This is a timeline of Romanian history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political events in Romania and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see History of Romania.
Licinius I, born to peasant family which had fled from Dacia Traiana,[32][33] becomes Roman Emperor of the eastern part of the Roman Empire. He was the childhood friend of the Roman Emperor Galerius. (to 324)
311
Galerius signs the Edict of Serdica (modern day Sofia, Bulgaria) thus officially ending the Diocletianic persecution of Christianity in the East two years before the Edict of Milan being the first edict legalizing Christianity.[34]
313
Shortly before Maximinus II's death at Tarsus, while previously persecuting Christians and opposing the Edict of Serdica, he issued an edict of tolerance on his own, granting Christians the rights of assembling, of building churches, and the restoration of their confiscated properties.[35]
February
Licinius I co-authored the Edict of Milan with Roman Emperor Constantine I thus bestowing legal status on the Christian religion. Christianity was later made the official religion of the Roman Empire under Roman Emperor Theodosius I in 380.
According to Lactantius' literary chronicle De mortibus Persecutorum, Galerius affirms his Dacian (Thracian[27]) identity by avowing himself the enemy of the Roman name once made emperor, even proposing that the empire should be called the "Dacian Empire". He exhibited anti-Roman attitude as soon as he had attained the highest power, treating the Roman citizens with ruthless cruelty, like the conquerors treated the conquered, all in the name of the same treatment that the victorious Trajan had applied to the conquered Dacians, forefathers of Galerius, two centuries before.[36][37] (to 316)
Licinius II (Licinius I's son) serves in the Eastern Roman Empire with the rank of Caesar as per the inscription "LICINIUS IUNior NOBilissimus CAESar" which translates as 'Licinius Junior Most Noble Caesar'. (to 324)
The Byzantine chronicler Zosimus records an invasion over the Danube by a barbarian coalition of Huns, Sciri and what he terms Karpodakai, or Carpo-Dacians, as being defeated by emperor Theodosius.[43]
Tabula Peutingeriana shows about 88 localities, the names of some of which were still Dacian at the time of its compiling as they end in -dava. 20 of them are still inhabited today, and 6 of them still retain the same name, or, incorporate their original names into their current name.
A paleo-Christian basilica was discovered in Niculițel in the spot named "La Plăcintă". Coins from between 330 and 354 were discovered, as were 5th-century modifications to the basilica. While a specific end date for the use of the basilica could not be determined, a couple of 10th century submerged dwellings were discovered as having been dug in the NV corner of the nave which concludes that the basilica was in disarray by the 10th century. Under the altar there is a crypt which housed the bones of the martyrs whose names were written on the sidewalls.[49][50][51][52] (to 600)
A paleo-Christian basilica was discovered in the Adamclisi fortress.[53] (to 600)
A 5th century burial contained a Roman type brooch.[54][55]
At Napoca, cross-dating using pottery remains infers a post-Roman date for the construction of a Roman styled porticus.[54][55]
At Porolissum, red-slipped ware (terra sigillata Porolissensis) has been found in a post-Roman (re)construction phase of the forum.[54][55]
At Potaissa, burials containing iron buckles, flint-steel, gold and silver jewelry, amber and embroidery beads have been excavated.[54][55]
A 5th–6th century small basilica was discovered in the west sector of the Tomis citadel in modern-day Constanța.[56][52][57] (to 600)
A 5th–6th century bigger basilica was discovered in the west sector of the Tomis citadel in modern-day Constanța.[58][52][59] (to 600)
Another 5th–6th century Christian basilica was discovered in the Tomis citadel, modern-day Constanța.[60][52][61] (to 600)
A crypt is all that is left of a paleo-Christian basilica discovered at Tomis. Three enclosures for the remains of saints were discovered.[62][52][63] (to 600)
A 5th–6th century Christian basilica was discovered in 2012 at Noviodunum. According to the archeologist Florin Topoleanu, the population of 5th century Noviodunum was Christian.[64] (to 600)
Blachernae was a suburb of Constantinople. The Romanian philologist Ilie Gherghel, wrote a study about Blachernae and concluded that it possibly derived from the name of a Vlach (sometimes written as Blach or Blasi), who came to Constantinople from the lower Danube, a region named today Dobruja.[65] Gherghel compared data from old historians like Genesios and from the Greek lexicon Suidas and mentioned the existence of a small colony of Vlachs in the area of today Blachernae. Similar opinions were sustained by Lisseanu.[66]
First written record about a Romance language spoken in Southeastern Europe: a Byzantine soldier, native to Thrace (in present-day Bulgaria, Greece or Turkey), shouted at his companion "torna, torna fratre" ("turn around, turn around, brother") during a Byzantine campaign against the Avars invading the Balkan Peninsula.[68][69][70]
588
Troesmis was inhabited until 593.[71][47][72]Byzantine coins were discovered here and dated between 588 and 593 during the reign of Byzantine emperor Maurice.[73][74][75] (to 593)
600
Procopius mentions forts[where?] with names such as Skeptekasas, Burgulatu, Loupofantana and Gemellomountes. Modern authors claim these as Romanian names: Seven House, Broad City, Wolf's Well and Twin Mountains.[76][77]
7th century
Year
Date
Event
610
Roman Emperor Heraclius grants lands to the sclavenes located in Macedonia eventually the sclavenes later form Sclavinias a term described by Byzantine historians referring to tribal groups.
Ananias of Shirak, a 7th-century Armenian geographer described the "large country of Dacia" as inhabited by Slavs who formed "twenty-five tribes".[79][80][81]
Some authors state that Troesmis was inhabited until the end of the 7th century based on archeological evidence.[82][47]
8th century
Year
Date
Event
800
Cremation cemeteries of the "Nușfalău-Someșeni group" were discovered in northwestern Transylvania, with their 8th- and 9th-century tumuli.[83][84][85]
Ten 8th century graves of adults with bracelets from Troesmis were discovered in 1977.[86][47]
9th century
Year
Date
Event
c. 805
The Bulgarian khan Krum defeated the Avar Khaganate to destroy the remainder of the Avars, conquered eastern part of the Carpathian Basin including Transylvania, spreading from the middle Danube to the Dnieper. The Ongal was the traditional Bulgar name for the area north of the Danube across the Carpathians covering Transylvania and along the Danube into eastern part of the Carpathian Basin.[87][88][89] This resulted in the establishment of a common border between the Frankish Empire and Bulgaria.[88][89][90]
Fine, gray vessels were also unearthed in the 9th-century "Blandiana A"[98] cemeteries in the area of Alba-Iulia, which constitutes a "cultural enclave" in Transylvania.[99][100] Near these cemeteries, necropolises of graves with west–east orientation form the distinct "Ciumbrud group".[101][98][102] Female dress accessories from "Ciumbrud graves" are strikingly similar to those from Christian cemeteries in Bulgaria and Moravia.[101][102]
The "Western part" of Troesmis is supposed to have been rebuilt and used again during the reign of the Eastern Roman Emperor John I Tzimiskes based on archaeological discoveries.[105][47][better source needed]
According to the Arab chronicler Mutahhar al-Maqdisi, "They say that in the Turkic neighbourhood there are the Khazars, Russians, Slavs, Waladj, Alans, Greeks and many other peoples."[110]
Another župan by the name of George is possibly mentioned in an inscription in the Murfatlar Cave Complex, in Dobruja.[citation needed] The Complex is a relict from a widespread monastic phenomenon in a 10th-century Bulgaria.[111]
Coins and follis notes from Troesmis have been discovered.[47] (to 1020)
1018
The "Blökumenn" (often identified as Vlachs) are mentioned in a later source as fighting in Kievan Rus'.[112][113] (to 1019)
1050
The Swedish Runestone G134 mentions the ethnonym Blakumen as it recorded the death of Hróðfúss who was treacherously killed by Vlachs while travelling abroad.[114][115]
1066
Byzantine writer Kekaumenos, author of the Strategikon, described a 1066 Roman (Vlach) revolt in northern Greece.[116]
1100
An 11th century byzantine settlement was discovered at Argamum.[117]
12th century
Year
Date
Event
1113
The Russian Primary Chronicle, written in ca. 1113, recorded that nomad Hungarians drove away the Vlachs and took their lands.[118][119]
Byzantine historian John Kinnamos described Leon Vatatzes' military expedition along the northern Danube, where Vatatzes mentioned the participation of Vlachs in battles with the Magyars (Hungarians) in 1166.[121][122]
During the reign of Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria (1331–1371) the control over powerful vassals, such as the rulers of Wallachia and Dobruja, who pursued their own foreign policies, was hardly stronger.[134] The Principality of Karvuna or Despotate of Dobruja (Bulgarian: Добруджанско деспотство or Карвунско деспотство; Romanian: Despotatul Dobrogei or Țara Cărvunei) split off from the Second Bulgarian Empire in the region of modern Dobruja and Northeast Bulgaria[135]
Vlach settlements existed throughout much of today's Croatia,[140] but centres of population were focused around the Velebit and Dinara mountains and along the Krka and Cetina rivers.[140]
The Flateyjarbók preserves the 13th century biography of King Olaf II of Norway which amongst other things records the adventures of a Norwegian prince Eymund in the saga Eymundar þáttr hrings, who informs Jarizleifr of the departure of Jarizleifr's brother, Burizlaf, to Tyrkland, and added that Burizlaf was preparing to attack Jarizleifr with a huge army formed by Tyrkir, Blökumen and other peoples.[141]
The Unio Trium Nationum pact was signed as a reaction to the Transylvanian peasant revolt at Bobâlna.
1442
In this year, John Hunyadi won four victories against the Ottomans, two of which were decisive.[142] In March 1442, Hunyadi defeated Mezid Bey and the raiding Ottoman army at the Battle of Szeben in the south part of the Kingdom of Hungary in Transylvania.[143] In September 1442, Hunyadi defeated a large Ottoman army of BeylerbeyŞehabeddin, the Provincial Governor of Rumelia. This was the first time that a European army defeated such a large Ottoman force, composed not only of raiders, but of the provincial cavalry led by their own sanjak beys (governors) and accompanied by the formidable janissaries.[144]
The Polish chronicler Jan Długosz remarked in 1476 that Moldavians and Wallachians "share a language and customs".[145]
1479
The Battle of Breadfield was the most tremendous conflict fought in Transylvania up to that time in the Ottoman–Hungarian Wars, taking place in 1479 during the reign of King Matthias Corvinus. The Hungarian army defeated a highly outnumbered Ottoman army and the Ottoman casualties were extremely high. The battle was the most significant victory for the Hungarians against the Ottomans, and as a result, the Ottomans did not attack southern Hungary and Transylvania for many years thereafter.
16th century
Year
Date
Event
1514
The SzékelyGyörgy Dózsa led a peasant's revolt in Transylvania against Hungarian nobles.
Francesco della Valle writes that "they name themselves Romei in their own language" ("si dimandano in lingua loro Romei") and, he also cites the expression "Do you know Romanian?" ("se alcuno dimanda se sano parlare in la lingua valacca, dicono a questo in questo modo: Sti Rominest ? Che vol dire: Sai tu Romano?").[146]
1534
Tranquillo Andronico remarks that Vlachs now name themselves Romanians (Valachi nunc se Romanos vocant).[147]
1541
King John I of Hungary died in 1540, the Habsburg forces besieged Buda the Hungarian capital in 1541, Sultan Suleiman led a relief force and defeated the Habsburgs, the Ottomans captured the city by a trick during the Siege of Buda and the south central and central areas of the Kingdom of Hungary came under the authority of the Ottoman Empire, therefore Hungary was divided into three parts.
1542
The Transylvanian Szekler Johann Lebel wrote that "the Vlachs name each other Romuini".[148]
1554
The Polish chronicler Stanislaw Orzechowski mentions that "in their language, the vlachs name themselves romini".[149]
1563
An Acts of the Apostles book is printed by the printer Coresi from Brașov in Romanian, though written with the Cyrillic alphabet at the time.
1568
For the first time in history, the Diet of Torda in Transylvania in 1568 declared freedom of religion. While in other parts of Europe and the world religious wars were fought. The Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Calvinist, and Unitarian Churches and religions were declared to be fully equal, and the Romanian Orthodox religion was tolerated.
The Croatian Ante Verančić specifies that "the vlachs from Transylvania, Moldova and Transalpina name themselves Romans".[152]
1574
Pierre Lescalopier writes that "those that live in Moldova, Wallachia and most of Transylvania consider themselves as being descendants of Romans and name their language romanian".[153]
1575
Ferrante Capecci, after travelling through Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldova, mentions that the dwellers of these lands are named "romanesci".[154]
The assassination of Michael the Brave ends the personal union between Transylvania, Moldova and Wallachia that had been established one year prior.
1605
Stephen Bocskay becomes Prince of Transylvania guaranteeing religious freedom and broadening Transylvania's independence.
1606
The Treaty of Vienna gives constitutional and religious rights and privileges to all Hungarian-speaking Transylvanians but none to Romanian-speaking people. The treaty guarantees the right of Transylvanians to elect their own independent princes in the future.
1613
Gabriel Bethlen becomes Prince of Transylvania succeeding to Gabriel Báthory. Under Bethlen's rule, the principality experiences a golden age. He promoted agriculture, trade, and industry, sank new mines, sent students abroad to Protestant universities, and prohibited landlords from denying an education to children of serfs.[editorializing]
Grigore Ureche, in his The Chronicles of the land of Moldavia states that the language spoken by Moldavians is an amalgam of Latin, French, Greek, Polish, Turkish, Serbian, and so on, though assuming the preponderance of the Latin influence and claims that, at a closer look, all Latin words could be understood by Moldavians.[156]
George II Rákóczi invades Poland only to be defeated. The Ottoman Empire take advantage of the new situation and restore the military power in Transylvania.
1661
In April Prince Kemény proclaims the secession of Transylvania from the Ottomans and appeals to help from the Habsburg monarchy. He was not aware of the secret agreement between the Habsburg Empire and Ottomans and the move will end his reign. Transylvania becomes a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire.
1682
The capital of Transylvania is moved to Sibiu (then Nagyszeben);
1683
The defeat of Ottoman armies in Battle of Vienna means the end of Ottoman rule over Transylvania. The Roman Catholic Church becomes official church in Transylvania in a move directed by the Habsburgs to weak the noblemen estates, which were both Roman Catholic and Protestant.
1692
The Habsburgs control over Transylvania is consolidated even more and the princes are replaced with governors named directly by the Habsburg Emperors, who themselves become Princes of Transylvania.
1698
Bucharest becomes capital of Wallachia. Until then the capital was in Târgoviște. Constantin Brâncoveanu's 16-year reign commences during which period Wallachia enjoys a golden age.
Martinus Szent-Ivany mentions that the Vlachs use the following phrases "Si noi sentem Rumeni" meaning "we are Romanians too" and "Noi sentem di sange Romena", meaning "We are of Roman blood".[157]
Constantin Brâncoveanu and his sons are executed in Istanbul at the order of SultanAhmed III because they did not renounce their Christian faith. The sultan also did not agree with Brâncoveanu's alliance with the Habsburg and Russian empire.
The Grand Principality of Transylvania is proclaimed, consisting of a special separate status within the Habsburg Empire originally granted in 1691. This was however just a mere formality, as Transylvania is still an administrative area of Hungary.[citation needed]
The Revolt of Horea, Cloșca and Crișan starts in November and lasts until February in 1785. The main demands were related to the existence feudal serfdom and the lack of political equality between Orthodox Romanians and other Catholic ethnicities of Transylvania.
1791
Romanian-speaking Transylvanians petition to Emperor Leopold II for recognition as the fourth nation of Transylvania and for religious equality. Their demands are rejected and their old marginalised status is reinforced.
19th century
Year
Date
Event
1801
Russia assumes a protective right over Romanian-speaking Christians in the Danubian lands and soon began to increase its influence in the region.
1802
Sámuel Teleki, then Chancellor of Transylvania, inaugurates the first library in Transylvania and present-day Romania. On December 15, János Bolyai is born in Cluj Napoca. Today the town's main university is named after him and Victor Babeș.
The anti-boyar and anti-Phanarioteuprising takes place being led by Tudor Vladimirescu. On 28 May, a treaty is signed between Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire ending the war with Bessarabia becoming part of the Russian Empire.
Local leaders in Moldavia are allowed to govern by the Ottoman Empire and Russian Empire.
1829
Following the Treaty of Adrianople, without overturning Ottoman suzerainty, places Wallachia and Moldavia under Russian empire military rule until Turkey pays an indemnity. Wallachia gains the rayas of Turnu, Giurgiu and Brăila, Russia annexes the Danube estuary.
Regulamentul Organic, a quasi-constitutional organic law is enforced in Wallachia and Moldavia. Sfatul Boieresc, the first Legislative Assembly in Wallachia is established.
Regulamentul Organic, a quasi-constitutional organic law is enforced in Wallachia and Moldavia. Sfatul Boieresc, the first Legislative Assembly in Wallachia is established Mihail Sturdza, a man with unionist ideas, becomes Prince of Moldavia.
The Revolution are very active in this part of Europe. The Hungarians demand more rights, including a provision on the union between Transylvania and Hungary. The Romanian-speaking Transylvanians carry their own parallel revolution led by Avram Iancu, which opposed the union with Hungary.
During the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, the Hungarian government proclaimed union with Transylvania in the April Laws of 1848 which was latter affirmed by the Transylvaniat Diet and the King.[158]
The Revolutions of 1848 spreads in Wallachia where the Romanian-speaking Wallachians try to overrule the Russian Empire's administration, demand the abolition of boyar privilege and a land reform. The revolutionaries are successful enough to create a provisional government in June and forced Gheorghe Bibescu, the Prince of Wallachia, to abdicate and leave into exile. A series of reforms follow the protests, the abolition of Roma slavery being one of them.
The Revolutions of 1848 reach Moldavia but are less successful than in Wallachia, as the revolts are quickly suppressed.
1849
The revolt led by Avram Iancu obtains some rights for the Romanian-speaking Transylvanians, in spite of strong opposition from Hungary.
Grigore Alexandru Ghica becomes prince of Moldavia. He introduces important administrative reforms and promotes economic development and education.
Alexandru Ioan Cuza is elected Prince of Moldavia on January 5. Three weeks later he is also elected Prince of Wallachia, thus achieving a de facto union of the two principalities under the name of Romania.
1860
University of Iași is established, as the first institution of higher education in Romanian language with faculties of literature, philosophy, law, science and medicine and schools in music and art. The Romanian Army is founded. Romania switches from Cyrillic script to the Latin script that is still in use today.
1861
On February 5, the 1859 union is formally declared and a new country, Romania is founded. The capital city is chosen to be Bucharest. On December 23, Abdülaziz, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire officially recognizes the union but only for the duration of Cuza's reign.
Alexandru Ioan Cuza promulgates the Agrarian Reform in which the majority of the land is transferred into the property of those who worked it. As there was not enough land, the Secularization of monastery estates in Romania, in which large estates owned by the Romanian Orthodox Church are transferred under state ownership and then to private property, takes place. This was an important turning point in the history of Romania, as it marked the almost disappearance of the Boyar class, leaving the country to look towards capitalism and industrialization.
1864
The Parliament of Romania is formed. A tuition-free, compulsory public education for primary schools is introduced in Romania for the first time. Also a Criminal Code and a Civil Code, both based on the Napoleonic Code, are introduced.
1865
On January 1, Casa de Economii și Consemnațiuni, the first bank of Romania, is established. On June 19 Evangelis Zappas, one of the richest men in the world at that date dies at the age of 65. Born in the Ottoman Empire in today's Greece he lived in Romania most of his life.
Romania becomes the first European country to abolish the death penalty.[160] This, however, did not last, it is now abolished in Romania since 1990.[161]
The Bucharest – Giurgiu railway works are concluded after four years and the line become the first of this kind[clarification needed] in Romania. However, it is not the first railway built on the present territory of Romania. The first railway was built in 1854 in Banat.
1870
The short-lived Republica Ploiești is formed in the city of Ploiești as part of a revolt against the Prince.
1877
On April 16, Romania and the Russian Empire sign a treaty under which Russian troops are allowed to pass through Romanian territory, with the condition to respect the integrity of Romania. On 21 May, the Parliament of Romania declare the independence of the country. In the fall Romania join the Russo-Turkish War on the Russian Empire side. In November, deeply defeated in the Battle of Plevna, the Ottoman Empire request an armistice.
National Bank of Romania is established in April. The bank's first governor was Eugeniu Carada. Căile Ferate Române, Romania's state-owned railway company starts its operations.
1881
March 26
Carol I is crowned as King. His wife Elisabeth becomes Queen. Romania becomes kingdom.
Patriarch Joachim IV signs the recognition of the autocephalous status of the Romanian Orthodox Church that granted it equal rights with those of the other orthodox churches.
1886
The construction of the Athenaeum begins. Although the work would continue until 1897, the first concert took place in 1886 and it was performed by Bucharest Philharmonic Orchestra.
Leaders of the Transylvanian Romanians who sent a Memorandum to the Austrian Emperor demanding national rights for the Romanians are found guilty of treason.
1895
King Carol I Bridge is inaugurated on September 26. At the time it was the longest in Europe and second longest in the world.
1896
The construction of Port of Constanța begins. Since then it has been the most important port in Romania. In May, cinema arrives in Romania for the first time.[citation needed]
The Parliament votes to enact the law of the military aviation[clarification needed], Romania being the fifth nation in the world to have an air force.
1914
October 10
Carol I dies and is succeeded by his nephew, Ferdinand, who becomes the second King of Romania as Ferdinand I. His wife, Maria becomes queen.
1916
Despite choosing to stay away from the World War I, the death of King Carol I and the course of events made Romania to change its view and decide to switch sides in favor of the Entente, demanding the territory of the Kingdom of Hungary of until the Tisza River. The demands of the Romanian Government were accepted and following the First Treaty of Bucharest. Romania declare war to the Central Powers on 27 August and launches attacks against Kingdom of Hungary through the Southern Carpathians and into Transylvania. Poorly trained and equipped, the Romanian Army cannot face the power of the Austro-Hungarian, German, Bulgarian and Ottoman armies and Bucharest was occupied on 6 December 1916 by the Central Powers. Iași becomes temporarily the capital city of Romania.
1917
August 6
The Battle of Mărășești, the retreat of the Russian Army from Romania left the Romanians no choice but to ask for peace. (to September 8)
On 9 December 1917, the Armistice of Focsani was an agreement that ended the hostilities between Romania and the Central Powers.
The Hungarian army was disarmed on 2 November, and Austria-Hungary signed the armistice on 3 November 1918. One day before the German armistice, Romania re-entered the war on 10 November with similar objectives to those of 1916. On 12 November, the Romanian army crossed the Hungarian border and entered in Transylvania. On 28 November the Romanian representatives of Bucovina voted for union with the Kingdom of Romania, followed by the proclamation of the union of Transylvania with the Kingdom of Romania on 1 December, by the representatives of Transylvanian Romanians and of the Transylvanian Saxons gathered at Alba Iulia. The declaration included 26 counties of the Kingdom of Hungary, the territory until the Tisza River, Banat, and Máramaros county. Both proclamations were not, however, yet recognized by the Entente powers.
1919
On 1 May, the entire east bank of the Tisza River was under the control of the Romanian Army. On 17 July, Béla Kun, the leader of the Hungarian Soviet Republic, decides to counterattack the Romanian Army at the Tisza river to regain the occupied territories of the Kingdom of Hungary without any success. The collapse of the Hungarian Soviet Republic by the Romanian offensive led to the occupation of Budapest, the Hungarian capital in August. Afterwards, by the Treaty of Versailles and later by the Treaty of Trianon and the Kingdom of Romania expands its borders, referred as Greater Romania during the interwar period.
1920
January 20
Romania becomes a founding member of League of Nations. The CFRNA (French-Romanian Company for Air Navigation) is established, becoming the first airline in Romania.
1921
April 23
Romania and Czechoslovakia sign a peace treaty in Bucharest. It will be followed by a similar treaty between Romania and Yugoslavia signed it Belgrade one month later. A new land reform takes place, suggested by King Ferdinand I, who wanted to repay the soldiers and their families for sacrifices made during the war[citation needed].
King Ferdinand I dies and Mihai I, his grandson, becomes the third King of Romania after his father Carol renounced to his rights to the throne in two years earlier.
July 24
On July 24, the Iron Guard is formed by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu. The Iron Guard will play a major role in the Romanian political and social system over the next decade and a half.
Carol II returns to Romania on June 7 and is proclaimed King one day later, thus becoming the fourth King of Romania and the first born in Romania. The Societatea Anonimă Română de Telefoane is established and Romania starts to use landline telephone on a wide scale.
1933
December
On December 10, Ion Duca, Prime Minister of Romania at the time, bans the Iron Guard. On December 29, Ion Duca is assassinated by members of the paramilitary organization.
1937
A new palace is built to replace the old residence of the heads of states of Romania, which has been in use for over a century. Today the National Museum of Art of Romania is located in the palace.
1938
In a bid for political unity against the fascist movement known as the Iron Guard, which was gaining popularity, Carol II dismissed the government headed by Octavian Goga. The activity of the Romanian Parliament and of all political parties was suspended and the country is governed by royal decree. Miron Cristea, the first Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church become Prime Minister on February 11.
Armand Călinescu, Prime Minister of Romania, is assassinated by the Iron Guard.
1940
On June 27, following an ultimatum issued by the Soviet Union, Romania loses Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina. On August 30, under the Second Vienna Award, Romania loses the northern part of Transylvania to Hungary. Only one week later the Kadrilater/Southern Dobruja is lost to Bulgaria. On September 4, Horia Sima, leader of the Iron Guard, and Ion Antonescu, a Romanian Army General, Prime Minister of Romania at that date, form the "National Legionary State" in Romania, forcing the abdication of King Carol II. Michael I becomes king for the second time two days later. On October 8, Nazi troops begin crossing into Romania. On November 23, Romania joins the Axis Powers.
1941
January 21
A rebellion organized by the Iron Guard takes place in Bucharest. Later known as the Legionnaires' rebellion and Bucharest pogrom, it was a reaction to the decision made by Ion Antonescu to cut off the privileges of the Iron Guard.[citation needed] During the rebellion, 125 Jews and 30 army soldiers were killed. After order is restored, the Iron Guard is banned. (to January 23)
June 22
Romania joins Operation Barbarossa, attacking the Soviet Union hoping to recover the lost territories of Bessarabia and Bukovina. Later, Romania annexes Soviet lands immediately east of the Dnister.
On August 23, King Michael I leads a successful coup with support from opposition politicians and the army. Ion Antonescu is arrested. On September 12, an Armistice Agreement is signed with the Allied powers. Romania join the Allied powers. In October Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, proposed a percentages agreement with Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin on how to split up Eastern Europe into spheres of influence after the war; the Soviet Union was offered a 90% share of influence in Romania. Battle of Romania begins.
Following the abdication of Mihai I, the People's Republic of Romania is declared on December 30 against the majority of people who supported the monarchy. The new leader of Romania becomes Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party;
1948
A new constitution is ratified on April 13. Two months later, on June 11 all banks and major enterprises are nationalized. During the year, also in the years to come, many pre-war politicians, businessmen, priests and even ordinary people are thrown in prisons. On August 30, following the model of Soviet NKVD, the Romanian secret police is formed;
1949
A forced collectivization, in which the agriculture is organized under the socialist model, comes into force. Romania join Comecon. The construction of Danube-Black Sea Canal starts. The canal was the most known labour camp in the history of Romania;
1951
During the night of June 18 the third-largest mass deportation in modern Romanian history takes place. Some 45,000 people are taken from their homes and deported to the Bărăgan plain;
1952
The Hungarian Autonomous Province, the one and only autonomous province in modern Romania, is created. It will be disestablished in 1968. The second Communist constitution is ratified;
1953
The Danube-Black Sea Canal is halted and the labour camp disestablishedied Iuliu Maniu dies in Sighet prison;
1954
SovRoms, joint ventures between Romania and Soviet Union are formed. They will prove their inefficiency for Romania from the first day of establishment and most of them will be dissolved in 1956;
1955
Romania joins the Warsaw Pact. On February 14, a group of Romanian anti-Communists occupies the Romanian embassy in Bern demanding the release from prisons of many public personalities. With the help of the Swiss police, the order is re-established two days later. On December 14, Romania join the United Nations;
1956
On October 28 a radio station calling itself "Romania of the future. The voice of resistance" begins broadcasting on different wavelengths. Many protests, especially amongst students, follows in November. On December 31, Televiziunea Română start to broadcast first programmes;
1957
ARO is established in Câmpulung-Muscel and start to manufacture off-road vehicles. ARO IMS become the first car built in Romania after World War II. Over the next three decades ARO will be a landmark of Romania.
1958
The Soviet Union Army leave Romania after fourteen years of occupation;
1959
On July 28, the Ioanid Gang carries out the most famous bank robbery ever to occur in a Communist state;
1960
Oliviu Beldeanu, the leader of the group that occupied the Romanian embassy in Bern five years earlier, is executed in Bucharest;
1965
On March 19, Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej dies and Nicolae Ceaușescu is elected General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party and becomes the state leader. The official name of the country is changed into The Socialist Republic of Romania. The third Communist constitution is ratified;
1966
Intreprinderea de Autoturisme Pitești is established. Two years later Romania start the mass production, the first mass production of a car – Dacia 1100. Nicolae Ceaușescu orders that the abortion decree signed in 1957 to be reversed and new policies to increase birth rate and fertility rate are introduced. The policy fails, as the population begins to swell, accompanied by rising poverty and increased homelessness children in the urban areas;
1968
Romania refuse to participate in the invasion of Czechoslovakia. Nicolae Ceaușescu openly condemns the action, thus he becomes a Western world favourite. Richard Nixon's visit to Romania was the first by an American president to a Communist country. The Patriotic Guards are formed as an additional defence force in case of an attack from the outside;
1972
In order to develop a "multilaterally socialist society", Nicolae Ceaușescu starts urban planning, following the ideologies of North Korea. The face of the country is completely changed in the years to come;
1974
Nicolae Ceaușescu becomes the first President of Romania. Romania become the first country in the Eastern Bloc ever to establish economic relations with the European Community. The Generalised System of Preferences is signed, followed by an Agreement on Industrial Products in 1980.
1976
At the age of 14, Nadia Comăneci becomes one of the stars of the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. During the team portion of the competition, her routine on the uneven bars is scored at a 10.0. It is the first time in modern Olympic gymnastics history that the score had ever been awarded. Over the next years, Nadia will become one of the best known Romanians in the world;
The Danube-Black Sea Canal project restarts;
1977
On 4 March 21:20 local time, an earthquake occurs with a magnitude of 7.4 and epicentre in Vrancea at a depth of 94 kilometres. The earthquake killed about 1,570 people and injured more than 11,000. Total damages are estimated at more than two billion dollars. On 1 July 35,000 out of 90,000 miners in Jiu Valley decide to stop working. Their protest is the biggest of this kind in Communist Romania before the 1989 revolution. The strike only ends when Nicolae Ceaușescu intervened in person.
1978
Ion Mihai Pacepa, a senior officer in Securitate, defected to the United States becoming the highest ranking defector from the Eastern Bloc;
As part of the urban planning programme, significant portions of the historic centre of Bucharest are demolished in order to accommodate standardized apartment blocks and government buildings, including the grandiose Centrul Civic and the palatial House of the People, the second largest government building in the world;
1984
Romania is, alongside People's Republic of China and Yugoslavia, one of the three Communist countries to take part to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, USA. The Danube-Black Sea Canal is finally completed after nearly four decades;
In a climate of economic depression and food shortages a rebellion erupts on November 15 in the city of Brașov. Over 300 protesters are arrested for hooliganism.
1989
On December 16, protests break out in Timișoara. Five days later Nicolae Ceaușescu organises a mass meeting in Bucharest. The jeers and whistles soon erupt into a riot, as the crowd takes to the streets, placing the capital in turmoil. Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife leave Bucharest putting an end to four decades of Communist rule in Romania. On December 25, after a short trial, Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife are executed.
On 20 May, free elections are held in Romania for the first time after fifty years. FSN, which became a political party, win the elections. Iliescu is elected the second President of Romania. Before and after the elections, a protest initiated by the students and professors of University of Bucharest, which was also supported by many intellectuals, demanded that former members of the Romanian Communist Party, which included Iliescu, should be banned from elections. The protest was ended by the intervention of the miners from Jiu Valley, brought to Bucharest by Iliescu himself in what is remembered as the June 1990 Mineriad;
1991
A new constitution is ratified;
1992
Elections are held and Iliescu wins a second mandate. Privatization of the industry starts;
On January 1, Romania joins the European Union, together with Bulgaria. Traian Băsescu was temporarily suspended for alleged constitutional violations and replaced with Nicolae Văcăroiu.[165][166]
In February the Government overrule court decision that commission investigating Communist-era secret police is illegal. For two days, starting on April 2, Romania host 2008 NATO summit. Legislative election are held on November 30. Emil Boc becomes the new Prime Minister following the elections.
Badly affected by the Great Recession, the International Monetary Fund and other lenders agree to provide Romania a rescue package worth 20bn Euros.[167] A Government crisis begins in April when the Social Democratic Party pulls out of ruling coalition, leaving Prime Minister Emil Boc the head of minority government, which subsequently loses a confidence vote in parliament. On December 6, Traian Băsescu is re-elected as president for a second mandate after marginally winning the presidential election in front of Mircea Geoană.
^MOSCALU, E., Das thrako-getische Fürstengrab von Peretu in Rumänien. Bericht der Römisch-Germanischen Kommission 70, 1989 (1990) pp. 129–190.
^Dacia: Landscape, Colonization and Romanization by Ioana A Oltean, 2007, Index Dromichaetes King of the Getians
^Radu Ocheșeanu, Monedele basileului Moskon aflate în colecțiile Muzeului de arheologie Constanța (=Coins of Basileus Moskon in the collections of the Archaeological Museum at Constantza), în Pontica 3 (1970), p. 125-128.
^Kurt W. Treptow and Ioan Bolovan in "A history of Romania – East European Monographs", 1996, ISBN9780880333450, page 17 "..Two inscriptions discovered at Histria indicate that Geto-Dacian rulers (Zalmodegikos and later Rhemaxos) continued to exercise control over that city-state around 200 BC ...."
^The Hellenistic Age from the Battle of Ipsos to the Death of Kleopatra VII by Stanley M. Burstein, 1985, Index Rhemaxos Getic or Scythian ruler
^Dacia: Landscape, Colonization and Romanization by Ioana A Oltean, 2007, page 47, "Dicomes of the Getians"
^Wilhelm Tomachek in "Les restes de la langue dace" published in "Le Muséon By Société des lettres et des sciences, Louvain, Belgium, page 407 "Pieporus, prince des daces Costoboces..."
^Gudmund Schütte in Ptolemy's maps of northern Europe, H. Hagerup, 1917 page 82 "historical king Pieporus. The same author Schütte in "Our forefathers" published by University Press, 1929 page 74 "The North Dacian tribes of the Koistobokoi and Karpoi unlike the rest of Dacia escaped the Roman conquest of AD 105..."
^Wilhelm Tomachek (1883): "Les restes de la langue dace" published in "Le Muséon By Société des lettres et des sciences, Louvain, Belgium, page 409
^Batty, Roger (2007): Rome and the Nomads: the Pontic-Danubian realm in antiquity, Oxford University Press, ISBN0-19-814936-0, ISBN978-0-19-814936-1, page 366
^Leadbetter, William Lewis (2009). Galerius and the Will of Diocletian(eBook). Routledge. p. number unavailable in preview. ISBN9781135261320. Retrieved September 21, 2018 – via Google Books. Lactantius, for example, noted that Galerius intended to change the name of the Empire from "Roman" to "Dacian", and was an enemry of tradition and culture (22.4).
^Schaff, Philip (1885). "Ante-Nicene Fathers Volume 7"(eBook). Christian Classics Ethereal Library. p. Chapter 27. Retrieved September 21, 2018. Long ago, indeed, and at the very time of his obtaining sovereign power, he (Galerius) had avowed himself the enemy of the Roman name; and he proposed that the empire should be called, not the Roman, but the Dacian empire
^Lista monumentelor istorice 2004, MO nr. 646 bis/16/07/2004, Ordinul ministrului culturii și cultelor nr. 2.314/2004, vol. III, 2004, 2271, poz. 283 [Ordin MCC] (site record source)
^ abcdDumitru, Adrian. "Dacia". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
^ abcdDUMITRU, A. (April 28, 2011). Dacia. Ancient History Encyclopedia
^"The small basilica from Tomis". National Archaeological Record of Romania. Romanian Ministry of Culture. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
^Lista Monumentelor Istorice, MO nr. 646 bis/16/07/2004, Ordinul ministrului culturii și cultelor nr. 2.314/2004, vol. II, București, 2004, p. 931, poz. 3 [Ordin MCC] (site record source)
^"The big basilica at Tomis". National Archaeological Record of Romania. Romanian Ministry of Culture. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
^Lista Monumentelor Istorice, MO nr. 646 bis/16/07/2004, Ordinul ministrului culturii și cultelor nr. 2.314/2004, vol. II, București, 2004, p. 931, poz. 2 [Ordin MCC] (site record source)
^Lista Monumentelor Istorice, MO nr. 646 bis/16/07/2004, Ordinul ministrului culturii și cultelor nr. 2.314/2004, vol. II, București, 2004, p. 931, poz. 4 [Ordin MCC] (site record source)
^Lista Monumentelor Istorice, MO nr. 646 bis/16/07/2004, Ordinul ministrului culturii și cultelor nr. 2.314/2004, vol. II, București, 2004, p. 934, poz. 24 [Ordin MCC] (site record source)
^Mihăescu, H. (1993). La Romanité dans le Sud-Est de L'Europe (in French). Editura Academiei Române. p. 421. ISBN97-3270-342-3.
^Opreanu, Coriolan Horațiu (2005). "The North-Danube Regions from the Roman Province of Dacia to the Emergence of the Romanian Language (2nd–8th Centuries AD)". In Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Bolovan, Ioan (eds.). History of Romania: Compendium. Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies). p. 129. ISBN978-973-7784-12-4.
^Jorga, N. (1924). "La " Romania " danubienne et les barbares au VIe siècle". Revue Belge de Philologie et d'Histoire. 3: 35–50. doi:10.3406/rbph.1924.6272.
^The Geography of Ananias of Şirak (L1881.3.9), p. 48.
^BAUMANN 1980, p. 169 – 172. De la Cetatea de Est mai putem aminti încă o monedă de la acest împărat, emisiune din 568/569, cf. POPESCU, IACOB, GEORGESCU 1996, p. 94, catalog 79.
^Madgearu, Alexandru (2005). The Romanians in the Anonymous Gesta Hungarorum: Truth and fiction. Romanian Cultural Institute, Center for Transylvanian Studies. ISBN973-7784-01-4.
^Skylitzes, John (976). A Synopsis of Byzantine History 811–1057(eBook). Cambridge University Press. p. 312. ISBN9781139489157. Retrieved September 21, 2018 – via Google Books. Of these four brothers David died right away killed between Kastoria and Prespa, at a place called Kalasdrys (beautiful oaks), by some vagabond Vlachs.
^Ibn al Nadim, al-Fihrist. English translation: The Fihrist of al-Nadim. Editor și traducător: B. Dodge, New York, Columbia University Press, 1970, p. 37 with n.82
^Spinei, Victor, The Romanians and the Turkic Nomads North of the Danube Delta from the Tenth to the Mid-Thirteenth Century. Brill. 2009, p.83
^A. Decei, V. Ciocîltan, "La mention des Roumains (Walah) chez Al-Maqdisi,"in Romano-arabica I, Bucharest, 1974, pp. 49–54
^Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500–1250, Florin Curta, Cambridge University Press, 2006, ISBN0521815398, p. 232.
^Egils saga einhenda ok Ásmundar berserkjabana, in Drei lygisogur, ed. Å. Lagerholm (Halle/Saale, 1927), p. 29
^V. Spinei, The Romanians and the Turkic Nomads North of the Danube Delta from the Tenth to the Mid-Thirteenth Century, Brill, 2009, p. 106, ISBN9789047428800
^Samuel Hazzard Cross et Olgerd P. Sherbowitz-Wetzor (English), The Russian Primary Chronicle. Laurentian Text, The Medieval Academy of America, CambridgeMassachusetts, 2012, p.62
^C. A. Macartney, The Habsburg Empire: 1790–1918, Faber & Faber, September 4, 2014, paragraf.185
^Cinnamus, John (1836). Ioannis Cinnami Epitome Rerum ab Ioanne et Manuele Comnenis Gestarum [Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus by John Kinnamos]. Translated by Brand, C.M. (published 1976).
^V. Spinei, The Romanians and the Turkic Nomads North of the Danube Delta From the Tenth to the Mid-Thirteenth Century, Brill, 2009, p.132, ISBN9789004175365
^Delev, Petǎr; Valeri Kacunov; Plamen Mitev; Evgenija Kalinova; Iskra Baeva; Bojan Dobrev (2006). "19. Bǎlgarija pri Car Ivan Aleksandǎr". Istorija i civilizacija za 11. klas (in Bulgarian). Trud, Sirma.
^Makkai, László (2001). "The Three Feudal 'Nations' and the Ottoman Threat". History of Transylvania Volume I. From the Beginnings to 1606 – III. Transylvania in the Medieval Hungarian Kingdom (896–1526) – 3. From the Mongol Invasion to the Battle of Mohács. Columbia University Press, (The Hungarian original by Institute of History Of The Hungarian Academy of Sciences). ISBN0-88033-479-7.
^"...si dimandano in lingua loro Romei...se alcuno dimanda se sano parlare in la lingua valacca, dicono a questo in questo modo: Sti Rominest ? Che vol dire: Sai tu Romano?..." in: Claudiu Isopescu, Notizie intorno ai romeni nella letteratura geografica italiana del Cinquecento, in Bulletin de la Section Historique, XVI, 1929, p. 1- 90
^"Ex Vlachi Valachi, Romanenses Italiani,/Quorum reliquae Romanensi lingua utuntur.../Solo Romanos nomine, sine re, repraesentantes./Ideirco vulgariter Romuini sunt appelanti", Ioannes Lebelius, De opido Thalmus, Carmen Istoricum, Cibinii, 1779, p. 11 – 12
^"qui eorum lingua Romini ab Romanis, nostra Walachi, ab Italis appellantur" St. Orichovius, Annales polonici ab excessu Sigismundi, in I. Dlugossus, Historiae polonicae libri XII, col 1555
^"...Valacchi, qui se Romanos nominant..." "Gens quae ear terras (Transsylvaniam, Moldaviam et Transalpinam) nostra aetate incolit, Valacchi sunt, eaque a Romania ducit originem, tametsi nomine longe alieno..." De situ Transsylvaniae, Moldaviae et Transaplinae, in Monumenta Hungariae Historica, Scriptores; II, Pesta, 1857, p. 120
^"Tout ce pays: la Wallachie, la Moldavie et la plus part de la Transylvanie, a esté peuplé des colonies romaines du temps de Trajan l'empereur… Ceux du pays se disent vrais successeurs des Romains et nomment leur parler romanechte, c'est-à-dire romain … " în Voyage fait par moy, Pierre Lescalopier l'an 1574 de Venise a Constantinople, în: Paul Cernovodeanu, Studii și materiale de istorie medievală, IV, 1960, p. 444
^"Anzi essi si chiamano romanesci, e vogliono molti che erano mandati quì quei che erano dannati a cavar metalli..." în: Maria Holban, Călători străini despre Țările Române, București, Editura Stiințifică, 1970, vol. II, p.158 – 161
^Grigore Ureche, Ch. For our Moldavian language, in Chronicles of the land of Moldavia, available at Wikisource
^"Valachos...dicunt enim communi modo loquendi: Sie noi sentem Rumeni: etiam nos sumus Romani. Item: Noi sentem di sange Rumena: Nos sumus de sanguine Romano" Martinus Szent-Ivany, Dissertatio Paralimpomenica rerum memorabilium Hungariae, Tyrnaviae, 1699, p. 39
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