Horia Macellariu (10 May 1894, Craiova – 11 July 1989,

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

) was a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

n rear admiral, commander of the

Royal Romanian Navy The Romanian Navy ( ro, Forțele Navale Române) is the navy branch of the Romanian Armed Forces; it operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860. History The Romanian Navy was founded in 1860 as a river flo ...

's Black Sea Fleet during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Early life

Horia Ion Pompiliu Macellariu was born in Craiova on 28 April/10 May 1894. After undergoing military studies, he became a marine officer in 1915. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he served as the captain of the Romanian command ship ''Principele Nicolae''. Throughout the war, he distinguished himself, being decorated with the Order of the Romanian Crown, Knight rank. In 1927–1928, he studied at the Naval War School in Paris, where the French President also decorated him with the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, Knight rank. After returning to Romania, he commanded several Romanian warships throughout the 1930s: the torpedo boat ''Vârtejul'', the

river monitor River monitors are military craft designed to patrol rivers. They are normally the largest of all riverine warships in river flotillas, and mount the heaviest weapons. The name originated from the US Navy's , which made her first appearance in ...

''Lascăr Catargiu'', the

monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West ...

Mihail Kogălniceanu Mihail Kogălniceanu (; also known as Mihail Cogâlniceanu, Michel de Kogalnitchan; September 6, 1817 – July 1, 1891) was a Romanian liberal statesman, lawyer, historian and publicist; he became Prime Minister of Romania on October 11, 1863 ...

'' and the destroyer ''Regina Maria''.

Career during World War II

When Romania entered the war with Nazi Germany against the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

on 22 June 1941, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Romanian Navy at the Romanian General Staff. He climbed through the ranks as the war progressed, in January 1942 becoming the commander of the Romanian Destroyer Squadron, the most powerful naval formation of the Romanian Navy and of the

Axis Powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

, consisting of two destroyers ('' Regele-Ferdinand''-class) and two

scout cruiser A scout cruiser was a type of warship of the early 20th century, which were smaller, faster, more lightly armed and armoured than protected cruisers or light cruisers, but larger than contemporary destroyers. Intended for fleet scouting duties a ...

s '' Aquila''-class). In early 1943, he became the commander of the Romanian Black Sea Fleet, gaining the rank of

Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in March that year.

Commander of the Romanian Black Sea Fleet

As a commander, he presided over a significant enlargement of the Romanian Black Sea Fleet, most notably the commissioning of the Romanian-built submarines '' Marsuinul'' and her smaller sister ship ''Rechinul'' in May 1943, the former being the most powerful and modern Axis submarine in the

. Between 1939 and early 1943, Romania built six new motor torpedo boats. They were of the British

Power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

type, but licence-built in Romania at the

Galați shipyard __NOTOC__ The Galați shipyard ( ro, Șantierul naval Galați), formally Damen Shipyards Galați, is a shipyard located on the Danube in Galați, a city located in the Moldavia region of Romania. History Origins through communism Shipbuilding is ...

, being commissioned as ''Vântul'', ''Vârtejul'', ''Vulcanul'', '' Vedenia'', ''Viforul'', and ''Vijelia''. He arranged a further enlargement of the Romanian Black Sea Fleet in September 1943, when, upon Italy's surrender, he orchestrated the transfer of the five Italian midget submarines operating in the Black Sea to the Romanian Navy. The five submarines were commissioned on 30 November that year. The evacuation of the

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

in April–May 1944 was the most complex and extensive operation of the Romanian Navy during the Second World War. From 15 April to 14 May, numerous German and Romanian warships escorted many convoys between Constanța and

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

. The scale and importance of the operation can be attested by the usage in combat of all four Romanian destroyers, the largest Axis warships in the Black Sea. The last phase of the evacuation (10-14 May) saw the fiercest combat, as Axis ships transported, under constant attacks from Soviet aircraft and shore artillery, over 30,000 troops. Of these, 18,000 were transported by Romanian ships. In total, Romanian and German convoys evacuated over 113,000 Axis troops from the Crimea, most of them (over 63,000) during the first phase of the evacuation (15-25 April). No Romanian Navy warships were lost during the evacuation, however the destroyer ''Regele Ferdinand'' came close to being sunk. She was struck by a large aerial bomb, which fell in her fuel tanks, but failed to detonate. The bomb was extracted several days after the end of the operation. Two naval actions involving the Romanian Navy took place during the second phase of the evacuation (25 April-10 May), near

. On 18 April, the Soviet ''Leninets''-class submarine ''L-6'' was twice attacked with depth charges and damaged by the Romanian gunboat '' Ghiculescu'', numerous bubbles emerged from the depths after each attack, before being finished off by the German submarine hunter ''UJ-104''. During the night of 27 April, a convoy escorted by the Romanian gunboat ''Ghiculescu'', the German submarine hunter ''UJ-115'', one

R-boat The R boats (''Räumboote'' in German, meaning ''minesweeper'') were a group of small naval vessels built as minesweepers for the ''Kriegsmarine'' (German navy) before and during the Second World War. They were used for several purposes during t ...

, two KFK

naval trawler Naval trawlers are vessels built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes; they were widely used during the First and Second World Wars. Some—known in the Royal Navy as "Admiralty trawlers"— were purpose-built ...

s and 19 MFPs (including the Romanian ''PTA-404'' and ''PTA-406'') engaged the Soviet

G-5-class motor torpedo boat The G-5 was a Soviet motor torpedo boat design built before and during World War II. Approximately 300 were built, of which 73 were lost during the war. Four were exported to the Spanish Republican Navy during the Spanish Civil War and others were ...

s ''TKA-332'', ''TKA-343'' and ''TKA-344'', after the three attacked and damaged the German submarine hunter ''UJ-104''. ''Ghiculescu'' opened fire with tracer rounds, enabling the entire escort group to locate the two Soviet MTBs and open fire. ''TKA-332'' was hit and sunk. Over 12 Soviet aircraft were also shot down during the evacuation, including two by the

minelaying A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing contro ...

destroyer escort Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships. Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...

''Amiral Murgescu''. The last Axis pockets in the Crimea were destroyed on 12 May. The last Axis warship to leave the peninsula was ''Amiral Murgescu'', carrying on board 1,000 Axis troops, including the German General

Walter Hartmann __NOTOC__ Walter Hartmann (23 July 1891 – 11 March 1977) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords of Nazi Germany. During the evacuation of ...

. Macellariu's successful conduct of the evacuation and the achievements obtained by the Romanian warships under his command, in combat and number of Axis troops evacuated, earned him the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Crucea de Cavaler a Crucii de Fier, in Romanian). Other decorations bestowed upon him include the

Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the defunct Order of Michael the Brave. It is awarded by the President of Romania. It has five r ...

, the

Order of the German Eagle The Order of Merit of the German Eagle (german: Verdienstorden vom Deutschen Adler) was an award of the German Nazi regime, predominantly to foreign diplomats. The Order was instituted on 1 May 1937 by Adolf Hitler. It ceased to be awarded follo ...

and the

Order of Michael the Brave The Order of Michael the Brave ( ro, Ordinul Mihai Viteazul) is Romania's highest military decoration, instituted by King Ferdinand I during the early stages of the Romanian Campaign of the First World War, and was again awarded in the Second Wo ...

. After the 23 August 1944 coup which put Romania on the side of the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

, the situation became uncertain. German Vice Admiral Brinkmann had orders to hold Constanța at all costs. However, after a face-to-face meeting with Macellariu, he was persuaded to make an orderly retreat and avoid an unnecessary and costly battle. The Germans subsequently retreated on the night of 25–26 August.

After the war

Macellariu was arrested by the communist authorities on 19 April 1948 and incarcerated at

Jilava Jilava is a commune in Ilfov county, Muntenia, Romania, near Bucharest. It is composed of a single village, Jilava. The name derives from a Romanian word of Slavic origin ( Bulgarian жилав ''žilav'' (tough), which passed into Romanian as '' ...

prison. After a trial, he was sentenced to hard labor for life for high treason, a sentence subsequently reduced to 25 years. He served time at Aiud Prison, where he was detained in complete isolation, and on la 4 April 1958 he was moved to

Râmnicu Sărat Prison Râmnicu Sărat Prison is a former prison located in Râmnicu Sărat, Buzău County, Romania. The building is listed as a historic monument by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs. Before World War II The prison was built at the ...

. After this prison was closed on 13 April 1963, he was transferred to

Gherla Prison Gherla Prison is a penitentiary located in the Romanian city of Gherla, in Cluj County. The prison dates from 1785; it is infamous for the treatment of its political inmates, especially during the Communist regime. In Romanian slang the generic wo ...

, where he shared a cell marele with

Nicolae Steinhardt Nicolae Steinhardt (; born Nicu-Aurelian Steinhardt; July 29, 1912 – March 29, 1989) was a Romanian writer, Orthodox monk and lawyer. His main book, ''Jurnalul Fericirii'', is regarded as a major text of 20th century Romanian literature and ...

. He was freed from detention on 29 July 1964, when political prisoners in Romania were amnestied by

Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej (; 8 November 1901 – 19 March 1965) was a Romanian communist politician and electrician. He was the first Communist leader of Romania from 1947 to 1965, serving as first secretary of the Romanian Communist Party ...

Awards

Order of the Crown of Romania-Ribbon 1881-1932

Order of the Crown (Romania) The Order of the Crown of Romania is a chivalric order set up on 14 March 1881 by King Carol I of Romania to commemorate the establishment of the Kingdom of Romania. It was awarded as a state order until the end of the Romanian monarchy in 1947. ...

, Knight rank (1918) * Legion Honneur Chevalier ribbon

, Knight rank (1928) * Order of Michael the Brave ribbon

(1943) *

Order of the Star of Romania - Ribbon bar

(1944) *

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (1944) * Ribbon of Order of the German Eagle

(1944)

Legacy

One of the two ''Rear-Admiral Eustațiu Sebastian''-class corvettes of the Romanian Navy is named after him.A. D. Baker, ''The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World 1998–1999'', p. 628 A street in Sector 1 of

also bears his name.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macellariu, Horia 1894 births 1989 deaths People from Craiova Romanian Naval Forces admirals Romanian military personnel of World War II Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 20th-century Romanian military personnel Inmates of Aiud prison Inmates of Gherla prison Romanian prisoners and detainees Inmates of Râmnicu Sărat prison Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Romania) Recipients of the Order of Michael the Brave Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur People detained by the Securitate