Revolution Square, Bucharest
Encyclopedia
Revolution Square is a square in central Bucharest
, on Calea Victoriei
. Known as Piaţa Palatului (Palace Square) until 1989, it was later renamed after the 1989 Romanian Revolution
.
The former Royal
Palace (now the National Museum of Art of Romania
), the Athenaeum
, the Athénée Palace
Hotel, the University of Bucharest
Library and the Memorial of Rebirth
are located here. The square also houses the building of the former Central Committee
of the Romanian Communist Party
(from where Nicolae Ceauşescu
and his wife fled by helicopter on December 22, 1989). In 1990, the building became the seat of the Senate
and since 2006 it houses the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform.
Prior to 1948, an equestrian statue of Carol I of Romania
stood there. Created in 1930 by the Croatia
n and American sculptor Ivan Meštrović
, the statue was destroyed in 1948 by the Communists
, who never paid damages to the sculptor. In 2005, the Romanian Minister of Culture decided to recreate the destroyed statue from a model that was kept by Meštrović's family. In 2007, the Bucharest City Hall assigned the project to the sculptor Florin Codre, who is going to design an original statue of Carol inspired by Meštrović's model (most consider it a plagiarism).
In August 1968 and December 1989, the square was the site of a two mass meetings which represented the apogee and the nadir of Ceauşescu's regime. The 1968 moment marked the highest point in Ceauşescu's popularity, when he openly condemned the invasion of Czechoslovakia
and started pursuing a policy of independence from Kremlin
. The 1989 meeting was meant to emulate the 1968 assembly and presented by the official media as a "spontaneous movement of support for Ceauşescu", erupting in the popular revolt which led to the end of the regime
.
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....
, on Calea Victoriei
Calea Victoriei
Calea Victoriei is a major avenue in central Bucharest. It leads from Splaiul Independenţei to the north and then northwest up to Piaţa Victoriei, where Şoseaua Kiseleff continues north....
. Known as Piaţa Palatului (Palace Square) until 1989, it was later renamed after the 1989 Romanian Revolution
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
.
The former Royal
Romanian Royal Family
The current Romanian royal family , an integral part of the larger royal house of Romania, consists of the family of King Michael I of Romania who bear a royal title...
Palace (now the National Museum of Art of Romania
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...
), the Athenaeum
Romanian Athenaeum
The Romanian Athenaeum is a concert hall in the center of Bucharest, Romania and a landmark of the Romanian capital city. Opened in 1888, the ornate, domed, circular building is the city's main concert hall and home of the "George Enescu" Philharmonic and of the George Enescu annual international...
, the Athénée Palace
Athénée Palace
The Athénée Palace hotel in Bucharest, Romania, now a Hilton, may have been Europe's most notorious den of spies in the years leading up to World War II, and only slightly less so during the Cold War. Located in the heart of Bucharest on Str...
Hotel, the University of Bucharest
University of Bucharest
The University of Bucharest , in Romania, is a university founded in 1864 by decree of Prince Alexander John Cuza to convert the former Saint Sava Academy into the current University of Bucharest.-Presentation:...
Library and the Memorial of Rebirth
Memorial of Rebirth
The Memorial of Rebirth is a memorial in Bucharest, Romania that commemorates the struggles and victims of the Romanian Revolution of 1989, which overthrew Communism...
are located here. The square also houses the building of the former Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
of the Romanian Communist Party
Romanian Communist Party
The Romanian Communist Party was a communist political party in Romania. Successor to the Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to communist revolution and the disestablishment of Greater Romania. The PCR was a minor and illegal grouping for much of the...
(from where Nicolae Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
and his wife fled by helicopter on December 22, 1989). In 1990, the building became the seat of 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...
and since 2006 it houses the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform.
Prior to 1948, an equestrian statue of 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...
stood there. Created in 1930 by the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n and American sculptor Ivan Meštrović
Ivan Meštrovic
Ivan Meštrović was a Croatian and Yugoslav sculptor and architect born in Vrpolje, Croatia...
, the statue was destroyed in 1948 by the Communists
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
, who never paid damages to the sculptor. In 2005, the Romanian Minister of Culture decided to recreate the destroyed statue from a model that was kept by Meštrović's family. In 2007, the Bucharest City Hall assigned the project to the sculptor Florin Codre, who is going to design an original statue of Carol inspired by Meštrović's model (most consider it a plagiarism).
In August 1968 and December 1989, the square was the site of a two mass meetings which represented the apogee and the nadir of Ceauşescu's regime. The 1968 moment marked the highest point in Ceauşescu's popularity, when he openly condemned the invasion of Czechoslovakia
Prague Spring
The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II...
and started pursuing a policy of independence from Kremlin
Moscow Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
. The 1989 meeting was meant to emulate the 1968 assembly and presented by the official media as a "spontaneous movement of support for Ceauşescu", erupting in the popular revolt which led to the end of the regime
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
.