Câlnic is one of the most interesting fortress-churches in southern Transylvania. It is one of several fortifications established here by the Saxons. The citadel was first mentioned in a document in the year 1267. More precisely, when one of greavii, a leader of the Saxon community, Chyl of Kelling, began the construction of a keep that would also serve as a tower-house. The keep was completed in 1272. The building, enlarged and strengthened, still stands today, and is known as the Siegfried Tower. The church of the village was built next to this medieval tower. Initially, the church was Roman Catholic, then Evangelical-Lutheran, serving both the noble Greava family of Kelling, as well as the community.