Landmarks of Romanian historical identity

All things considered, the foundation of Romania, as it is today, was laid in early 1859. Specifically, that meant the twofold election of colonel Alexandru Ioan Cuza, on January 5th and 24th, as the ruling prince of Moldavia and Wallachia, in then the capital of the two Romanian Principalities. The person of a single ruling prince was the epitome of a tremendous amount of effort the elites had made, for two generations, in a bid to build a Romanian state following the modern European model.

We have made an attempt to reminisce the key moments of that age at national but also at international level. Joining us in our endeavour was historian Marian Stroia, of the Romanian Academy's "Nicolae Iorga" Institute of History.

Marian Stroia:

"For the south-eastern space, the most important event with a strong bearing on the situation of Romanian principalities is the Crimean War, 1853-1855. It was a pretext the Russians resorted to, so that they could put pressure on the Ottoman Porte to grant rights to the Ottoman Empire's Christian nations. In effect, it was a mere pretext for their expansionist tendency towards central and eastern Europe."

The Romanian elite and the Romanian society were caught between three empires that meant no good for Romania, as it was at that time. They were the Austria-Hungarian, the Tsarist and the Ottoman Empires. Through negotiations, the elite succeeded to find the most favourable of the three empires. 

Historian Marian Stroia:

"We can say that, broadly speaking, the Ottoman Porte was more receptive to Romanians' wants and needs and was also less conservatory than Russia. All modernization efforts the Romanians had attempted after 1848 benefitted from its low-key support. Whereas Russia, at the other end of the scale, sought to impede all reformist attempts. During his reign, colonel Cuza tried to avert any situation that could jeopardize the young Romanian state in its relationship with Russia."

In 1855, Russia was defeated in the Crimean War. The Treaty of Paris in 1856 provided great novelties as regards the historical destiny of the Romanian space. 

Marian Stroia:

"After 1856, there is another crucial moment. Just as Dumitru Bratianu had told his brother, Ion C. Brătianu, in 1849, when Russia would get soft, then the Romanians could achieve all their national objectives. The most important consequence of the year 1856 meant that the Romanian space was no longer under the Russian-Turkish suzerainty, being under the protectorate of the great European states. At one fell swoop, the political situation changed, making it possible for a much wider context to occur, for the development of the domestic political energies."

The strongest domestic energies were indeed unleashed. The Unionist, Europhile party was the most tumultuous one, being capable of writing memorable pages of history at that time. 

Marian Stroia:

"The Ad-hoc (purpose-held) election of 1857 made the most important event in the domestic Romanian space. On that occasion, the Romanian nation's political identity landmarks were expressed. Among them, definitely worth mentioning here, apart from political autonomy, neutrality and the separation of state powers, is the fundamental issue of the foreign prince, viewed as a necessary prerequisite of the young Romanian state, in a bid to draw its own roadmap towards independence. That was point number 4, which was no less important than the others, the enthronement of a foreign prince. Ruler Alexandru Iona Cuza's reign was an intermediary stage in the Romanians' undertaking to gain their national independence."

The Romanian elites came up with a simple geopolitical and geostrategic scheme. Lying at the crossroads between the three empires, Moldavia and Wallachia had to look for support outside the zone where empires clashed. The ultimate solution to the quest for support was France, the great model of modern ideas, the staunchest carrier of the message of the universality of man and his rights. Today, historians have unanimously agreed that Romania was a creation of France. 

Marian Stroia once again, with the details.

"A crucial role in the Romanians' endeavour to carry the union through and forge their own way to independence, that was played by France. Cuza had Western training. In 1845-1846 he graduated from the Stanislas College in the French capital. His own shape-up as well as the shape-up of the entire unionist movement of 1848 were closely linked to the West and to France, especially. For the Romanians, the most consistent support was provided by the French state, then headed by Napoleon III. It is something that cannot possibly be denied. "

The Union required certain forms of sacrifice, made by the elites and the grassroots alike, according to their possibilities. However, the example was set by the elites. 

The historian Marian Stroia:

"For its greater part, the Romanian elite back then was inspired by a complete material disinterest and by an utterly unusual patriotic spirit. Costache Negri, one of Cuza's aides and the Principalities' ambassador to Constantinople, had a complete state financial support for his funeral, so he didn't even have enough money for his own interment. And when Ion C. Brătianu left for Dusseldorf to obtain Carol de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen's candidacy for the throne of the Principalities, he had to sell two of his estates so that he could pay for his trip and his stay in the Sigmaringens' German residence. "

Cuza was jointly elected on January the 5th and the 24th, 1859, in Moldavia and Wallachia. That clearly meant both principalities were definitely taking a European path.

(EN)