Istrate Micescu | |
|---|---|
 Micescu in a photo published in 1937 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania | |
| In office 29 December 1937 – 10 February 1938 | |
| Prime Minister | Octavian Goga |
| Preceded by | Victor Antonescu |
| Succeeded by | Gheorghe Tătărescu |
| Minister of Justice of Romania | |
| In office 24 November 1939 – 30 November 1939 | |
| Prime Minister | Gheorghe Tătărescu |
| Preceded by | Victor Iamandi |
| Succeeded by | Aurelian Bentoiu [ro] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1881-05-22)22 May 1881 |
| Died | 22 May 1951(1951-05-22) (aged 70) |
| Resting place | Mărăcineni,Argeș County,Romania |
| Political party | National Liberal Party National Christian Party National Renaissance Front |
| Spouses | |
| Children | Roger, Mariana, Istrate Jr. |
| Parents |
|
| Alma mater | Sorbonne University |
| Occupation | Lawyer, professor, politician |
| Known for | 1938 Constitution of Romania |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Kingdom of Romania |
| Branch/service | Army |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Mărășești |
| Employer(s) | University of Iași University of Bucharest |
Istrate N. Micescu (22 May 1881 – 22 May 1951) was a Romanian lawyer, Law and Political Science professor at theUniversity of Bucharest's Law Department, and politician who served as theMinister of Foreign Affairs of Romania.
Micescu was born on 22 May 1881 inPloiești to one of the families of the nobility in Romania, son of professor and liberal politician Nicolae Micescu and Maria Rădulescu. After graduating in 1899 from theIon Brătianu High School inPitești, he studied for a semester at theUniversity of Bucharest. He then went toSorbonne University inParis to study law and philology,[1] obtaining his Law degree magna cum laude in 1906.[2]
Upon returning to Romania, Micescu practiced Law, first at theArgeș County bar, and then at theIlfov County bar.[2] In 1907 he competed againstNicolae Titulescu for an open faculty position at the Law School of theUniversity of Iași, and was successful in securing the appointment. He later transferred to the University of Bucharest, where he was appointed Professor of Civil Law.[1] DuringWorld War I, he served as lieutenant in theRomanian Army, and was wounded at theBattle of Mărășești in 1917.[1]
In 1918, he joined theNational Liberal Party of Romania and was a deputy in theParliament of Romania in 1920, 1927, and 1931. In 1931 Micescu was elected vice-president of theChamber of Deputies.[2] He was alsosenator, first forMuscel and then Ploiești.[1] He served as Dean of the Ilfov Bar Association (which includes Bucharest), first in 1923–1926, and then in 1936.[2]
Micescu wasantisemitic.[3] He formed a group called the Association of Romanian Christian Lawyers, and in November 1935 he made an alliance withCorneliu Zelea Codreanu's fascisticIron Guard in order to intimidate his political opponents in the Bucharest Bar Association.[4]: 318 Micescu was one of the main antisemitic instigators in the Bar Association and, on 7 February 1937 he presided the Bar when it decided to no longer admit Jewish lawyers.[5][3] AfterLegionary students helped him gain control of the Ilfov Bar Association, Micescu made denigrating remarks about Codreanu’s electoral alliances in 1937; Codreanu launched alibel suit against Micescu, but in December 1937 he lost the suit.[4]: 294
Micescu's antisemitism led him to leave the National Liberal Party and joinOctavian Goga'sNational Christian Party.[4]: 318 [6]: 418 On 29 December 1937, he was appointedMinister of Foreign Affairs of Romania in theGoga cabinet. He served as Foreign Minister until 10 February 1938.[7]
Micescu was the author of the1938 Constitution of Romania, which established the monarchic regime ofKingCarol II of Romania.[2] He began working on the constitution in mid-February and completed it in 3 days.[8] Although he had previously praised Micescu as being "an eminent jurist,"Nicolae Iorga was not pleased with the result: "Our Constitution should be the product of the nation, relying on strict principles of the soul and the manifestations of our people. Ourfirst Constitution was created by a certainAlecu Constantinescu, and that of last February by Istrate Micescu, an idiotic jurist who only sees that which is written in his manuals and that which the king has told him."[9] In December, theNational Renaissance Front was formed as the only legally permitted party; Micescu became a member of the ruling council of the party, and a Senator in the new Parliament.
In late November 1939, Micescu served for a week asMinister of Justice in theFifth Tătărăscu cabinet. As head of the Ministry of Justice he promoted and brutally enacted antisemitic laws.[citation needed]
In 1945, after the communist-led government ofPetru Groza came to power, Micescu wasdisbarred.[2] According to some accounts,KingMichael I offered safe passage to the West on his personal plane so that Micescu could set up a government-in-exile, but he refused.[1] He was arrested on 6 July 1947 and interrogated at theMinistry of Internal Affairs. He was re-arrested in March 1948 and held atJilava Prison on charges that he andNichifor Robu [ro] had set an organization (Salvarea Neamului) to overthrow the communist regime. He was tried by the Bucharest Military Tribunal, presided by Colonel Mihail Vasilescu;[10] on 1 July 1948 he was sentenced to 20 years offorced labour for conspiracy and rebellion.[11][12] He was sent toAiud Prison, where he died three years later,[7][10] of complications due to a prostate condition and poor medical care.[1] He was buried by his family next to the church located on his property atCiumești,Argeș County.[1][12]
A street inPitești now bears his name.
Micescu was married 3 times: to Elena Valimarescu, Anișoara Munteanu, and Elisabeta Pastia. He had 3 children: Roger Micescu (love child, born to his Swedish servant in Paris, but raised by him without the mother's input), Mariana Micescu (with the first wife), and Istrate Micescu Jr. (with the second wife).[12]
Micescu lived in an imposing mansion at the entrance to theCișmigiu Gardens in Bucharest; the property, located at 12, Ioan Zalomit Street, featured the largest private library in the city.[13][14] Bound to the land by a passion that had to do with a feudal notion of property, Istrate Micescu used to invest his earnings in small properties, some of which did not return any income. He particularly cared for the one in Ciumești (now Argeșelu, inMărăcineni commune, in the vicinity ofMicești), where the roots of his family were and where he had his most beautiful mansion built.[15]
His most famous property was the Micești mansion, built in 1928 in Neo-Romanian style. The plans were drawn by architectEdmond van Saanen Algi and the building contractor was the well-known engineer C. Corani. Istrate Micescu would invite at his property his friends, including the writersLiviu Rebreanu,Ion Minulescu,Lucian Blaga, andOctavian Goga.[15] He gathered there a valuable library, as well as painting byJean Alexandru Steriadi,Nicolae Tonitza,Nicolae Grigorescu, andȘtefan Luchian,[12] but it was all scattered away after the establishment of the communist regime (the books were burned after his arrest in 1948[10]). The mansion was later used by theCeaușescu couple as a hunting lodge.[15]