Nicolae Bălcescu () (29 June 181929 November 1852) was a
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, traditiona ...
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia (; ro, Țara Românească, lit=The Romanian Land' or 'The Romanian Country, ; archaic: ', Romanian Cyrillic alphabet: ) is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and s ...
n soldier, historian, journalist, and leader of the
1848 Wallachian Revolution.
Early life
Born in
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 o ...
to a family of low-ranking nobility,
he used his mother's maiden name, in place of his father's name, ''Petrescu'' (his mother was originally from
Bălcești
Bălcești is a town located in Vâlcea County, Romania. The town administers eight villages: Benești, Cârlogani, Gorunești, Chirculești, Irimești, Otetelișu, Preoțești and Satu Poieni. It is situated in the historical region of Olten ...
,
Vâlcea County now, then
Argeș County
Argeș County () is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Pitești.
Demographics
On 20 October 2011, it had a population of 612,431 and the population density was 89/km2.
* Romanians – 97%
* Roma (Gypsi ...
). His siblings were Costache,
Barbu, Sevasta and Marghioala, and his father died in 1824.
As a boy, Bălcescu studied at the
Saint Sava College Saint Sava College was one of the earliest academic institutions in Wallachia, Romania. It was the predecessor to both Saint Sava National College and the University of Bucharest.
History
It was the continuator of the Princely Academy from Bucha ...
(from 1832), and was a passionate student of history. At the age of 17, he joined the
Wallachian Army, and, in 1840, took part, alongside
Eftimie Murgu
Eftimie Murgu (28 December 1805 – 12 May 1870) was a Romanian philosopher and politician who took part in the 1848 Revolutions.
Biography
He was born in Rudăria (today Eftimie Murgu, Caraș-Severin County) to Samu Murgu, an officer in the I ...
and
Cezar Bolliac
Cezar Bolliac or Boliac, Boliak (March 23, 1813 – February 25, 1881) was a Wallachian and Romanian radical political figure, amateur archaeologist, journalist and Romantic poet.
Life
Early life
Born in Bucharest as the son of Anton Bogliako ...
, in
Mitică Filipescu's
conspiracy
A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agr ...
against Prince
Alexandru II Ghica. The plot was uncovered, and Bălcescu was imprisoned in
Mărgineni Monastery Mărgineni may refer to one of several places in Romania:
* Mărgineni, Bacău, a commune in Bacău County
* Mărgineni, Neamț, a commune in Neamţ County
* Mărgineni, a village in Săliştea Commune, Alba County
* Mărgineni, a village in H� ...
, where he remained for the following two years. The rough imprisonment conditions led to Bălcescu contracting tuberculosis, which left irreversible marks on health and led to his death.
Upon his release (after being granted a
pardon by the new prince,
Gheorghe Bibescu), he took part in forming a
secret society drawn up from the
Freemasonry
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
and named ''Frăția'' ("The Brotherhood"),
which he led together with
Ion Ghica and
Christian Tell (joined soon after by
Gheorghe Magheru) in resistance against Prince Bibescu.
''Magazin istoric pentru Dacia'' and other early works
In order to further his history studies, Bălcescu went to France and Italy, and was, together with
August Treboniu Laurian, the editor of a magazine entitled ''Magazin istoric pentru Dacia'', which was first published in 1844; that year also marked the publishing (in a different magazine) of his historical essay ''Puterea armată și arta militară de la întemeierea Prințipatului Valahiei și până acum'' ("The Military Strength and Art of Warfare from the Creation of the Wallachian Principality to This Day", which argued for a strong military as a guarantee of
self-determination).
While in Paris (1846), he became leader of the
Romantic nationalists and
liberal-radical group ''Societatea studenților români'' (the Society of Romanian Students), which reunited Wallachians and
Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Centr ...
nsit also included
Ion Brătianu,
Alexandru C. Golescu,
Ion Ionescu de la Brad,
C. A. Rosetti
Constantin Alexandru Rosetti (; 2 June 1816 – 8 April 1885) was a Romanian literary and political leader, born in Bucharest into the princely Rosetti family.
Biography Before 1848
Constantin Alexandru Rosetti was born in Bucharest, the so ...
, and
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, ...
.
''Magazin istoric'' went on to publish the very first collection of internal sources on the history of Wallachia and Moldaviamedieval
chronicles which were afterwards published as a single volume. One of his contributions to the magazine singles him out as a radical liberal: ''Despre starea socială a muncitorilor plugari în Principatele Române în deosebite timpuri'' ("On the Social Status of the Ploughmen of the
Romanian Principalities
The Danubian Principalities ( ro, Principatele Dunărene, sr, Дунавске кнежевине, translit=Dunavske kneževine) was a conventional name given to the Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, which emerged in the early 14th ce ...
at Various Times") argues for a
land reform
Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultura ...
, aimed at dispossessing the
boyars of large plots of land (that would in turn be awarded to landless peasants); it was used as reference by
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
in his succinct analysis of the events, a fact which was to earn Bălcescu credentials in
Communist Romania.
Wallachian Revolution
In 1848, after taking part in the
uprising in France, Bălcescu returned 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 o ...
in order to take part in the 11 June revolution. He was, for just two days, both
Minister and
Secretary of State of the
provisional government
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or ...
put in place by the revolutionaries. His advocacy of
universal suffrage
Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...
and land reform was not shared by many revolutionaries, and his group came into conflict with the traditional figures of authoritythe
Orthodox Metropolitan
Metropolitan may refer to:
* Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories
* Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England
* Metropolitan county, a typ ...
Neofit II, although head of the revolutionary government, opposed the reforms and ultimately conspired against the Revolution itself.
Bălcescu was arrested on 13 September that year by the authorities of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
who had put an end to the Revolution; his relationship with the Ottomans was complicated by the fact that the radicals' strict opposition to
Imperial Russia had made them reliable for the
Porte
Porte may refer to:
*Sublime Porte, the central government of the Ottoman empire
*Porte, Piedmont, a municipality in the Piedmont region of Italy
*John Cyril Porte, British/Irish aviator
*Richie Porte, Australian professional cyclist who competes ...
the Ottomans later allowed all participants in the events to take refuge in
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
, and thus avoid contact with the Russian troops sent over to assist the Ottoman presence. Bălcescu initially made his way to
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 A ...
, but was expelled by
Habsburg authorities, who considered him a threat and an agitator of Romanian sentiment in that region.
In Istanbul and Transylvania
In early 1849, Bălcescu was in Istanbul when the
Hungarian revolutionary armies under
Józef Bem mounted a successful offensive against Habsburg forces and their Transylvanian Romanian allies. The Hungarian government of
Lajos Kossuth then entered a debilitating war with
Avram Iancu's Romanian
guerrilla force, and the former members of the Wallachian government were approached by the
Polish revolutionaries in exile, such as
Henryk Dembiński, to mediate a peace between the two sides (in the hope that this was to ensure a stronger resistance to Russia, and counting on the Wallachian resentment towards the
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
government).
Bălcescu left for
Debrecen
Debrecen ( , is Hungary's second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the largest Hungarian city in the 18th century and ...
in May, and met with Kossuth to register the latter's offer to Iancu.
Marxist
Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...
-inspired historiography has celebrated this as an agreement; in fact, Bălcescu's papers reveal that he viewed the peace offering as unsatisfactory for Romanians, and that Avram Iancu rejected it altogether (while agreeing to a temporary
armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...
). The final offer from the
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 o ...
leadership to Bălcescu and Iancu called for the Romanians to withdraw from Transylvania, as the region was turning into a battleground between Russia and the Hungarians. When this latter conflict drew to a close, the Romanians in Transylvania, although never particularly welcoming of the Russian presence, surrendered their weapons to the reinstated Habsburgs (Iancu's loyalty to the dynasty had been the subject of a parallel dispute between him and the Wallachians).
Final years
Bălcescu's most important work is ''Românii supt Mihai-Voievod Viteazul'' ("Romanians under the Rule of
Michael the Brave"), which he wrote in exile in 1849first published posthumously by
Alexandru Odobescu
Alexandru Ioan Odobescu (; 23 June 1834 – 10 November 1895) was a Romanian author, archaeologist and politician.
Biography
He was born in Bucharest, the second child of General Ioan Odobescu and his wife Ecaterina. After attending Saint Sav ...
in 1860. The volume is a history of Michael's campaigns, as the first moment when Wallachia, Transylvania, and Moldavia, came under a single, albeit brief rule. They show Bălcescu's commitment to both radicalism and
nationalism
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
, his view oscillating between praise of Michael's gestures and criticism of his stance as a supporter of
serfdom
Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which develop ...
and
privilege.
His final years saw an intense publishing activity, including his study, written in French, , as well as a collaboration with
Adam Mickiewicz on ''
La Tribune des Peuples''. Stricken by
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...
, impoverished, and constantly moving between various locations in France and the
Italian Peninsula, he died in
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
(in the
Two Sicilies) at 33 years of age. Bălcescu never married, though he and his lover Alexandra Florescu had a son,
Bonifaciu Florescu
Bonifaciu Florescu (first name also Boniface, Bonifacio, Bonifati, last name also Floresco; born Bonifacius Florescu; May 1848 – December 18, 1899) was a Romanian polygraph, the illegitimate son of writer-revolutionary Nicolae Bălcescu. Born se ...
(1848–1899), who became a professor of French language and literature.
Nationalization of his properties
In the present his properties remain nationalized by the
Romanian Government 2011, after 1945, as
Bălcesti Giltofani Land in
Bălcești
Bălcești is a town located in Vâlcea County, Romania. The town administers eight villages: Benești, Cârlogani, Gorunești, Chirculești, Irimești, Otetelișu, Preoțești and Satu Poieni. It is situated in the historical region of Olten ...
which in the present is
Nicolae Bălcescu Museum, taken from Bălcescu's family member
Radu Mandrea and
Aristide Razu, in 1948 by a "donation act" towards the Communist Government, in
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 ...
, in
Vâlcea County.
Also his earthly remains, remain in
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
, Italy, although the
Communist Party of Romania tried to bring them back to Romania in 1970, to use them for communist propaganda. The
Capuchin Monks in Palermo at the
Capuchin Monastery
The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...
, also known as
Capuchin catacombs of Palermo, denied to the
Romanian Communist Delegation of Historians access to the grave.
References
*
Lucian Boia, ''Istorie și mit în conștiința românească'', Bucharest, Humanitas, 1997
* Lucian Boia, ed., ''Miturile comunismului românesc'', Bucharest, Nemira, 1998: Adrian Drăgușanu, "Nicolae Bălcescu în propaganda comunistă" (pp. 98–132)
* Liviu Maior, ''1848–1849. Români și unguri în revoluție'', Bucharest, Editura Enciclopedică, 1998
* Ion Ranca, Valeriu Nițu, ''Avram Iancu: documente și bibliografie'', Bucharest, Editura Științifică, 1974
External links
Footnotes to Vol. 9 of the ''Marx-Engels Collected Works''at
Marxists.org
Marxists Internet Archive (also known as MIA or Marxists.org) is a non-profit online encyclopedia that hosts a multilingual library (created in 1990) of the works of communist, anarchist, and socialist writers, such as Karl Marx, Friedrich En ...
''Balcescu, Nicolae'' by
Dan Berindei
Dan Berindei (3 November 1923 – 23 December 2021) was a Romanian historian. He was a titular member of the Romanian Academy from 1992 until his death.
Biography
A descendant of Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu, he was born in Bucharest on 3 Nov ...
, September 9, 2004, at the Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Balcescu, Nicolae
Romanian revolutionaries
People of the Revolutions of 1848
Romanian essayists
Romanian magazine editors
Romanian magazine founders
Romanian writers in French
Writers from Bucharest
Romanian expatriates in Italy
Saint Sava National College alumni
19th-century deaths from tuberculosis
1819 births
1852 deaths
19th-century journalists
Male journalists
Tuberculosis deaths in Italy
19th-century Romanian historians
Male essayists
Members of the Romanian Academy elected posthumously
19th-century essayists
19th-century male writers
Infectious disease deaths in Sicily