Chivu Stoica | |
|---|---|
 Chivu in 1957 | |
| President of the State Council | |
| In office 24 March 1965 – 9 December 1967 | |
| Prime Minister | Ion Gheorghe Maurer |
| Preceded by | Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej |
| Succeeded by | Nicolae Ceaușescu |
| 48thPrime Minister of Romania | |
| In office 21 October 1955 – 21 March 1961 | |
| President | Petru Groza Ion Gheorghe Maurer |
| Deputy | Emil Bodnăraș |
| Preceded by | Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej |
| Succeeded by | Ion Gheorghe Maurer |
| First Vice President of the Council of Ministers | |
| In office 20 August 1954 – 4 October 1955 | |
| Prime Minister | Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej |
| Succeeded by | Emil Bodnăraș |
| Minister of Industry[a] | |
| In office 15 April 1948 – 31 May 1952 | |
| Prime Minister | Petru Groza |
| Succeeded by | Carol Loncear [ro] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 August [O.S. 26 July] 1918 |
| Died | 18 February 1975(1975-02-18) (aged 66) |
| Cause of death | Suicide by firearm |
| Political party | Romanian Communist Party |
| Spouses | Ecaterina Micu-Chivu (divorced)
|
| Children | 2 |
| Occupation | Boilermaker |
| Awards |
|
| a.^ Minister of Metallurgy and Chemical Industries from 23 November 1949 | |
Chivu Stoica (the family name being Chivu;[1][2] 8 August [O.S. 26 July] 1918 – 18 February 1975) was a leadingRomanianCommunistpolitician, who served asPresident of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of theSocialist Republic of Romania.
Stoica was born inSmeeni,Buzău County, the sixth child of aploughman.[3] At age 12, after 5 years of elementary school, he left home, and started working as an apprentice atCăile Ferate Române, the state railway corporation. In 1921, he moved toBucharest, where he worked as aboilermaker at the Vulcan, Lemaître, andMalaxa companies.[3] He joined theNational Peasants' Party (PNȚ), serving as secretary for theBlue Sector of Bucharest until 1929.[4] At the Malaxa works, he metGheorghe Vasilichi, who recruited him into theCommunist Party (PCR)[3] in 1931.[4]
In spring 1931, Stoica started working for the Grivița Railway Yards, where he metGheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej,Vasile Luca, andConstantin Doncea; together, they started organizing a strike.[3] On 20 August 1934, he was sentenced to 15 years of prison for his role in theGrivița Strike of 1933.[5] He spent time at theAiud,Doftana,Târgu Ocna,Văcărești, andCaransebeș prisons.[4][6] In 1935–1936 he was atOcnele Mari Prison, together with Gheorghiu-Dej.[7] In 1940, his sentence was reduced to 9 years ofhard labor. Later, the War Council of the 1st Army Corps pardoned him, but he was interned in theTârgu Jiu camp.[6] At the internment camp, he was close to Gheorghiu-Dej, who may have wanted Stoica to be his successor asGeneral Secretary.
He was a member of theCentral Committee of theRomanian Workers' Party from 1945 to 1975, and a member of thePolitburo. He wasPrime Minister of Romania between 1955 and 1961 and President of theState Council of Romania (de facto head of state) from 1965 until 1967.
Stoica was awarded theOrder of the Crown of Romania in the rank of Grand Officer (1947), theOrder of the Star of the Romanian People's Republic, 1st class (1948, 1958), theOrder of Labor [ro], 1st class (1959), the title ofHero of Socialist Labour and the Hammer and Sickle Gold Medal (1958), theAugust 23 Order [ro], 1st class (1959), theTudor Vladimirescu Order [de], 1st class (1966), and the title ofHero of the Socialist Republic of Romania (1973).[8]
He died aged 66 at his residence in the exclusivePrimăverii neighborhood of Bucharest.[6] His death, by aHolland & Hollandhunting rifle bullet to the head, was ruled a suicide.[9][10][6]
Stoica had three wives. With the first one he had a daughter, Cornelia.[4][11] His second wife was Ecaterina Micu-Chivu (née Klein), a communist activist who worked after 1947 for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Romanian–Soviet Institute, and theRed Cross, and was a professor atPolitehnica University until 1955. The couple had a daughter, Ana; they also adopted a son, but later revoked the adoption.[4][2][11] His third wife was Maria Chivu (née Manolescu), an engineer and a party and union activist.[4][11][10]
Media related toChivu Stoica at Wikimedia Commons
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of the State Council 24 March 1965–9 December 1967 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Romania 21 October 1955– 21 March 1961 | Succeeded by |
