Caraș County is one of the historic counties of

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

in the historic region of the

Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...

. The county seat was

Oravița Oravița (; ; ; ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Oravica, separator=/, Оравица) is a town in the Banat region of Romania, in Caraș-Severin County, with a population of 9,346 in 2021. Its theater is a fully functional scaled down version of the old Burgth ...

. The county was founded in 1926, following the division of the former

Caraș-Severin County Caraș-Severin () is a county ( județ) of Romania on the border with Serbia. The majority of its territory lies within the historical region of Banat, with a few northeastern villages considered part of Transylvania. The county seat is Reșița ...

. In 1938, the county was disestablished and incorporated into the newly formed Ținutul Timiș, but it was re-established in 1940 after the fall of

Carol II Carol II (4 April 1953) was King of Romania from 8 June 1930, until his forced abdication on 6 September 1940. As the eldest son of Ferdinand I of Romania, King Ferdinand I, he became crown prince upon the death of his grand-uncle, King Carol I, ...

's regimeonly to be abolished 10 years later by the

Communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state in which the totality of the power belongs to a party adhering to some form of Marxism–Leninism, a branch of the communist ideology. Marxism–Leninism was ...

on September 6, 1950.

Geography

Caraș County covered 4,693 km² and was located in the

region in the southwestern part of

Greater Romania Greater Romania () is the Kingdom of Romania in the interwar period, achieved after the Great Union or the related pan-nationalist ideal of a nation-state which would incorporate all Romanian speakers.Irina LivezeanuCultural Politics in Greate ...

. Currently, the territory that comprised Caraș County is mostly now included in the reconstituted

. In the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

, the county neighbored

Timiș-Torontal County Timiș-Torontal was a county () in the Kingdom of Romania. Its capital was Timișoara. The territory of the county had been transferred to Romania in 1920 from the Kingdom of Hungary under the Treaty of Trianon. Geography Timiș-Torontal County ...

to the north and northwest, Severin County to the east and northeast, and the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

to the west, south, and southwest.

Administrative organization

Administratively, Caraș County was originally divided into five districts ('' plăși''):Portretul României Interbelice – Județul Caraș
/ref> #Plasa Bocșa-Montană #Plasa Bozovici #Plasa Moldova-Nouă #Plasa Oravița #Plasa Reșița Subsequently, a sixth district was established:

Plasa Sasca-Montană

The county contained two urban communes (cities):

(the county's headquarters) and

Reșița Reșița (; ; ; ; ; ; ) is a city in western Romania and the capital of Caraș-Severin County. It is located in the Banat region. The city had a population of 58,393 in 2021. It administers six villages: Câlnic (''Kölnök''), Cuptoare (''Kupt ...

(the largest city of the county).

Population

According to the 1930 census data, the county's population was 200,929, ethnically divided as follows: 69.5% Romanians, 12.8% Germans, 4.9% Serbs and Croats, 3.6% Czechs and Slovaks, 2.8% Romanies, 2.5% Hungarians, as well as other minorities.Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 116-119 The county's population was divided religiously as follows: 70.3% Eastern Orthodox, 21.5% Roman Catholic, 5.1% Greek Catholic, 1.5% Baptist, as well as other minorities.Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 579-580

Urban population

In the year 1930, the county's urban population was 29,453, ethnically divided as follows: 43.4% Germans, 42.2% Romanians, 8.8% Hungarians, 1.6% Czechs and Slovaks, 1.4% Jews, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 50.5% Roman Catholic, 39.7% Eastern Orthodox, 3.7% Greek Catholic, 2.1% Reformed, 1.7% Jewish, 1.6% Lutheran, as well as other minorities.

References

External links

*
Caraș County on memoria.ro
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caras County Former counties of Romania 1925 establishments in Romania 1938 disestablishments in Romania 1940 establishments in Romania 1950 disestablishments in Romania States and territories established in 1925 States and territories disestablished in 1938 States and territories established in 1940 States and territories disestablished in 1950