''Românul'' (, meaning "The Romanian"; originally spelled ''Romanulu'' or ''Românulŭ'', also known as ''Romînul'', ''Concordia'', ''Libertatea'' and ''Consciinti'a Nationala''), was a political and literary newspaper published 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 ...
,
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, a ...
, from 1857 to 1905. Established as the leading voice of
Romanian liberalism (the "Red" faction) in the state of
Wallachia, it had direct connections to the
radical ideology of Western Europe. Its founder and director was the aristocrat
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 son ...
, known as
Romantic
Romantic may refer to:
Genres and eras
* The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries
** Romantic music, of that era
** Romantic poetry, of that era
** Romanticism in science, of that e ...
poet,
Masonic promoter and left-wing activist, seconded by the brothers
Ion C. Brătianu
Ion Constantin Brătianu (; June 2, 1821 – May 16, 1891) was one of the major political figures of 19th-century Romania. He was the son of Dincă Brătianu and the younger brother of Dimitrie, as well as the father of Ionel, Dinu, and Vinti ...
and
Dimitrie Brătianu. ''Românul''s roots were planted in the
1848 revolutionary movement, whose press organ, ''
Pruncul Român'', was a direct predecessor.
In its first editions, ''Românul'' helped circulate the slogans of the national emancipation ideal, and campaigned for
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 Centra ...
to join Wallachia in a
union of the principalities, the basis of modern Romania. Although that union was achieved in 1859, Rosetti fell out with the elected ''
Domnitor
''Domnitor'' (Romanian pl. ''Domnitori'') was the official title of the ruler of Romania between 1862 and 1881. It was usually translated as " prince" in other languages and less often as "grand duke". Derived from the Romanian word "''domn' ...
''
Alexander John Cuza, censuring his dictatorial inclinations and being in turn censored. ''Românul'' men (Rosetti,
Eugeniu Carada) helped topple Cuza in February 1866, after which ''Românul'' became the expression of radicalism in government. During the early rule of ''Domnitor''
Carol, it became noted for bellicose statements favoring the incorporation into Romania of
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 ...
,
Bukovina, and other regions held by the
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...
; it also supported Romania's full independence from 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) ...
, and the creation of "Red" paramilitary units. This agenda was taken up by
Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu,
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 Sava ...
, and various other ''Românul'' writers. Additionally, during brief periods of conflict with Carol, ''Românul'' supported
republican agitation, most openly so in the troubled year 1870. Its inclinations toward
ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnocratic) approach to various polit ...
and
antisemitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
were additional topics of controversy.
''Românul'' men consolidated the "Red" opposition, creating the
National Liberal Party (PNL), which dominated Romanian politics from 1875 onward. ''Românul'' gave enthusiastic backing to the
Romanian War of Independence, but was not pleased by the establishment of the
Romanian Kingdom
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romania ...
. The Rosettists became the
far left of PNL, and had
socialist sympathies, being identified by the
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
opinion-makers (writers
Titu Maiorescu,
Mihai Eminescu and
Ion Luca Caragiale) with excess,
demagogy, or corruption. They also ridiculed ''Românul'' for its "
macaronic" rendition of the
Romanian language
Romanian (obsolete spellings: Rumanian or Roumanian; autonym: ''limba română'' , or ''românește'', ) is the official and main language of Romania and the Republic of Moldova. As a minority language it is spoken by stable communities in ...
.
''Românul'' unwittingly destabilized the PNL by proposing electoral and other reforms during the 1880s, and its leaders, Rosetti included, were pushed into leaving the party. In its final edition, put out by
Vintilă Rosetti Vintilă is both a masculine Romanian given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include:
Surname
*Octavian Vintilă (born 1938), Romanian fencer
*Simona Vintilă, Romanian footballer
Given name
* Vintilă Brătianu (1867–1930), Roma ...
, the openly pro-socialist newspaper went into steady decline.
History
Background and foundation
The
Rosetti (Ruset) family, of
Greek-Byzantine and
Phanariote origin, joined the
Moldo-Wallachian boyar class in the 17th century, experiencing supreme political power with the rise of
Antonie Vodă (1675), and then with the arrival of
Manolache-Giani Vodă (1770). The ''Românul'' founder was a collateral descendant of Antonie, and, despite being identified with Wallachia's liberal school, had a mainly Moldavian ancestry.
[Filitti (2006), p.7] By the time of his revolutionary debut, the various Rosetti branches populated the entire political landscape of the two principalities. Although born into this aristocratic milieu, Constantin Alexandru "C. A." Rosetti was a man of many trades (actor, translator, printer, shop-owner), a
Byronian poet by vocation, and a self-confessed friend of the people. Already as a teenager, he joined the secretive boyar clubs which subverted the ''
Regulamentul Organic'' regime, and expanded his circle of acquaintances while studying with fellow Romanian radicals at the
Collège de France.
[Netea (March 1972), p.23] Also then, he joined the Freemasonry's ''Athénée des Étrangers'', becoming Masonic brothers with Ion C. and Dimitrie Brătianu, and with the Jewish revolutionary painter
Constantin Daniel Rosenthal.
During the 1848 events, Rosetti and Ion Brătianu organized the
tanners and the youth into a revolutionary force, toppling the ''Regulamentul'' rule. Briefly imprisoned, Rosetti became Bucharest ''
Agha'' in just a couple of days, and was instrumental in combating counterrevolutionary activities. He was also among the negotiators who tried to reach a quick compromise 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) ...
, their liberal suzerain, against the wishes of
Imperial Russia
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. T ...
, their autocratic supervisor.
Between these assignments, he edited the revolution's first and main gazette, ''
Pruncul Român'' ("The Romanian Infant"). Although short lived, it enshrined in popular memory the ethical and cultural commands of Wallachian ''pașoptism'' ("48-ism").
[Netea (March 1972), p.24] It is also commonly seen as a direct precursor of ''Românul''.
Eventually, the Ottomans intervened in force against the Wallachian revolutionaries. After some mishaps, Rosetti joined his former government colleagues in their Western European exile. At that stage, he adopted the left-wing interpretation of revolutionary failure, proposing that, had
land reform been enacted and peasants emancipated from ''
corvées'', the revolutionary government would have been legitimate and defended.
He saw the future Romanian state as a republic, without "princes and boyars, without masters and servants,
..without protectors and suzerains".
At the time, Rosetti had found a new idol in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
's radical ideologue
Giuseppe Mazzini, reading and translating Mazzini's fraternal manifesto ''Alle popolazioni Rumene'' ("To the Romanian Peoples"). The Wallachian exile took to
agnosticism
Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficie ...
, reading both the Bible and
atheistic tracts, and refusing to baptize his children by
Maria Rosetti-Grant. By then, Rosetti and his men were perceived as extremists even among the leftist Wallachian émigrés:
Nicolae Bălcescu, a radical, complained that the Rosettists were "communists", and that their supposed critique of
property as theft was irritatingly obstructionist.
The
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included t ...
(which placed Wallachia and Moldavia under direct supervision of the
Great Powers) meant C. A. Rosetti and Ion Brătianu were allowed to return home. They both became involved with the "
National Party", which campaigned for a
Moldo-Wallachian Union. ''Românul'' was founded in this period of turmoil, when the National Party was slowly eroding the separatist vote in the
ad-hoc Divans
The two Ad hoc Divans were legislative{{cn, date=February 2017 and consultative assemblies of the Danubian Principalities ( Moldavia and Wallachia), vassals of the Ottoman Empire. They were established by the Great Powers under the Treaty of P ...
. Its first issue came out on 9 August 1857, barely a month after Rosetti had been invited back to Wallachia. According to one interpretation, ''Românul'' existed since February 1857, under the title ''Concordia'' ("Concord"), and changed it upon Rosetti's arrival to Bucharest.
[ Lavinia Păcurar]
"Calendar cultural"
in the Central University Library of Cluj-Napoca ''Bibliorev'', Nr. 19 ''Românul'' was originally a weekly (twice a week: 1857–1858; thrice a week: 1858–1859), but became a daily in 1859.
["''Românul''"]
''Cronologia della letteratura rumena moderna (1780–1914)''
entry, at the University of Florence's Department of Neo-Latin Languages and Literatures; retrieved 21 April 2012
The offices were originally located at No. 15 Caimatei Street.
[Pârvulescu (2011), p.110] ''Românul'' then moved into the
Pasagiul Român, renting flats from Rosetti's friend and upholsterer Peter Friedrich Bossel (a location later used by Rosetti for his ''
enoteca''). The newspaper would then move shop to Rosetti's house at No. 14 Doamnei Street, and eventually to No. 2 Academiei Street (by
Calea Victoriei).
Struggle for union

In itself, the paper's definitive name showed the patriotic fervor of the 1850s, and especially the cause of Romanian nation-building, when the name "Romanian" slowly replaced references to "Moldavian", "Wallachian" etc.
[ Ioana Pârvulescu]
"Bărbat, român, progresist"
in '' România Literară'', Nr. 38/2000 At the time, both sides of the National Party, "White" conservatives and "Red" liberals, were engaged in supporting the unionist project. From the start, the paper used the twin slogans ''Voesce'' (or ''Voiește'') ''și vei putea; Luminează-te și vei fi'' ("Will It and You Shall Achieve; Enlighten Yourself and You Shall Become"). On one level, these mottos reflected Rosetti's belief in popular education by means of the press, but were actually coined by Ion Brătianu, and probably inspired to him by Masonic lore.
[ Emanuel Bădescu]
"Inaugurarea statuii ecvestre a lui Mihai Viteazul"
in '' Ziarul Financiar'', 25 November 2011
In its first manifesto, also conceived by Brătianu, the paper exhorted the
Romanians
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Roman ...
of both countries to reflect on their shared lineage: "
he Romanians'
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
interests are identical, they had to suffer through the same things, and they have the same ideas about what they should do to make things better for themselves." Bibliographer
Eugène Hatin notes that, together with the more moderate ''
Naționalul'', the "ultra-liberal" Rosettist tribune had "the greatest influence on those events which, in Romania, marked the years 1857 to 1859." ''Românul'' hosted contributions from the archeologist and political agitator
Cezar Bolliac, who spoke out against the anti-Wallachian government of Moldavia. Bolliac attacked separatist
Nicolae Vogoride for having shut down the unionist mouthpiece ''
Steaua Dunării
Steaua Dunării (''Danube's Star'') was a political newspaper and a unionist mouthpiece founded in October 1855 by Mihail Kogălniceanu. Editors like V. A. Urechia, Vasile-Urechea Avexandrescu, Vasile Mălinescu, Iancu M. Codrescu and collaborators ...
'', and demanded
freedom of the press. C. A. Rosetti himself was Secretary of the Bucharest ad-hoc Divan, which confirmed the new
Moldavian prince Alexander John Cuza as
prince of Wallachia. Rosetti then journeyed to Moldavia, as president of the delegation which informed Cuza that the personal union had been effected.
[Netea (March 1972), p.25] He is also credited with having put together the "Red" contingency plan, that of a "revolution", had the Bucharest Divan opted not to elect Cuza.
["C. A. Rosetti. La portretul din nr. acesta"]
in '' Familia'', Nr. 17/1903, p.200–201 (digitized by the Babeș-Bolyai Universitybr>Transsylvanica Online Library
Alongside the tightening of Cuza's union, Rosetti's cultural project involved agitation for international cooperation, for
Pan-Latinism and
Francophilia
A Francophile, also known as Gallophile, is a person who has a strong affinity towards any or all of the French language, French history, French culture and/or French people. That affinity may include France itself or its history, language, cuisin ...
. In an 1857 editorial for ''Românul'', Ion Brătianu presented the earliest "Red" take on the
origin of the Romanians. In his view, the Romanian people belonged to three noble families: the
Thracians
The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...
were its roots; the
Romans its political backbone; the
Celts
The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancien ...
its intimate link with France. ''Românul'' also preserved a mythical image of C. A. Rosetti's Italian models. The newspaper's office was decorated with the portraits of Mazzini and
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, patr ...
.
[Netea (November 1972), p.15] Years later, Garibaldi wrote to thank Rosetti for having regularly sent him issues of ''Românul''.
There was a less transparent agenda followed by the ''Românul'' ideologues. According to Călinescu, Rosetti had adopted liberalism only because it conveyed his ideal of national independence, and, beneath the "extravagant and fanatical" liberal dogma, he was more of a "
reactionary". During the struggle for union, Rosetti took a pragmatic approach. He was one of the party's envoys to the
French Empire
French Empire (french: Empire Français, link=no) may refer to:
* First French Empire, ruled by Napoleon I from 1804 to 1814 and in 1815 and by Napoleon II in 1815, the French state from 1804 to 1814 and in 1815
* Second French Empire, led by Nap ...
, and noted with satisfaction that
Napoleon III
Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
"defends us like a fellow Romanian". Nevertheless, he stood against his increasingly nationalistic colleagues in the "Red" faction for always prioritizing
popular sovereignty
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political power. Popular sovereignty, being a principle, does not imply any ...
and
majoritarianism
Majoritarianism is a traditional political philosophy or agenda that asserts that a majority (sometimes categorized by religion, language, social class, or some other identifying factor) of the population is entitled to a certain degree of pri ...
over the supposed interests of the Romanian race.
Meanwhile, ''Românul'' itself experienced some pushes toward
ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnocratic) approach to various polit ...
. In a later article, explaining his concept of a Roman racial and political legacy in modern-day life, Ion Brătianu came to the conclusion that democracy was innate to the Romanian psyche, but also subsumed to the other national characteristics. Just one year after Brătianu's praise of the Thracian-Roman-Celtic conglomerate, Bolliac used ''Românul'' to publicize his finds about the ancient
Dacians
The Dacians (; la, Daci ; grc-gre, Δάκοι, Δάοι, Δάκαι) were the ancient Indo-European inhabitants of the cultural region of Dacia, located in the area near the Carpathian Mountains and west of the Black Sea. They are often cons ...
, and his theory that the Romanian identity had very deep, non-Roman, roots.
The idea behind Rosetti's movement was a
Left-Hegelian concept, paraphrased by literary historian
George Călinescu as "God is revealed in nations", and inducing the notion of a united front against oppression. Early Rosettism was remarkably open to the social integration of
Romanian Jews. In the age of
liberal nationalism, Rosetti and ''Românul'' were condemning the spread of
antisemitic violence and
blood libel literature in Romania. The campaign, also taken up by Rosetti's political rival
Ion Heliade Rădulescu, persuaded the Wallachian authorities to shut down an antisemitic gazette ''Praștia'' ("Slingshot").
Literary circle
With a primarily cultural agenda, ''Românul'' gathered around it a cosmopolitan and multicultural club. In its first year, it hosted one of the first
serialized novel
In literature, a serial is a printing or publishing format by which a single larger work, often a work of narrative fiction, is published in smaller, sequential instalments. The instalments are also known as ''numbers'', ''parts'' or ''fascicl ...
s in
Romanian literature, called ''Omul muntelui'' ("Man of the Mountain"). Signed by a "Lady L.", it was probably written by the Franco-Romanian Marie Boucher (who enlisted the help of Moldavian author
V. A. Urechia). Two other women writers were noted contributors to ''Românul''. One was Rosetti's
Guernseyian wife Maria. The other was a Moldavian unionist,
Sofia Cocea Sofia Cocea (1839–1861), also known under her married name as Sofia Chrisoscoleu or as Sofia Hrisoscoleu, was a Moldavian, later Romanian essayist, journalist and poet.
Biography
Born in Fălticeni, she was from a modest family of estate managers ...
.
''Românul'' also received contributions from
Austrian E. "Iernescu" Winterhalder, the pioneer
stenographer and co-owner of Rosetti's print shop. Winterhalder and Rosetti had already collaborated on an
almanac
An almanac (also spelled ''almanack'' and ''almanach'') is an annual publication listing a set of current information about one or multiple subjects. It includes information like weather forecasts, farmers' planting dates, tide tables, and othe ...
of literature, which notably hosted some of the first works by the junior "48-ist"
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 Sava ...
. In an 1859 piece for ''Românul'', Winterhalder assured the reading public that Bucharest was fast becoming recognized for its
Westernization efforts. Odobescu himself was a staff writer at ''Românul'', where he published his historical novella on
Mihnea cel Rău (October 1857), and then his friendly polemic with Rosetti, on the subject of
dramaturgy. The ''Românul'' founder was twice manager of the
National Theater Bucharest
The National Theatre Bucharest ( ro, Teatrul Naţional " Ion Luca Caragiale" București) is one of the national theatres of Romania, located in the capital city of Bucharest.
Founding
It was founded as the ''Teatrul cel Mare din București'' (" ...
, and, as such, published calls for the young boyars to sponsor the
national repertoire, or chronicles of the plays staged by theater pioneer
Matei Millo. Similar articles were later published in ''Românul'' by the actress and feminist
Maria Flechtenmacher
Maria Flechtenmacher (born Maria Mavrodin; 1838–1888) was a Romanian writer, publicist and pedagogue.
Her parents were Costache and Anica Mavrodin. She was educated in private girls schools. In 1850–1853, she was active as an actress, and af ...
.
In May 1858, ''Românul'' published ''Sciarlatanul'' ("The Charlatan"), a story by the Wallachian novelist
Alexandru Pelimon
Alexandru is the Romanian form of the name Alexander. Common diminutives are Alecu, Alex, and Sandu.
Origin
Etymologically, the name is derived from the Greek "Αλέξανδρος" (Aléxandros), meaning "defending men" or "protector of men" ...
. Also in correspondence with the newspaper, the
Aromanian Romantic poet
Dimitrie Bolintineanu introduced the work of his disciple,
Mihail Zamphirescu Mihail Zamphirescu (1838 (or 1839)–June 15, 1878) was a Wallachian, later Romanian poet.
He was born in Bucharest, but little is known about his early life. His father was probably named Zamfir, and he attended Saint Sava College. He may have ...
(August 1858), and complained about the disenfranchisement of Aromanian immigrants to Romania (March 1861). ''Românul'' played host to the
Albano-Romanian aristocrat
Dora d'Istria, being one of the first local periodicals to acknowledge her literary work (her text, ''L'Italia s'è fatta!'', was published by Rosetti in December 1860).
Conflict with Cuza: the early years
Just months after the union act, Rosetti fell out with Cuza: he called for faster and ampler structural reforms than those effected by the ''
Domnitor
''Domnitor'' (Romanian pl. ''Domnitori'') was the official title of the ruler of Romania between 1862 and 1881. It was usually translated as " prince" in other languages and less often as "grand duke". Derived from the Romanian word "''domn' ...
''s moderate government.
[Isărescu ''et al.'', p.8] Together with the political humorist
N. T. Orășanu
Nicolae T. Orășanu (1833?–August 7, 1890) was a Wallachian-born Romanian poet, prose writer and newspaper editor.
Born in Craiova, he attended high school at Saint Sava College in the national capital Bucharest. As a young man, Orășa ...
, he began issuing ''Țânțarul'' ("The Mosquito"). Purportedly the first ever Romanian satirical magazine, it was only in print until 15 August 1859.
On 24 September, Cuza ordered ''Românul'' to be shut down, nominating it as one of the gazettes who had "forgotten the respect they owe to the powers that be"; the other was ''Nikipercea'', a new satirical magazine put out by Orășanu.
Among those who protested against this measure was a young liberal,
Eugeniu Carada. Remarked by Rosetti, and recommended by Bolliac,
[Cristian Păunescu, Marian Ștefan, "Un părinte al bătrânei doamne: Eugeniu Carada", in '' Magazin Istoric'', November 1995, p.34][ Remus Zăstroiu]
"Preocupările literare și ziaristice ale lui Eugeniu Carada"
in '' Revista 22'', Nr. 1080, November 2010 Carada worked for ''Românul'' until 1871 (and was briefly engaged to Rosetti's daughter Libby).
Soon after, the newspaper was again in print, with Carada as editorial secretary, then editorial manager. His articles were a condemnation of censorship and arbitrariness, with slogans such as: "the greater the tyranny, the more violent the liberty." He and Rosetti reputedly wrote much of the newspaper together, and even worked on each other's articles. Such contributions were many times unsigned or pseudonymous, making it nearly impossible to determine authorship.
[Isărescu ''et al.'', p.35] In 1860, when Rosetti served as Minister of Education in the Wallachian government of
Nicolae Golescu, Carada refused to fill in as ''Românul'' chief, considering himself unfit for the part.
Carada still took over much of the editorial activity, since the ''Românul'' founders were employed on other tasks, and participated in the debates on dramaturgy. He wrote suggestions about staging ''
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...
'' (March 1861), and published condemnations of "immoral" shows at the National Theater.
With Rosetti absent, he introduced new columns: a summary of foreign news; a
Parliamentary column with a summary of political discussions; a section for cultural news and anecdotes; and a new selection of (usually
modern French) serialized novels.
In time, he began signing his contributions, including the political column once monopolized by Rosetti, and began using a milder and drier rhetoric, while defending ''Românul'' against accusations of frivolousness (specifically, those voiced by writer-politician
Ion Ghica).
A historian,
Constantin D. Aricescu, became the new director, having already served as ''Românul'' administrator since 1859.
[Călinescu, p.276] He had not previously been regarded as a journalist, since the custom of the day was to formally distinguish between writers and administrators.
Also then, the writing staff was joined by
Nicolae Nicoleanu Nicolae Nicoleanu (born Neagoe Tomoșoiu; June 16, 1835–April 7, 1871) was an Imperial Austrian-born Romanian poet.
Born in Cernatu Săcelelor, a village near Brașov in the Austrian Empire, he crossed into Wallachia to attend the episcopal ...
, better known as a poet of the Romanian salons. Others were drawn in by Rosetti's criticism of the regime.
Pantazi Ghica, the lawyer and Romantic author, published Orășanu's appeal from prison, addressed to the readers of ''Românul'' and ''Nikipercea'', then opened a donation list for the anti-Cuza protesters arrested in
Oltenia.
[Călinescu, p.391] Odobescu also returned with an open letter, claiming that Wallachia's government, under
Manolache Costache Epureanu
Manolache Costache Epureanu (1823–1880) was twice the Prime Minister of Romania both as a representative of the Conservative Party and of the National Liberal Party, more specifically for the first time in 1870 (20 April–14 December) and f ...
, was pressuring civil servants into voting "White". During 1861, Rosetti settled his scores with the leader of "48-ist" moderates, Heliade Rădulescu. The radicals' chief, who had helped marginalize Rădulescu since the 1850s, published a scathing satire by the Wallachian Romantic
Grigore Alexandrescu
Grigore Alexandrescu (; 22 February 1810, Târgovişte – 25 November 1885 in Bucharest) was a nineteenth-century Romanian poet and translator noted for his fables with political undertones.
He founded a periodical, ''Albina Româneasc� ...
, which showed a terrified Rădulescu choking on his envy.
In this new edition, ''Românul'' campaigned for the creation of a volunteer police force, the "Citizens' Guard", in support of the embryonic
Romanian Army. In August 1862, it argued that such a Guard was urgently needed "to preserve obedience to the law, to keep and reaffirm public order and peace, to help the standing army in defending the country's borders, to preserve the country's autonomy and her territorial integrity".
[Totu, p.78] Rosetti held the military in high esteem, refusing to protect Aricescu when he was arrested for insulting the officers.
The attempts to forge an independent military were not well received by the Ottomans, who tried to impose a
blockade
A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force.
A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which ar ...
on the arms trade. Although some weapons were confiscated in the process, ''Românul'' informed its readers that, with French assistance, many were still passing through. ''Românul'', available to the Romanian intellectuals in
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 ...
(a
Guberniya of the Russian Empire) at some 4
silver руб. per year, was read and censored by the Governor
Mikhail Fonton de Verraillon before being made available to the Bessarabian public. By then, Rosetti was hosting pieces which announced projects of uniting the federated principalities with the other Romanian-inhabited provinces. In a letter for ''Românul'', the Bessarabian-born scholar
Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu claimed: "I was the first to raise a toast for fusing together all parts of the vast Romania."
Meanwhile, Rosetti and his supporters were scheming to depose the
authoritarian ''Domnitor''. Like many other liberals, they feared that Cuza was slowly doing away with Romania's
two-party system
A two-party system is a political party system in which two major political parties consistently dominate the political landscape. At any point in time, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually refe ...
, and monopolizing the application of reforms. In 1863, the newspaper inaugurated its practice of reviving republican rhetoric whenever a ruling monarch disagreed with Rosetti, although it also supported Cuza's replacement with a foreign prince. According to the
Brașov paper ''
Gazeta Transilvaniei'', ''Românul'' was by then an organ of the "oligarchy" (comprising a "tightly democratic party" and a "boyar party"), backing
Premier Nicolae Crețulescu in his standoff with Cuza.
[Jacobu Muresianu, "Cronica esterna. Principatele Unite Romane", in '' Gazeta Transilvaniei'', Nr. 44/1864, p.177] At ''
Buciumul'' gazette, Aricescu and Bolliac also turned against ''Românul'', "the Oligarchy", and the "
monstrous coalition", praising Cuza as the real democrat.
Although it lost Aricescu, ''Românul'' employed
Radu Ionescu
Radu may refer to:
People
* Radu (given name), Romanian masculine given name
* Radu (surname), Romanian surname
* Rulers of Wallachia, see
* Prince Radu of Romania (born 1960), disputed pretender to the former Romanian throne
Other uses
* Radu ( ...
, who had been imprisoned by Cuza and had feigned madness to get out, and
I. C. Fundescu
I is the ninth letter of the Latin alphabet.
I or i may also refer to:
Language
* I (pronoun), the first-person singular subject pronoun in English
* I (Cyrillic), a letter used in almost all ancient and modern Cyrillic alphabets
* ı, dotles ...
, who had fled from Bucharest to Moldavia in order to escape the monarch's wrath.
Conflict with Cuza: Polish affair of 1863

In late 1863, Carada was assigned to contact Europe's radical underground, gaining Mazzini's support for Cuza's ouster. Before leaving, he addressed an emotional letter of homage to Rosetti, Brătianu and others "form the great family that is the National Party", honoring them as his educators in matters of civic mindedness.
At home, Rosetti began working with the
Polish migrants, who came to the principalities in the wake of the
January Uprising, and who were still determined to fight Russia. ''Românul'' men attended the "sublime ceremony" organized by Polish revolutionaries in
Bărăția Church, and praised the Romanian legislators for setting aside funds to benefit the new arrivals (January 1864). As Russia called on Cuza to evict these expatriates, the Rosettists urged tolerance, dismissing rumors that the Romanian authorities would take their cue from
Tsar Alexander.
''Românul''s friendship with the Poles alarmed the fellow "Red" Hasdeu. In Hasdeu's definition, the Poles were "a bunch of irresponsible people" whose revolutionary agenda clashed with popular opinion. Cuza's ultimate decision to banish the Polish diaspora committees, Hasdeu claimed, was prophylactic. In reply, the Rosettists added to their international propaganda campaign allegations that Cuza was a
Russophile and a scheming illiberal. According to Rosetti and ''Românul'', Cuza had betrayed his promise that "those who set their foot on Romanian soil are freed men".
From early 1864, once Cuza installed a personal regime in lieu of parliamentarism, ''Românul'' was explicitly in the political opposition. Rosetti's first editorial after Cuza's coup announced that, as a sign of protest, ''Românul'' would simply refuse to publish political news, and implied that a reign of terror had begun. Reportedly, this boycott irritated the government, keen to preserve the image of liberalism. ''Românul'' then returned to political news, with a letter from Rosetti's political ally,
Ștefan Golescu
Ștefan Golescu (1809 – 1874) was a Wallachian Romanian politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs 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 b ...
, who claimed that he and his family were being harassed by the authorities. Afterwards, the newspaper openly attacked Cuza for changing the organic laws and for
appealing to the nation. According to ''Gazeta Transilvaniei'', it was losing popular support in the provinces, as many of those "who previously held
'Românul''as their gospel" switched to the Cuza camp. ''Gazeta'' concluded that the Wallachian public was largely unprincipled, with the ideological worth of "watermelon flowers".
Although still plotting Cuza's ouster, ''Românul'' took a favorable view of the
land reform enacted by the ''Domnitor'', and acclaimed him for decreeing the
secularization of monastery estates. The so-called "rural law", which granted monastery land to the peasants, was republished by ''Românul'' in 2,000 copies (about a third of the copies in circulation).
[Jacobu Muresianu, "Cronica esterna. Princip. Unite Romane", in '' Gazeta Transilvaniei'', Nr. 25/1864, p.99] The gazette also initiated a humanitarian campaign to help Bucharesters stricken by the June 1864 floods, and collected some 5,000
Ducats through public subscription.
On 25 July 1865, during troubles in the capital, Cuza again banned the Rosettist tribune. Just one day later, Rosetti produced the newspaper ''Libertatea'' ("Freedom"), which was in effect ''Românul'' under a new title. This edition was also banned by the Cuza regime, but, after only eight days, the newspaper reemerged as ''Consciinti'a Nationala'' ("National Conscience").
["Constantinu A. Rosetti" (1884), p.54] Italian observers received such news with concern: ''
Nuova Antologia'' wrote that the "persecution" of liberal newspapers, and in particular the shutting down of "''Romanulu'', press organ of the democratic leader Mr. Rossetti
ic, jeopardized Cuza's good reputation.
"Monstrous coalition" and Citizens' Guard

Carada had by then made his way back to Bucharest, and was fast becoming one of the most anti-Cuza publicists. His ''Consciinti'a Nationala'' piece of 1 August 1865 claimed that the monarch's offer 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 ...
was a sham, and that, in the
1864 election, "a flock of ignoramuses" had reconfirmed "a shameless dictator." Cuza retorted by arresting Rosetti, who was briefly held in a Bucharest prison,
[Călinescu, p.169] and by shutting down ''Consciinti'a Nationala''.
''Românul'' had already warned its public that, due to the Polish affair, Russia was pressuring Cuza into censoring the press.
It is probable that the
Russian Consulate
This is a list of diplomatic missions of Russia. These missions are subordinate to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Russian Federation has one of the largest networks of embassies and consulates of any country. Russia has significa ...
ordered the raid on the ''Românul'' offices, confiscating some issues of Rosetti's other periodical (''Ecclesia'') and the manuscript of a Bessarabian novel (''Aglaie'', probably written by
Constantin Stamati-Ciurea
Constantin Stamati-Ciurea (4 May 1828 Chişinău – 22 February 1898) was a Romanian writer and translator from Bessarabia. The son of Constantin Stamati, he followed in his father's footsteps as an author of prose, plays, and translations. ...
). When it first seemed that Cuza's regime was going to clamp down on ''Consciinti'a Nationala'', Carada decided to take full responsibility for his own agenda. Without handing in his resignation, he inaugurated his own, entirely anti-Cuza, gazette: ''Clopotul'' ("The Tocsin").
The radicals were active participants in the "
monstrous coalition" coup that brought Cuza's downfall in February 1866. At the helm of a "Mazzinian" secret committee, C. A. Rosetti and his pupil
Constantin Ciocârlan
Constantin is an Aromanian, Megleno-Romanian and Romanian male given name. It can also be a surname.
For a list of notable people called Constantin, see Constantine (name).
See also
* Constantine (name)
Constantine ( or ; Latin: ''Cōnsta ...
represented the leftist "Reds" in the conspiracy. They reputedly promised to lead the Bucharest populace into a show of support. When no one showed up for the rally, the other conspirators teased Rosetti with the question: "Where is that people of yours?" ''Românul'', again in print when Cuza left the country,
romanticized the events, referring to the coup's anniversary as "a holy day" in the Romanian calendar. According to a popular myth, Rosetti and Carada were the secret authors of the
June 1866 Constitution, largely translated, in one night, from the
Belgian model.
The
triumvirate of regents appointed Rosetti the
Romanian Minister of Education and Religious Affairs, in which capacity he instituted the
Romanian Academic Society
The Romanian Academic Society (''Societatea Academică din România'' in Romanian) is a Bucharest-based think tank and NGO founded in 1996. It is considered close to the right wing of politics.
SAR seeks to
*Contribute to good governance and de ...
.
Rumors circulated that the Minister had made strange efforts to democratize his institution, addressing his subordinates as "brothers", and introducing his
circulaire In France, Italy, Belgium, and some other civil law countries, a circulaire (French), circolare ( Italian) or omzendbrief ( Dutch) consists of a text intended for the members of a service, of an enterprise, or of an administration.
Within the ...
s with the ''Românul'' motto ''Luminează-te și vei fi''.
He resigned shortly after his Constitution passed the
popular vote, allegedly because he did not enjoy being in power.
During the subsequent debates, ''Românul'' did not necessarily oppose the annulment of Cuza's universal suffrage, nor its replacement with
census suffrage. The paper hosted some articles in which "A Subscriber" proposed to maintain in spirit Cuza's electoral reform, but his opinion had no discernible echoes. Writing for Rosetti's
almanac
An almanac (also spelled ''almanack'' and ''almanach'') is an annual publication listing a set of current information about one or multiple subjects. It includes information like weather forecasts, farmers' planting dates, tide tables, and othe ...
(''Calendarulŭ Romanului''), but a conservative at heart, Radu Ionescu stated the case in his essay ''Justiție și libertate'' ("Justice and Freedom"). Ionescu argued that dividing the country into wealth-based electoral colleges was "the ultimate expression of democracy". However, he conditioned the reform's success on the thorough application of "electoral freedom".
By then, Rosetti had also been granted approval for his "Citizens' Guard". Legislation to this effect, passed in January 1864 and vetoed by Cuza, was enforced in March 1866.
The new armed force, primarily a Rosettist and officially classless institution, comprised the ''
petite bourgeoisie
''Petite bourgeoisie'' (, literally 'small bourgeoisie'; also anglicised as petty bourgeoisie) is a French term that refers to a social class composed of semi-autonomous peasants and small-scale merchants whose politico-economic ideologica ...
'' and skilled workers, most of whom were also subscribers to ''Românul''. During April 1866, ''Românul'' reported about the intrigues of Moldavian separatists and Russophiles, who, under boyars
Nicolae Roznovanu Nicolae may refer to:
* Nicolae (name), a Romanian name
* ''Nicolae'' (novel), a 1997 novel
See also
* Nicolai (disambiguation)
* Nicolao
{{disambig ...
and
Constantin A. Moruzi
Constantin is an Aromanian, Megleno-Romanian and Romanian male given name. It can also be a surname.
For a list of notable people called Constantin, see Constantine (name).
See also
* Constantine (name)
Constantine ( or ; Latin: ''Cōnsta ...
, attempted to provoke a quick breakup of the United Principalities. According to its account, the scandal, which ended in bloodshed, had been planted by Russia: "The complicity of the government in
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 ...
is self-evident; the enterprise of the Russian subject Moruzi, with his Phanariotes, his
Lipovans and his other foreigners, has shown what sort of support Russia can expect to get from the Romanians of
Iași!" In contrast, the Citizens' Guard was advertised by ''Românul'' as not just an instrument of public order, but also "the great, beautiful, liberal and national institution".
Radical governments and Hasdeu's Transylvanian agenda

The period of instability ended when the liberal bloc agreed to back a foreign aristocrat for the position of ''Domnitor''. The throne was ultimately accepted by a
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen prince,
Carol I. The "Reds" were initially placated by the selection, but their discontent grew once Carol made "White" politics his own. For Carol, Rosetti was a suspicious figure on the "far left", or ''Haupt der extremen Radikalen'' ("Head of the extreme Radicals").
While the "White" camp became a
Prussian party, the liberals oscillated between Francophilia and Russophilia. The Rosettists had a key position: they supported Russia whenever she promised emancipation to the Ottomans' Christian subjects, even at the risk of upsetting France (isolated as it was by the continental
Great Powers).
[Brătescu, p.115–116]
Before and after the February coup, Rosetti's paper strongly supported the creation of a reformed Romanian Army, under General
Gheorghe Magheru. Dimitrie Brătianu's columns suggested a volunteer defense force, comprising some 30,000 men.
[Avramescu (July–August 1968), p.145] The newspaper hinted that the Army could switch to an offensive role for the cause of
irredentism, referring to the toppling of
Imperial Austrian rule over Romanian-inhabited
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 ...
—as had been the case in Italy with Garibaldi's
Redshirts. At the time, Romania also feared that Cuza's dethronement opened the way for a new Ottoman invasion. At his ''Românul'' office, Rosetti was contacted by
Bulgarian revolutionary Ivan Kasabov, who represented the
Internal Revolutionary Organization in the conspiracy against Ottoman rule. Rosetti, Carada and Ciocârlan were the Romanian contacts of the
Bulgarian Central Committee, helping it prepare for an uprising in
Rumelia
Rumelia ( ota, روم ايلى, Rum İli; tr, Rumeli; el, Ρωμυλία), etymologically "Land of the Romans", at the time meaning Eastern Orthodox Christians and more specifically Christians from the Byzantine rite, was the name of a hi ...
, and transmitting its messages to Mazzini.
By summer 1866, ''Românul'' was in contact with a Moldavian-born adventurer,
Titus Dunka, who had gained distinction as a Redshirt in the
Third Italian War of Independence. Recommended to Rosetti by Garibaldi himself, Dunka arrived in Wallachia with his commander
István Türr, enlisting local men for a projected anti-Austrian revolutionary army.
These efforts blended with the creation of a Romanian volunteer army: in a letter to ''Românul'', Dunka's father Ștefan offered his services as an officer; meanwhile, in Austrian Transylvania, a military invasion by Romania was being factored in as a likely scenario.
Between March 1867 and November 1868, Rosettist radicalism was the governing ideology of Romania, and Rosetti even continued to serve as Minister of Education and Religious Affairs. The three successive Rosettist "Red" cabinets passed legislation favoring the Citizens' Guard, and supplied it with arms bought at
public auction. During this momentary "Red" triumph, ''Românul'' was joined by a former rival, Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu. Although he only contributed to ''Românul'' during that interval, he cemented the Rosettists' all-Romanian unionist agenda. Making frequent study trips to Transylvania (where ''Românul'' was available at 40
florins annually), Hasdeu wrote ideological articles against all forms of
regionalism
Regionalism may refer to:
* Regionalism (art), an American realist modern art movement that was popular during the 1930s
* Regionalism (international relations), the expression of a common sense of identity and purpose combined with the creation a ...
, praising the newly founded Academic Society as the vanguard of ethnic uniformity.
[Maciu, p.26]
''Românul''s agenda was complimented by the satirical magazine ''
Ghimpele'', which vulgarized the "Red" interpretation of current events. ''Românul'' employed Hasdeu's friend and former ''Ghimpele'' contributor
Gheorghe Dem Theodorescu
Gheorghe Dem Teodorescu (25 August 1849 – 20 August 1900) was a Wallachian, later Romanian folklorist, literary historian and journalist.
Origins, education and early career
Born in Bucharest, he was an only son. His father Tudor came fro ...
, who stayed on as editor until 1874, and, as theater critic,
Al. Lăzărescu-Laerțiu
AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for:
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media
* Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera
* Al (''Fullmetal ...
(who died in 1876).
In ''Românul'', Hasdeu reiterated the major objective of "Red" nationalism: the integration of Transylvania.
Distanced from the group, and acting as Romanian diplomatic agent in
Pest
Pest or The Pest may refer to:
Science and medicine
* Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns
** Weed, a plant considered undesirable
* Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection
** ...
,
Radu Ionescu
Radu may refer to:
People
* Radu (given name), Romanian masculine given name
* Radu (surname), Romanian surname
* Rulers of Wallachia, see
* Prince Radu of Romania (born 1960), disputed pretender to the former Romanian throne
Other uses
* Radu ( ...
censured such projects: "People of influence do not take into account the annexation of Transylvania, as that would be very difficult for us, given
he region's
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
varied races". However, the Romanian community of Austria (and of
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
from 1867) was quick to respond to this agenda. The
Banat
Banat (, ; hu, Bánság; sr, Банат, Banat) is a geographical and historical region that straddles Central and Eastern Europe and which is currently divided among three countries: the eastern part lies in western Romania (the counties of ...
Romanian
Iulian "Julianu" Grozescu, who visited Rosetti in Bucharest, argued that the Bucharest newspaper's "strength of character" was worthy "of the most civilized nations". The Transylvanian militant journalist
George Bariț was a regular correspondent, reporting on the clashes of opinion between Romanians and Hungarians, and
Ioniță Scipione Bădescu Ioniță is a Romanian surname and given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Alexandru Ioniță (footballer, born 1989), Romanian footballer
*Alexandru Ioniță (footballer, born 1994), Romanian footballer
*Anamaria Ioniță (born 1988), R ...
sent in for publishing some of his first poetic works.
Jewish naturalization scandal
The evident rapprochement between Prussia, Austria-Hungary and Russia was disappointing for Rosetti, but not so for I. Brătianu. There was a rift between the ''Românul'' liberals: Brătianu took the Prussian advise and opened channels of communication with Russia; in ''Românul'', Rosetti cautioned that Russia was only after the
Budjak area and the
Danube Delta (an argument much like those advanced by "White" diplomacy). Meanwhile, Dunka also took his distance from Rosetti. He traveled to
Odessa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrat ...
. where he paid a personal homage to
Tsar Alexander.
In this setting, a major political scandal shook Romania. The Romanian establishment, internationally noted for its unwillingness to adopt
Jewish emancipation
Jewish emancipation was the process in various nations in Europe of eliminating Jewish disabilities, e.g. Jewish quotas, to which European Jews were then subject, and the recognition of Jews as entitled to equality and citizenship rights. It ...
, was being asked by the Western governments to naturalize its large
Jewish community. As Minister, Rosetti was directly interested in the matter, and looked favorably on the naturalization project. ''Românul'' exchanged pleasantries with the Jewish community leaders during the
Choral Temple inauguration, and its editor probably intervened in favor of the Wallachian Jewish communities. Rosetti's tolerance was noticed by an
antisemitic lobby within "Red" liberalism, and in particular by Bolliac's ''
Trompeta Carpaților
"Trompeta" is a song by French DJ, record producer and singer Willy William. It was released through Scorpio Music on 18 February 2022 as a single. The song samples the 1989 song "Infinity
Infinity is that which is boundless, endless, or ...
'' gazette—in August 1866, it alleged that Rosetti, I. Brătianu and ''Românul'' were surrendering the country to the ''
Alliance Israélite Universelle''. In the end, Hasdeu's ideas on Jews and antisemitism also made it into the columns of ''Românul''. His 1868 essay ''Istoria toleranțeĭ religióse în Romănia'' ("The History of Religious Toleration in Romania"), serialized by the "Red" paper, distinguished between three kinds of Judaism: the ancient religion—indifferent to the Romanians, "
Spanish Judaism"—more positive than not, and "
Polish Judaism"—entirely pernicious, exploitative.
''Românul''s ideological stance, and in particular its antisemitic position, were being reviewed with concern by the rival newspaper ''Térra'', put out by the "Whites"
Nicolae Moret Blaremberg
Nicolae Moret Blaremberg (December 24, 1837–January 25, 1896) was a Romanian politician.
He was the son of Vladimir Blaremberg, a military engineers’ officer in the Imperial Russian Army, who settled in Bucharest in 1828 and was related by ...
and
Petre P. Carp. The latter identified the Hasdeu–Rosetti enterprise of being a "
Karkaleki newspaper", following in the footsteps of demagogic and mystifying journalism; it also ridiculed Hasdeu's opinions on politics, art and literature. For Carp, the time of "48-ist" glory had passed, and it fell on the "Whites" to begin "the more modest work of
ationalconsolidation". ''Térra'' accepted Jewish emancipation, condemned the renewed spread of antisemitic violence in the provinces, and accused the radical "Red" ministers,
Ștefan Golescu
Ștefan Golescu (1809 – 1874) was a Wallachian Romanian politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs 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 b ...
and Ion Brătianu included, of being hypocrites.
By late 1868, the liberals' opposition to the ''status quo'', and especially the toleration of Bulgarian revolutionaries on Romanian soil, generated an international scandal, and the radical cabinet of
Nicolae Golescu was intimidated into relinquishing power; "Whites" leader
Dimitrie Ghica took over the premiership. D. Ghica was also supported from abroad as a means to curb the antisemitic disturbances. Again in the opposition, ''Românul'' was eventually convinced to tone down its pro-Bulgarian activism, assuming the official government position and, according to
Appleton
Appleton may refer to:
People
*Appleton (surname)
Places Australia
* Appleton Dock
Canada
* Appleton, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Appleton, Ontario
United Kingdom
* Appleton, a deserted medieval village site in the parish of Flitcham w ...
's ''American Annual Cyclopædia'', "exhort
ngthe inhabitants of Bulgaria to preserve tranquility."
Soon after, ''Românul'' backed the government's show of force against the
Hungarian colony in Wallachia, applauding from the side as the Hungarian revolutionary journal, ''Hunnia'', was forcefully shut down.
[ Adrian Majuru]
''Presa maghiară bucureșteană (III)''
E-Antropolog
28 June 2011; retrieved 21 April 2012 ''Hunnia'' founder
Ferenc Koós
Ferenc () is a given name of Hungarian origin. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, Francesco, François, Frank and Franz. People with the name include:
* Ferenc Batthyány, Hungarian magnate and general
* Ferenc Berényi, Hungarian artist
* ...
, who was ordered to leave Romania, later alleged that the ''Românul'' founder had personally warned him not to be too good a Hungarian patriot. However, Rosetti still inventoried cases of government abuse. In October 1869, ''Românul'' reported a
Gendarme raid on
Cuca-Măcăi village, during which several peasants were arbitrarily killed.
Franco-Prussian War and Strousberg Affair

The year 1870 opened with a step toward national sovereignty, as Carol approved the creation of a national currency, the
Romanian leu. Unlike Hasdeu's liberals, ''Românul'' and ''Trompeta Carpaților'' were supporters of the measure, although Carada made sanguine comments about the "feudal" coinage inscription ("Lord of the Romanians") and the conspicuous absence of
senators from the royal ceremony. Titus Dunka, who had settled to a quiet life in Romania, became a correspondent of both ''Românul'' and ''Ghimpele''. D. Bolintineanu returned with analytical articles on current events, writing until April 1870, when old age and disease incapacitated him.
Only months later, when the
Franco-Prussian War erupted, Dunka volunteered to fight on the French side, and was also Rosetti's war reporter, before falling wounded outside
Soissons. When news of the French Empire's
ultimate defeat reached Romania, ''Românul'' commended the returning Romanians for having rendered "the most accurate and ardent expression" of Romania's love for "her older sister in the West".
[Avramescu (September 1968), p.83] Rosetti himself left Romania to cover the
French Republic's effort to resist Prussian attacks, interviewing
Léon Gambetta and Garibaldi. The
fall of Paris (28 January 1871) was a shock for ''Românul''. News of this was published with the symbols of mourning, and introduced with the words: ''
ardele teutone calcă sacrul pământ'' ("
Teutonic hordes are trampling upon hallowed ground"). In June, ''Românul'' announced that its founder was leaving Romania for a longer while, settling in
Southern France with the intent of educating his children. He only returned in March 1871, having left the newspaper in Carada's care.
The conflict at home was exacerbated by the
Strousberg Affair, revealing a direct Prussian involvement in the
Romanian Railways project. The situation was rendered explosive by the mixture of republicanism, Francophilia and
anti-German sentiment, intertwined with Dimitrie Brătianu's more utopian program: a Mazzinian
world government
World government is the concept of a single political authority with jurisdiction over all humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors.
A world gove ...
. The commercial hub of
Ploiești (or ''Ploeșcii'') played home to a republican committee, taking its orders from D. Brătianu and the Rosettists. The club's leaders were poet
Alexandru Sihleanu
Alexandru Sihleanu (January 6, 1834–March 14, 1857) was a noted Wallachian poet, brother in law of politician Constantin Grădișteanu.
Biography
Born in Bucharest to ''paharnic'' (royal cup-bearer) Zamfirache Sihleanu and his wife, Ma ...
and military man
Alexandru Candiano-Popescu. During the
electoral battle of 1870, Sihleanu took up D. Brătianu's claim that Ploiești was the citadel of democracy, writing in ''Românul'': "The patriotic and Romanian City of Ploeșcii takes the forefront; the City of Ploeșcii, the Paladin of citizens' virtues is the only one that has declared, at the top of its lungs, to Romania and to the entire world, that betrayal and perjury have lived past their lifetime; that such apparitions emerging from the strains of villainy must find their exploitation venue elsewhere; must seek their hanging spot at some other location".
[ Paul D. Popescu]
"Mic dicționar al presei prahovene – ''Democrația'' (IV)"
in ''Ziarul Prahova
''Ziarul'' was a daily newspaper in Romania, published in Bucharest. It was founded in 2002 by Eugen Arnăutu, a PSD deputy. It was later taken over by Cristian Burca, former owner of the station Prima TV and Kiss FM. The newspaper changed owner ...
'', 7 January 2012 Arrested after publishing similar exhortations, Candiano was released following repeated protests by Sihleanu and ''Românul''.
In December 1870, a large coalition, specifically directed against Carol's policies, propelled the
Ion Ghica government, perceived by historians as "a ministry to liquidate the dynasty". Carol, who found that German support for his rule was not forthcoming (due to the Strousberg dispute), resorted to a publicity stunt, publishing an ultimatum-like defense of his principles in the ''
Augsburger Allgemeine'' (afterwards translated by all Romanian newspapers). Moderate liberals such as
Mihail Kogălniceanu were persuaded to rally with the cause of public order, and the Ion Ghica coalition was weakened.
"Republic of Ploiești" crisis and Putna festival
The anti-Carlist radicals were unrelenting, and, in August 1870, organized the "
Republic of Ploiești" incident, in fact a halfhearted rebellion against the throne. It was largely prepared by Carada and Candiano-Popescu, but thought to have been actively encouraged by the liberal leaders. While Rosetti went into hiding to escape arrest, Carada taunted the authorities with a ''Românul'' article, publicizing his whereabouts and inviting them to drop in for a visit. Both of the editors were apprehended, and, together with Brătianu and the others, were subject to a mass trial in
Târgoviște. They counsel was a fellow liberal,
Nicolae Fleva, who claimed that the prosecutors were in fact working to silence ''Românul''—his arguments convinced the tribunal, and all the republican conspirators were released in October 1870. In December, echoes of the movement were showing in Bucharest, where crowds gathered to protest against German pressures. ''Românul'' again expressed sympathy for the anti-Carlists, and alleged that the ''Domnitor''s troops had used force in dealing with the protesters.
The Bucharest republicans were again rioting in March 1871. They managed to intimidate Carol, who was again on the verge of abdicating, but the "White" cabinet of
Lascăr Catargiu regained the upper hand. ''Românul'' stood out for proclaiming Catargiu's rule to be unconstitutional, and for wrongly betting that a new "Red" coalition would depose it—I. Brătianu himself ended the disturbance by openly acknowledging that the ''Domnitor'' was entitled to curb the urban agitation. On 23 March, Rosetti's gazette severed its links with the other "Reds", rejecting Brătianu's pragmatic approach.
Meanwhile, Carada resigned from Rosetti's newspaper, dedicating himself to the study of economics. He was possibly disappointed by the hastiness of republican activists, and moving closer to the moderate "Reds".
He was soon replaced by the Frenchman
Frédéric Damé, a survivor of the
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871.
During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defende ...
. Better known as a dramatist (and plagiarist), Damé was for long employed by Rosetti as a ''Românul'' political columnist, and, in 1872, became the editorial secretary.
[ Ioana Pârvulescu]
"Acum 100 de ani"
in '' România Literară'', Nr. 29/2007
''Românul'' journalists were again united in their criticism of Russian expansionism, and the newspaper claimed that ''Domnitor'' Carol was secretly negotiating the Budjak's cession to Russia; it also called for a better administrative and defense system in that region. The Rosettists were still focused on the unionist cause, but looked mainly to the Romanian-inhabited Austrian province of
Bukovina. By July 1871, ''Românul'' was involved in the Bukovinian festivities at
Putna Monastery, commemorating medieval hero
Stephen the Great. When the Austrian administration made efforts to disperse the popular assembly, ''Românul'' reported with sarcasm: "it's as if the purpose of the reunion had been to reconquer Bukovina and overturn the precious
ustrianempire".
''Junimea'' and the "inebriation with words"
1872 and 1873 were problematic years for the Rosettists. Heading a consolidated "White" party, Premier Catargiu felt secure enough to disarm and reorganize the Citizens' Guard. The "Red" idol, Mazzini, died in March 1872. ''Românul'' hosted an obituary by Dimitrie Brătianu, who spoke with melancholy about the decades-long collaboration between the Italian and Romanian revolutionists.
Rosetti also saw himself dragged in the conflict opposing the Transylvanian Romanian factions of
Vincențiu Babeș and
Alexandru Papiu Ilarian. Babeș denounced ''Românul'' for having published inflammatory articles against him, claiming that their pseudonymous author, ''Camiliu'', was none other than Papiu Ilarian.
From 1873, the liberal cultural establishment found itself scrutinized by the "White" literary society ''
Junimea''. A ''Junimist'' founding figure,
Iacob Negruzzi, had met the ''Românul'' group in the 1860s, and informed the conservative club that its members were bland-looking, that Rosetti was "sententious", and that the overall atmosphere was "deplorable". In his better known lampoons, ''Junimea'' founder
Titu Maiorescu attacked the "Red" academics and novelists as dilettantes. According to Maiorescu, these figures had polluted the
literary language
A literary language is the form (register) of a language used in written literature, which can be either a nonstandard dialect or a standardized variety of the language. Literary language sometimes is noticeably different from the spoken langu ...
(an "inebriation with words") and had excited the reading public with the most questionable information.
The "Red" intellectuals, many of whom were contributors to ''
Revista Contimporană'', opted to respond by means of ''Românul''. In July 1873, it published defenses of
Pantazi Ghica's novellas, including the author's own replies to Maiorescu gibes, and an
encomium
''Encomium'' is a Latin word deriving from the Ancient Greek ''enkomion'' (), meaning "the praise of a person or thing." Another Latin equivalent is ''laudatio'', a speech in praise of someone or something.
Originally was the song sung by the c ...
of Ghica by the young theater critic
Ștefan Sihleanu Ștefan is the Romanian form of Stephen, used as both a given name and a surname. For the English version, see Stefan.
Some better known people with the name Ștefan are listed below. For a comprehensive list see .
Notable persons with that na ...
. P. Ghica was subsequently the
gossip columnist at ''Românul'' and ''Telegraful'', stirring much animosity with his scathing remarks aimed at the conservative establishment.
Also responding in ''Românul'' (and accused by Maiorescu of ignoring the issue) were
V. A. Urechia,
Dimitrie August Laurian and
Petru Grădișteanu Petru is a given name, and may refer to:
* Petru I of Moldavia (Petru Mușat, 1375–1391), ruler of Moldavia
* Petru Aron (died 1467), ruler of Moldavia
* Petru Bălan (born 1976), Romanian rugby union footballer
* Petru Cărare (1935–2019), wr ...
. In March 1874, ''Românul'' was publicizing reports made by author
Nifon Bălășescu Nifon may refer to:
*A village in the commune of Hamcearca, Romania
*Nephon I of Constantinople, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, 1310–1314
*Niphon of Kafsokalyvia (1316–1411), Greek Orthodox saint and hermit
*Patriarch Niphon of Alexand ...
, according to whom there were 16 million Romanians (
Aromanians
The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and c ...
) living in Ottoman territory. This account was highly exaggerated, and toned down for ''Junimea'' by the Aromanian activist
Apostol Mărgărit.
A new member of the ''Românul'' staff was
Constantin Dimitrescu-Severeanu
Constantin is an Aromanian, Megleno-Romanian and Romanian male given name. It can also be a surname.
For a list of notable people called Constantin, see Constantine (name).
See also
* Constantine (name)
Constantine ( or ; Latin: ''Cōnsta ...
, later a famous surgeon.
[ Cătălin Pruteanu]
"Convingeri apărate cu floreta"
in '' Jurnalul Național'', 16 January 2006 During that time, the Rosettists also welcomed in their ranks the aspiring journalist
Ion Luca Caragiale, later recognized as one of Romania's foremost humorists. Caragiale, a self-asserted Ploiești Republican who then recanted in embarrassment, acquired an intimate understanding of "Red" politicking before converting to "White" conservatism.
PNL establishment
The liberal and
protectionist clubs were outraged when, in June 1875, Catargiu signed a trade agreement with Austria-Hungary. Against the "Red" program of industrialization, the "Whites" advocated an agricultural economy, and thus took little issue with unrestricted imports. This difference in policies was outlined in a ''Românul'' article by F. Damé. In parallel, ''Românul''s stance regarding Hungarian activities in Transylvania was creating controversy over the border, and it was reportedly banned by local government the market town of
Mehadia. Romanian Hungarian historian Hilda Hencz argues that ''Românul'' and ''Gazeta Transilvaniei'' forged "a monstrous image of Hungary and the Hungarians."
The newspaper was actively promoting the patriotic cult of Wallachian prince
Michael the Brave, noted for his conquest of Transylvania and Moldavia, and helped determine the ultimate location of his statue: University Square, Bucharest, University Square, downtown Bucharest.
The Austro-Hungarian affair also amplified ''Românul''s anti-Carlist rhetoric, more so after its old ally
N. T. Orășanu
Nicolae T. Orășanu (1833?–August 7, 1890) was a Wallachian-born Romanian poet, prose writer and newspaper editor.
Born in Craiova, he attended high school at Saint Sava College in the national capital Bucharest. As a young man, Orășa ...
was sacked from the civil service, for having subscribed to an anti-"White" petition.
With support from the anti-Austrian Englishman Stephen Bartlett Lakeman, Stephen "Mazar Pașa" Lakeman, the liberals consolidated their loose alliance, creating the
National Liberal Party (PNL). Rosetti and Ion Brătianu were the leaders of its radical wing, whose central tribune was ''Românul''. Ion and Dimitrie Brătianu, together with young Caragiale, relocated to the main PNL-ist tribune, ''Alegătorul Liber'' ("The Enfranchised Voter"). For a while, Titus Dunka headed the PNL's central Moldavian bureau, and became noted for his highly combative stances.
The PNL's creation inaugurated a new stage in ''Românul''s conflict with the "Whites". The dispute was political as well as cultural: the liberals strongly rejected the Gradualism, gradualist approach, regionalistic ethos, and Germanophile agenda of ''Junimea''. In February 1876, the aspiring poetry critic Bonifaciu Florescu published a ''Românul'' article specifically aimed at the top representatives of ''Junimist'' literature, and in particular at the conservative rebel
Mihai Eminescu. An advocate of pure Prosody (Latin), Latin prosody, Florescu found Eminescu's looser style to be anathema.
Rosetti's newspaper was thereafter a direct rival of ''Timpul'', the ''Junimist'' daily, and communicated with it through virulent lampoons. Later, with Eminescu as its political columnist, ''Timpul'' responded in kind, suggesting that, for all its patriotic credentials, ''Românul'' was a mouthpiece of "
Phanariote" interests, only recently converted to the Romanian ways. Eminescu also delved into Damé's mysterious past, accusing him of having betrayed the Communards.
Rosetti's new right-hand man, and editorial secretary, was PNL man Emil Costinescu,
ridiculed by Eminescu for his lack of formal education.
[ Dimitrie Vatamaniuc]
"Eminesciana: Muzica și artele plastice în manuscrise eminesciene, opera literară și proza politică"
in ''Bucovina Literară'', Nr. 1–2/2011 Costinescu's articles matched those of Eminescu in vehemence, and, for this reason, he was provoked to a duel, and injured, by the "White" officer Alexandru Blaremberg.

In March 1879, Eminescu's editorial noted: "''Românul''s low regard for us we treasure just as much as we appreciate the high regard of intelligent and decent men." According to literary historian Șerban Cioculescu, Eminescu's articles in ''Timpul'', from 1877 to 1883, made constant references to Rosetti as the head of a PNL-ist political machine. In this context, Caragiale left the "Red" camp and was co-opted by ''Timpul'', still hesitating between the ''Junimists'' and the moderate National Liberals.
Disorder was again mounting in the country, especially since some of the National Liberals hinted that they were going to have Carol deposed and replaced with a local aristocrat, N. Dabija; faced with such threats, Carol yielded, and called on the PNL to assume government. When the PNL took power with
Manolache Costache Epureanu
Manolache Costache Epureanu (1823–1880) was twice the Prime Minister of Romania both as a representative of the Conservative Party and of the National Liberal Party, more specifically for the first time in 1870 (20 April–14 December) and f ...
as Premier, and then with I. Brătianu, the Rosettists experienced a moment of triumph. From 1875 to 1884, the radicals were virtually in control of the PNL. During 1876, the Citizens' Guard regained its operative autonomy and elected itself a "Red" officers' corps. The "White" newspapers, in particular ''Timpul'' and ''Pressa'', were highly critical of this renewed campaign, describing it as a Jacobin (politics), Jacobin conspiracy against the ''Domnitor''.
''Românul'' and the "Eastern Question"
In the 1876 Romanian general election, 1876 suffrage, C. A. Rosetti was elected to the Chamber of Deputies of Romania, Lower Chamber of Parliament of Romania, Parliament, representing Bucharest.
He was subsequently voted in as Chamber President, one of the top elected positions in the Romanian state.
Nevertheless, the mid-1870s announced ''Românul''s transition from Rosettist radicalism to all-out socialism, which made converts in his own family. The eldest son, Mircea Rosetti, came of age as a "Communard", militant Atheism, atheist, and Darwinism, Darwinist, introducing his brother Vintilă Rosetti, Vintilă Jules to the newer anti-capitalist literature (''What Is to Be Done? (novel), What Is to Be Done?''). Vintilă also followed his father's Masonic commitments, joining Pisa's ''Luce e progresso'' Masonic Lodge, Lodge.
[Filitti (2006), p.8] In late 1875, Mircea, Vintilă and Horia Rosetti were all studying in France, where they all contributed to radicalizing the Romanian National Liberal youth. Together with
Gheorghe Dem Theodorescu
Gheorghe Dem Teodorescu (25 August 1849 – 20 August 1900) was a Wallachian, later Romanian folklorist, literary historian and journalist.
Origins, education and early career
Born in Bucharest, he was an only son. His father Tudor came fro ...
, Grigore Brătianu and economist Gogu Cantacuzino, they founded the Economic nationalism, economic nationalist bloc later known as "Romanian Democratic Union".
Thanks in large part to Mircea Rosetti, the ''Românul'' staff came to include Zamfir Arbore, the Nihilist movement, Russian nihilist and revolutionary Anarchism, anarchist, who soon after made Romania his new home. In February and March 1877, ''Timpul'' picked up on such dealings, accusing ''Românul'' and the Rosetti family of being in favor of revolutionary socialism and International Workingmen's Association, The International.
[Marinescu & Rădulescu-Zoner (February 1977), p.13] At that stage, ''Românul'' was under a printing contract with the company of
Dimitrie August Laurian, who soon deserted the liberal cause and, as editor of ''România Liberă'', turned to ''Junimism''.
Controversy over socialist ideas blended with alarming developments in what was then known as the "Eastern Question"—including a strain in Romania's relationship with its Ottoman sovereign. Already in 1875, ''Românul'' was one of the most openly anti-Ottoman Romanian gazettes, taking up the rebel cause in the Herzegovina Uprising (1875-1878), Herzegovina troubles and subsequent Serbian-Ottoman War (1876-1877), Serbian–Ottoman War, and calling for Romania to improve its relationship with Russia.
[Marinescu & Rădulescu-Zoner (March 1977), p.6–7] It was, however, concerned about the Russian ambitions in the Budjak, and still prophesied that Romania stood to lose that strategic area. From early 1877, when Romanians woke up to the news that the Ottoman constitution of 1876, Ottoman Constitution regarded them as mere subjects of the Empire (Article 7), ''Românul'' styled itself the voice of "patriotic indignation", addressing letters of protest to Midhat Pasha, the Grand Vizier. Also then, the PNL founding figure "Mazar Pașa" Lakeman returned to Rosetti's gazette with an analytical essay, ''Armata teritorială față cu resursele țării'' ("The Territorial Army Faced with the Country's Resources").
''Românul'' circulated rumors that a Romanian patrol was fired upon by the Military of the Ottoman Empire, Turkish Army outside Giurgiu, this being an Ottoman pretext for a planned invasion of Romania;
later, it commended the government's efforts to secure the border areas and ignore the Ottoman provocations. As reported by a French diplomat on 6 January of that year: "[Rosetti followed] his revolutionary instincts that excluded all 'prudence' and 'reserve' when he took up criticism of the Turks' Constitution in his newspaper's columns".
When, in April 1877, the Ottoman state showed its dislike for the London Protocol (1877), London Protocol, ''Românul'' commented that the question of war had entered Europe's daily agenda. The campaign for Romania's political emancipation was taken up 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 Sava ...
. Returning to ''Românul'' as a political commentator, he linked the rejection of Ottoman rule to the very cause of progressivism. Odobescu's articles outlined a complex and personal vision, combining ideas about education in the national spirit with criticism of the neutralist position.
War of 1877 and Berlin Treaty
Just shortly before the
Romanian War of Independence erupted within the larger Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), Russo-Turkish conflict, Odobescu's articles launched the revolutionary slogan ''Piară acum dintre noi inimile codace!'' ("Perish the straggling hearts among us!"). From 27 April, the newspaper put out two issues a day: a noon edition, with unfiltered news from the Ottoman and Russian borders; an evening edition and news digest. Also then, it began an inventory of public donations for the Romanian troops.
Rosetti, seen by some as "the cabinet's true leader", was a visible figure among those legislators who proclaimed full independence from the Ottoman Empire (May 1877). By order of the ''Domnitor'', he was also appointed Mayor of Bucharest. Once the Romanian Army was called in to help the Russians offensive into the Danube Vilayet, ''Românul'' closely followed the developments on the front, and hosted homages to the Romanian soldiers; Maria Rosetti looked after the wounded, while Vintilă and Horia volunteered for action.
A French reporter, Apollo Mlochowski De Belina, believed that ''Românul'' was Sensationalism, sensationalist, suggesting that some its claims about the Romanian military action were "Wallachian Wiktionary:gasconade, gasconades".
C. A. Rosetti was present at the meeting between Carol and Tsar Alexander, irritating the Russians with his speech about a liberation of the Levant, uttered just as a "Red" rally was being broken up elsewhere. Following victory in the Siege of Plevna, Rosetti again stirred controversy about the Citizens' Guard as a republican instrument, proclaiming that there was "an internal Plevna" still to be conquered.
[ Gheorghe Lăzărescu]
" 'Să se revizuiască, primesc!' "
in '' România Literară'', Nr. 42/2002 At around the same time, ''Românul'' suggested that the paramilitary units could survive the war, forming "an unwavering barrier against tyranny and despotism". Carried by a "literary boom", both ''Românul'' and ''Timpul'' became news sources for the Romanian community of Transylvania, their notices picked up by ''Telegraful Român'', the influential Sibiu gazette. At around the same time, Teofil Frâncu, an educationist and anti-Hungarian militant from the Apuseni Mountains, took over a position on Rosetti's editorial board.
The Treaty of Berlin (1878), Berlin Treaty confirmed the Rosettists' fears about Tsar Alexander, granting the Budjak to Russia, and awarding Northern Dobruja, in compensation, to Romania. Writing for ''Românul'' as the Powers renewed demands for a Jewish emancipation, Rosetti asserted that both Northern Dobruja and the acceptance of Jews were "injurious presents". Contrarily, in four consecutive articles, Odobescu advocated "the naturalization of the Israelites", describing the Romanians as traditionally tolerant people. The antisemites among the "Reds" conserved one victory: although pressured to emancipate the Jews, the PNL government created such subterfuges as to make emancipation unlikely. The game of wits between Romania and the West was openly acknowledged by Rosetti's press. On 25 December 1881, he commented in ''Românul'': "Happily the Roumanians may now congratulate themselves on having solved, in favour of the nation, the most burning and dangerous question, and that, we can now own, in a way contrary to the manifest will of the Powers and to the very spirit of the Treaty of Berlin" (as quoted in 1903 by William Evans-Gordon).
Meanwhile, the war had brought back into focus the Aromanians of Macedonia (region), Macedonia (broadly defined). Dimitrie Brătianu, who sympathized with the Aromanian pressure groups in Bucharest, called on Romania to finance the Aromanian emancipation effort. In a ''Românul'' piece, he announced that: "The Romanians on the other side of the Danube know that they are Romanian, wish to remain Romanian and rely on our moral support when it comes to conserving their national identity.
..There is no deed more worthy, more pleasing onto God, than that of extending our hands to those brothers of ours who are lacking in spiritual sustenance, of giving them the power to express their thoughts in the language of our parents."
Romania held its 1879 Romanian general election, first election as an independent country during 1879. Rosetti's role in the campaign was important, since he controlled the PNL's electoral committee and, the "Whites" contended, tried his hand at electoral fraud.
According to one account: "Following the war of independence, the civic guard became an instrument of political manipulation placed in liberal hands."
Romanian Kingdom and Rosettist dissidence

The anti-Austrian radicals were again suspected of being Russia's connection in Romania. On the first day of 1880, the ''Deutsche Revue'' published a polemical essay by Rosetti's lifelong rival, Maiorescu. Speaking for the entire "White" leadership, the''Junimist'' doyen alleged that, after the Berlin Treaty, the Rosettists were essentially Romanian Russophiles. Together with the Russophile lobbyist Grigore M. Sturdza, ''Românul'' chided Maiorescu for insinuating that Romania's alliance with France was a disadvantageous complication—the resulting scandal created a rift between the ''Junimists'' and the other "White" clubs. ''Românul'' was sarcastic about the "White" effort to set up a monolithic Conservative Party (Romania, 1880–1918), Conservative Party, in answer to the PNL, noting that the resulting group was still divided into three factions.
Nevertheless, some channels of communication still existed between ''Românul'' and the ''Junimists''. Moses Gaster, the Jewish scholar, ''Junimist'' sympathizer, and friend of Eminescu, wrote for Rosetti's paper during the late 1870s. A more vocal new arrival was critic, novelist and economist Nicolae Xenopol, who abandoned the ''Junimea'' cause to attack Eminescu directly, and who eventually took up a position as ''Românul'' editor (1882).
[Cubleșan, p.20–21]
The debates on foreign policy prolonged themselves well after Ion Brătianu formed his new PNL government. This happened soon after Carol and the Conservative Party proclaimed the country to be the "Kingdom of Romania". By raising the issue of Russian involvement in Romania's politics, Maiorescu and the "White" establishment effectively pressured the mainstream PNL-ists into acknowledging this change of status.
C. A. Rosetti dissented. In his view, the Kingdom's proclamation was an awkward, barely constitutional, development. A special act confirming Carol's styling as "King of Romania, King", ''Românul'' proposed, was redundant, because the previous title "means sovereign, therefore not just Prince, but also King and Emperor". Embarrassed by the substance of Rosetti's remarks, Brătianu extended his hand to the ''Junimists'', and, instead of a new land reform, promised to enrich the peasants through the rural capitalism of "agricultural bargains" (''tocmeli agricole''). ''Românul'' soon became the voice of Rosetti's one-man-opposition. Dismissed by the mainstream PNL-ists as melodramatic, Rosetti's paper announced: "Against this impotent and neurotic government, that has proven capable of committing all sorts of dastardly deeds, but, during all these years, has not been able to provide this country with anything worth her pride, that has stirred so many tears in the Romanian consciousness, but has not provoked a single minute of national enthusiasm, that is only capable of stuffing its own favorites and kick-starting its political machine at election time—against this government we must rise up, big and small, determined and unyielding." Through the voice of its new co-editor, I. C. Bibicescu, ''Românul'' warned that "Christian" Romania was on a downward demographic spiral. Sparking a press debate, Bibicescu noted the comparatively lower mortality rate of Romanian Jews, and suggested proto-Eugenics, eugenic measures such as a state-run "Committee on Hygiene".
Still, ''Românul'' participated in the effort to legitimize Ion C. Brătianu's prudent foreign policy: it republished a ''Daily Telegraph'' essay, which promised a return of the Budjak to those who maintained independence from Russia and did not provoke Austria-Hungary. Like all the liberal left, ''Românul'' had also renounced republicanism. Rosetti voted in favor of granting Carol a large ''demesne'' and, in his ''Românul'' articles, produced statements such as "the throne is an altar" (according to the anti-Rosettist observer Georges Bibesco, the 1848 revolution was thus nullified by its very instigators). The newspaper celebrated the List of Romanian consorts, Queen-Consort, Elisabeth of Wied, Elisabeth (Carmen Sylva), as "a Poet, a Mother and a Queen", "the [world's] most beautiful light".
One major obstacle that I. Brătianu still faced was precisely the anarchist and socialist circle supported by ''Românul''. Russia had conditioned the kingdom's recognition in exchange for a rapid repression of the "nihilists"; Brătianu reluctantly obeyed. On 19 March 1881, ''Românul'' quoted in full the premier's menacing statements, according to which the Russian refugees were "louts" and "vagabonds" who had overstayed their welcome. Also targeted by ''Românul'', the Hungarian refugees of Bucharest kept an inventory of its insults. According to their ''Bukaresti Híradó'' paper, Rosetti's men had referred to the Hungarians as "vandals, savages, heartless, incapable of learning", and to their homeland as a "barbaric" country.
[Hencz, p.70]
''Românul'' was especially upset that Austria-Hungary conditioned Romania's access to the Internationalization of the Danube River, internationalized Danube system, equating Austrian policies with bullying and blackmail. Rosetti gave some backing to a Transylvanian nationalist league called Romanian Irredenta, or Carpathians Society, that militated for a "Daco-Romanian Empire", suggested overthrowing the King, and managed to attract in its ranks the Bukovina-born Eminescu. However, the radical leader's anti-Hungarianism was fluctuating, and he casually recognized the merits of ''Bukaresti Híradó'' publisher Lajos Vándory.
In the end, the PNL and the newspaper also tolerated Austria's direct involvement on the Romanian stretch of the Danube. In his editorial, Rosetti wrote: "Those who can make ''justified and opportune'' concessions [Rosetti's italics] are often more securely set on their path than those who flaunt their daring and noisy opposition."
1883 electoral reform
By August 1881, when it celebrated its 25th anniversary, ''Românul'' had reconciled with the Brătianu PNL-ists. Made Brătianu's Ministry of Administration and Interior (Romania), Interior Minister, Rosetti even toasted to the Premier. The anniversary banquet, held at the
National Theater Bucharest
The National Theatre Bucharest ( ro, Teatrul Naţional " Ion Luca Caragiale" București) is one of the national theatres of Romania, located in the capital city of Bucharest.
Founding
It was founded as the ''Teatrul cel Mare din București'' (" ...
, was a major affair: the building was donned in ''Românul'' memorabilia, and dinner was cooked by master chef Jean Babtisin Mars (including meals invented for the occasion, such as the ''Românul'' Salad). The PNL fissures were temporarily sealed, and ''Românul'' suggested that, given its reform program, "the future generations could never be grateful enough" to the reunified liberal party. The period was one of apparent prosperity. After the creation of the Bucharest Stock Exchange in 1882, ''Românul'' was hosting the stock quotes, as furnished by the Popp bankers of Hanul cu Tei. A twenty-year-old Take Ionescu, later known as political representative of the prosperous middle class, was during those years a reporter at ''Românul''.
By then, despite the growing marginalization of Rosettist left-wingers, ''Românul'' was being popularly identified with Brătianu's program of state capitalism. This interval brought some of Eminescu's most violent attacks, which repeatedly suggest imprisoning, Involuntary commitment, institutionalizing or even hanging the Rosettists, as "Filibuster (military), filibusters" or "Parasitism (social offense), parasites". Under Costinescu and Maiorescu, ''Românul'' and ''Junimea'' were again quarreling with each other on literary subjects. In a ''Românul'' article of February 1882, N. Xenopol stated the case for a revolution in Romanian letters, endorsing the literary realism of a dissident ''Junimist'', Ioan Slavici; he also began a bitter dispute with Eminescu, which reverberated in the liberal newspapers.
Amused by the wrongly attributed cultural references in ''Românul'', Eminescu mocked its writers for not even mastering the ''opéra bouffe'', let alone classical literature.
The Rosettists repeatedly tried, and failed, to push their new maximal political agenda, comprising: election reform, complete
freedom of the press, independent magistrates and professional Prefect (Romania), sub-prefects. The main objective, stated by Rosetti in his editorials, was to erase the electoral law and its constitutional basis. His rationale was that the legislators' oversight had rendered the electoral process entirely corrupt, always favoring the rich.
[Radu (2000–2001), p.133] ''Românul'' took up this campaign, proposing to merge the electoral colleges into one, thus doing away with the
census suffrage.
It also vehiculated its director's ideas about modifying the other sections of his own 1866 Constitution: renouncing the "Kingdom" title, fully incorporating Northern Dobruja, creating a legislative commission from legal specialists, and even disestablishing the Citizens' Guard.
The notion of eliminating the 1st college, representing the country's elite, was attacked by the Conservatives as unsound;
the PNL as a whole picked up on the proposal, arguing that "Romania's new social and political context" had elevated the standing of regular Romanian voters, but it still would not follow Rosetti on granting voting rights to all literate men.
[Gorun, p.64–65]
C. A. Rosetti gave up his position as Interior Minister, and resigned his post in the Deputies' Chamber, astonished that the PNL was ignoring his main proposals. Having come under fire from his own party colleagues, who objected to his vehemence, he left the country, assigning leadership of his newspaper to Costinescu.
When he returned in mid-1883, the PNL had been segmented into a ruling party and the anti-reform "United Opposition". The Rosettist deputies were vital for the Brătianu cabinet, and a compromise was reached between them: voting rights were extended to cover the urban and rural middle class; distinct colleges were preserved, but reconfigured. New-found monarchism, objections about the king's title, and the old cause of Romanianism were tied together in Rosetti's discourse. During a public function, he called Carol the "king ''of the Romanians''", thus generating a new diplomatic freeze between Romania and Austria-Hungary.
Rosetti yielded in exchange for guarantees that the less wealthy voters be protected against intimidation, while Costinescu acknowledged that the radicals never had "a clear idea" of what reform they would propose.
With their acquiescence, measures were also taken to prevent peasants from losing (or even trading) their plots, the Citizens' Guard was disestablished, and the Kingdom retained its full insignia. As leader of the "United Opposition", Dimitrie Brătianu had moved away from both his ''Românul'' comrades and his own brother, suggesting that the electoral reform was flawed, and seeking to increase the overall share of middle class voters; another dissident PNL-ist, George D. Vernescu, criticized the ''Românul'' proposals as all too Populism, populist.
During the late 1870s and early 1880s, ''Românul'' was still involved in the major cultural events. Damé was the main theater chronicler, noted for his coverage of Ernesto Rossi (actor), Ernesto Rossi's Romanian tour (January 1878). He was later involved in a dispute with the fellow liberal poet and dramatist Alexandru Macedonski, exposing Macedonski's stage-writing as heavily indebted to Émile Augier.
In 1883, news broke out of Eminescu's rapid fall into mental illness, and ''Românul'' lost a rival. Macedonski being popularly identified as the author of an epigram celebrating the demise of "poet X". Agitated by Grigore Ventura, public opinion turned against Macedonski, who was left to defend himself by means of ''Românul'' (9 August 1883): "I do not feel I own anybody explanations as to the subjects of my epigrams, since my addressees are only designated with Xes".
Change of management
In 1884, the friendship between Premier Brătianu and Rosetti came to its foreseeable end. On 12 January, when the radicals again proposed a quasi-universal suffrage, Brătianu dismissed them as people with "unbalanced faculties". Unable to persuade the party into following his command, Rosetti withdrew, formalizing his split with the PNL and taking ''Românul'' back into the field of independent politics. This left Brătianu in full control of liberal policies—a period known to his adversaries, and to later critics, as the "Vizierate". Gogu Cantacuzino's "Democratic Union" youth also split up: while Mircea Rosetti adopted his father's skepticism, Cantacuzino modernized the PNL's protectionist agenda, and managed the leading National Liberal newspaper, ''Voința Națională'', in partnership with the Brătianu family. The latter gazette also enlisted contributions from the former Rosettists Caragiale, N. Xenopol and Damé.
A new generation of writers took over at ''Românul'', including Rosetti's surviving sons—the eldest, Mircea, had died in 1882.
[Netea (March 1972), p.26] Vintilă, who was appointed editor-in-chief by his father, and Horia, who assisted him at times, preserved the newspaper's socialist flavor. In 1885, ''Românul'' organized a Bucharest festival in memory of the Paris Commune,
and called on its readers to validate its opposition to the PNL by organizing a public protest.
It was also noted for criticizing the PNL government's renewed attacks on the socialist clubs of Moldavia, describing I. Brătianu's stance as ''purtare nechibzuită'' ("immoderate behavior"). Its commitment to an immediate single college, and to universal suffrage in the long run, were invoked in its support of the right to strike.
[Radu (2000–2001), p.137]
Also joining ''Românul''s editorial staff were socialist novelist Constantin Mille, lawyer-folklorist Dumitru Stăncescu, historian George Ionescu-Gion, Transylvanian agitator Ioan Russu-Șirianu, and, for just one month, leftist opinion-maker Constantin Bacalbașa (previously affiliated with ''Telegraful''). Another collaborator was Dumitru Rosetti Tescanu: an Proletarian internationalism, international socialist (but also a ''Junimist''), he published for ''Românul'' a brochure with demands for a fully representative single college.
Although employed on the Premier's staff, N. Xenopol was still one of the ''Românul'' editors, arranging a meeting between C. A. Rosetti and the celebrated Belgium, Belgian economist Émile Louis Victor de Laveleye, Émile de Laveleye. Laveleye (who sees "''Le Romanul''" as Romania's "Liberal Progressist paper") notes that the radical doyen was overall happy with the country's constitutional regime, since it still kept up with the "peaceful" Belgian example.
The newspaper fared badly, losing its offices (the Rosetti townhouse) to a fire, and running heavy debts.
Under Vintilă Rosetti, ''Românul'' established its own printing press (purchasing the enterprise of C. Petrescu Conduratu and renting the townhouse of Constantin Barozzi) and signed a distribution contract with Havas, the international news agency.
The offices were rebuilt with state funds, provided by the Lower Chamber in homage to its former President.
"United Opposition" and PSDMR politics
C. A. Rosetti died in April 1885, having just turned down an offer to stand in the partial elections at Craiova.
A huge crowd, comprising the regular readers of ''Românul'', reportedly followed the coffin in a public procession to Bellu cemetery. The newspaper received a large supply of commiserations coming in from readers or former employees, calling the deceased an "illustrious democrat" and his death "a public calamity". A copy was placed on Rosetti's coffin at the Rosetti family crypt.
The paper was entirely distanced from the PNL, and rallied with the "United Opposition". Against the ''Voința Națională'' wing, Vintilă Rosetti and D. Brătianu claimed to represent the "true" National Liberals, suggesting that all notable PNL-ists had perished with C. A. Rosetti. Meanwhile, the ex-''Junimist'' George Panu and his gazette ''Lupta'' also picked up the Rosettist banner, claiming to be Romania's last radical club.
''Românul'' carried on with some of its traditional preoccupations. Its ongoing criticism of the ruling class as "boyars" was perceived as anachronistic, including by some of C. A. Rosetti's friends. During 1886, it focused on the Serbo-Bulgarian War, Bulgarian crisis which looked to be escalating into a new Russo-Turkish War. The gazette then reported on Romania's rapprochement with Austria-Hungary, a policy that seemed to offer the only guarantee in case of a north to south invasion by Russia. Around 1889, activist Panait Mușoiu and journalist Ion Catina, founders of socialist review ''Munca'', were especially active in persuading ''Românul'' and the other liberal gazettes to publish positive news about the activity of "workers' clubs". During those years, ''Românul'' resumed its monitoring of Austro-Hungarian affairs, and specifically the ''Transylvanian Memorandum'' crisis. Like other Bucharest newspapers, it attacked the moderate leadership of the Romanian National Party, Transylvanian Romanian Party, and especially Vicențiu Babeș, for having hesitated in condemning Magyarization policies. However, the newspaper was perceived as less political and scientific than its earlier versions, with readers complaining that it was publishing too much fiction.
''Românul'' welcomed the creation of a Romanian Social Democratic Workers' Party (PSDMR), which included some of its former staff writers. It gave positive coverage to the group's founding congress of March 1893, noting especially that the socialists promised to solve the Transylvanian question peacefully, "once the working classes will be masters of their fates".
Final decade

From early 1894, ''Românul'' was co-opted into supporting the PSDMR's own campaign for universal suffrage. Vintilă Rosetti's offices hosted the reunion of PSDMR-ists, ''Adevărul'' democrats, ''Evenimentul'' liberals, and left-wing Agrarianism, agrarian factions. The resulting League for Universal Suffrage included, among others, V. Rosetti himself, Alexandru Ionescu (socialist militant), Alexandru Ionescu, Vasile Kogălniceanu and Ioan Nădejde. As a parliamentarian, Rosetti backed the project each new time it was submitted, in 1895, 1896 and 1897—it gathered, at most, 45 from 100 possible votes.
The effort was made difficult from the start: George Panu's anti-PNL radicals were more interested in supporting the Conservatives, while the peasant activist Constantin Dobrescu-Argeș stood accused of embezzlement. However, Vasile Kogălniceanu attached himself to the ''Românul'' offices, and was its managing editor until 1897. His ''Românul'' articles of 1895 were a strange occurrence, given the prevalent pro-Transylvanian agenda of the liberal milieus: Kogălniceanu proposed a union between Romania and Hungary, with increased rights for all ethnic groups.
By that time, Vintilă Rosetti was being perceived as a champion of both the working class and the destitute aristocrats. Although they complained about the disorganization of the Romanian press, the Rosetti brothers were absent from efforts to create a journalists' trade union—unlike their colleagues at ''Timpul'', ''Voința Națională'', ''Adevărul'', ''Universul'' or ''Epoca (Romania), Epoca''.
Horia Rosetti was for a while deputy in the 1895 Romanian general election, 1895 legislature, and was injured by rioting students, shortly before the fall of the second Dimitrie Sturdza cabinet. He no longer focused on political journalism, but on his main passion: the sport of fencing. His career in sports was crowned by his participation as a referee in the Fencing at the 1900 Summer Olympics, 1900 Olympic challenge and his appointment as coach of the national fencing team.
''Românul'' was slowly leaving the central stage of Romanian journalism. In 1899, it switched back from a daily to a weekly, was a bimonthly between 1901 and 1903, and, in its final edition, was again published once a week.
The staff was enthusiastic when, in 1900, young journalist Constantin Al. Ionescu-Caion resumed the attack on ''Junimea''. A contributor, N. Ținc, was convinced by Caion's faint proof of Caragiale's plagiarism, assessing that the ''Junimist'' "megalomaniacs" were morally bankrupt (the editorial was not published by Vintilă Rosetti, but survives in the ''Românul'' archives).
Although moribund, the Rosettis' newspaper still offered a venue for young talents, such as Jewish journalist Henric Streitman. Caion himself was soon co-opted as the main editor. In January 1905, shortly before Rosetti's newspaper closed shop, he founded ''Românul Literar'' ("The Literary Romanian"). Caion's gazette, which was primarily a literary venue of the Symbolist movement in Romania, Symbolist movement, denied being a successor of ''Românul'', but still numbered its issues in succession to Rosetti's.
In culture
Journalistic trendsetter vs. "macaronic" experiment

During its 1881 anniversary banquet, ''Românul'' could claim to have been the longest-standing Romanian periodical to date; it was, overall, one of the most long-lived newspapers in Romania's history.
In various ways, it was already a landmark of Romanian journalism: writing in 1972, historian Vasile Netea called ''Românul'' "the Romanians' first modern newspaper, a real school of journalism for the new generations of writers and publicists."
Already under C. A. Rosetti, the gazette claimed various firsts in Romanian press history, most notably the introduction of a black border around the more important obituary pieces.
Before the liberal establishment was divided into competing factions, ''
Ghimpele'' cartoonists celebrated Rosetti and I. Brătianu as the champions of universal suffrage, progress and liberty. Rosetti invented his playful and pathetic ''alter ego'', ''Berlicoco'' ("Pinecone"), referencing his novel hairdo and later used as his regular nickname.
A picturesque aspect of the newspaper was its recourse to History of the Romanian language, antiquated spellings, overly reliant on Orthographic depth, deep orthography: Romanian words spelled in accordance with Latin spelling and pronunciation, Latin, Italian orthography, Italian or French orthography, French rules. In combination with grandiloquent speech, a Rosettist giveaway, these produced a language that was significantly different from the generalized phonemic orthography endorsed by ''Junimea''. The early standard at ''Românul'' was to render the Ɨ, /ɨ/ sound in its own name, and in all references to the "Romanian" Exonym and endonym, endonym, as a plain ''a'', highlighting the Origin of the Romanians, Roman origins of the Romanians. For unknown reasons, it often replaced the letter ''o'' with the Digraph (orthography), digraph ''uă''.
[Pârvulescu (2011), p.46] ''Românul'' also used an extraneous ''-e'' suffix in various common nouns, and modified the Romanian grammar, grammatical article accordingly—for instance, C. A. Rosetti was ''fondatorele, editorele și redactorele acestui ziare liberale'' (for ''fondatorul, editorul și redactorul acestui ziar liberal'', "the founder, editor and director of this here liberal newspaper").
[ Ioana Pârvulescu]
"Jurnalul unui francmason"
in '' România Literară'', Nr. 31/2000[Călinescu, p.169; Cioculescu (1974), p.180]
Modern philologists have therefore described the standard Rosettist discourse as a "
macaronic" dialect,
or a constant stream of "declamatory verbiage". As early as the 1860s,
Eugeniu Carada amused himself imitating his patron's verbose rhetoric, which he already found counterproductive.
In a 1902 retrospective,
Titu Maiorescu feigned bewilderment that, given their arguments, the ''Românul'' "rhetors" had not been committed to psychiatric wards by their own families.
According to literary critic
Ioana Pârvulescu, ''Românul'' was "written in a cumbersome Latinized orthography and [was] outstandingly pathetic".
She also includes ''Românul'' among the period newspapers guilty of "horrific [grammatical] errors", with such "bizarre" spelling choices as to "make all assertions look ridiculous."
Conversely, in his biographical profile of Rosetti,
George Călinescu reads an "inflated" but coherent layer under the unusual orthographic choices.
Once Vintilă Rosetti took over as manager, ''Românul'' took steps to rationalize its orthography and comb through the ungrammatical excesses.
Sculpted by Wladimir Hegel and inaugurated in 1903, the C. A. Rosetti Monument, Bucharest, shows its subject holding a copy of ''Românul''.
A National Library of Romania fund, mysteriously kept under C. A. Rosetti's alias ''Dinu Rosetti'',
comprises most of the letters addressed to ''Românul''. Even after its founder's death, the newspaper was known outside Romania: "''Romanul'' of Bucharest" is mentioned by Jules Verne in his Speculative fiction, speculative novel of 1889, ''The Purchase of the North Pole''. It is the only Romanian title cited among the press reports on the central event: the planned modification of the axial tilt.
The "hideous fright": Alecsandri and Eminescu
An entirely negative image of the Rosettist tribune was reported by the core group of ''Junimist'' conservatives. Loosely associated with ''Junimea'', but previously a conservative figure among the 1848 revolutionaries, poet Vasile Alecsandri set the tune for this polemic when, in the 1860s, he suggested that ''Românul'' had introduced Wallachians to the journalistic practice of character assassination. His lyrics make a transparent reference to Rosetti, ''aștept să văd sub trăsnet hidoasa pocitură / Care-a sădit în țară invidie și ură'' ("I await to see a bolt striking down the hideous fright / Who has planted envy and hatred in this soil").
[ Eugen Lungu]
"Adagii (5)"
in ''Revista Sud-Est'', Nr. 2/2011 Alecsandri also stated his disgust at the proliferation of "Romanianist" advertising, citing ''Românul'' as a prime example—"''The Romanian'' newspaper", on par with "Romanian tailor", "Romanian tavern" or "Romanian ''Caciocavallo, cașcaval''".
Rosetti's traditional enemy,
Ion Heliade Rădulescu, preserved a similar image of Rosetti as ''Musiu Rapace'' ("Monsieur Rapacious"), "daubed in red, a new upstart and a so-called advocate of the peasants". His lampoons also introduce the long-standing ''ad hominem'' of Rosetti "the frog eyes", in reference to his embarrassing exophthalmia.
Such irony against the Rosettists inspired Rădulescu's disciple Grigore H. Grandea, who caricatured Rosetti as the extravagant ''Poruchik'' Baboi, a hanger-on among the "48-ists".
As early as 1876, the enraged
Mihai Eminescu responded to ''Românul'' criticism with virulently satirical poems, many of which were not published in Eminescu's own lifetime. Referring to the newspaper as ''Pruncul'' ("The Infant", from ''
Pruncul Român''), he introduces Bonifaciu Florescu as an "oakum-brained" dwarf, "Bonifaciu the homunculus", and
V. A. Urechia as the "pooch" son of a decadent aristocrat, his mind a "lively ruin".
Pantazi Ghica was also mentioned for his dilettantism, but also ridiculed for his "50-''Oka (mass), oka''" of kyphosis. Against Florescu's praise of formal purity, Eminescu defends raw poetry, with an argument which took its definitive form in the 1884 piece "To My Critics":
Eminescu's bile is specifically aimed at the ''Românul'' writers and the Rosettists in the better known "Scrisoarea III, Third Letter", part of which is a versified version of Eminescu's xenophobic manifesto. In one draft of the poem, the Rosettist "Reds" are referred to as "the stupid mass" of "plebs" and ''stârpitură'' ("runts"). In later versions, focus falls on Pantazi Ghica as a hunchback and a cuckold, but especially so on C. A. Rosetti, portrayed as the absolute worst political manipulator. In Eminescu's diatribe, Rosetti, or ''Reb (Yiddish), Reb Berlicoco'', is the most seductive of National Liberal demagogues, a ruling class comprising "the mouth-breathers, the windbags, the nincompoops and the goitred". Taking its cue from Alecsandri, Eminescu's poem consecrates Rosetti's portrait as a "hideous fright" with "frog eyes".
Although Rosetti did not bear Eminescu a grudge,
an entire critical school, beginning with the leftist republican George Panu, condemned the poem's harshness. After attending the first reading of the "Letter", Panu broke his friendship with the author and ended his ''Junimea'' affiliation. For the socialist Constantin Dobrogeanu-Gherea, Rosetti was a traveling companion, and the poet's "contempt" for the radicals, incomprehensible. As argued by Șerban Cioculescu, the "Third Letter" rhetoric was hopelessly outdated: Eminescu's main quarrel was with the more enterprising National Liberals, rather than with the left-leaning Rosettists; moreover, Rosetti was no longer the "internal Plevna" conspirator vilified by the classical conservatives. Cioculescu speculates: "Had Eminescu lived longer, perhaps he would have revised his indictment." Likewise, Călinescu describes Eminescu's anti-Rosettism as "essentially unfair", and proof of the poet's "growing irritability", while Pârvulescu finds it an "enormous injustice" that Eminescu did not recognize any of Rosetti's merits.
The Nativism (politics), nativist and Racialism (racial categorization), racialist undertones of Eminescu's poem, wherein the Rosettists come off as "the thick-necked Bulgarians in Romania, Bulgars, the thin-nosed Greeks in Romania, Greeklings", remain especially controversial.
Caragiale and ''Vocea Patriotului Naționale''
Once he reinvented himself as a ''Junimist'', Rosetti's former pupil
Ion Luca Caragiale contributed a milder, but culturally poignant and unrelenting, critique of "Red" demagoguery. As he himself noted, with barely restrained irony, Rosetti's political rallies of the 1870s were "the classical school of liberalism", destined to become utterly incomprehensible for future generations, and as such worthy of being recorded in print.
Caragiale's play ''O noapte furtunoasă'', which mocks the Citizens' Guard as a docile instrument of the "Reds", also introduces Rică Venturiano as a caricature of the Rosettist youth, speaking and writing in macaronic sequences, and editing the ardently republican gazette ''Vocea Patriotului Naționale'' ("Voice of the National Patriot")—quite possibly a direct reference to ''Românul''. Through narrative episodes about the tribulations of a "Cordwainer Tache", the author depicts the Guard's methods of pestering the conservative voters. In the subtext, the play directly references Caragiale's first avatar, that of "Red" newspaperman, or at the very least his friend and rival
Frédéric Damé.
As the author explained in old age: ''Mă, Rică sunt eu'' ("Lo, I myself am Rică").
Ironically, ''Românul'' advertised the play, unaware of its content, and Rosetti even attended the premiere together with his family (January 1879). The newspaper was afterward dismissive of Caragiale's text. For the ''Românul'' chronicler Nicolae Xenopol, ''O noapte furtunoasă'' was rather inconsistent, and Venturiano an "entirely fantasized" creation. Damé himself was infuriated by the play's message, and actually found Venturiano to be a positive model of the Romanian youth.
In March 1879, Caragiale returned with other pieces against the radicals, including mock promises that, if created a republic, Romania would be run by the Citizens' Guards and the tavern-keepers, "Patriotism" would be a skilled profession, and Rosetti would be instituted a "Chief Rabbi". In Caragiale's polemical articles, the references to Rosetti's religious-like authority in the PNL are coupled with a ''mise en abyme'' of Rosettist electioneering.
Writing for ''Timpul'' in the early 1880s, he emphasizes the dreariness of parliamentary life, with specific references to Rosetti, P. Ghica, Urechia and other maverick PNL-ists. Further ridicule of the Rosettist program steals the scene in the 1880 ''Conu Leonida față cu reacțiunea'', which also samples from Berlicoco's speeches.
The play shows a clueless, but patriotic and republican, entrepreneur, who worships Garibaldi as his personal saint and reads ''Românul''-like propaganda.
The anti-Rosettist joke is again taken up in Caragiale's other main comedy, ''O scrisoare pierdută'', with the matured National Liberal and Yellow journalism, yellow journalist Nae Cațavencu,
a prototype of anti-''Junimism''. The entire play has been read as the clash between two clienteles, one Rosettist and the other pro-Brătianu.
Nevertheless, Caragiale also paid Rosetti the occasional compliment, calling him "that restless and talented newspaperman" (1889).
In other prose fragments, the former ''Alegătorul Liber'' journalist retells embarrassing anecdotes about his Rosettist colleagues. One of them claims that the "Red" conspirators of 1866 were blackmailed by a tavern-keeper, having callously signed their names onto an IOU. Some of Caragiale's later articles, published in the mid-1890s by the ''Junimist'' sheet ''Epoca (Romania), Epoca'', are tongue-in-cheek recollections of his youth, quoting at length from the verbose appeals of his Rosettist idols. The 1898 sketch ''Istoria se repetă'' ("History Repeating") is about the idealism of ''Românul'' seniors, such as co-editor Tache Pandrav, who demanded "electoral freedom", and the realpolitik of Rosettist electoral agents: when bidding for the radicals' seat in Prahova County, Pandrav is informed by his own party that he needs "a ''hakham''s blessing" from Rosetti personally.
[Caragiale & Dobrescu, p.87]
Notes
References
''La France, le prince Couza et la liberté en Orient'' Chez les Principaux Libraires, Paris, 1864 (digitized by the Bibliothèque nationale de France]
''Gallica'' digital library
*''The American Annual Cyclopædia and Register of Important Events of the Year 1868'', D. Appleton & Company, New York City, 1869
"Constantinu A. Rosetti" in ''Amiculu Familiei'', Nr. 4/1884, p. 53–54 (digitized by the
Babeș-Bolyai Universitybr>
Transsylvanica Online Library
"Inmormentarea lui C. A. Rosetti" in ''Amiculu Familiei'', Nr. 4/1884, p. 77–79, 82–83
*Tiberiu Avramescu, "Un cavaler rătăcitor pe drumurile libertății: Titus Dunka", in ''
Magazin Istoric'': part I, July–August 1968, p. 141–147; part II: September 1968, p. 80–83
* Dinu Balan
"«La question juive» dans la premiere partie de l'anée 1868. Une perspective conservatrice: la gazette ''Terra''" in the Ștefan cel Mare University of Suceava]
''Codrul Cosminului'' Nr. 14 (2008), p. 63–76
* Dan Berindei
"Opinion publique et politique extérieure en Roumanie de l'indépendance à la veille de la Guerre mondiale" in ''Opinion publique et politique extérieure en Europe. I. 1870–1915. Actes du Colloque de Rome (13–16 février 1980). Publications de l'École française de Rome, 54'', École française de Rome, Rome, 1981, p. 411–425 (republished b
''Persée'' Scientific Journals
* Georges Bibesco
''Roumanie. 1843–1859. Règne de Bibesco. Lois et décrets, 1843–1848, insurrection de 1848, histoire et légende'' Vol. II, E. Plon, Nourrit & Co., Paris, 1894
*Lucian Boia,
**"Coaliția de la Mazar Pașa", in ''Magazin Istoric'', November 1973, p. 78–83
**''Istorie și mit în conștiința românească'', Humanitas publishing house, Humanitas, Bucharest, 2000.
* Liviu Brătescu, "Relațiile româno‑ruse (1878‑1888). Tensiuni, conflicte și încercări de reconciliere", in George Enache, Arthur Tuluș, Cristian Căldăraru, Eugen Drăgoi (eds.)
''La frontierele civilizațiilor. Basarabia în context geopolitic, economic, cultural și religios'' Editura Partener & University of Galați, Galați, 2011, p. 113–134.
*
George Călinescu, ''Istoria literaturii române de la origini pînă în prezent'', Editura Minerva, Bucharest, 1986
*
Ion Luca Caragiale, Al. Dobrescu, ''Moftul român'', Editura Moldova, Iași, 1991.
*Șerban Cioculescu, ''Caragialiana'', Editura Eminescu, Bucharest, 1974.
* Constantin Cubleșan, "Începuturile romanului realist românesc: N. Xenopol", in the 1 Decembrie 1918 University, Alba Iulia, 1 December University of Alba Iulia]
''Philologica Yearbook'' 2008 (Vol. I), p. 19–26
*Vasile Ene, Ion Nistor, ''Studii eminesciene'', Editura Albatros, Bucharest, 1971. ; see:
**Șerban Cioculescu, "Aspecte de critică socială eminesciană", p. 115–133
**Alexandru Piru, "Satira eminesciană", p. 186–218
*William Evans-Gordon
''The Alien Immigrant'' Heinemann (publisher), W. Heinemann, London, 1903 (digitized by the Internet Archive)
*Georgeta Filitti,
**"Un liberal uitat: Gogu Cantacuzino", in ''Magazin Istoric'', January 2000, pp. 11–15
*
"''Românul''" in the Mihail Sadoveanu City Library ''Biblioteca Bucureștilor'', Nr. 3/2006, p. 7–9
*Juliana Geran Pilon, ''The Bloody Flag. Post-Communist Nationalism in Eastern Europe. Spotlight on Romania'' (''Studies in Social Philosophy & Policy No. 16''), Transaction Publishers, New Brunswick & London, 1992.
* Tiberiu Horațiu Gorun, "Modernizarea României și revizuirea Constituției de la 1866", in the University of Oradea]
''Anale. Istorie – Arheologie XVII'' 2007, p. 59–73
* Hilda Hencz
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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 Sava ...
, Constantin Măciucă, ''Pseudo-cynegetikos'', Editura Albatros, Bucharest, 1990, p. XV–XX.
* Iolanda Sterpu, "Despre personajul absent în comedia ''O noapte furtunoasă'' de I. L. Caragiale", in the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University]
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