Prince Ioan Sandu Sturdza or Ioniță Sandu Sturdza (1762 – 2 February 1842) was the
ruler (hospodar) of Moldavia from 21 June 1822 to 5 May 1828.
Biography
Sturdza is considered the first indigenous ruler with the end of
Phanariote
Phanariots, Phanariotes, or Fanariots (, , ) were members of prominent Greek families in Phanar (Φανάρι, modern ''Fener''), the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople where the Ecumenical Patriarchate is located, who traditionally occupied ...
rule (as a move the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
undertook after seeing the political disadvantages of
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
domination after the troubles in the
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...
).
Immediately after the Greek revolution, Prince Ioan Sturdza took an active part in subduing the roving bands of
Eterists in
Moldavia
Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...
; he transformed the
Greek language
Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), south ...
elementary schools into
Romanian language
Romanian (obsolete spelling: Roumanian; , or , ) is the official and main language of Romania and Moldova. Romanian is part of the Eastern Romance languages, Eastern Romance sub-branch of Romance languages, a linguistic group that evolved fr ...
ones and laid the foundation for that scientific national development which Prince
Mihai Sturdza
Prince Mihail Sturdza (24 April 1794 – 8 May 1884), sometimes anglicized as Michael Stourdza, was prince ruler of Moldavia from 1834 to 1849. He was cousin of Princess Roxandra Sturdza and Prince Alexandru Sturdza.
Early life
He was born a ...
continued after 1834, especially after his founding of an upper school in the
Trei Ierarhi Cathedral complex in
Iași
Iași ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the Cities in Romania, third largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical ...
. Although his project for the confiscation of some Church properties was initially blocked by Russia, Sturdza opted not to revise his position.
Opposed by the
boyars
A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including First Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russian nobility, Russia), Boyars of Moldavia and Wallach ...
who had taken refuge in
Imperial Russia
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* ...
during
Ypsilanti
Ypsilanti ( ), commonly shortened to Ypsi ( ), is a college town and city located on the Huron River in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north ...
's military rule, and threatened with the loss of his throne after the 1826 Russo-Turkish
Akkerman
Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi (, ; ; ), historically known as Aq Kirmān () or by other names, is a port city in Odesa Oblast, southwestern Ukraine. It is situated on the right bank of the Dniester Estuary leading to the Black Sea, in the historical r ...
Convention that established a seven-year term in office for Princes elected by the
Sfatul boieresc (confirmed by the Ottomans, with Russia's approval), Sturdza agreed to many boyar demands, including
tax cut
A tax cut typically represents a decrease in the amount of money taken from taxpayers to go towards government revenue. This decreases the revenue of the government and increases the disposable income of taxpayers. Tax rate cuts usually refer ...
s and exemptions from
conscription
Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...
. However, he ensured
meritocratic
Meritocracy (''merit'', from Latin , and ''-cracy'', from Ancient Greek 'strength, power') is the notion of a political system in which economic goods or political power are vested in individual people based on ability and talent, rather than ...
criteria in access to public offices. At the same time, a conflict became apparent between high- and low-ranking boyars, after the proposed
constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed.
When these pri ...
of
Ionică Tăutu Ionică Tăutu (usual rendition of Ion Tăutu; 1798–1828) was a Moldavian low-ranking boyar, Enlightenment-inspired pamphleteer, and craftsman ("an engineer by trade", according to Alecu Russo).Russo, VI
Constitutional project
The last in a ...
was rejected by most of the former (a vocal minority under the leadership of
Mihail Sturdza
Prince Mihail Sturdza (24 April 1794 – 8 May 1884), sometimes anglicized as Michael Stourdza, was prince ruler of Moldavia from 1834 to 1849. He was cousin of Princess Roxandra Sturdza and Prince Alexandru Sturdza.
Early life
He was born a ...
). In 1828, the Russians entered the country during the
Russo-Turkish War of 1828-29 and took Prince Ioan prisoner. He died while being kept in
Bessarabia
Bessarabia () 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 Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...
and was later buried in Iași.
Marriage and issue
He married Princess Ecaterina
Rosetti-Roznoveanu (1764-1847). They had:
* Prince Nicolae, married Princess Maria
Ghika-Comanesti (1805-1887), they had three daughters:
** Princess Ecaterina Sturdza (b. 1826), married as his second wife Prince Constantin
Moruzi (1819-1886),
Chamberlain at the
Imperial Court of Russia.
** Princess Zoe Sturdza, married Prince Ioan
Cantacuzino-Paşcanu (1827-1891), who served as general director of the Theater
** Princess
Pulcheria
Aelia Pulcheria (; ; 19 January 398 or 399 – 453) was an Eastern Roman empress who advised her brother, the emperor Theodosius II, during his minority and then became wife to emperor Marcian from November 450 to her death in 453.
She was th ...
(1831-1874), married Colonel Peter
Keșco (1830–1865) and became mother of
Queen Natalie of Serbia and grandmother of
King Alexander I of Serbia.
See also
*
Sturdza family
The House of Sturdza, Sturza or Stourdza () is the name of an old Moldavian noble family whose origins can be traced back to the 1540s. Members of the family played important political role in the history of Moldavia, Russia and later Romania.
...
Notes
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sturdza, Ioan
Monarchs of Moldavia
Moldavian people of the Greek War of Independence
Ioan
Ioan is a variation on the name John (first name), John found in Aromanian language, Aromanian, Romanian language, Romanian, Bulgarian language, Bulgarian, Russian language, Russian, Welsh language, Welsh (), and Sardinian language, Sardinian. It ...
Year of birth missing
Place of birth missing
Year of death missing
Place of death missing
19th-century Moldavian people