Mihai Antonescu
Encyclopedia
Mihai Antonescu was a Romania
n politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister
and Foreign Minister during World War II
.
, Dâmboviţa County
, went to school in Piteşti
, and then at the Saint Sava National College
in Bucharest
. From 1922 to 1926 he attended the Faculty of Law of the University of Bucharest
. Antonescu made his living as an attorney
before becoming Prime Minister Ion Antonescu
’s (to whom he was not related) Minister of Propaganda
in 1940. Antonescu was initially not an extremist
or supporter of the Iron Guard
, whose leaders held prominent positions in Ion Antonescu’s government in 1940-1941 (see National Legionary State
); in the 1930s, he was a member of the National Liberal Party-Brătianu
.
As minister, he drifted to the far right
, and established contacts with the German
Nazi Party
. Antonescu subsequently became one of Ion Antonescu’s most trusted advisors, especially when the Iron Guard's leader, Horia Sima
(who was also deputy prime minister), became increasingly uncooperative. He was effective in censoring
governmental critics and enforcing blatant Anti-Semitism
in the media
.
When the Iron Guard was suppressed and removed from power in January 1941 (see Legionnaires' Rebellion and Bucharest Pogrom
), Mihai Antonescu was promoted to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, making him the second most powerful man in the country (see Romania during World War II
).
of the Soviet Union
, Ion Antonescu primarily focused on Romania’s military affairs, leaving Mihai Antonescu in almost full control of the country’s domestic matters. Although initially uncomfortable with Romania’s close alliance with Germany, Antonescu strengthened the nation’s ties with Adolf Hitler
's regime after a string of early Axis
victories against the Soviets. Antonescu primarily attempted to gain Germany’s favor by persecuting Romania’s Jews. Essentially running the interior ministry, he drafted a series of laws that resulted in thousands of Romania’s Jews being forced out of their jobs and positions, while at the same time they were denied access to countless other careers. More such laws resulted in the country’s Jews having their property seized.
Throughout 1941, Antonescu would approve the pogrom
against the Jews of Iaşi
, stop the emigration of Jews from Romania, and remove the Romanian government’s protection of Romanian Jews outside the country, thus leaving them in German-occupied areas at the mercy of the Nazis. He also approved the slaughter of Jews in Bessarabia
and Bukovina
, and the deportation of the survivors to concentration camps in Transnistria
.
and focus the full power of the Axis forces on the Soviet Union. When the Soviets won the Battle of Stalingrad
on February 2, 1943, Antonescu came to the conclusion that the war was lost for the Axis, proceeding to destroy files and documents that revealed his active persecution of Romania’s Jews. With Ion Antonescu's approval, he came to advocate the withdrawal from conflict of all minor allies of the Nazis - Romania, Hungary
, Italy
, and Finland
.
Antonescu believed Benito Mussolini
was powerful enough to stand up to Hitler, and that Italy could successfully negotiate an armistice with the Western Allies. Under Antonescu’s plan, the four states and other European nations would turn against Hitler and join the Allies against Germany. In his capacity as foreign minister, Antonescu strengthened Romania’s ties with Italy and paid a visit to Mussolini in June 1943, at which time he discovered that Mussolini agreed with certain aspects of his plan but was less than enthusiastic in regard to actually implementing it. Antonescu subsequently increased his efforts to improve Romania’s relations with the United States
and Great Britain
. As such, he stopped the deportations of Romania’s Jews, allowed Jewish emigration to non-Axis nations, and repatriated those who had survived Transnistria.
On August 23, 1944, as Soviet forces drew closer and closer to Romania, King
Michael dismissed the government of Ion Antonescu, declared the nation’s surrender, and had Mihai Antonescu arrested. He was subsequently handed over to the new authorities, tried by a Communist Party
-influenced Bucharest People's Tribunal, and found guilty of war crimes. He was executed by a firing squad, together with Ion Antonescu, Constantin Vasiliu and Gheorghe Alexianu, near the fort of Jilava
.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Romania
The Prime Minister of Romania is the head of the Government of Romania. Initially, the office was styled President of the Council of Ministers , when the term "Government" included more than the Cabinet, and the Cabinet was called The Council of Ministers...
and Foreign Minister during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Early career
Born in NucetNucet, Dâmbovita
Nucet is a commune in Dâmboviţa County, southern Romania with a population of 2,147 people. It is composed of three villages: Cazaci, Ilfoveni and Nucet....
, Dâmboviţa County
Dâmbovita County
Dâmbovița ; also spelt Dîmbovița is a county of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Târgoviște.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 541,763 and the population density was 134/km²...
, went to school in Piteşti
Pitesti
Pitești is a city in Romania, located on the Argeș River. The capital and largest city of Argeș County, it is an important commercial and industrial center, as well as the home of two universities. Pitești is situated on the A1 freeway connecting it directly to the national capital Bucharest,...
, and then at the Saint Sava National College
Saint Sava National College
The Saint Sava National College is the oldest and one of the most prestigious high schools in Bucharest, Romania....
in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
. From 1922 to 1926 he attended the Faculty of Law of the University of Bucharest
University of Bucharest
The University of Bucharest , in Romania, is a university founded in 1864 by decree of Prince Alexander John Cuza to convert the former Saint Sava Academy into the current University of Bucharest.-Presentation:...
. Antonescu made his living as an attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
before becoming Prime Minister Ion Antonescu
Ion Antonescu
Ion Victor Antonescu was a Romanian soldier, authoritarian politician and convicted war criminal. The Prime Minister and Conducător during most of World War II, he presided over two successive wartime dictatorships...
’s (to whom he was not related) Minister of Propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
in 1940. Antonescu was initially not an extremist
Extremism
Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...
or supporter of the Iron Guard
Iron Guard
The Iron Guard is the name most commonly given to a far-right movement and political party in Romania in the period from 1927 into the early part of World War II. The Iron Guard was ultra-nationalist, fascist, anti-communist, and promoted the Orthodox Christian faith...
, whose leaders held prominent positions in Ion Antonescu’s government in 1940-1941 (see National Legionary State
National Legionary State
The National Legionary State was the Romanian government from September 6, 1940 to January 23, 1941. It was a single-party regime dictatorship dominated by the overtly fascist Iron Guard in uneasy conjunction with the head of government and Conducător Ion Antonescu, the leader of the Romanian...
); in the 1930s, he was a member of the National Liberal Party-Brătianu
National Liberal Party-Bratianu
The National Liberal Party-Brătianu was a right-wing political party in Romania, formed as a splinter group from the main liberal faction, the National Liberals. For its symbol, PNL-Brătianu chose three vertical bars, placed at equal distance from each other...
.
As minister, he drifted to the far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
, and established contacts with the German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Nazi Party
National Socialist German Workers Party
The National Socialist German Workers' Party , commonly known in English as the Nazi Party, was a political party in Germany between 1920 and 1945. Its predecessor, the German Workers' Party , existed from 1919 to 1920...
. Antonescu subsequently became one of Ion Antonescu’s most trusted advisors, especially when the Iron Guard's leader, Horia Sima
Horia Sima
Horia Sima was a Romanian fascist politician. After 1938, he was the second and last leader of the fascist and antisemitic para-military movement known as the Iron Guard.-In Romania:...
(who was also deputy prime minister), became increasingly uncooperative. He was effective in censoring
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
governmental critics and enforcing blatant Anti-Semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
in the media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
.
When the Iron Guard was suppressed and removed from power in January 1941 (see Legionnaires' Rebellion and Bucharest Pogrom
Legionnaires' Rebellion and Bucharest Pogrom
The Legionnaires' rebellion and the Bucharest pogrom occurred in Bucharest, Romania, between 21 and 23 January 1941.As the privileges of the Iron Guard were being cut off by Conducător Ion Antonescu, members of the Iron Guard, also known as the Legionnaires, revolted...
), Mihai Antonescu was promoted to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, making him the second most powerful man in the country (see Romania during World War II
Romania during World War II
Following the outbreak of World War II on 1 September 1939, the Kingdom of Romania officially adopted a position of neutrality. However, the rapidly changing situation in Europe during 1940, as well as domestic political upheaval, undermined this stance. Fascist political forces such as the Iron...
).
Prominence
Throughout 1941, especially after the InvasionOperation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Ion Antonescu primarily focused on Romania’s military affairs, leaving Mihai Antonescu in almost full control of the country’s domestic matters. Although initially uncomfortable with Romania’s close alliance with Germany, Antonescu strengthened the nation’s ties with Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's regime after a string of early Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
victories against the Soviets. Antonescu primarily attempted to gain Germany’s favor by persecuting Romania’s Jews. Essentially running the interior ministry, he drafted a series of laws that resulted in thousands of Romania’s Jews being forced out of their jobs and positions, while at the same time they were denied access to countless other careers. More such laws resulted in the country’s Jews having their property seized.
Throughout 1941, Antonescu would approve the pogrom
Iasi pogrom
The Iaşi pogrom or Jassy pogrom of June 27, 1941 was one of the most violent pogroms in Jewish history, launched by governmental forces in the Romanian city of Iaşi against its Jewish population, resulting in the murder of at least 13,266 Jews, according to Romanian authorities.-Background:]During...
against the Jews of Iaşi
Iasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
, stop the emigration of Jews from Romania, and remove the Romanian government’s protection of Romanian Jews outside the country, thus leaving them in German-occupied areas at the mercy of the Nazis. He also approved the slaughter of Jews in Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
and Bukovina
Bukovina
Bukovina is a historical region on the northern slopes of the northeastern Carpathian Mountains and the adjoining plains.-Name:The name Bukovina came into official use in 1775 with the region's annexation from the Principality of Moldavia to the possessions of the Habsburg Monarchy, which became...
, and the deportation of the survivors to concentration camps in Transnistria
Transnistria
Transnistria is a breakaway territory located mostly on a strip of land between the Dniester River and the eastern Moldovan border to Ukraine...
.
Late in the war and execution
As 1942 came to a close, Antonescu became alarmed at the deterioration of the Axis war effort and started looking for ways to withdraw Romania from the war. He attempted to persuade Hitler to make peace with the Western AlliesWestern Allies
The Western Allies were a political and geographic grouping among the Allied Powers of the Second World War. It generally includes the United Kingdom and British Commonwealth, the United States, France and various other European and Latin American countries, but excludes China, the Soviet Union,...
and focus the full power of the Axis forces on the Soviet Union. When the Soviets won the Battle of Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...
on February 2, 1943, Antonescu came to the conclusion that the war was lost for the Axis, proceeding to destroy files and documents that revealed his active persecution of Romania’s Jews. With Ion Antonescu's approval, he came to advocate the withdrawal from conflict of all minor allies of the Nazis - Romania, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
.
Antonescu believed Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
was powerful enough to stand up to Hitler, and that Italy could successfully negotiate an armistice with the Western Allies. Under Antonescu’s plan, the four states and other European nations would turn against Hitler and join the Allies against Germany. In his capacity as foreign minister, Antonescu strengthened Romania’s ties with Italy and paid a visit to Mussolini in June 1943, at which time he discovered that Mussolini agreed with certain aspects of his plan but was less than enthusiastic in regard to actually implementing it. Antonescu subsequently increased his efforts to improve Romania’s relations with the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. As such, he stopped the deportations of Romania’s Jews, allowed Jewish emigration to non-Axis nations, and repatriated those who had survived Transnistria.
On August 23, 1944, as Soviet forces drew closer and closer to Romania, King
King of Romania
King of the Romanians , rather than King of Romania , was the official title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Romania from 1881 until 1947, when Romania was proclaimed a republic....
Michael dismissed the government of Ion Antonescu, declared the nation’s surrender, and had Mihai Antonescu arrested. He was subsequently handed over to the new authorities, tried by a Communist Party
Romanian Communist Party
The Romanian Communist Party was a communist political party in Romania. Successor to the Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to communist revolution and the disestablishment of Greater Romania. The PCR was a minor and illegal grouping for much of the...
-influenced Bucharest People's Tribunal, and found guilty of war crimes. He was executed by a firing squad, together with Ion Antonescu, Constantin Vasiliu and Gheorghe Alexianu, near the fort of Jilava
Jilava
Jilava is a commune in Ilfov county, Romania, near Bucharest. It is composed of a single village, Jilava.The name derives from a Romanian word of Slavic origin meaning "humid place". Jilava was the location of a fort built by King Carol I of Romania, as part of the capital's defense system...
.
External links
- Actual footage of Antonescu's death before a firing squad (May be unsuitable for sensitive viewers)