The construction of the first cathedral was begun that time, though was completed only in the end of the century, under the rule of Ladislaus I.

The transversal naves and the first part of the sanctuary of the present cathedral were built in Romanesque style.

In the middle of the 13th century the cathedral was rebuilt on the old foundation, in the transitory style between Romanesque and Gothic.

The archbishop of Esztergom and the regent-governor of Hungary, John Hunyadi contributed to the reconstruction – this was the time when the latter one chose the cathedral of Gyulafehérvár as a burial place.

In 1601, during the Wallachian invasion led by Michael the Brave, the cathedral was pillaged, even the tombs of the Hunyadis were damaged.