The National Moldavian Party was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

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 ...

History

Prior to 1917, Bessarabian

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the in ...

was divided between noblemen, conservatives, democrats, and socialists.

Vasile Stroescu Vasile Vasilievici Stroescu (russian: Василий Васильевич Строеско, ''Vasily Vasilyevich Stroesko''; November 11, 1845 – April 13, 1926), also known as Vasile de Stroesco,"Vasile de Stroesco" and ""Scrisoarea dlui V. de ...

, a rich but very modest filantrop boyar, managed to persuade all major factions to leave internal fights and at four day meeting (–) the ''National Moldavian Party'' was created. In April 1917 the party leadership was elected. It was headed by Vasile Stroescu, having among its members Paul Gore (a renowned conservative),

Vladimir Herța Vladimir Herța (May 14, 1868, Chișinău - August 3, 1924, Chișinău) was a Moldovan politician, mayor of Chișinău between 1918 and 1919. He has played an important role in the act of the Union. Biography Vladimir Herța was born on May 1 ...

Pan Halippa Pantelimon "Pan" Halippa (1 August 1883 – 30 April 1979) was a Bessarabian and later Romanian journalist and politician. One of the most important promoters of Romanian nationalism in Bessarabia and of this province's union with Romania, he wa ...

(a renowned socialist),

Onisifor Ghibu Onisifor Ghibu (May 31, 1883 – October 3, 1972) was a Romanian teacher of pedagogy, member of the Romanian Academy, and politician. Biography Early life Born into a peasant family in Szelistye (now Săliște, Romania), near Nagyszeben (now Si ...

. Among the leaders of the party were general

Matei Donici Matei Donici (; 1847 – 26 September 1921) was a writer, general, and politician from Bessarabia. He was a leader of the National Moldavian Party. See also * Moldavian Progressive Party The Moldavian Progressive Party ( ro, Partidul Pro ...

Ion Pelivan Ion Gheorghe Pelivan (April 1, 1876 in Răzeni – January 25, 1954 in Sighetu Marmației) was a Romanian politician. In 1898, Ion Pelivan graduated from the Theological Seminary of Chișinău and in 1903 from the University of Tartu. Then ...

Daniel Ciugureanu Daniel Ciugureanu (; 9 December 1885 – 19 May 1950) was a Romanian politician from Bessarabia, deputy in Sfatul Țării from Chișinău, Prime Minister of the Moldavian Democratic Republic from –, Minister for Bessarabia in four Romanian Gove ...

Gurie Grosu Gurie Grosu (; born 1 January 1877 in Nimoreni, Bessarabia Governorate, Russian Empire – died 14 November 1943 in Bucharest, Romania) was a Bessarabian priest and the first holder of the Basarabian Metropolitan Church after 100 years of R ...

, Nicolae Alexandri, Teofil Ioncu, P. Grosu, Mihail Minciună, Vlad Bogos, F. Corobceanu,

Gheorghe Buruiană Gheorghe Buruiană (1889 - 1933), a cooperator from Chişinăuon March 27, 1918 voted the Union of Bessarabia with România. Some acts of March 27 have signed them together with Teodosie Bârcă as Vice-Presidents of the Moldovan Parliament. ...

, Simeon Murafa, Al. Botezat,

Alexandru Groapă Alexandru Groapă (14 August 1879, Chirileni - 1940) was a Bessarabian politician. Biography He served as Member of the Sfatul Țării, Moldovan Parliament (1917–1918). Gallery Image:Stamp of Moldova 227.gif, Moldovan stamp, 1998 Bibliogra ...

Ion Codreanu Ion Codreanu (23 June 1891–8 January 1960) was a Romanian major general during World War II. Biography He started his education at the elementary school in Bălăbănești, and then at the Gheorghe Roșca Codreanu High School in Bârlad, ...

Vasile Gafencu Vasile Gafencu (1 February 1886 – 16 March 1942) was a Bessarabian politician. He was the father of Valeriu Gafencu (1921–1952), nicknamed ''The Saint of Prisons''. Biography He served as Member of the Moldovan Parliament (1917–1918). ...

. The party, which demanded autonomy, had a newspaper called '' Cuvânt moldovenesc'', to which some refugees from

Bukovina Bukovinagerman: Bukowina or ; hu, Bukovina; pl, Bukowina; ro, Bucovina; uk, Буковина, ; see also other languages. is a historical region, variously described as part of either Central or Eastern Europe (or both).Klaus Peter BergerT ...

and

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 ...

also contributed. The cornerstone of the National Moldavian Party program was to obtain political, administrative, church, school, and economic autonomy for Bessarabia. They did not hesitate to send members of the respective profession to the various congresses held in Bessarabia throughout 1917, and became very influential. Ghibu and George Tofan were part of a group of Transylvanian and Bukovinian intellectuals which arrived in Bessarabia in the wake of the

February Revolution The February Revolution ( rus, Февра́льская револю́ция, r=Fevral'skaya revolyutsiya, p=fʲɪvˈralʲskəjə rʲɪvɐˈlʲutsɨjə), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and somet ...

to help organize schools in Romanian, to print books and newspapers, and to help the Bessarabians in the strife for reorganization of the political and cultural life. Intellectuals from Bukovina, Transylvania, and the

Romanian Old Kingdom The Romanian Old Kingdom ( ro, Vechiul Regat or just ''Regat''; german: Regat or ) is a colloquial term referring to the territory covered by the first independent Romanian nation state, which was composed of the Romanian Principalities: Wallachia ...

fleeing the war to Bessarabia, helped with the printing of ''Cuvânt moldovenesc'', started various language, history, culture, and sciences courses, and set up a People's University (''Universitatea Populară'') in Chişinău.Ion Nistor, ''Istoria Basarabiei'',

Cernăuţi Chernivtsi ( uk, Чернівці́}, ; ro, Cernăuți, ; see also other names) is a city in the historical region of Bukovina, which is now divided along the borders of Romania and Ukraine, including this city, which is situated on the up ...

, 1923, reprinted Chişinău, Cartea Moldovenească, 1991, p. 276 The party was replaced by the

Bessarabian Peasants' Party The Bessarabian Peasants' Party ( ro, Partidul Țărănesc din Basarabia, PȚB or PȚ-Bas; also ''Partidul Țărănesc Basarabean'', ''Partidul Țărănist Basarabean'') or Moldavian National Democratic Party (''Partidul Național-Democrat Moldove ...

, founded in Chişinău on 23 August 1918.

Gallery

File:Pan Halippa (1883-1979).jpg,

File:Stamp of Moldova 129.gif,

and

Sfatul Țării Palace The Sfatul Țării Palace is a building in Chișinău, Moldova. Overview The building is located near Central Chișinău. It served as a meeting place for the Sfatul Țării, the assembly which proclaimed the independence of the Moldavian Democ ...

File:Stamp of Moldova md619.jpg,

References

{{Moldovan political parties Defunct political parties in Moldova Political parties established in 1917 Political parties disestablished in 1918 Romanian nationalist parties Moldavian Democratic Republic 1917 establishments in Russia 1918 disestablishments in Romania Political parties of the Russian Revolution