Romanian History

1585 charter on Bucharest’s Plumbuita Monastery found in Mount Athos archive

The Vasile Pârvan Cultural Association recently discovered a charter concerning Plumbuita Monastery in Bucharest in the archives of Xeropotamou Monastery on Mount Athos. Dated 21 October 1585, the document was issued by Wallachian Prince Mihnea II the Turned-Turk and records the dedication of the Bucharest monastery to the Athonite monastery. According to a post on…

Aug 27, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

425 years after his death, Michael the Brave remains symbol of Romanian unity

Sunday marked 425 years since the death of Michael the Brave (Mihai Viteazul), the first ruler to unite Wallachia, Transylvania, and Moldavia under a single leadership. At the end of the 16th century, Michael the Brave became Prince of Wallachia, beginning his reign in 1593. Amid the conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg…

Aug 10, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romania’s first National Day in memory of victims of 1990 Mineriad prayerfully marked in Bucharest

Romania’s National Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the June 13–15, 1990 Mineriad was marked on Monday with a memorial service in Bucharest, at the initiative of the Association of the Victims of the 1990–1991 Mineriads. Led by Fr. Florin Ionică, counsellor at the Cemeteries, Monuments and Funeral Services Department of the Archdiocese of…

Jun 18, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romania’s Senate marks 162 years since establishment; Orthodox Metropolitan was first president

Romania’s Senate marks 162 years since its establishment on Tuesday, June 17. The institution’s first president was Metropolitan Nifon Rusailă of Hungro-Wallachia, who later became Romania’s first Primate Metropolitan. The upper chamber of Parliament was created in 1864 at the initiative of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza through the “Developing Statute of the Paris Convention,” according…

Jun 17, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romania Marks First National Day of Remembrance for Victims of 1990 Mineriad

Romania on Monday marked for the first time the National Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the June 13–15, 1990 Mineriad and Anti-Democratic Repression, according to the national news agency Agerpres. The observance was established under Law No. 93/2026, promulgated on June 10 by Romania’s president, the Presidential Administration said in a press release.…

Jun 15, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian women in history: Presbytera Elena Alistar, physician, educator and champion of Bessarabia’s Union with Romania

Elena Alistar, the first of seven children born to Fr Vasile Balan and Presbytera Elizaveta Balan in the village of Vaisal, Ismail County, was born on 1 June 1873. She married Fr Dimitrie Alistar, who served in Răzeni, Chișinău County. During that period, she worked as a teacher for children in several villages. Sadly, her…

Jun 3, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel honours Royal Family at 160 years since enthronement of Romania’s first king

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania sent a message to Crown Princess Margareta of Romania on the occasion of Romania’s National Independence Day and the traditional royal celebration of 10 May, highlighting the enduring spiritual and historical significance of the Romanian Royal House. In his message, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church described the…

May 11, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian in history: Queen Helen, Righteous Among the Nations and the mother of a wise king

Sunday marked 130 years since the birth of Queen Helen of Romania, posthumously honoured with the title of Righteous Among the Nations for saving the lives of thousands of Jews and, indirectly, preventing the deportation of tens of thousands more through her interventions with Ion Antonescu. Alongside this courageous involvement in public affairs, she fulfilled…

May 4, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian Senate backs 2027 as “Year of Romania’s Independence” to mark 150th anniversary

The Romanian Senate adopted on Wednesday a legislative proposal designating 2027 as the “Year of Romania’s Independence,” marking 150 years since the proclamation of state independence. The draft law has been forwarded to the Chamber of Deputies of Romania, which serves as the decision-making body in this case. Under the Senate-approved version, Parliament, the Presidential…

Apr 30, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Short biographies of Romanian Orthodox bishops who aided Jews during the Holocaust, 1941–1944

In observance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, historian Dr George Enache presents a collection of short biographies documenting Romanian Orthodox bishops who supported and protected Jewish communities during the Holocaust, 1941–1944. Dr George Enache is a Professor at the Faculty of History, Philosophy, and Theology of the University of Lower Danube in Galați, Romania. Rooted…

Jan 27, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel marks 1859 Union of Romanian Principalities as foundation of modern state

Marking the anniversary of the 24 January 1859 Union of the Romanian Principalities, Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church issued a message of thanksgiving and national remembrance, describing the event as the “foundational union” that laid the groundwork for the modern Romanian state. In his statement, the Patriarch stressed that the union of Moldavia…

Jan 26, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu