Manuc Bey (the common

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

rendering of ''Manuk Bey'', the Armenian name of Emanuel Mârzayan; 1769–1817) was an Armenian

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

and

inn-keeper A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

Life

He was born in Rousse (modern Ruse, Bulgaria) as a subject of the Ottoman Empire. A

grain merchant The grain trade refers to the local and international trade in cereals and other food grains such as wheat, barley, maize, and rice. Grain is an important trade item because it is easily stored and transported with limited spoilage, unlike other ...

, he amassed considerable wealth, and was rumored at the time to be the wealthiest man in the Balkans. In 1803, he was awarded the

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

rank of ''

paharnic The ''Paharnic'' (plural: ''Paharnici''; also known as ''Păharnic'', ''Paharnec'', or ''Păharnec''; Moldavian dialect: ''ceașnic'', el, παχαρνίκοσ, ''pakharnikos'', russian: пахарник, ''paharnik'') was a historical Romanian ...

'' by Constantine Ypsilanti, Prince of Wallachia. In 1808, the highly influential Manuc was advanced by his protector, the Ottoman general Alemdar Mustafa Pasha, to occupy the Moldavian throne, but was prevented from taking the throne by the fall of his protector; he himself had to flee Istanbul to avoid execution. Settling in Bucharest (after a short period of refuge in Transylvania), Manuc-Bey kept the inn known today as ''

Manuc's Inn Manuc's Inn ( ro, Hanul lui Manuc, ) is the oldest operating hotel building in Bucharest, Romania. It also houses a popular restaurant, several bars, a coffee-house, and (facing the street) several stores and an extensive bar. Its massive, mult ...

''; in time, he also acquired estates in

Bessarabia Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...

, near Hînceşti and Reni, and was to remain the main financial backer of Ypsilanti, lending the treasury 160,000

thaler A thaler (; also taler, from german: Taler) is one of the large silver coins minted in the states and territories of the Holy Roman Empire and the Habsburg monarchy during the Early Modern period. A ''thaler'' size silver coin has a diameter of ...

s in all. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1806-1812, he was also a mediator (1809) between the Russian Imperial Army of

Mikhail Andreyevich Miloradovich Count Mikhail Andreyevich Miloradovich (russian: Граф Михаи́л Андре́евич Милора́дович, sh-Cyrl, Гроф Михаил Андрејевић Милорадовић ''Grof Mihail Andrejević Miloradović''; – ...

and a rebel Ottoman

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...

Giurgiu Giurgiu (; bg, Гюргево) is a city in southern Romania. The seat of Giurgiu County, it lies in the historical region of Muntenia. It is situated amongst mud-flats and marshes on the left bank of the Danube facing the Bulgarian city ...

. A Russian

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

, Manuc took part in the negotiations for the 1812 Treaty of Bucharest between the Russian and Ottoman empires, which were held in his inn in Bucharest. Towards the end of his life, he retired to his estate of Hîncești, where his son later built a manor house. Manuc died in an accident in 1817, and was buried in the Armenian Church in Chişinău.

References

Neagu Djuvara Neagu Bunea Djuvara (; 18 August 1916 – 25 January 2018) was a Romanian historian, essayist, philosopher, journalist, novelist, and diplomat. Biography Early life A native of Bucharest, he was descended from an aristocratic Aromanian family ...

, ''Între Orient și Occident. Țările române la începutul epocii moderne'' ("Between Orient and Occident. The Romanian lands at the beginning of the modern era"), Humanitas, Bucharest, 1995, p. 169, 287, 348-349 * Constantin C. Giurescu, ''Istoria Bucureștilor. Din cele mai vechi timpuri pînă în zilele noastre'' ("History of Bucharest. From the earliest times to this day"), Ed. Pentru Literatură, Bucharest, 1966, p. 270-271.

External links

*
''Manuc Bey - A legendary historical figure of the 18th century''
biographical article on the Radio Romania International website. *

("The 'Manuc Bey - Merchant and Diplomat' Exhibition opens its doors to the public"), ''Știri'', 8 August 2005, describing a Bucharest exhibition dedicated to Manuc-Bey *
Article One of his palatial residences
in Hânceşti (now in the Republic of Moldova, and
a short description
*

includes a tidbit about Manuc-Bey in Paris. {{DEFAULTSORT:Manuc Bei 1769 births 1817 deaths Bulgarian people of Armenian descent Armenians from the Ottoman Empire Romanian people of Armenian descent Dragomans People from Ruse, Bulgaria Romanian nobility Romanian restaurateurs 18th-century businesspeople from the Ottoman Empire 19th-century businesspeople from the Ottoman Empire 18th-century translators