Marcel Olteanu (May 4, 1872 – 1943) was a

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

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

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 ...

and the

Hungarian–Romanian War The Hungarian–Romanian War was fought between Hungary and Romania from 13 November 1918 to 3 August 1919. The conflict had a complex background, with often contradictory motivations for the parties involved. The Allies of World War I intended ...

. He was born in

Craiova Craiova (, also , ), is Romania's 6th Cities in Romania, largest city and capital of Dolj County, and situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximatel ...

, a descendant of

Petru Maior Petru Maior (; 1761 in Marosvásárhely ''(now Târgu Mureș, Romania)'' – 14 February 1821 in Budapest) was a Romanian writer who is considered one of the most influential personalities of the Age of Enlightenment in Transylvania (the ''Tran ...

. His sister, Adelina, later married

Octavian Codru Tăslăuanu Octavian Codru Tăslăuanu (February 1, 1876 – October 22, 1942) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian magazine publisher, non-fiction writer, and politician. Biography Background and early life Born in Bélbor, Maros-Torda ...

. In 1889 he went to

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 ...

, where he enlisted in the Military School of Infantry and Cavalry, graduating in 1891 with the rank of second lieutenant, after which he advanced to lieutenant (1894), captain (1900), and major (1910). Also in 1910, Olteanu was awarded the Order of the Crown, Officer rank. He completed his studies at the

Higher War School The National Defence University of Warsaw ( – AON) was the civil-military highest defence academic institution in Poland, located in Warszawa–Rembertów. In 2016 it was succeeded by the War Studies University. The National Defence Universit ...

in Bucharest. Olteanu served in the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies r ...

in 1913, and was decorated with the .Ministerul de Răsboiu, ''Anuarul Armatei Române pe anul 1916, ''Tipografia "Universala" Iancu Ionescu, București, 1916 He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in April 1914 and colonel in May 1916. Starting in October 1912, Olteanu was the inaugural commandant of the "Nicolae Filipescu" Military School at Dealu Monastery; he served in this position until August 1918. After Romania entered World War I in August 1916, Olteanu was put in command of the 2nd ''Călărași'' Regiment, and then served as Chief of Staff of the First Army Corps. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1917, and became commanding officer of the 3rd '' Roșiori'' Brigade. He distinguished himself at the

Third Battle of Oituz The Third Battle of Oituz was a confrontation between Romanian Land Forces, Romanian and, to a lesser extent, Imperial Russian Army, Russian forces on one side and Imperial German Army, German and Austro-Hungarian Army, Austro-Hungarian forces o ...

in July–August 1917, especially at the engagement at against German forces. (His son, Marcel M. Olteanu, a graduate of the Dealu Monastery military school, also fought in this battle.) For his valor Olteanu was awarded in September 1920 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 Wor ...

, 3rd class.Ministerul de Răsboiu, ''Anuarul ofițerilor și drapelelor Armatei Române cărora li s-au conferit ordinul "Mihai Viteazul"'', Atelierele grafice "Socec & Co", București, 1930, p. 110 In early December 1917, he was put in charge of the central command of the

Romanian Volunteer Corps in Russia The Romanian Volunteer Corps in Russia ( ro, Corpul Voluntarilor români din Rusia), or Volunteer Corps of Transylvanians-Bukovinians (''Corpul Voluntarilor ardeleni-bucovineni'', ''Corpul Voluntarilor transilvăneni și bucovineni''), was a milit ...

, based in

Hârlău Hârlău (also spelled ''Hîrlău'', ; he, חרלאו; hu, Harló) is a town in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania. It was one of the princely court cities of Moldavia, in the 15th century. One village, Pârcovaci, is administered by the to ...

, Iași County. In 1918, Olteanu was given command of the 6th Infantry Division. The next year he fought in the

. On 21 March 1919 Béla Kun led a successful

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

in Hungary; he formed a

social democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

, communist

coalition government A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election, an atypical outcome in ...

and proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic. General

Gheorghe Mărdărescu Gheorghe D. Mărdărescu (4 August 1866 – 5 September 1938) was a Romanian army major general during World War I, a commander during the Hungarian–Romanian War of 1919, and Minister of War from 1922 to 1926. Mărdărescu was born in Iași ...

was in command of the Romanian army in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

, with General

Traian Moșoiu Traian Moșoiu (2 July 1868 – 15 August 1932) was a Romanian general during World War I and the Hungarian–Romanian War. He held the posts of Minister of War in the Alexandru Vaida-Voevod cabinet (December 1919 – March 1920), Minister of C ...

in command of the Army Group North, and with the ''Olteanu Detachment'' (centered around

Sighetu Marmației Sighetu Marmației (, also spelled ''Sighetul Marmației''; german: Marmaroschsiget or ''Siget''; hu, Máramarossziget, ; uk, Сигіт, Syhit; yi, סיגעט, Siget), until 1960 Sighet, is a city (Municipalities of Romania, municipality) in ...

) attached to it. By 18 April, the first elements of the Romanian offensive were completed and the Hungarian front was broken. For his role in securing the Maramureș region,

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Ferdinand I of Romania Ferdinand (Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad; 24 August 1865 – 20 July 1927), nicknamed ''Întregitorul'' ("the Unifier"), was King of Romania from 1914 until his death in 1927. Ferdinand was the second son of Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern and ...

awarded Olteanu the Order of the Crown, Commander rank, in a ceremony held at Baia Mare on 26 May. In late July the

Romanian Army The Romanian Land Forces ( ro, Forțele Terestre Române) is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. In recent years, full professionalisation and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Lan ...

crossed the Tisza River and advanced towards

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, leading to the collapse of the Hungarian Soviet Republic. From August to November 1919, Olteanu served as military governor of

. After the war, Olteanu retired from the army, and was put in reserve with the First Army Corps. He died in Bucharest in 1943. A street in

Cilieni Cilieni is a commune in Olt County, Oltenia, 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 we ...

, Olt County now bears his name.

Publications

* *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olteanu, Marcel 1872 births 1943 deaths Romanian Army World War I generals Romanian Land Forces generals Romanian military personnel of the Second Balkan War Romanian people of the Hungarian–Romanian War People from Craiova Recipients of the Order of Michael the Brave Carol I National Defence University alumni Commanders of the Order of the Crown (Romania)