Vasile Stoica
Encyclopedia
Vasile Stoica was a Romania
n political writer, diplomat, and close assistant of Europe
an statesmen Tomáš Masaryk
and Ion I.C. Brătianu.
(then in the Hungarian
half of Austria-Hungary
, but now in Romania
); according to his birth certificate, Vasile Stoica was born in Avrig
on January 1, 1889. He was the son of Maria and Gheorghe Stoica, Romanians
belonging to the Christian Orthodox
faith. He attended elementary school in Avrig.
His interest for the politics is proved by his status as one the members of the Romanian National Party of Transylvania and Banat
, from 1909.
From September same year, Vasile Stoica followed the courses of Literature at Budapest University, until 1913; two semesters at University of Paris
Faculty of Letters. In October 1913, he became president of the cultural organization of the "Petru Maior
" ethnic Romanians undergraduates
in Budapest
.
that led to the outbreak of World War I
, Vasile Stoica was a teacher. In August-September, Stoica worked as a redactor-answerable at Românul, the leading Romanian language
newspaper in Austria-Hungary. In October 1914, he choose to leave the Empire to avoid conscription
, and headed for Bucharest
, in still-neutral Romania.
He tried to work for Romanian Army, in the new Air Force, but he was rejected. He carried on his activity of publicist to the newspapers Adevărul
, Universul
, Flacăra
, Naţionalul. Meanwhile, he abnegated his Austro-Hungarian citizenship for the Romanian one. At the Congress of Romanians refugees to Romania, in March 1915, Stoica stated that "the desire to be a part of a great and free Romania
is not the result of the context". The introduction to the book Habsburgii, ungurii şi românii ("The Habsburg
s, the Hungarians and Romanians"), dated May 1, written by Vasile Stoica and Ion Rusu Abrudeanu. The authors plead for Romanian intervention against Austria-Hungary. In August, Stoica lead the Congress of the undergraduates in Galaţi
. He published another, more radical book, Suferinţele din Ardeal ("Sufferings in Transylvania"), in Bucharest in the summer of 1916. The young author’s book is a "declaration of war" against Austria-Hungary. In June, an Austro-Hungarian Army
court-martial
in Cluj
sentenced him to death in absentia
.
At the end of August 1916, the Romanian government, impressed by the early success of the Brusilov Offensive
, declared war on Germany
and Austria-Hungary. King
Ferdinand
’s Proclamation to the Army, drafted by Stoica along with the proclamation for the Romanian public opinion, read:
He subsequently fought in the Romanian Army against invading German forces
in Oltenia
, and followed the Romanian troops in their retreat to Moldavia
. In March 1917, Stoica (by then a second lieutenant
) was a member of a group of exiled Romanian Habsburg subjects who were sent as a delegation to the United States
to campaign Romania's cause. The envoys also established close contacts with the Czech
Tomáš Masaryk
and the Polish
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
.
He was instrumental in the creation of the Romanian National League of America in July, some months after America joined the Entente forces
; among other things, the League, centered in Youngstown
, Ohio
, helped direct the war effort and participation of the Romanian-American
community towards the US forces on the Western Front
.
Stephen P. Duggan
wrote on December 10, 1920:
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 writer, diplomat, and close assistant of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an statesmen Tomáš Masaryk
Tomáš Masaryk
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk , sometimes called Thomas Masaryk in English, was an Austro-Hungarian and Czechoslovak politician, sociologist and philosopher, who as an eager advocate of Czechoslovak independence during World War I became the founder and first President of Czechoslovakia, also was...
and Ion I.C. Brătianu.
Early life and education
Stoica was born in a family that originated from TransylvaniaTransylvania
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...
(then in the Hungarian
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
half of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
, but now in 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...
); according to his birth certificate, Vasile Stoica was born in Avrig
Avrig
Avrig is a town in the Sibiu County, Romania. It has a population of 16,215 and the first documents attesting the village date to 1346.The town administers four villages: Bradu , Glâmboaca , Mârşa and Săcădate .- Geography :It lies on the left bank of the river Olt Avrig is a town in the Sibiu...
on January 1, 1889. He was the son of Maria and Gheorghe Stoica, Romanians
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
belonging to the Christian Orthodox
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...
faith. He attended elementary school in Avrig.
His interest for the politics is proved by his status as one the members of the Romanian National Party of Transylvania and Banat
Romanian National Party
The Romanian National Party , initially known as the Romanian National Party in Transylvania and Banat , was a political party which was initially designed to offer ethnic representation to Romanians in the Kingdom of Hungary, the Transleithanian half of Austria-Hungary, and especially to those in...
, from 1909.
From September same year, Vasile Stoica followed the courses of Literature at Budapest University, until 1913; two semesters at University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
Faculty of Letters. In October 1913, he became president of the cultural organization of the "Petru Maior
Petru Maior
Petru Maior was a Romanian writer who is considered one of the most influential personalities of the Age of Enlightenment in Transylvania...
" ethnic Romanians undergraduates
Undergraduate education
Undergraduate education is an education level taken prior to gaining a first degree . Hence, in many subjects in many educational systems, undergraduate education is post-secondary education up to the level of a bachelor's degree, such as in the United States, where a university entry level is...
in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
.
World War I
Upon Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on SerbiaSerbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
that led to the outbreak 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...
, Vasile Stoica was a teacher. In August-September, Stoica worked as a redactor-answerable at Românul, the leading Romanian language
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
newspaper in Austria-Hungary. In October 1914, he choose to leave the Empire to avoid conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
, and headed for 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....
, in still-neutral Romania.
He tried to work for Romanian Army, in the new Air Force, but he was rejected. He carried on his activity of publicist to the newspapers Adevărul
Adevarul
Adevărul is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in 1871 and reestablished in 1888, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published during the Romanian Kingdom's existence, adopting an independent pro-democratic position, advocating land reform and universal suffrage...
, Universul
Universul
Universul was a mass-circulation newspaper in Romania. It existed from 1884 to 1953, and was run by Stelian Popescu from 1914 to 1943 ....
, Flacăra
Flacăra
Flacăra is a weekly magazine published in Bucharest, Romania, originally as a literary periodical....
, Naţionalul. Meanwhile, he abnegated his Austro-Hungarian citizenship for the Romanian one. At the Congress of Romanians refugees to Romania, in March 1915, Stoica stated that "the desire to be a part of a great and free 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...
is not the result of the context". The introduction to the book Habsburgii, ungurii şi românii ("The Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
s, the Hungarians and Romanians"), dated May 1, written by Vasile Stoica and Ion Rusu Abrudeanu. The authors plead for Romanian intervention against Austria-Hungary. In August, Stoica lead the Congress of the undergraduates in Galaţi
Galati
Galați is a city and municipality in Romania, the capital of Galați County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, in the close vicinity of Brăila, Galați is the largest port and sea port on the Danube River and the second largest Romanian port....
. He published another, more radical book, Suferinţele din Ardeal ("Sufferings in Transylvania"), in Bucharest in the summer of 1916. The young author’s book is a "declaration of war" against Austria-Hungary. In June, an Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
in Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
sentenced him to death in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
.
At the end of August 1916, the Romanian government, impressed by the early success of the Brusilov Offensive
Brusilov Offensive
The Brusilov Offensive , also known as the June Advance, was the Russian Empire's greatest feat of arms during World War I, and among the most lethal battles in world history. Prof. Graydon A. Tunstall of the University of South Florida called the Brusilov Offensive of 1916 the worst crisis of...
, declared war on Germany
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
and Austria-Hungary. 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....
Ferdinand
Ferdinand I of Romania
Ferdinand was the King of Romania from 10 October 1914 until his death.-Early life:Born in Sigmaringen in southwestern Germany, the Roman Catholic Prince Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, later simply of Hohenzollern, was a son of Leopold, Prince of...
’s Proclamation to the Army, drafted by Stoica along with the proclamation for the Romanian public opinion, read:
- "You will fight alongside the great nations we are united with. Bloody battles are waiting you, but bravely enduring their hardness and with God’s help the victory will be ours".
He subsequently fought in the Romanian Army against invading German forces
Romanian Campaign (World War I)
The Romanian Campaign was part of the Balkan theatre of World War I, with Romania and Russia allied against the armies of the Central Powers. Fighting took place from August 1916 to December 1917, across most of present-day Romania, including Transylvania, which was part of the Austro-Hungarian...
in Oltenia
Oltenia
Oltenia is a historical province and geographical region of Romania, in western Wallachia. It is situated between the Danube, the Southern Carpathians and the Olt river ....
, and followed the Romanian troops in their retreat to Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
. In March 1917, Stoica (by then a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
) was a member of a group of exiled Romanian Habsburg subjects who were sent as a delegation to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to campaign Romania's cause. The envoys also established close contacts with the Czech
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
Tomáš Masaryk
Tomáš Masaryk
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk , sometimes called Thomas Masaryk in English, was an Austro-Hungarian and Czechoslovak politician, sociologist and philosopher, who as an eager advocate of Czechoslovak independence during World War I became the founder and first President of Czechoslovakia, also was...
and the Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Ignacy Jan Paderewski GBE was a Polish pianist, composer, diplomat, politician, and the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland.-Biography:...
.
He was instrumental in the creation of the Romanian National League of America in July, some months after America joined the Entente forces
Allies of World War I
The Entente Powers were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. The members of the Triple Entente were the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire; Italy entered the war on their side in 1915...
; among other things, the League, centered in Youngstown
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, helped direct the war effort and participation of the Romanian-American
Romanian-American
A Romanian American is a citizen of the United States who has significant Romanian heritage. For the 2000 US Census, 367,310 Americans indicated Romanian as their first ancestry, while 462,526 persons declared to have Romanian ancestry...
community towards the US forces on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
.
Stephen P. Duggan
Stephen P. Duggan
Stephen Pierce Duggan, Sr. was a professor of diplomatic history at the College of the City of New York, who founded The Institute of International Education in 1919, together with Nobel Laureates Elihu Root and Nicholas Murray Butler. Stephen P. Duggan, Sr...
wrote on December 10, 1920:
- "He has been over every part of [the United States]. He has come in contact with university professors, financiers, industrialists, [and Romanian-Americans]. He has made a district success wherever he went, as much a social success as an official success. It will take a new man a long time to learn as much as Captain Stoica and to secure the confidence of Americans in the way he has. Because of my official position, I have come during the war period, in contact with the representatives of all the foreign nations, and no one of them has impressed more favourably than Captain Stoica".