Ștefan Golescu (1809 – 1874) was a

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 ...

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 politician who served as the

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

for two terms from 1 March 1867 to 5 August 1867 and from 13 November 1867 to 30 April 1868, and as

Prime Minister of Romania The prime minister of Romania ( ro, Prim-ministrul României), officially the prime minister of the Government of Romania ( ro, Prim-ministrul Guvernului României, link=no), is the head of the Government of Romania. Initially, the office was ...

between 26 November 1867 and 12 May 1868.

Biography

Ștefan Golescu was the son of the great patriot scholar

Dinicu Golescu Dinicu Golescu (usual rendition of Constantin Radovici Golescu; 7 February 1777 – 5 October 1830), a member of the Golescu family of boyars, was a Wallachian Romanian man of letters, mostly noted for his travel writings and journalism. Bor ...

. Born in a boyar family of the Golești, he studied with his brothers ( Nicolae and Radu) in Switzerland. After he returned, he joined the Wallachian Army and became a major in 1836. With his brother he also joined the Philharmonic Society, a society similar to 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 ...

.http://tratatuldeistorieamasoneriei.ro/ilustiri_fm.html Ștefan Golescu Ștefan was involved in the triggering of the

1848 Wallachian revolution The Wallachian Revolution of 1848 was a Romanian liberal and nationalist uprising in the Principality of Wallachia. Part of the Revolutions of 1848, and closely connected with the unsuccessful revolt in the Principality of Moldavia, it sought ...

, participating in the Islaz gathering of 9 June 1848, when he became a member of the Provisional Government, serving as Minister of Justice. During the writing of the new constitution, Ștefan Golescu supported

Nicolae Bălcescu Nicolae Bălcescu () (29 June 181929 November 1852) was a Romanian Wallachian soldier, historian, journalist, and leader of the 1848 Wallachian Revolution. Early life Born in Bucharest to a family of low-ranking nobility, he used his mother' ...

's idea 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 stan ...

, while his brother, Nicolae, favoured less expansive participation. Ștefan was part of the delegation sent by the revolutionaries to

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 ...

to negotiate the new constitution with 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) ...

, Wallachia's overlord. Ștefan Golescu was a member of the Wallachian assembly that elected

Alexandru Ioan Cuza Alexandru Ioan Cuza (, or Alexandru Ioan I, also anglicised as Alexander John Cuza; 20 March 1820 – 15 May 1873) was the first ''domnitor'' (Ruler) of the Romanian Principalities through his double election as prince of Moldavia on 5 Janua ...

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

of both Wallachia and Moldavia (1859). Afterwards, he was a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

Ion Brătianu An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by convent ...

and served for about half a year as Prime Minister of Romania in a Liberal government.

Gallery

File:Stefan Golescu desen.png, Ştefan Golescu File:Constantin Lecca - Stefan Golescu.jpg, Ştefan Golescu - by

Constantin Lecca Constantin Lecca (; 4 August 1807 – 13 October 1887) was a Romanian painter and art professor. He was the first Romanian artist to create Western-style religious paintings. Although he worked in a variety of genres, including history painting, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Golescu, Stefan 1809 births 1874 deaths People of the Revolutions of 1848 People from Câmpulung Prime Ministers of Romania Prime Ministers of the Principality of Wallachia Romanian Ministers of Foreign Affairs Romanian Ministers of Interior Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Romania) Members of the Senate of Romania Presidents of the Senate of Romania Romanian revolutionaries Stefan