Nicolae Rădescu | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 45th Prime Minister of Romania | |
| In office 7 December 1944 – 1 March 1945 | |
| Monarch | Michael I |
| Deputy | Petru Groza |
| Preceded by | Constantin Sănătescu |
| Succeeded by | Petru Groza |
| Chief of the Romanian General Staff | |
| In office 15 October 1944 – 6 December 1944 | |
| Monarch | Michael I |
| Preceded by | Gheorghe Mihail |
| Succeeded by | Constantin Sănătescu |
| Minister of Internal Affairs | |
| In office 14 December 1944 – 28 February 1945 | |
| Prime Minister | Himself |
| Preceded by | Constantin Sănătescu |
| Succeeded by | Teohari Georgescu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1874-03-30)30 March 1874 Călimănești,Romania |
| Died | 16 May 1953(1953-05-16) (aged 79) Manhattan,New York, U.S. |
| Resting place | Bellu Cemetery,Bucharest |
| Political party | People's Party Crusade of Romanianism[1] |
| Spouse | Gizela Ettinger[2] |
| Children | Nicu Rădescu[2] |
| Alma mater | Higher War School |
| Profession | Military |
| Awards | Order of Michael the Brave |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Kingdom of Romania |
| Branch/service | Romanian Land Forces |
| Rank | General de Corp de Armată (Lieutenant General) |
| Battles/wars | Second Balkan War World War I World War II |
Nicolae Rădescu (Romanian pronunciation:[nikoˈla.erəˈdesku]; 30 March 1874 – 16 May 1953) was a Romanian army officer and political figure. He was the last pre-communist rulePrime Minister of Romania, serving from 7 December 1944 to 1 March 1945.
The son of small landowners (Radu and Zamfira), Rădescu was born on 30 March 1874 inCălimănești,Vâlcea County.[3] He attended the Military School for Officers, graduating on 1 July 1898 with the rank of second lieutenant. He pursued his military studies at the Cavalry School, graduating in June 1900 and being promoted to lieutenant in 1903, and then at theHigher War School inBucharest (1904–1905), being promoted to captain on 4 October 1909.
In the summer of 1913 he saw action with the 1st Cavalry Division in the military campaign inBulgaria during theSecond Balkan War. He was promoted to major on 1 April 1916, and served inWorld War I during theRomanian Campaign of 1916 with the 5th RegimentCălărași, fighting against theGerman forces at theCarpathian mountain passes. For his bravery and skill at theBattle of Sălătrucu, in theTopolog Valley, he was awarded on 10 January 1917 theOrder of Michael the Brave, 3rd Class.[4] In April 1917 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel; he served as Chief of Staff for the 2nd Cavalry Division until 1 September 1918, and was promoted to colonel in April 1919.[5]
On 27 May 1920 Rădescu was appointed adjutant ofKingFerdinand, after which he served asmilitary attaché inLondon (1926–1928). Upon his return, he was promoted in March 1928 to brigadier general. He served as commanding officer of the 4th BrigadeRoșiori, after which he was attached to the Inspectorate-General of Cavalry, and then commanded the 1st Cavalry Division (1931–1933). He resigned from the Army on 5 February 1933 and transferred to the retired reserves.[5] Upon presenting his resignation, he accused "profiteering politicians" and KingCarol II'scamarilla of commercializing military life.[6]
That same month Rădescu joined thePeople's Party ofMarshalAlexandru Averescu. In the mid-1930s, he became involved in nationalist politics; he supported afar right movement calledCruciada Românismului ("TheCrusade of Romanianism"), aimed at the cultural "Romanization" of Germans and Hungarians inTransylvania. This short-lived movement was a splinter group of theIron Guard, created byMihai Stelescu. After Stelescu was assassinated in July 1936 by anIron Guard death squad, Rădescu became a leader of the movement, which quickly faded afterwards.[7] Because of his political stances and his opinions regarding the royal camarilla, he started being monitored by the secret police (Siguranța Statului).
After King Carol II abdicated in September 1940, Rădescu charged dictatorIon Antonescu with collaborating with theNazis.[8] As noted by ex-PresidentEmil Constantinescu at a memorial ceremony, Rădescu opposed the advance of Romanian troops beyond theDniester River[9] afterBessarabia andNorthern Bukovina had beenrecaptured in 1941 from theSoviet Union. In 1942, Rădescu wrote an article critical of the German ambassadorManfred Freiherr von Killinger and his constant intrusion in the internal affairs of Romania. He was interned as apolitical prisoner in theTârgu Jiu camp. On 23 August 1944, immediately after Antonescu's downfall inKing Michael's Coup, Rădescu was released from prison. On 15 October he was appointedChief of the Romanian General Staff at the insistence of theSoviet government, which favored him for his independence and his reputation as an ardent anti-fascist who was respected by the people.[8]
He became prime minister on 7 December 1944. The Soviet government initially supported him; on a visit to Bucharest, the Deputy Foreign Minister,Andrey Vyshinsky, publicly expressed Soviet confidence in theRădescu government. Soon after the situation changed, as conflicts over the armistice agreement emerged, especially over Moscow's demand for $300 million in reparations; Rădescu also resisted the Soviet order todeport Germans from Romania to the Soviet Union.[8] To assist with the imposition of a communist government, the SovietNKGB and the Romanian communists supported thePatriotic Defense Guards; these paramilitary organizations, which appeared after August 1944, were placed under the command ofEmil Bodnăraș. On 15 January 1945, Rădescu ordered the dissolution of the Guards, butTeohari Georgescu and Bodnăraș ignored the instructions. At the same time, Deputy Prime MinisterPetru Groza, anticipating theimminent agrarian reform, encouraged the peasants to forcibly take the land of the big landlords.[10]
On 24 February 1945, theCommunist Party of Romania and its allies organized a mass rally in front of theRoyal Palace to call for his resignation. As the protest carried on, communist agents opened fire from the Interior Ministry building situated across the street, killing several people.[11] In a radio address later that day, Rădescu blamed the attack onAna Pauker andVasile Luca, calling them "hyenas" and "strangers without kin or God".[10][12] The next day, the Communist Party orchestrated an unprecedented propaganda campaign against Rădescu. His son, Nicu, who had participated at the rally (he had been recruited into the Party in 1940), wrote an open letter to his father; the letter, published inScînteia andRomânia Liberă on 28 February, accused Rădescu of issuing the order to shoot peaceful demonstrators.[2]Radio Moscow called Rădescu the "Butcher ofPalace Square".[13]: 84 Concomitantly, Vyshinsky arrived in Bucharest and demanded from King Michael the resignation of Rădescu;[13]: 87 [10] at the direction ofJoseph Stalin, he warned that the Soviet Union would not allowNorthern Transylvania to be returned to Romania if Rădescu were to remain prime minister. As a result of all these pressures, Rădescu resigned his position on 1 March.
On 6 March 1945, thefirst Communist-dominated government of Romania took office under the direction of Petru Groza. Over the next few years, the Communists completely consolidated their power.
One of the first decrees of the Groza government (issued on 7 March 1945) was to impose mandatory domicile for General Rădescu.[14] Pursued by the Communist authorities, Rădescu sought refuge in theBritishlegation, stayed there for about two months, and was then handed over to Romanian authorities, who had guaranteed his safety but placed him underhouse arrest.[2] His personal secretary,Adriana Georgescu-Cosmovici, was arrested and was subjected to rape and torture at Malmaison Prison in Bucharest.[15][16] On 17 June 1946, he managed to flee on board a plane to the BritishCrown colony ofCyprus, where he was detained in a refugee camp by the authorities until theParis Peace Treaties were signed in 1947.[2][3] Via Lisbon and Paris he ended up in theUnited States.[2] Once in America, he and other exiled Romanian political figures, includingAugustin Popa [ro],Mihail Fărcășanu,Grigore Gafencu, andConstantin Vișoianu, came together to form a united anti-communist opposition in exile called theRomanian National Committee. In 1950, after disagreements within the committee, he was one of the founders of theLiga Românilor Liberi ("The League of Free Romanians"), together with Grigore Gafencu,Nicolae Caranfil, Mihail Fărcășanu,Carol "Citta" Davila,Viorel Tilea, generalIon Gheorghe [ro], andVintilă Brătianu.[17]
Rădescu died oftuberculosis on 16 May 1953 inNew York City; he was buried in the city'sCalvary Cemetery.[18] At the initiative of Prime MinisterMugur Isărescu, the remains of General Rădescu were brought back to Romania in 2000. Following the wishes expressed in his testament, he was reburied at theOrthodoxBellu Cemetery in Bucharest on 23 November 2000.[3]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Chief of the Romanian General Staff 15 October 1944 – 6 December 1944 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Romania 6 December 1944 – 28 February 1945 | Succeeded by |
