Brief Romanian History For You
John Doyle
If you want to have an understanding of a land and its people, it is essential that you obtain some knowledge of its history as well. The history of Romania is the history of its land and of the people, who gave it a distinct cultural and national identity. Apart from that, it is a commentary on the evolution of the present day nation state of Romania, from the ancient period dating back to the third century B.C. and through the various periods, when the geographical boundaries of the Romanian kingdom were transformed time and again, till the formation of the present day Romania that you see on any atlas.
The Romania of today was inhabited by people of Dacia, a Thracian tribe, at about year 200 B.C. The first state was formed in Romania during the reign of Burebista (82 - 44 B.C.). The infant state became involved in a series of conflicts with the Roman Empire, the dominant power of the time. It was ultimately annexed by that empire in the year 106 A.D. during the rule of the Roman Emperor Trajan.
When the power of the Roman Empire faded, Romania, like other countries of Central and Southern Europe, was vandalized by various normandic tribes. Between 10th and 12th centuries it was ruled by the Hungarians. Then the Ottoman Turks in their westward push occupied Romania and retained it till 1541. In the year 1600, the three separate states of Moldavia, Walachia and Transylvania were briefly united under the reign of Michael the Brave. The next foreign rulers to conquer Romania were the Austrians, who held on till 1775, and in 1812 the Russians occupied it.
1848, the year of revolutions, saw a great revolution for independence in Romania too. In 1859, Alexander John Cuza helped to unite the provinces of Moldavia and Walachia and the modern state of Romania came into existence.
Subsequently, Romania got independence in the year 1877. Romania joined the First World War in 1916 in favour of the Allies. At the end of the War, it was rewarded with the addition of Transylvania.
Great changes took place in Europe in 1918, at the end of the First World War. The Russian and the Austro-Hungarian empires disappeared, and the provinces of Bessarabia and Bucovina were gained by Romania.
Romania joined the Axis powers in the Second World War, forcing the king to abdicate in 1940. The Alliance with Germany continued till 1944, when the Russian army overran the country. At the end of the war Romania retained Transylvania, but lost parts of Bucovina, Bessarabia and Dobrogea.
Romania became a satellite state of the Soviet Union after the War, but followed more or less independent policies. However, with coming to power Nicolai Ceausescu, a dark period started in the history of the country. Romania was a socialist republic during his regime, with communism as the avowed policy of the state. Citizens of the country suffered from deprivation and hunger under his authoritarian rule. Countless restrictions were imposed, from television to freedom of worship. In fact, a number of churches were pulled down.
The reign of Nicolai Ceaucescu finally came to an end after the mass upsurge in 1989. He was executed after a hurried trial together with his wife, Elena. As Romania limped towards a democratic set up and the market economy, a lot of hardships were inflicted on the common man. In fact, some people felt that even the communist rule was better than the chaos its removal resulted in.
Nowadays Romania has a democratic constitution and since 1989 three presidents ruled it: Ion Iliescu, Emil Constantinescu and Trajan Basescu, who is the President of Romania since 2004. In 2002 Romania adhered to NATO and since 2007 Romania is a member of European Union.
As you can see, Romania has a really eventful history. This brief overview will hopefully give you an insight into the background of Romanian society and culture.
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