The History of Romania

A Quick Background On Our Temporary Home

So, be honest. If I asked you to point out Romania on a map, would you be able to find it?

Before our trip, I am not sure if I could. I definitely knew the general area it was located, but I am willing to admit, I’ve learned most of my Romanian knowledge in 2022.

Well, just to quickly brush up, Romania is located on the east side of continental Europe. It is bordered by Bulgaria to the south, Serbia and Hungary to the west, Ukraine and Moldova to the north, and has about 100 miles of coastline on the Black Sea to the east.

This is a relatively young country in many ways. Obviously, this is a region of the world where borders have shifted throughout the past century due to both world wars.

Romania has had a difficult history, and most of the 20th century involved either war or oppression.

Romania was constantly caught up in conflicts between other countries. This trend reached a new intensity at the beginning of World War I.

After staying neutral when the fighting broke out, they eventually joined efforts against the central powers in hopes that they would reclaim Transylvanian land from Austria-Hungary.

This did not go well for the Romanian army. The German and Austrian-Hungarian forces eventually occupied much of the country, and the Bolshevik revolution in Russia wiped out any alliance between the Romanians and Russians.

Eventually, after the central powers were defeated, the Austrian-Hungarian empire was dissolved, and Romania gained back much of the land they had lost.

Peace in this region lasted less than two decades.

World War II was a very dark period in Romania’s history. Under the leadership of Ion Antonescu, Romania declared alliance with Germany, Italy, and Japan. The main incentive behind Antonescu’s decision was revenge against the Russians, who never officially gave back declared Romanian land.

Ion Antonescu was a militant leader, and widely feared and disliked. Romania’s Iron Guard actually staged a coup attempt, but it was unsuccessful due to Antonescu’s superior forces, which included Germans.

Antonescu’s forces assisted Hitler’s efforts in the region, and hundreds of thousands of Romanian and Hungarian Jews sadly paid the price.

However, the Soviet victory at the Battle of Stalingrad changed everything. Iuliu Maniu, who was leading a movement within Romania against Antonescu’s regime, was secretly in communication with the British, and made it clear that the country could switch sides if Antonescu was stopped.

The movement was successful, Antonescu was arrested, and the Romanians joined the Red Army in its fight against Germany.

Unfortunately for Romania, they had shifted allegiance from one tyrant to another, and Stalin immediately designated the Romanian region Soviet territory rather than an ally.

This led to Soviet occupation after the war, which lasted over 20 years.

Eventually, Nicolae Ceaușescu was in charge starting in 1965, and he began operating separately from the Soviet Union.

Although it seemed promising for Romanian interests at first, it was soon very clear that Ceaușescu was a dictator himself, and was only interested in advancing his political stature rather than the collective good of the Romanian people. He stayed in the good graces of the Soviets.

Ceaușescu’s reign ended as the Red Curtain began to fall in the late 80’s. It was bound to happen eventually. While he and his inner circle lived in luxury, the Romanian people suffered and starved.

Ceaușescu and his wife were killed during the Romanian Revolution in 1989, which was the beginning of an inevitable uprising against oppression by the Romanian people.

While there have still been protests against corruption in the Romanian government in recent years, this country is now a blossoming European society.

Sidney and I have noticed a fascinating juxtaposition between Soviet-style architecture, grandiose French-style architecture, and a more modern flare from the past few decades.

It is incredible to be in a place with so much history, and to see how all of it has led to the fantastically eclectic culture of modern Romania.

There are a lot of Romanian flags flying around the city of Bucharest, which I find to be extremely cool! It is a declaration of a well-deserved freedom for the country and its people.

We have also noticed a lot of European Union flags, which is interesting! Romania became a full EU member in 2007, and it is very clear that it is a point of pride.

Bucharest is different than any city I’ve ever been to! We are looking forward to showing you around in our videos. As always, don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube if you haven’t yet!