Rotary in Romania
HISTORY OF THE COUNTRY (ABRIDGED)
Todays Romania comprises the provinces of Moldova (Moldavia), Muntenia (Walachia), Transilvania, Bucovina and Dobrogea. A part of Moldova west of the Prut river east of the Dniester river was until 1940 part of Romania (acquired 1918), but is now an independent republic called the Republic of Moldova, ex Soviet Union region, were the majority of the population is Romanian. Until after the Crimean war Romanian history was one of feudal princes and rulers, but Romania as a united nation came about in on 17 Jan 1859, when the principalities of Moldavia and Walachia decided to merge into a single Romanian Princedom. After a short reign of 7 years by a Prince Cuza, forced to abdicate, and not without the support of Napoleon III, Prince Charles of Hohenzollern Sigmaringen became its foreign ruler as Carol I. In 1881 this gentleman, became King Carol I of Romania. The King had no children and named his nephew Ferdinand of Hohenzollern his successor .
After the defeat of Germany and the carve up of Europe after the collapse of the Austrian Hungarian Empire in 1918, Transilvania, a Romanian province, came to Romania. Bucovina also came back from the Habsburg Empire and Dobrogea had been taken back from the Turks in 1878. Thus Romania, with a majority of Romanians of Orthodox religion, became the actual state. There were 1, 5 mil. of Hungarians and a sizeable number of Germans living in Transilvania.
Meanwhile Ferdinand's son, King Carol II married to Helena, a Greek princess saw his country through to the outbreak of World War 2. Already not overly popular because of dictatorial tendencies, his German blood and his openly keeping of a jewish mistress was ousted in 1940, leaving the 19 year old King Michael behind. Romania in fact became a state loyal to Germany, being neatly manipulated by Hitler and Stalins henchmen, who between them had already decided the spheres of influence in Eastern Europe. A reign of terror and brutality ensued when, under the Hungarian Horthy, who annexed a part of Transilvania with the help of Hitler in 1940 and the "Iron Guard", a nazi organisation sustained by Hitler too, came to power. Romanian general Ion Antonescu, the leader of the country, initially agreed the "Iron Guard" but, when they tried to take the power, after assassinations and killings (120 Jewish), destroyed it in 1941. He sustained Hitler against the Soviet Union, trying to recuperate Basarabia and Bucovina from the Russians. After the war Antonescu was executed by them as a war criminal. In 1944 King Michael was instrumental in the overthrow of the Antonescu Government and Romania entered the war against Germany. However the Russians had entered the country and King Michael's fate was sealed. He abdicated in Dec 1947 and left the country. For well over 40 years the country lived under virtual communist dictatorship lead by Nicolae Ceausescu. In 1990, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Country overthrew the virtual dictator and Communist Party chief Nicolae Ceausescu and Romania regained its independence. Rotary which had ceased to exist in 1940 reemerged in 1992.
| Religion and Population Make up |
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