theHabsburg-Ottoman War of 1716-1718,Prince Eugene of Savoy would conquer the region for the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs established theBanat of Temeswar and began fortifying the region as amilitary frontier. The town was referenced in the conscription acts of 1717 under the name ofRetziza. Under EmpressMaria Theresa, in 1751 Reșița and much of the northern Banat was detached from theBanat Military Frontier and transferred frommilitary tocivil administration. On 3 July 1771, it became an importantmetal-manufacturing center in the region. The foundation of the industrial Reșița was laid with the establishment of factories near the villages ofReșița Română (Reschiza Kamerală orOláh Resitza) andReșița Montană (Eisenwerk Reschitza,Német(h) Reschitza orResiczbánya). Reșița Montană was at first inhabited by Romanians.[dubious –discuss][need quotation to verify].
Even before Hungary fell under Habsburg Rule, the old kings of Hungary had encouraged Germans to settle in Transylvania and the Banat. In 1224, KingAndrew II of Hungary issued theDiploma Andreanum, grantingprovisional autonomy to theTransylvania Saxons and their fortified towns in Northeastern and Southeastern Transylvania (German:Siebenbürgen). For much of theEarly Modern Period the Banat had become a dangerous border region caught betweentwo waring Empires and would experience periods of devastation anddepopulation. However, in the18th century, the expansion of Habsburg authority, its efforts to fortify the region, and the movement of the frontier southward greatly increased regionalsecurity, making the Banat once again suitable for civilian settlement. Besides the installation of a civil administration, the Theresian period (1740-1780) would see large-scale efforts to recruit settlers and repopulate the region, resulting in a large influx ofGerman settlers, especially fromSwabia. In 1776, 70 German families settled Reșița (German:Reschitz). In 1880, Germans represented the majority of the city's population.
Following theFirst World War, thecollapse of the Habsburg Monarchy in 1918 and the subsequentTreaty of Trianon in 1920 would result in Reșița much of the Banat being annexed by theKingdom of Romania. However, in theInterwar Period, Germans would continue to constitute the majority of the population. In 1941, Reșița had 12,096 Germans residents, 9,453 Romanian residents, and 1,861 Hungarian residents. Between 1910 and 1925, Reșița had the status of a rural area, and in 1925, it was declared a town thanks to its development into a powerful industrial location in modern Romania. In 1968, it became a municipality.
After theRomanian Revolution of 1989, Reșița lost most of its importance and its economy faced arecession, along with theRomanian economy. The population also declined, dropping from 110,000 in 1989 to 86,000 in 2006. After the fall ofcommunism, theReșița Steelworks (Combinatul Siderurgic Reșița, CSR) was bought by an American investor who brought the factory just one step away from bankruptcy. Today the steelworks are run by TMK Europe GmbH, a German subsidiary ofOAO TMK, Moscow, which has projects of modernization for the CSR.
In 2022 it was inducted into UNESCO's Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC).[3][5]
The city is situated along theBârzava River, which meets theDoman River in the centre of town. Most of the urban area is concentrated along the Bârzava, with some development—mostly residential—in the surrounding hills.
It is made of three main areas, two former villages that were very close:Romanian Reșița (Romanian:Reșița Română or Olah Resitza) andHighland Reșița (Romanian:Reșița Montană, Eisenwerk Reschitza or Nemet Reschitza); a new area, recently built, made of tower blocks on a wide opened meadow, calledBârzava's Meadow.[6]
Neighbourhoods of Reșița
Neighbourhood name
Official name
Former name
Occasional name
Additional name
New City
Bârzava's Meadow
New Reșița
North Reșița
Govândari
entirely built after 1965, under theSocialist Romania, it contains 4 zone areas around amain boulevard, calledmicroraions, a legacy term of the former Soviet Union:
Micro I
Micro II
Micro III
Micro IV
Downtown
City Centre
Romanian Reșița
South Reșița
N/A
rebuilt after the installment of theSocialist Romania in 1947,[6] it contains the following zone areas:
The Civic centre of the city has been partially renovated in 2006. An important point of attraction located in the City Centre is the impressive kinetic fountain designed byConstantin Lucaci, built in the communist era.
There are also important cultural points in Reșița that have been renewed in 2006, including the Concrete School (Școala de Beton), Downtown, and the Polyvalent Hall (Sala Polivalentă).
TheReșița Steam Locomotive Museum features Romania's first locomotive built in Romania at Reșița in 1872, and is located in the open-air museum in the (Romanian:Triaj) neighborhood.
An important iron and steel center, Reșița is the site ofblast furnaces, iron foundries, and plants producing electrical appliances,chemicals and machinery (seeReșița works).
Local factory in the early 20th century
Small part of the Reșița Steelworks
City Hall in the City Centre
Museum of Highland Banat
Community Centre
The city is a hub for leisure locations all around. Locations near Reșița include theski resort at Semenic, Lake Gozna, Lake Secu, the Trei Ape Lake (Three Rivers Lake),Gărâna,Brebu, andVăliug.
At the2021 census, the city had a population of 58,393. At the2011 census, there were 65,509 people living within the city of Reșița,[7] making it the 29th largest city in Romania. The ethnic makeup is as follows:
Reșița has long been considered as the second-largest industrial center of Romania. It is an important center in manufacturing steel and vehicle manufacturing. C.S.R. (Combinatul Siderurgic Reșița) and U.C.M.R., the first Romanian factory (Uzina Constructoare de Mașini Reșița). The two are called asReșița works and are the factories which sustained the city's life for more than 300 years. The first factories were built in 1771, during the reign ofMaria Theresa. During the 19th century, the steelworks were known asStEG. After the end ofWorld War I, whenBanat became part of Romania, they changed their name again, this time to Uzinele și Domeniile Reșița or UDR (Reșița Works and Domains). Only later, under theCommunist regime, did the UDR split into CSR and UCMR.
The economy of Reșița has faced a drawback since 1989, but began recovering as a result of increasing foreign and domestic investment, largely in industry.[10]
Industry: Automobile industry, Iron industry, texture industry, civilian constructions.
Agriculture: 1% of the labour force of the city works in agriculture.
Services: public alimentation, internal and international transport.
Tourism: 2 tourism societies (Tourist Semenic SA and BIRTA SA).[11]
Reșița currently has 9 supermarkets of which threeCarrefour supermarkets, two in the Govândari district (one of them was previously a Billa supermarket) and one in the Nera Shopping Center, threeLidl supermarkets, twoKaufland supermarkets, one near the road entrance fromBocșa and one in Lunca Bârzăvii and aPenny establishment also situated in Lunca Bârzăvii. The Shopping Center of Reșița is called Nera Shopping Center located in the Civic Centre. There are a variety of companies operating in Reșița, offering almost everything a normal consumer would need. There are some other shopping centres currently under development such as Reșița Shopping City located on the site of the old thermal plant, or the mall of the Mociur area.
A bus in ReșițaThe GT8 Tram used in ReșițaBoulevard crossing in downtown (2007).
Reșița's public transport relies on 6 bus lines and was operated by the now defunct Prescom company. It is now operated by Transport Urban Reșița (TUR).
4: Moroasa II – Lend/Baraj (dam of Secu Lake) – CET – Molizilor – Moroasa II
8: Intim – Moniom – Intim
9: Intim – Țerova – Intim
10: Nera – Doman – Nera
11: Piața Republicii – Minda – Cuptoare – Piața Republicii
Reșița's bus fleet was to be upgraded sometime during 2009, and after in 2017 when the Resita municipality took over the management of public transport.
A tram system, consisting of two lines, operated between 1988 and 2011 and then needed to be restored. The 2 tram lines were the Renk–Muncitoresc line (0), and the Renk–Stavila line (DP) which was basically an expansion of the Renk-Muncitoresc line, but there were only 3 trams on this line. The tram fleet consisted of about 28 trams. The last trams were GT8 and N models imported from Germany (Dortmund andFrankfurt), and completely replaced the former pre-89 trams in 2002. In 2008, the new mayor announced his intention to decommission all trams and replace them with modern buses complying with EU standards.
Reintroduction of trams was announced in 2016 and the modernization and expansion of the tram system began in 2019. In 2017 it was announced that a new company, calledTransport Urban Reșița (TUR), was created to manage the public transport in Reșița. In spring 2021, reopening was planned for December 2022,[13] but was subsequently delayed. On December 20, 2024, tram services resumed in Reșița after a 13-year pause. The project, funded by the European Union, aimed to modernize public transport and improve urban mobility through a new tram line and updated infrastructure.
The revamped tram service operates along a 9 km route from Kaufland in the north to Reșița-Montana in the southeast. Although some sections of the original line remain closed, the new route offers a 30-minute end-to-end journey with trams running every 8 minutes during rush hours.
The infrastructure upgrade features modern tracks and energy-efficient power systems, improving the reliability of tram operations. Pedestrian and cycling paths built alongside the line support multimodal transport and reflect current urban mobility priorities.[14]
Reșița features a main 4 lane road that connects the neighbourhood Stavila to the neighbourhood of Câlnic. This main road passes through almost all important neighbourhoods in Reșița. The rest of the neighbourhoods in Reșița are accessible via 2 lane secondary roads or single-lane roads. Roads of Reșița are usually well maintained, especially the main road, but there are occasional pot-holes on secondary roads. The road signs are usually well placed and well maintained, and traffic is usually friendly and traffic jams are a myth. Accidents are very rare and almost never lethal. Externally Reșița is connected by national roads toCaransebeș (continued toBucharest) and toTimișoara. There are also 3 county roads connecting Reșița toOravița,Naidăș, andAnina.
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