National Renaissance Front
Encyclopedia
The National Renaissance Front was a fascist
Romania
n political party
created by King
Carol II
in 1938 as the single monopoly party
of government following his decision to ban all other political parties and suspend the 1923 Constitution
, and the passing of the 1938 Constitution of Romania
. It was the party of Prime Ministers Armand Călinescu
, Gheorghe Argeşanu
, Constantin Argetoianu
, Gheorghe Tătărescu
and Ion Gigurtu
, whose regimes were associated with corporatism
and anti-semitism
. Largely reflecting Carol's own political choices, the FRN was the last of several attempts to counter the popularity of the Iron Guard
, itself a fascist and anti-semitic movement. Renamed the Party of the Nation (Partidul Naţiunii or Partidul Naţiunei, PN) in 1940, it largely ceased to function the following year when the Parliament of Romania
was dissolved.
became noted during the election of December 1937
, when the monarch backed the National Liberal Party
(PNL) of incumbent Premier Tătărescu, expecting it to carry the vote; in effect, the result was inconclusive, with none of the parties receiving enough of a percentage to be awarded a majority bonus
, and with political rivalries preventing any single coalition. Faced with this outcome, Carol chose to back the antisemitic National Christian Party
(PNC) of Octavian Goga
and A. C. Cuza
, appointing Goga as the new Prime Minister on December 26, 1937—effectively, this led the two main traditional parties, the PNL and the National Peasants' Party
(PNŢ), to be become marginalized. Instead, the new regime's establishment caused a migration of politicians from the PNŢ, including Armand Călinescu
, who chose to support the new policies and joined the Goga cabinet.
A paramilitary
grouping, the blue-shirted Lăncieri
, was established as the new arm of the regime, and soon began acting against both groups of Iron Guard agitators and members of the Jewish community
. The incidents had negative effects on Romanian society: the Jewish middle class
boycotted the system by withdrawing their investments and refusing to pay taxes (to the point where the National Bank of Romania declared the regime's insolvency
), while France
and the United Kingdom
threatened Romania with sanctions, and the Soviet Union
withdrew its embassy to Bucharest
.
envoy Mirosław Arciszewski, signed a pact with its leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
(February 8, 1938), a move which threatened to topple Carol's original designs. Two days later, the PNC was deposed and the monarch created a national government
around Miron Cristea
, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
, backed by right-wing figures such as Tătărescu, Alexandru Averescu
, Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
, Nichifor Crainic
, and Nicolae Iorga
.
The new corporatist
and authoritarian
Constitution of Romania
, promulgated on February 20, 1938, proclaimed stately interest to be above individual ones. According to its text, "all Romanians, regardless of their ethnicity and their religious faith" were required to "sacrifice themselves in defending [the country's] integrity, independence and dignity", while it was stipulated that "no one can consider oneself free from civil and military, public or private duties on the grounds of one’s religious faith or any other kind of faith".
A law passed during in April, defining the "defense of state order", restricted all other forms of political association, forbade political chants and paramilitary displays, banned the press organs of political parties, and condemned political contacts between Romanian forces and outside patrons.
In April, following an orchestrated conflict between Iorga and Codreanu, a large number of Iron Guard activists, including Codreanu himself, was prosecuted and jailed on orders from Călinescu, the Minister of Internal Affairs. As Carol witnessed the failure of European countries to defend themselves from Nazi German
advances, consecrated by the Anschluss
and the Munich Agreement
, he met with Adolf Hitler
at Berghof
(November 24, 1938), and became convinced that Romania faced a similar fate. He subsequently ordered the Iron Guard, whom he perceived as a fifth column
for the Germans, to be decapitated: during the following days, Codreanu and the majority of top-ranking Guardists were assassinated, while secondary ones, led by Horia Sima
, fled the country and took refuge in Germany, where they remained after the outbreak of World War II
. There, they began plotting a revenge against the regime's officials, including Carol.
for as long as 5 years. Writing at the time, Călinescu defined the FRN as "mainly a spiritual movement", proclaiming the FRN's goals of "re-establishing the rights of the State, its natural parts", "promoting the general interests of the collectivity" and "[giving] life a sense of moral value".
In May 1939, the electoral law suffered drastic changes: the voting age was raised to 30, voters had to be literate
and employed in one of three fields (agriculture and manual labor, commerce and industry, intellectual professions), and new, fewer precincts were drawn up (11 in all, standing for the 10 new ţinuturi and Bucharest
). The Senate
, whose eligible members could only be voted into office by high-ranking members of corporations or guild
s (bresle), comprised a number of members for life
(in addition to those already holding the office by the time the law was adopted, these were religious leaders and various members of the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen — a seat was reserved for Mihai
, the heir to the throne and "Grand-Voivode of Alba Iulia
", from the date of his coming of age).
Carol's regime has generally been viewed as superficially fascist, and endorsed by the United Kingdom
and France
as a means to present a line of defense against Nazism
in the Balkans
(the Western press held, overall, a sympathetic view of the FRN). The Font adopted fascist
symbols and discourse. After January 1939, party members wore uniforms (navy blue
or white in color), with various ceremonial hats. The Roman salute
was a mandatory greeting.
Ever since the years of its existence, the FRN and its government have been the target of ridicule, and their ideology has been described as "operetta
fascism". After attending a Parliament session in 1939, Marthe Bibesco
mocked the sight of uniforms:
, while also stressing several left-wing tenets. Among the far right
tendencies it absorbed was the small-scale fascist-inspired feminist
and racist
movement formed by Alexandrina Cantacuzino (Gruparea Naţională a Femeilor Române, the National Grouping of Romanian Women). Although Cantacuzino's ideology remained relatively influential for the following years, the Grouping itself was dissolved in 1939.
The FRN continued to make use of Antisemitism, and appealed to nationalists
by promising to find an answer to the "Jewish Question
". Before 1940, no Antisemitic law was passed, but, as a rule, Jews were denied FRN membership. The arbitrary measure of the Octavian Goga
cabinet, through which hundreds of thousands of Jews had been stripped of their citizenship, was continued through a requirement that all those excluded be registered as foreigners. Members of the community were encouraged to leave the country. Nevertheless, violence was reduced, especially since its main agents, the Iron Guard and the National Christian Party
, had been outlawed.
The Front's policies in respect to other ethnic minorities
, as Călinescu reported, aimed to "show [the new regime's] benevolence to the foreign elements, as long as they are sincerely integrated in the life of the State". Also according to Călinescu, the FRN rejected all notion of territorial reshaping ("There are not, and cannot be any territorial problems […]"). In one notable example, Carol chose to reestablish the seat held in Parliament by the Polish minority
of Bukovina, and awarded it to Tytus Czerkawski — this followed intense campaigning from politicians and journalists in the Republic of Poland for Romania to review the centralist
policies set by Ion Nistor
in 1919.
Notably, the FRN also incorporated much of the leftist tendency inside the PNŢ (Călinescu, Mihail Ghelmegeanu, Petre Andrei, Mihai Ralea, Cezar Petrescu
), drawing on a Poporanist
legacy, while enlisting support from well-known socialists
such as Gala Galaction
, Ioan Flueraş
and George Grigorovici.
The corporatist structure, which, in theory, covered the entire Romanian society, was centered on newly-founded guilds, overseen by Flueraş and forming the basis for representation in Parliament
. A minimum wage
was imposed on private enterprises, while a body regulating leisure
, Muncă şi Voe Bună, was created on the model set by the Nazi Strength Through Joy and the Italian fascist
Opera nazionale dopolavoro
. The organization grouping youth, Straja Ţării
, had been functioning since 1934–35; in addition, university students were enrolled in work teams and required to assist in harvests and other countryside projects. As part of the FRN's focus on modernization
(which it imposed from top to bottom), special mobile teams visited villages and provided hot showers for peasants.
and Carol's camarilla
, and much of its membership comprised civil servants whose affiliation was mandatory. According to Marthe Bibesco
:
Businessmen associated with Carol continued to make the bulk of their income from state contracts, progressively orienting themselves towards the arms industry
(Nicolae Malaxa
, an industrialist and personal friend of Carol, collected profits of 300–1,000% during the FRN period).
In January-February 1939, a conflict erupted between Carol and Nicolae Iorga
, following the latter's refusal to wear the FRN uniform during public ceremony, and worsened by his protest against Constantin Rădulescu-Motru
's proposal to have all Romanian Academy
members join the Front. When Iorga used the Academy hall to publicize his opinion, the king sent Colonel Ernest Urdăreanu to end the proceedings. Censored, Iorga appealed to other means of making his opinions known, and, during a seminar he held in his home, viced harsh criticism of FRN the FRN system:
Iorga also made an angry remark in respect to the new Constitution:
Similar criticism was voiced in respect to Armand Călinescu, who had repeatedly pressured him to accept wearing the uniform. Eventually, Carol reconciled with the academic, and Iorga even agreed to wear the FRN uniform (while specifying that he was doing it upon the monarch's request, and not for "those […] who believe themselves to be the founding-figures of a country" — in likely reference to Călinescu).
The political structure continued to be marked by rivalries between various politicians — according to Argetoianu, these opposed Tătărescu to the Royal Commissioner Victor Iamandi
, as well as to a Transylvania
n faction formed around Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
(successor to the Romanian Front
), and the latter grouping to the one around A. C. Cuza
, emerged from the National Christian Party
. Argetoianu stressed that this process was similar to "the era of elections". Despite such contradictions, the regime did exert an attraction on lower middle class
people who had been underrepresented in previous decades.
In contrast with official ideology, Carol allowed other opposition parties to exist in all but on paper, kept contacts with them, and, in early 1940, had meetings with the PNL's Dinu Brătianu
, the PNŢ's Ion Mihalache
, and the dissident left-winger Nicolae N. Lupu, attempting to persuade each to merge their groupings with the FRN. Reacting to the collaboration between PNL and PNŢ, he offered the former a chance to form a new cabinet, but the offer was refused following its rejection by Gheorghe I. Brătianu
. According to the leading PNŢ member Ioan Hudiţă, the Front continued to find sympathy inside his own party, and some of its figures (including Mihalache, Virgil Madgearu
and Mihai Popovici) allegedly considered affiliating with it.
In this context, social opposition and the labor movement were insignificant. Having always been a minor grouping, the Communist Party of Romania
(PCdR) had been driven in the underground by repression during the 1920s and early 1930s, and had survived inside the country by infiltrating the left wings of other groupings. After 1939, the PCdR received an order from the Comintern
to attempt infiltrating the FRN at a local level and attract its members to the far left
. The main left-wing group, of the Social Democrats
, continued to function in the same terms as other traditional parties, and organized several cultural and social events, all tolerated by the regime and part of them copied or arrogated. At the other end of the political spectrum, Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
, the Iron Guard's answer to trade union
s, had only marginal appeal and was also driven underground.
. In late summer 1939, the Romanian public opinion was shocked by news of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
, which effected an agreement between Romania's most powerful adversaries, and the regime began preparing for war: it organized military training for the population beginning in late August, and invested large sums into arms production (it was announced that the Romanian Naval Forces
were fitted with one vessel each month). These measures signified that salaries of state employees fell by as much as 40%, to which was added the toll of expropriations
. The United Kingdom significantly increased its imports from Romania, attempting to prevent products from reaching Germany, while Minister of Finance
Mitiţă Constantinescu
imposed a tax on many outgoing products (according to Argetoianu, the decision was approved due to "the exceptional times we are living through, when we must sacrifice all interest to save the country's borders").
In parallel, several assassination attempts, ordered by Horia Sima
from Germany, were foiled by Siguranţa Statului before a death squad
was able to murder Armand Călinescu
, who had previously replaced Cristea as Premier, on September 21, 1939. At the same time, Romania began offering Germany a series of deals, hoping to dissuade its hostility: the latter received advantageous clearing
agreements, while the Reichswerke joined Nicolae Malaxa
in taking over the businesses of Max Auschnitt
, who had been arrested in September. The property of other Jewish businessmen, in the oil industry (Astra Română), as well as in the sugar industry and in logging
, was taken over by the state over the following months.
Eventually, as Germany completed its invasion of Poland
and continued to voice support for Hungary
in relation to Romanian-ruled Transylvania
, Romania conceded to German economic demands (on March 7, 1940, the Gheorghe Tătărescu
executive agreed to direct almost all cereal and oil exports towards Berlin
). Romania did however offer assistance to Polish troops fleeing their country immediately after the start of Nazi occupation
(see Polish-Romanian Alliance
). The country's position became even more precarious after the fall of France in May — as a direct consequence, Romania renounced its alliance with the United Kingdom and began attempts to join the Axis
.
The change in policy also resulted in the reestablishment of the FRN as the Party of the Nation (June 21–2), under the leadership of Ion Gigurtu
; the move stressed its fascist character to the point where it has been described as a newly-founded grouping. The decree announcing the PN's creation depicted it as "sole and totalitarian
party", placed under the leadership of Carol (the party restated its goal as "lead[ing] the moral and material life of the Romanian nation and state"). A law passed during the same interval criminalized "activities against the interests of the Party of the Nation", "propaganda
against the interests of the Party of the Nation", as well as "publicly removing, destroying, deteriorating, out of contempt or derision, the Party of the Nation's badges, emblems, uniforms, manifestos or publications".
Carol also decided to appeal to Iron Guard assistance, allowed its freed activists to join the PN if they chose to do so, and, on June 25, 1940, he signed an agreement with Sima. Consequently, Sima became Minister of Culture in the Gigurtu cabinet, and two other Guardists were appointed to similar positions (Sima himself was to resign after just four days). The notorious Antisemite Nichifor Crainic
, who was sympathetic to the Guard, was also assigned a cabinet post, as Minister of Propaganda. The new authorities produced the first racial segregation
laws, based on the Nuremberg Legislation
and aimed at the Jewish community
— these notably introduced the legal concept of români de sânge ("Romanians by blood"), as a distinct category inside the body of Romanian citizens.
In the wake of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
, on June 26, 1940, Romania was presented by the Soviet Union
with an ultimatum
regarding the cession of Bessarabia
and Northern Bukovina. As a result, Romania withdrew its administration from the region, leaving room for Soviet annexation. On July 30, after the retreat had been completed, Carol remarked:
The process described by Carol is known to have occurred in Soroca
, where FRN officials (the
former Prefect Petre Sfeclă, the Mayor Gheorghe Lupaşcu, party branch leader Alexandru Anop, and school inspector Petre Hriţcu) hosted a ceremonial welcome for the Red Army
.
On August 30, 1940, Germany and Fascist Italy
pressured Romania into signing the Second Vienna Award
, which assigned Northern Transylvania
to Hungary (which also brought the German military presence within hours of the oil field
s in Prahova County
). Through the cession of Southern Dobruja
to Bulgaria
(the Treaty of Craiova
) in early September, Greater Romania
in the shape it had at the end of World War I
, had come to an end.
As Hungarian troops entered Northern Transylvania, Bucharest
became the scene of massive public rallies, which called for the PN government to be replaced with one that would support the recovery of lost regions. The Iron Guard also maneuvered into action: on September 3, its cells in various cities attempted to take over the administration, but failed due to the authorities' response.
Faced with such incidents, Carol chose to reform his own government, and appealed to his rival, General Ion Antonescu
, to form a military dictatorship
and a cabinet. After agreeing, Antonescu, with support from various political forces and the Romanian Army, pressured Carol to step down and be replaced with his son Mihai
. On September 6, 1940, the monarch agreed to leave his throne and country, settling in Brazil
at the start of 1941; what contributed to this decision was Sima's support for Antonescu, and threat to assassinate Carol. Eight days after Carol's departure, the Iron Guard joined Conducător
Antonescu in government, thereby establishing the National Legionary State
(in existence until the Legionnaires' Rebellion
of January 1941).
Right after dealing with opposition inside his own camp (by marginalizing the radical faction of Ion Zelea Codreanu), Sima issued calls for a violent reprisal against the former top FRN and PN politicians. On the night of November 26–27, 1940, sixty-four political prisoner
s were massacred in Jilava
by Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
and Iron Guard affiliates in the Romanian Police
(in theory, as reprisal for the killing of Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
). At the same time, three former Police commissioners, held under arrest in Bucharest precincts, were also assassinated. On the evening of November 27, Iron Guard members stormed into the houses of Nicolae Iorga
and the PNŢ's Virgil Madgearu
— the two were kidnapped and shot; earlier in the day, Army officials intervened to save the lives of former Premiers Constantin Argetoianu
and Gheorghe Tătărescu
.
monarch, with a claim that Romania was undergoing full development under his rule. Lucian Boia
indicated that, in contrast with his predecessors, Carol depicted himself as "a modern, dynamic king, present in the center of all that was happening in Romanian society".
Boia concluded that, despite his innovative stance, Carol encouraged similar praise of his predecessor, Carol I of Romania
, to whom he was frequently associated in iconography and cultural reference (notably manifested in the 1939 inauguration of a massive equestrian statue of the first Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen king, crafted by Ivan Meštrović
and erected near the Royal Palace
).
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
Romania
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 political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
created by 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....
Carol II
Carol II of Romania
Carol II reigned as King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until 6 September 1940. Eldest son of Ferdinand, King of Romania, and his wife, Queen Marie, a daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second eldest son of Queen Victoria...
in 1938 as the single monopoly party
Single-party state
A single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a type of party system government in which a single political party forms the government and no other parties are permitted to run candidates for election...
of government following his decision to ban all other political parties and suspend the 1923 Constitution
1923 Constitution of Romania
The 1923 Constitution of Romania, also called the Constitution of Union, was intended to align the organisation of the state on the basis of universal male suffrage and the new realities that arose after the Great Union of 1918. Four draft constitutions existed: one belonging to the National...
, and the passing of the 1938 Constitution of Romania
1938 Constitution of Romania
The 1938 Constitution of Romania was the fundamental law that established the authoritarian monarchic regime of King Carol II. It was drafted by a university professor, Istrate Micescu, based on suggestions given by the king, and made public on February 20, 1938. Four days later, voters were...
. It was the party of Prime Ministers Armand Călinescu
Armand Calinescu
Armand Călinescu was a Romanian economist and politician, who served as Prime Minister between March 1939 and the time of his death.-Early life:...
, Gheorghe Argeşanu
Gheorghe Argesanu
Gheorghe Argeşanu was a Romanian cavalry general and politician who served as a Prime Minister of Romania for about a week in 1939 .-Biography:...
, Constantin Argetoianu
Constantin Argetoianu
Constantin Argetoianu was a Romanian politician, one of the best-known personalities of interwar Greater Romania, who served as the Prime Minister between September 28 and November 23, 1939. His memoirs, Memorii. Pentru cei de mâine. Amintiri din vremea celor de ieri Constantin Argetoianu...
, Gheorghe Tătărescu
Gheorghe Tatarescu
Gheorghe I. Tătărescu was a Romanian politician who served twice as Prime Minister of Romania , three times as Minister of Foreign Affairs , and once as Minister of War...
and Ion Gigurtu
Ion Gigurtu
Ion Gigurtu was a Romanian politician, Land Forces officer, engineer and industrialist who served a brief term as Prime Minister from July 4 to September 4, 1940, under the personal regime of King Carol II. A specialist in mining and veteran of both the Second Balkan War and World War I, he made a...
, whose regimes were associated with corporatism
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
and 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...
. Largely reflecting Carol's own political choices, the FRN was the last of several attempts to counter the popularity 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...
, itself a fascist and anti-semitic movement. Renamed the Party of the Nation (Partidul Naţiunii or Partidul Naţiunei, PN) in 1940, it largely ceased to function the following year when the Parliament of Romania
Parliament of Romania
The Parliament of Romania is made up of two chambers:*The Chamber of Deputies*The SenatePrior to the modifications of the Constitution in 2003, the two houses had identical attributes. A text of a law had to be approved by both houses...
was dissolved.
Context
The conflict between Carol II and the Iron GuardIron 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...
became noted during the election of December 1937
Romanian general election, 1937
General elections were held in Romania on 20 and 22 December 1937. It was Romania's last election before King Carol II dissolved Parliament and instituted a royal dictatorship the following February. By the next elections under the 1923 Constitution, Romania had passed through two dictatorships and...
, when the monarch backed the National Liberal Party
National Liberal Party (Romania)
The National Liberal Party , abbreviated to PNL, is a centre-right liberal party in Romania. It is the third-largest party in the Romanian Parliament, with 53 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 22 in the Senate: behind the centre-right Democratic Liberal Party and the centre-left Social...
(PNL) of incumbent Premier Tătărescu, expecting it to carry the vote; in effect, the result was inconclusive, with none of the parties receiving enough of a percentage to be awarded a majority bonus
Majority bonus
Majority bonus is a feature in an electoral system, which gives the party with the most votes extra seats or representation in an elected body. It is used in Italy, Greece and Malta.-References:...
, and with political rivalries preventing any single coalition. Faced with this outcome, Carol chose to back the antisemitic National Christian Party
National Christian Party
The National Christian Party was a Romanian political party, the product of a union between Octavian Goga's National Agrarian Party and A. C. Cuza's National-Christian Defense League; a prominent member of the party was the philosopher Nichifor Crainic...
(PNC) of Octavian Goga
Octavian Goga
Octavian Goga was a Romanian politician, poet, playwright, journalist, and translator.-Life:Born in Răşinari, nearby Sibiu, he was an active member in the Romanian nationalistic movement in Transylvania and of its leading group, the Romanian National Party in Austria-Hungary. Before World War I,...
and A. C. Cuza
A. C. Cuza
A. C. Cuza was a Romanian far right politician and theorist.-Early life:Born in Iaşi, after attending secondary school in his native city and in Dresden, Cuza studied law at the University of Paris, the Universität unter den Linden, and the Université Libre de Bruxelles...
, appointing Goga as the new Prime Minister on December 26, 1937—effectively, this led the two main traditional parties, the PNL and the National Peasants' Party
National Peasants' Party
The National Peasants' Party was a Romanian political party, formed in 1926 through the fusion of the Romanian National Party from Transylvania and the Peasants' Party . It was in power between 1928 and 1933, with brief interruptions...
(PNŢ), to be become marginalized. Instead, the new regime's establishment caused a migration of politicians from the PNŢ, including Armand Călinescu
Armand Calinescu
Armand Călinescu was a Romanian economist and politician, who served as Prime Minister between March 1939 and the time of his death.-Early life:...
, who chose to support the new policies and joined the Goga cabinet.
A paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
grouping, the blue-shirted Lăncieri
Lancieri
The Lăncieri or 'Lance-bearers' were a Romanian fascist paramilitary movement who adopted a blue shirted uniform and contributed to the country's political street battles in the 1920s and 1930s....
, was established as the new arm of the regime, and soon began acting against both groups of Iron Guard agitators and members of the Jewish community
History of the Jews in Romania
The history of Jews in Romania concerns the Jews of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is nowadays Romanian territory....
. The incidents had negative effects on Romanian society: the Jewish middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
boycotted the system by withdrawing their investments and refusing to pay taxes (to the point where the National Bank of Romania declared the regime's insolvency
Insolvency
Insolvency means the inability to pay one's debts as they fall due. Usually used to refer to a business, insolvency refers to the inability of a company to pay off its debts.Business insolvency is defined in two different ways:...
), while France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
threatened Romania with sanctions, and 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....
withdrew its embassy to 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....
.
Clash with the Iron Guard
After an initial violent confrontation with the Iron Guard, Goga, assisted by the PolishSecond Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
envoy Mirosław Arciszewski, signed a pact with its leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu was a Romanian politician of the far right, the founder and charismatic leader of the Iron Guard or The Legion of the Archangel Michael , an ultra-nationalist and violently antisemitic organization active throughout most of the interwar period...
(February 8, 1938), a move which threatened to topple Carol's original designs. Two days later, the PNC was deposed and the monarch created a national government
National unity government
A national unity government, government of national unity, or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other national emergency.- Canada :During World War I the Conservative government of Sir...
around Miron Cristea
Miron Cristea
Miron Cristea, was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian cleric and politician....
, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Romanian Orthodox Church
The Romanian Orthodox Church is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church. It is in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox churches, and is ranked seventh in order of precedence. The Primate of the church has the title of Patriarch...
, backed by right-wing figures such as Tătărescu, Alexandru Averescu
Alexandru Averescu
Alexandru Averescu was a Romanian marshal and populist politician. A Romanian Armed Forces Commander during World War I, he served as Prime Minister of three separate cabinets . He first rose to prominence during the peasant's revolt of 1907, which he helped repress in violence...
, Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod or Vaida-Voievod was a Romanian politician who was a supporter and promoter of the union of Transylvania with the Romanian Old Kingdom; he later served three terms as a Prime Minister of Greater Romania.-Transylvanian politics:He was born to a Greek-Catholic family in the...
, Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic was a Romanian writer, editor, philosopher, poet and theologian famed for his traditionalist and antisemitic activities...
, and Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, poet and playwright. Co-founder of the Democratic Nationalist Party , he served as a member of Parliament, President of the Deputies' Assembly and Senate, cabinet minister and briefly as Prime Minister...
.
The new corporatist
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
and authoritarian
Authoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...
Constitution of Romania
1938 Constitution of Romania
The 1938 Constitution of Romania was the fundamental law that established the authoritarian monarchic regime of King Carol II. It was drafted by a university professor, Istrate Micescu, based on suggestions given by the king, and made public on February 20, 1938. Four days later, voters were...
, promulgated on February 20, 1938, proclaimed stately interest to be above individual ones. According to its text, "all Romanians, regardless of their ethnicity and their religious faith" were required to "sacrifice themselves in defending [the country's] integrity, independence and dignity", while it was stipulated that "no one can consider oneself free from civil and military, public or private duties on the grounds of one’s religious faith or any other kind of faith".
A law passed during in April, defining the "defense of state order", restricted all other forms of political association, forbade political chants and paramilitary displays, banned the press organs of political parties, and condemned political contacts between Romanian forces and outside patrons.
In April, following an orchestrated conflict between Iorga and Codreanu, a large number of Iron Guard activists, including Codreanu himself, was prosecuted and jailed on orders from Călinescu, the Minister of Internal Affairs. As Carol witnessed the failure of European countries to defend themselves from Nazi 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...
advances, consecrated by the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
and the Munich Agreement
Munich Agreement
The Munich Pact was an agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along Czech borders, mainly inhabited by ethnic Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe without...
, he met 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...
at Berghof
Berghof (Hitler)
The Berghof was Adolf Hitler's home in the Obersalzberg of the Bavarian Alps near Berchtesgaden, Bavaria, Germany. Other than the Wolfsschanze in East Prussia, Hitler spent more time at the Berghof than anywhere else during World War II. It was also one of the most widely known of Hitler's...
(November 24, 1938), and became convinced that Romania faced a similar fate. He subsequently ordered the Iron Guard, whom he perceived as a fifth column
Fifth column
A fifth column is a group of people who clandestinely undermine a larger group such as a nation from within.-Origin:The term originated with a 1936 radio address by Emilio Mola, a Nationalist General during the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War...
for the Germans, to be decapitated: during the following days, Codreanu and the majority of top-ranking Guardists were assassinated, while secondary ones, led by 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:...
, fled the country and took refuge in Germany, where they remained after the outbreak of 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...
. There, they began plotting a revenge against the regime's officials, including Carol.
Creation
The FRN itself was created as the first monopoly party in Romania's history, through the Royal Decree of December 15, 1938. The legislation proclaimed that, ex officio, all members of the Royal Council were its members, while all citizens over the age of 20 could apply to join; by law, people who engaged in any other political activity faced being stripped of their civil rightsCivil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
for as long as 5 years. Writing at the time, Călinescu defined the FRN as "mainly a spiritual movement", proclaiming the FRN's goals of "re-establishing the rights of the State, its natural parts", "promoting the general interests of the collectivity" and "[giving] life a sense of moral value".
In May 1939, the electoral law suffered drastic changes: the voting age was raised to 30, voters had to be literate
Literacy
Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...
and employed in one of three fields (agriculture and manual labor, commerce and industry, intellectual professions), and new, fewer precincts were drawn up (11 in all, standing for the 10 new ţinuturi and 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....
). The Senate
Senate of Romania
The Senate of Romania is the upper house in the bicameral Parliament of Romania. It has 137 seats , to which members are elected by direct popular vote, using Mixed member proportional representation in 42 electoral districts , to serve four-year terms.-Former location:After the Romanian...
, whose eligible members could only be voted into office by high-ranking members of corporations or guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
s (bresle), comprised a number of members for life
Senator for life
A senator for life is a member of the senate or equivalent upper chamber of a legislature who has life tenure. , 7 Italian Senators out of 322, 4 out of the 47 Burundian Senators and all members of the British House of Lords have lifetime tenure...
(in addition to those already holding the office by the time the law was adopted, these were religious leaders and various members of the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen — a seat was reserved for Mihai
Michael I of Romania
Michael was the last King of Romania. He reigned from 20 July 1927 to 8 June 1930, and again from 6 September 1940 until 30 December 1947 when he was forced, by the Communist Party of Romania , to abdicate to the Soviet armies of occupation...
, the heir to the throne and "Grand-Voivode of Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
", from the date of his coming of age).
Carol's regime has generally been viewed as superficially fascist, and endorsed by the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
as a means to present a line of defense against Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
in the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
(the Western press held, overall, a sympathetic view of the FRN). The Font adopted fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
symbols and discourse. After January 1939, party members wore uniforms (navy blue
Navy blue
Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue which almost appears as black. Navy blue got its name from the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other navies around the world....
or white in color), with various ceremonial hats. The Roman salute
Roman salute
The Roman salute is a gesture in which the arm is held out forward straight, with palm down, and fingers touching. In some versions, the arm is raised upward at an angle; in others, it is held out parallel to the ground. The former is a well known symbol of fascism that is commonly perceived to be...
was a mandatory greeting.
Ever since the years of its existence, the FRN and its government have been the target of ridicule, and their ideology has been described as "operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
fascism". After attending a Parliament session in 1939, Marthe Bibesco
Marthe Bibesco
Marthe, Princess Bibesco was a Romanian-French writer of the Belle Époque...
mocked the sight of uniforms:
"It is a garden of liliesLiliaceaeThe Liliaceae, or the lily family, is a family of monocotyledons in the order Liliales. Plants in this family have linear leaves, mostly with parallel veins but with several having net venation , and flower arranged in threes. Several have bulbs, while others have rhizomes...
and daisiesBellis perennisBellis perennis is a common European species of Daisy, often considered the archetypal species of that name. Many related plants also share the name "Daisy", so to distinguish this species from other daisies it is sometimes qualified as Common Daisy, Lawn Daisy or occasionally English daisy. It is...
, a colonialColonial troopsColonial troops or colonial army refers to various military units recruited from, or used as garrison troops in, colonial territories.- Colonial background :...
parliament. […] ArgetoianuConstantin ArgetoianuConstantin Argetoianu was a Romanian politician, one of the best-known personalities of interwar Greater Romania, who served as the Prime Minister between September 28 and November 23, 1939. His memoirs, Memorii. Pentru cei de mâine. Amintiri din vremea celor de ieri Constantin Argetoianu...
looks like a white elephant. […] The old politicians […] have [thus] been whitewashed, like fruit trees or train station water-closets — like anything requiring disinfection."
Political tendencies
Ideologically, the FRN took inspiration from three main sources. It fused messages borrowed from and used against the Iron Guard with those of the traditional RightRight-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
, while also stressing several left-wing tenets. Among 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...
tendencies it absorbed was the small-scale fascist-inspired feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
and racist
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
movement formed by Alexandrina Cantacuzino (Gruparea Naţională a Femeilor Române, the National Grouping of Romanian Women). Although Cantacuzino's ideology remained relatively influential for the following years, the Grouping itself was dissolved in 1939.
The FRN continued to make use of Antisemitism, and appealed to nationalists
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
by promising to find an answer to the "Jewish Question
Jewish Question
The Jewish question encompasses the issues and resolutions surrounding the historically unequal civil, legal and national statuses between minority Ashkenazi Jews and non-Jews, particularly in Europe. The first issues discussed and debated by societies, politicians and writers in western and...
". Before 1940, no Antisemitic law was passed, but, as a rule, Jews were denied FRN membership. The arbitrary measure of the Octavian Goga
Octavian Goga
Octavian Goga was a Romanian politician, poet, playwright, journalist, and translator.-Life:Born in Răşinari, nearby Sibiu, he was an active member in the Romanian nationalistic movement in Transylvania and of its leading group, the Romanian National Party in Austria-Hungary. Before World War I,...
cabinet, through which hundreds of thousands of Jews had been stripped of their citizenship, was continued through a requirement that all those excluded be registered as foreigners. Members of the community were encouraged to leave the country. Nevertheless, violence was reduced, especially since its main agents, the Iron Guard and the National Christian Party
National Christian Party
The National Christian Party was a Romanian political party, the product of a union between Octavian Goga's National Agrarian Party and A. C. Cuza's National-Christian Defense League; a prominent member of the party was the philosopher Nichifor Crainic...
, had been outlawed.
The Front's policies in respect to other ethnic minorities
Minorities of Romania
Officially, 10.5% of Romania's population is represented by minorities . The principal minorities in Romania are Hungarians and Roma people, with a declining German population and smaller numbers of Poles in Bucovina...
, as Călinescu reported, aimed to "show [the new regime's] benevolence to the foreign elements, as long as they are sincerely integrated in the life of the State". Also according to Călinescu, the FRN rejected all notion of territorial reshaping ("There are not, and cannot be any territorial problems […]"). In one notable example, Carol chose to reestablish the seat held in Parliament by the Polish minority
Polish minority in Romania
According to the 2002 census, 3,671 Poles live in Romania, mainly in the villages of the Suceava region . There are even three exclusively Polish villages: Nowy Sołoniec , Plesza and Pojana Mikuli...
of Bukovina, and awarded it to Tytus Czerkawski — this followed intense campaigning from politicians and journalists in the Republic of Poland for Romania to review the centralist
Centralized government
A centralized or centralised government is one in which power or legal authority is exerted or coordinated by a de facto political executive to which federal states, local authorities, and smaller units are considered subject...
policies set by Ion Nistor
Ion Nistor
Ion Nistor was a prominent Romanian historian and politician. He was a member of the Romanian Academy after 1911, and served as administrator of its Library.-Biography:...
in 1919.
Notably, the FRN also incorporated much of the leftist tendency inside the PNŢ (Călinescu, Mihail Ghelmegeanu, Petre Andrei, Mihai Ralea, Cezar Petrescu
Cezar Petrescu
Cezar Petrescu was a Romanian journalist, novelist and children's writer.He was inspired by the works of Honoré de Balzac, attempting to write a Romanian novel cycle that would mirror Balzac's La Comédie humaine...
), drawing on a Poporanist
Poporanism
The word “poporanism” is derived from “popor”, meaning “people” in the Romanian language. The ideology of Romanian Populism and poporanism are interchangeable. Founded by Constantin Stere in the early 1890s, populism is distinguished by its opposition to socialism, promotion of voting rights for...
legacy, while enlisting support from well-known socialists
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
such as Gala Galaction
Gala Galaction
Gala Galaction was a Romanian Orthodox clergyman and theologian, writer, journalist, left-wing activist, as well as a political figure of the People's Republic of Romania...
, Ioan Flueraş
Ioan Flueras
Ioan Flueraş was a Romanian social democratic politician and a victim of the communist regime.-Early activities:...
and George Grigorovici.
The corporatist structure, which, in theory, covered the entire Romanian society, was centered on newly-founded guilds, overseen by Flueraş and forming the basis for representation in Parliament
Parliament of Romania
The Parliament of Romania is made up of two chambers:*The Chamber of Deputies*The SenatePrior to the modifications of the Constitution in 2003, the two houses had identical attributes. A text of a law had to be approved by both houses...
. A minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
was imposed on private enterprises, while a body regulating leisure
Leisure
Leisure, or free time, is time spent away from business, work, and domestic chores. It is also the periods of time before or after necessary activities such as eating, sleeping and, where it is compulsory, education....
, Muncă şi Voe Bună, was created on the model set by the Nazi Strength Through Joy and the Italian fascist
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
Opera nazionale dopolavoro
Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro
The National Recreational Club was the Italian Fascist leisure and recreational organization.- History:...
. The organization grouping youth, Straja Ţării
Straja Tarii
Straja Ţării was a paramilitary youth organization in the Kingdom of Romania, created in 1935 by King Carol II to counter the growing influence the Iron Guard had over the youth of Romania...
, had been functioning since 1934–35; in addition, university students were enrolled in work teams and required to assist in harvests and other countryside projects. As part of the FRN's focus on modernization
Modernization
In the social sciences, modernization or modernisation refers to a model of an evolutionary transition from a 'pre-modern' or 'traditional' to a 'modern' society. The teleology of modernization is described in social evolutionism theories, existing as a template that has been generally followed by...
(which it imposed from top to bottom), special mobile teams visited villages and provided hot showers for peasants.
Factionalism and opposition
While, arguably, most Romanian citizens accepted the new political context, the FRN had relatively few convinced cadres — its upper ranks were occupied by traditional politicians who were popularly associated with corruptionPolitical corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
and Carol's camarilla
Camarilla (history)
A camarilla is a group of courtiers or favourites who surround a king or ruler. Usually, they do not hold any office or have any official authority but influence their ruler behind the scenes. Consequently, they also escape having to bear responsibility for the effects of their advice...
, and much of its membership comprised civil servants whose affiliation was mandatory. According to Marthe Bibesco
Marthe Bibesco
Marthe, Princess Bibesco was a Romanian-French writer of the Belle Époque...
:
"Among [the parliamentarians], many have daubed the king in mud and, at the smallest proof of weakness on his part, are ready to daub him anew. This is probably why he has given them clothes that stain easily — to prevent them from smirching themselves. But who could ever stop them?"
Businessmen associated with Carol continued to make the bulk of their income from state contracts, progressively orienting themselves towards the arms industry
Arms industry
The arms industry is a global industry and business which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology and equipment. It comprises government and commercial industry involved in research, development, production, and service of military material, equipment and facilities...
(Nicolae Malaxa
Nicolae Malaxa
-Biography:Born in a family of Greek origins in Huşi, Malaxa studied engineering in Iaşi and Karlsruhe...
, an industrialist and personal friend of Carol, collected profits of 300–1,000% during the FRN period).
In January-February 1939, a conflict erupted between Carol and Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, poet and playwright. Co-founder of the Democratic Nationalist Party , he served as a member of Parliament, President of the Deputies' Assembly and Senate, cabinet minister and briefly as Prime Minister...
, following the latter's refusal to wear the FRN uniform during public ceremony, and worsened by his protest against Constantin Rădulescu-Motru
Constantin Radulescu-Motru
Constantin Rădulescu-Motru was a Romanian philosopher, psychologist, sociologist, logician, academic, dramatist, as well as centre-left nationalist politician with a noted anti-fascist discourse...
's proposal to have all Romanian Academy
Romanian Academy
The Romanian Academy is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 acting members who are elected for life....
members join the Front. When Iorga used the Academy hall to publicize his opinion, the king sent Colonel Ernest Urdăreanu to end the proceedings. Censored, Iorga appealed to other means of making his opinions known, and, during a seminar he held in his home, viced harsh criticism of FRN the FRN system:
"See the outings of the tyrantTyrantA tyrant was originally one who illegally seized and controlled a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.Plato and...
[Carol] among silent crowds with eyes sparkling [out of anger] and yet the next day journals announce that the sovereign was acclaimed… No book can be published without reaching the tyrant. The sovereign disposes of public opinion each morning, as soon as he wakes up. There is no public opinion, there is a committee of public opinion coordinating the wishes of the crowd. Raise not your voice, or else a will spy betray you, a plain clothes man will arrest you, a gendarmeJandarmeria RomânaJandarmeria Română is the military branch of the two Romanian police forces .The gendarmerie is subordinated to the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform and does not have responsibility for policing the Romanian Armed Forces...
or a butcher will beat you up savagely, and occasionally, in the PoliceRomanian PoliceThe Romanian Police is the national police force and main civil law enforcement agency in Romania. It is subordinated to the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform.-Duties:The Romanian Police are responsible for:...
cellars, your head will be crushed or put up against the wall. It is as if we were living under the terror of the GPUState Political DirectorateThe State Political Directorate was the secret police of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1934...
in LubyankaLubyanka (KGB)The Lubyanka is the popular name for the headquarters of the KGB and affiliated prison on Lubyanka Square in Moscow. It is a large building with a facade of yellow brick, designed by Alexander V...
. […] Constitutional guarantees have disappeared. We know a man can be arrested, killed. Individual security is a trifle. We have no representatives in Parliament to decide our taxes and tell our grievances."
Iorga also made an angry remark in respect to the new Constitution:
"Our Constitution should be the product of the nation, relying on strict principles of the soul and the manifestations of our people. Our first Constitution1923 Constitution of RomaniaThe 1923 Constitution of Romania, also called the Constitution of Union, was intended to align the organisation of the state on the basis of universal male suffrage and the new realities that arose after the Great Union of 1918. Four draft constitutions existed: one belonging to the National...
was created by a certain Alecu Constantinescu, and that of last February by Istrate MicescuIstrate MicescuIstrate Micescu was a Romanian lawyer and Law and Political Science professor at the University of Law in Bucharest and politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania...
, an idiotic jurist who only sees that which is written in his manuals and that which the king has told him."
Similar criticism was voiced in respect to Armand Călinescu, who had repeatedly pressured him to accept wearing the uniform. Eventually, Carol reconciled with the academic, and Iorga even agreed to wear the FRN uniform (while specifying that he was doing it upon the monarch's request, and not for "those […] who believe themselves to be the founding-figures of a country" — in likely reference to Călinescu).
The political structure continued to be marked by rivalries between various politicians — according to Argetoianu, these opposed Tătărescu to the Royal Commissioner Victor Iamandi
Victor Iamandi
Victor Iamandi was a Romanian politician and activist. He served as the Romanian Minister of Justice. He was killed by the Iron Guard during the Jilava Massacre due to the measures he took against the Guard during his ministerial service.-External links:*...
, as well as to a Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
n faction formed around Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod or Vaida-Voievod was a Romanian politician who was a supporter and promoter of the union of Transylvania with the Romanian Old Kingdom; he later served three terms as a Prime Minister of Greater Romania.-Transylvanian politics:He was born to a Greek-Catholic family in the...
(successor to the Romanian Front
Romanian Front
The Romanian Front was a Fascist party created in 1935 - being led by Alexandru Vaida-Voevod as a splinter group from the National Peasants' Party.-History:...
), and the latter grouping to the one around A. C. Cuza
A. C. Cuza
A. C. Cuza was a Romanian far right politician and theorist.-Early life:Born in Iaşi, after attending secondary school in his native city and in Dresden, Cuza studied law at the University of Paris, the Universität unter den Linden, and the Université Libre de Bruxelles...
, emerged from the National Christian Party
National Christian Party
The National Christian Party was a Romanian political party, the product of a union between Octavian Goga's National Agrarian Party and A. C. Cuza's National-Christian Defense League; a prominent member of the party was the philosopher Nichifor Crainic...
. Argetoianu stressed that this process was similar to "the era of elections". Despite such contradictions, the regime did exert an attraction on lower middle class
Lower middle class
In developed nations across the world, the lower middle class is a sub-division of the greater middle class. Universally the term refers to the group of middle class households or individuals who have not attained the status of the upper middle class associated with the higher realms of the middle...
people who had been underrepresented in previous decades.
In contrast with official ideology, Carol allowed other opposition parties to exist in all but on paper, kept contacts with them, and, in early 1940, had meetings with the PNL's Dinu Brătianu
Dinu Bratianu
Dinu Brătianu , born Constantin I. C. Brătianu, was a Romanian politician, who led the National Liberal Party starting with 1934.-Early career:...
, the PNŢ's Ion Mihalache
Ion Mihalache
Ion Mihalache was a Romanian agrarian politician, the founder and leader of the Peasants' Party and a main figure of its successor, the National Peasants' Party .-Early life:...
, and the dissident left-winger Nicolae N. Lupu, attempting to persuade each to merge their groupings with the FRN. Reacting to the collaboration between PNL and PNŢ, he offered the former a chance to form a new cabinet, but the offer was refused following its rejection by Gheorghe I. Brătianu
Gheorghe I. Bratianu
Gheorghe I. Brătianu was a Romanian politician and historian. A member of the Brătianu family and initially affiliated with the National Liberal Party, he broke away from the movement to create and lead the National Liberal Party-Brătianu.Born in Ruginoasa, Baia County to Ion I.C...
. According to the leading PNŢ member Ioan Hudiţă, the Front continued to find sympathy inside his own party, and some of its figures (including Mihalache, Virgil Madgearu
Virgil Madgearu
Virgil Traian N. Madgearu was a Romanian economist, sociologist, and left-wing politician, prominent member and main theorist of the Peasants' Party and of its successor, the National Peasants' Party...
and Mihai Popovici) allegedly considered affiliating with it.
In this context, social opposition and the labor movement were insignificant. Having always been a minor grouping, the Communist Party of Romania
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...
(PCdR) had been driven in the underground by repression during the 1920s and early 1930s, and had survived inside the country by infiltrating the left wings of other groupings. After 1939, the PCdR received an order from the Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
to attempt infiltrating the FRN at a local level and attract its members to the far left
Far left
Far left, also known as the revolutionary left, radical left and extreme left are terms which refer to the highest degree of leftist positions among left-wing politics...
. The main left-wing group, of the Social Democrats
Romanian Social Democratic Party (defunct)
The Romanian Social Democratic Party was a social-democratic political party in Romania. It published the magazine România Muncitoare, and later Socialismul, Lumea Nouă, and Libertatea.-Early party:...
, continued to function in the same terms as other traditional parties, and organized several cultural and social events, all tolerated by the regime and part of them copied or arrogated. At the other end of the political spectrum, Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar or Corpul Muncitorilor Legionari was a fascist association of workers in Romania, created inside the Iron Guard and having a rigid hierarchical structure...
, the Iron Guard's answer to trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s, had only marginal appeal and was also driven underground.
FRN decline and Party of the Nation
The decline of the FRN came largely as a result of German successes in the early stages of World War IIWorld 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...
. In late summer 1939, the Romanian public opinion was shocked by news of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
, which effected an agreement between Romania's most powerful adversaries, and the regime began preparing for war: it organized military training for the population beginning in late August, and invested large sums into arms production (it was announced that the Romanian Naval Forces
Romanian Naval Forces
The Romanian Navy is the navy branch of the Romanian Armed Forces; it operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube.-History:-Development of the Romanian Navy:The Romanian Navy has been founded in 1860 as a river flotilla on the Danube...
were fitted with one vessel each month). These measures signified that salaries of state employees fell by as much as 40%, to which was added the toll of expropriations
Confiscation
Confiscation, from the Latin confiscatio 'joining to the fiscus, i.e. transfer to the treasury' is a legal seizure without compensation by a government or other public authority...
. The United Kingdom significantly increased its imports from Romania, attempting to prevent products from reaching Germany, while Minister of Finance
Ministry of Public Finance (Romania)
The Ministry of Public Finance of Romania is one of the fifteen ministries of the Government of Romania.The minister's seat is currently held by the Democratic Liberal Party's Gheorghe Ialomiţeanu.The following agencies are subordinated to the Minister:...
Mitiţă Constantinescu
Mitita Constantinescu
Mitiţă Constantinescu was a Romanian economist and liberal politician. He was an advocate of industrialization and a degree of dirigisme.-Biography:...
imposed a tax on many outgoing products (according to Argetoianu, the decision was approved due to "the exceptional times we are living through, when we must sacrifice all interest to save the country's borders").
In parallel, several assassination attempts, ordered by 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:...
from Germany, were foiled by Siguranţa Statului before a death squad
Death squad
A death squad is an armed military, police, insurgent, or terrorist squad that conducts extrajudicial killings, assassinations, and forced disappearances of persons as part of a war, insurgency or terror campaign...
was able to murder Armand Călinescu
Armand Calinescu
Armand Călinescu was a Romanian economist and politician, who served as Prime Minister between March 1939 and the time of his death.-Early life:...
, who had previously replaced Cristea as Premier, on September 21, 1939. At the same time, Romania began offering Germany a series of deals, hoping to dissuade its hostility: the latter received advantageous clearing
Clearing (finance)
In banking and finance, clearing denotes all activities from the time a commitment is made for a transaction until it is settled. Clearing is necessary because the speed of trades is much faster than the cycle time for completing the underlying transaction....
agreements, while the Reichswerke joined Nicolae Malaxa
Nicolae Malaxa
-Biography:Born in a family of Greek origins in Huşi, Malaxa studied engineering in Iaşi and Karlsruhe...
in taking over the businesses of Max Auschnitt
Max Auschnitt
Max Auschnitt, also known as Auschnit or Auşnit , was a Romanian industrialist and rival of Nicolae Malaxa, who played an important role before World War II. Together with Aristide Blank and Malaxa, he was one of the major businessmen present in King Carol II's camarilla...
, who had been arrested in September. The property of other Jewish businessmen, in the oil industry (Astra Română), as well as in the sugar industry and in logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
, was taken over by the state over the following months.
Eventually, as Germany completed its invasion of Poland
Invasion of Poland (1939)
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...
and continued to voice support for 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...
in relation to Romanian-ruled Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, Romania conceded to German economic demands (on March 7, 1940, the Gheorghe Tătărescu
Gheorghe Tatarescu
Gheorghe I. Tătărescu was a Romanian politician who served twice as Prime Minister of Romania , three times as Minister of Foreign Affairs , and once as Minister of War...
executive agreed to direct almost all cereal and oil exports towards Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
). Romania did however offer assistance to Polish troops fleeing their country immediately after the start of Nazi occupation
History of Poland (1939–1945)
The history of Poland from 1939 to 1945 encompasses the German invasion of Poland as well as the Soviet invasion of Poland through to the end of World War II. On 1 September 1939, without a formal declaration of war, Germany invaded Poland...
(see Polish-Romanian Alliance
Polish-Romanian Alliance
The Polish–Romanian Alliance was a series of treaties signed in the interwar period by the Second Polish Republic and the Kingdom of Romania. The first of them was signed in 1921 and, together, the treaties formed a basis for good foreign relations between the two countries that lasted until World...
). The country's position became even more precarious after the fall of France in May — as a direct consequence, Romania renounced its alliance with the United Kingdom and began attempts to join the 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...
.
The change in policy also resulted in the reestablishment of the FRN as the Party of the Nation (June 21–2), under the leadership of Ion Gigurtu
Ion Gigurtu
Ion Gigurtu was a Romanian politician, Land Forces officer, engineer and industrialist who served a brief term as Prime Minister from July 4 to September 4, 1940, under the personal regime of King Carol II. A specialist in mining and veteran of both the Second Balkan War and World War I, he made a...
; the move stressed its fascist character to the point where it has been described as a newly-founded grouping. The decree announcing the PN's creation depicted it as "sole and totalitarian
Totalitarianism
Totalitarianism is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible...
party", placed under the leadership of Carol (the party restated its goal as "lead[ing] the moral and material life of the Romanian nation and state"). A law passed during the same interval criminalized "activities against the interests of the Party of the Nation", "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....
against the interests of the Party of the Nation", as well as "publicly removing, destroying, deteriorating, out of contempt or derision, the Party of the Nation's badges, emblems, uniforms, manifestos or publications".
Carol also decided to appeal to Iron Guard assistance, allowed its freed activists to join the PN if they chose to do so, and, on June 25, 1940, he signed an agreement with Sima. Consequently, Sima became Minister of Culture in the Gigurtu cabinet, and two other Guardists were appointed to similar positions (Sima himself was to resign after just four days). The notorious Antisemite Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic was a Romanian writer, editor, philosopher, poet and theologian famed for his traditionalist and antisemitic activities...
, who was sympathetic to the Guard, was also assigned a cabinet post, as Minister of Propaganda. The new authorities produced the first racial segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
laws, based on the Nuremberg Legislation
Nuremberg Laws
The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 were antisemitic laws in Nazi Germany introduced at the annual Nuremberg Rally of the Nazi Party. After the takeover of power in 1933 by Hitler, Nazism became an official ideology incorporating scientific racism and antisemitism...
and aimed at the Jewish community
History of the Jews in Romania
The history of Jews in Romania concerns the Jews of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is nowadays Romanian territory....
— these notably introduced the legal concept of români de sânge ("Romanians by blood"), as a distinct category inside the body of Romanian citizens.
Downfall
- Main articles: Romania during World War IIRomania during World War IIFollowing 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...
, Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, Second Vienna AwardSecond Vienna AwardThe Second Vienna Award was the second of two Vienna Awards arbitrated by the Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Rendered on August 30, 1940, it re-assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania from Romania to Hungary.-Prelude and historical background :After the World War I, the multi-ethnic...
In the wake of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
, on June 26, 1940, Romania was presented by 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....
with an ultimatum
Ultimatum
An ultimatum is a demand whose fulfillment is requested in a specified period of time and which is backed up by a threat to be followed through in case of noncompliance. An ultimatum is generally the final demand in a series of requests...
regarding the cession of 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 Northern Bukovina. As a result, Romania withdrew its administration from the region, leaving room for Soviet annexation. On July 30, after the retreat had been completed, Carol remarked:
"News from Bessarabia is even sadder. Unfortunately I was right about the so-called [National Renaissance Front], as some of its leaders there seem to have converted to BolshevismBolshevikThe Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
and were among the first to welcome Soviet troops with red flagRed flagIn politics, a red flag is a symbol of Socialism, or Communism, or sometimes left-wing politics in general. It has been associated with left-wing politics since the French Revolution. Socialists adopted the symbol during the Revolutions of 1848 and it became a symbol of communism as a result of its...
s and flowers."
The process described by Carol is known to have occurred in Soroca
Soroca
Soroca is a Moldovan city situated on the Nistru river about 160 km north of Chişinău. It is the administrative center of Soroca District.- History :The city has its origin in the medieval Genoese trade post of Olchionia, or Alchona...
, where FRN officials (the
former Prefect Petre Sfeclă, the Mayor Gheorghe Lupaşcu, party branch leader Alexandru Anop, and school inspector Petre Hriţcu) hosted a ceremonial welcome for the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
.
On August 30, 1940, Germany and Fascist Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
pressured Romania into signing the Second Vienna Award
Second Vienna Award
The Second Vienna Award was the second of two Vienna Awards arbitrated by the Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Rendered on August 30, 1940, it re-assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania from Romania to Hungary.-Prelude and historical background :After the World War I, the multi-ethnic...
, which assigned Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania is a region of Transylvania, situated within the territory of Romania. The population is largely composed of both ethnic Romanians and Hungarians, and the region has been part of Romania since 1918 . During World War II, as a consequence of the territorial agreement known as...
to Hungary (which also brought the German military presence within hours of the oil field
Oil field
An oil field is a region with an abundance of oil wells extracting petroleum from below ground. Because the oil reservoirs typically extend over a large area, possibly several hundred kilometres across, full exploitation entails multiple wells scattered across the area...
s in Prahova County
Prahova County
Prahova is a county of Romania, in the historical region Muntenia, with the capital city at Ploieşti.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 829,945 and the population density was 176/km². It is Romania's most populated county, having a population density double than the country's mean...
). Through the cession of Southern Dobruja
Southern Dobruja
Southern Dobruja is an area of north-eastern Bulgaria comprising the administrative districts named for its two principal cities of Dobrich and Silistra...
to Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
(the Treaty of Craiova
Treaty of Craiova
The Treaty of Craiova was signed on 7 September 1940 between the Kingdom of Bulgaria and the Kingdom of Romania. Under the terms of this treaty, Romania returned the southern part of Dobruja to Bulgaria and agreed to participate in organizing a population exchange...
) in early September, Greater Romania
Greater Romania
The Greater Romania generally refers to the territory of Romania in the years between the First World War and the Second World War, the largest geographical extent of Romania up to that time and its largest peacetime extent ever ; more precisely, it refers to the territory of the Kingdom of...
in the shape it had at the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, had come to an end.
As Hungarian troops entered Northern Transylvania, 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....
became the scene of massive public rallies, which called for the PN government to be replaced with one that would support the recovery of lost regions. The Iron Guard also maneuvered into action: on September 3, its cells in various cities attempted to take over the administration, but failed due to the authorities' response.
Faced with such incidents, Carol chose to reform his own government, and appealed to his rival, General 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...
, to form a military dictatorship
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship is a form of government where in the political power resides with the military. It is similar but not identical to a stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military....
and a cabinet. After agreeing, Antonescu, with support from various political forces and the Romanian Army, pressured Carol to step down and be replaced with his son Mihai
Michael I of Romania
Michael was the last King of Romania. He reigned from 20 July 1927 to 8 June 1930, and again from 6 September 1940 until 30 December 1947 when he was forced, by the Communist Party of Romania , to abdicate to the Soviet armies of occupation...
. On September 6, 1940, the monarch agreed to leave his throne and country, settling in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
at the start of 1941; what contributed to this decision was Sima's support for Antonescu, and threat to assassinate Carol. Eight days after Carol's departure, the Iron Guard joined Conducător
Conducator
Conducător was the title used officially in two instances by Romanian politicians, and earlier by Carol II.-History:...
Antonescu in government, thereby establishing the 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 existence until the Legionnaires' Rebellion
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...
of January 1941).
Right after dealing with opposition inside his own camp (by marginalizing the radical faction of Ion Zelea Codreanu), Sima issued calls for a violent reprisal against the former top FRN and PN politicians. On the night of November 26–27, 1940, sixty-four political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s were massacred in 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...
by Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar
Corpul Muncitoresc Legionar or Corpul Muncitorilor Legionari was a fascist association of workers in Romania, created inside the Iron Guard and having a rigid hierarchical structure...
and Iron Guard affiliates in the Romanian Police
Romanian Police
The Romanian Police is the national police force and main civil law enforcement agency in Romania. It is subordinated to the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform.-Duties:The Romanian Police are responsible for:...
(in theory, as reprisal for the killing of Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu was a Romanian politician of the far right, the founder and charismatic leader of the Iron Guard or The Legion of the Archangel Michael , an ultra-nationalist and violently antisemitic organization active throughout most of the interwar period...
). At the same time, three former Police commissioners, held under arrest in Bucharest precincts, were also assassinated. On the evening of November 27, Iron Guard members stormed into the houses of Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, poet and playwright. Co-founder of the Democratic Nationalist Party , he served as a member of Parliament, President of the Deputies' Assembly and Senate, cabinet minister and briefly as Prime Minister...
and the PNŢ's Virgil Madgearu
Virgil Madgearu
Virgil Traian N. Madgearu was a Romanian economist, sociologist, and left-wing politician, prominent member and main theorist of the Peasants' Party and of its successor, the National Peasants' Party...
— the two were kidnapped and shot; earlier in the day, Army officials intervened to save the lives of former Premiers Constantin Argetoianu
Constantin Argetoianu
Constantin Argetoianu was a Romanian politician, one of the best-known personalities of interwar Greater Romania, who served as the Prime Minister between September 28 and November 23, 1939. His memoirs, Memorii. Pentru cei de mâine. Amintiri din vremea celor de ieri Constantin Argetoianu...
and Gheorghe Tătărescu
Gheorghe Tatarescu
Gheorghe I. Tătărescu was a Romanian politician who served twice as Prime Minister of Romania , three times as Minister of Foreign Affairs , and once as Minister of War...
.
Cultural legacy
Carol's regime in general and the FRN period in particular were noted for their large-scale cultural ventures. This was an integral part of Carol's designs to impose himself on collective memory as a new founder and a modernizingModernization
In the social sciences, modernization or modernisation refers to a model of an evolutionary transition from a 'pre-modern' or 'traditional' to a 'modern' society. The teleology of modernization is described in social evolutionism theories, existing as a template that has been generally followed by...
monarch, with a claim that Romania was undergoing full development under his rule. Lucian Boia
Lucian Boia
Lucian Boia is a Romanian historian, known especially for his works debunking Romanian nationalism and Communism.-Bibliography:* Eugen Brote: Litera, 1974...
indicated that, in contrast with his predecessors, Carol depicted himself as "a modern, dynamic king, present in the center of all that was happening in Romanian society".
Boia concluded that, despite his innovative stance, Carol encouraged similar praise of his predecessor, Carol I of Romania
Carol I of Romania
Carol I , born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was reigning prince and then King of Romania from 1866 to 1914. He was elected prince of Romania on 20 April 1866 following the overthrow of Alexandru Ioan Cuza by a palace coup...
, to whom he was frequently associated in iconography and cultural reference (notably manifested in the 1939 inauguration of a massive equestrian statue of the first Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen king, crafted by Ivan Meštrović
Ivan Meštrovic
Ivan Meštrović was a Croatian and Yugoslav sculptor and architect born in Vrpolje, Croatia...
and erected near the Royal Palace
National Museum of Art of Romania
The National Museum of Art of Romania is located in the former royal palace in Revolution Square, central Bucharest, Romania, completed in 1937...
).