For other people named Ceausescu or Ceauşescu, see Ceausescu (disambiguation). Ceausescu or Ceauşescu most often refers to Nicolae Ceauşescu, the last Communist leader of Romania, but it may also refer to: Elena Ceauşescu - Wife of Nicolae Ceauşescu Nicu Ceauşescu - their younger son. ...

Nicolae Ceauşescu

Nicolae Ceauşescu (IPA /ni.ko.ˈla.je ʧau.ˈʃes.ku/), or approximately nik-oh-LA-ye cha-ow-SHESS-koo) (January 26, 1918 - December 25, 1989) was the leader of Communist Romania from 1965 until shortly before his execution in 1989. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... The International Phonetic Alphabet is a phonetic alphabet used by linguists to accurately and uniquely represent each of the wide variety of sounds (phones or phonemes) the human vocal apparatus can produce. ... January 26 is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 6 days remaining. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Soviets pressed for inclusion of Romanias heretofore negligible Communist Party in the post-war government, while non-communist political leaders were steadily eliminated from political life. ... 1965 was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Early life and career

Born in the Scorniceşti village of the Olt county, Ceauşescu moved to Bucharest at the age of 11 to become a shoemaker's apprentice. The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... Administrative map of Romania with Olt county highlighted Olt is a Romanian county (Judeţ) in the Wallachia region, with the capital city at Slatina (population: 87,608). ... Bucharest (population 2. ...

He joined the illegal Communist Party of Romania in early 1932 and was first arrested in 1933 for agitating during a strike. He was arrested again in 1934 first for collecting signatures on a petition protesting the trial of railway workers and twice more for other similar activities earning him the description "dangerous communist agitator" and "active distributor of communist and anti-fascist propaganda" on his police record. He then went underground but was captured and imprisoned in 1936 for a two year sentence at Doftana Prison for anti-fascist activities. The Romanian Communist Party (Romanian: Partidul Comunist Român) was a Communist political party in Romania until 1989. ... 1932 is a leap year starting on a Friday. ... 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1934 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Doftana is a Romanian prison that was used in the 1930s to detain political prisoners. ...

While out of jail in 1939 he met Elena Petrescu (they married in 1946) - she would play a growing role in his political life over the decades. He was arrested and imprisoned again in 1940. In 1943 he was transferred to Târgu Jiu concentration camp where he shared a cell with Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, becoming his protégé. After World War II, when Romania was beginning to fall under Soviet influence, he served as secretary of the Union of Communist Youth (1944-1945). 1939 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... T rgu Jiu is a town in the Gorj county, Oltenia, Romania. ... A concentration camp is a large detention center created for political opponents, aliens, specific ethnic or religious groups, civilians of a critical war-zone, or other groups of people, often during a war. ... Gheorghiu-Dej (center) and Ceauşescu (left) Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej (November 8, 1901, Bârlad - March 19, 1965, Bucharest) was the Communist leader of Romania from 1948 until his death in 1965. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air. ... The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) (Russian: (СССР)  listen?; tr. ... 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1945 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

After the Communists seized power in Romania in 1947, he headed the ministry of agriculture, then served as deputy minister of the armed forces under Gheorghiu-Dej's Stalinist reign. In 1952 Gheorghiu-Dej brought him onto the Central Committee months after the party's "Muscovite faction" led by Ana Pauker had been purged. In 1954 he became a full member of the Politburo and eventually rose to occupy the second highest position in the party hierarchy. 1947 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Stalinism is a brand of political theory, and the political and economic system implemented by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union. ... 1952 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China meets in 2002 The Central Committee is a leading body of an organization, most often a political party, especially Communist parties. ... Ana Pauker on the cover of Time Magazine September 20, 1948. ... 1954 was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Politburo is short for Political Bureau. ...

Leadership of Romania

Three days after the death of Gheorghiu-Dej in March 1965, Ceauşescu became first secretary of the Romanian Workers' Party. One of his first acts was to rename the party the Romanian Communist Party and declare that the country was now the Socialist Republic of Romania rather than a People's Republic. In 1967 he consolidated his power by becoming president of the State Council. Initially, he was a popular figure, due to his independent policy, challenging the supremacy of the Soviet Union in Romania. In the 1960s he ended Romania's active participation in the Warsaw Pact (though Romania formally remained a member); he refused to take part in the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact forces, and actively and openly condemned that action. 1965 was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... the term General Secretary (alternatively First Secretary) denotes a leader of various unions, parties or associations. ... The Soviets pressed for inclusion of Romanias heretofore negligible Communist Party in the post-war government, while non-communist political leaders were steadily eliminated from political life. ... Peoples Republic (sometimes Popular Republic) is a title that is often used by Marxist-Leninist governments to describe their state. ... 1967 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of Warsaw Pact member countries. ... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ...

Propaganda painting of the Ceauşescus

In 1974, Ceauşescu added "President of Romania" to his titles, further consolidating his power. He followed an independent policy in foreign relations—for example, in 1984, Romania was one of only two Communist-ruled countries to take part in the American-organized 1984 Summer Olympics. Also, the country was the first of the Eastern Bloc to have official relations with the European Community: an agreement including Romania in the Community's Generalized System of Preferences was signed in 1974 and an Agreement on Industrial Products was signed in 1980. However, Ceauşescu refused to implement any liberal reforms. The evolution of his regime followed the Stalinist path already traced by Gheorghiu-Dej. Their opposition to Soviet control was mainly determined by the unwillingness to proceed to destalinization. The secret police (Securitate) maintained firm control over speech and the media, and tolerated no internal opposition. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... 1984 is a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Games of the XXIII Olympiad were held in 1984 in Los Angeles, United States. ... During the Cold War, the Eastern Bloc (or Soviet Bloc) comprised the following Central and Eastern European countries: Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Albania (until the early 1960s, see below), the Soviet Union, and Czechoslovakia. ... The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... De-Stalinization and the Khrushchev era For further details, see Nikita Khrushchev After Stalin had died in March 1953, he was succeeded by Nikita Khrushchev as First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Georgi Malenkov as Premier of the Soviet Union. ... The Securitate (Romanian for Security; official full name Departamentul Securităţii statului, State Security Department), was the secret police force of Communist Romania. ...

Ceauşescu had made state visits to the People's Republic of China and North Korea in 1971. He took great interest in the idea of total national transformation as embodied in the programs of the Korean Workers' Party and China's Cultural Revolution. Shortly after returning home he began to emulate North Korea's system, influenced by the Juche philosophy of North Korean President Kim Il Sung. Korean books on Juche were translated into Romanian and widely distributed in the country. State visits usually involve a military review. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... The Workers Party of Korea (WPK) is the ruling party of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. ... A poster during the Cultural Revolution The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (Simplified Chinese: 无产阶级文化大革命; Traditional Chinese: 無產階級文化大革命; pinyin: ; literally Proletarian Cultural Great Revolution; often abbreviated to 文化大革命 wén huà dà gé mìng, literally Great Cultural Revolution, or simply 文革 wén gé, literally Cultural Revolution) in the Peoples Republic of... Juche Sasang (pronounced Joo-cheh), also Kimilsungism, is the official government-sponsored ideology of North Korea. ... Kim Il-sung (April 15, 1912–July 8, 1994) was a Korean Communist politician and the ruler of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (North Korea) from 1948 until his death. ...

Beginning in 1972, Ceauşescu instituted a program of systematization. Promoted as a way to build a "multilaterally developed socialist society," the program of demolition, resettlement, and construction began in the countryside, but culminated with an attempt to completely reshape the country's capital. Over one fifth of central Bucharest, including churches and historic buildings, was demolished during Ceauşescu's rule in the 1980s, in order to rebuild the city in his own style. The People's House ("Casa Poporului") in Bucharest, now the Parliament House, is one of the world's largest buildings, after The Pentagon. Ceauşescu also planned to bulldoze many villages in order to move the peasants into blocks of flats in the cities, as part of his "urbanization" and "industrialization" programs. An NGO project called "Sister Villages" that created bonds between European and Romanian communities may have played a role in thwarting these plans. 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... The skyline of many cities became dominated by standardized apartment blocks Beginning in 1974, Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu began a program of systematization, consisting largely of the demolition and reconstruction of existing villages, towns, and cities, in whole or in part, with the stated goal of turning Romania into a... The color red and particularly the red flag are traditional symbols of Socialism. ... Bucharest (population 2. ... The Palace of the Parliament (Palatul Parlamentului) in Bucharest, Romania is reputed to be the largest building in Europe at 350,000 m². ... The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ... A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is independent from the government. ...

The Pacepa Defection

In 1978 Ion Mihai Pacepa, a senior member of the Romanian intelligence service (Securitate), defected to the United States. According to the official declaration made by president Ion Iliescu when Pacepa asked for the return of his properties and position, Pacepa was "a confused man" who gathered illegal properties in Romania by using his influential position. His treason was a powerful blow against the regime, forcing Ceauşescu to overhaul the architecture of the Securitate. Pacepa's 1986 book Red Horizons: Chronicles of a Communist Spy Chief (ISBN 0895265702) reveals details of Ceauşescu's regime such as his collaboration with Arab terrorists, his massive espionage on American industry and his elaborate efforts to rally Western political support. After Pacepa's defection, the country became more isolated and the economic growth stopped. Ceauşescu's intelligence agency became subject to heavy infiltration by foreign intelligence agencies and he started to lose control of the country. He tried several reorganizations in a bid to get rid of old collaborators of Pacepa, but to no avail. 1978 was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... Ion Mihai Pacepa Ion Mihai Pacepa - Second from left Ion Mihai Pacepa (born 28 October 1928) is the highest ranking secret-service officer ever to have defected from the former Eastern Bloc. ... The Securitate (Romanian for Security; official full name Departamentul Securităţii statului, State Security Department), was the secret police force of Communist Romania. ... Ion Ilici Iliescu (born March 3, 1930) is a Romanian politician. ... 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Personality Cult and Authoritarianism

Casa Poporului ("People's House"), now Casa Parlamentului ("House of Parliament")

Ceauşescu created a pervasive personality cult, giving himself the titles of "Conducător" ("Leader") and "Geniul din Carpaţi" ("Genius of the Carpathians"), with help from Proletarian Culture (Proletkult) poets such as Adrian Paunescu, and even having a king-like scepter made for himself. Such excesses prompted the painter Salvador Dalí to send a congratulatory telegram to the "Conducător." The Communist Party daily Scînteia published the message, unaware that Dalí had written it with tongue firmly in cheek. To avoid new treasons after Pacepa's defection, Ceauşescu also invested his wife Elena and other members of his family with important positions in the government. Casa Poporului (Peoples House) People often say in Romania: Ce a construit Ceausescu in 10 ani astia nu or sa mai faca in 100, meaning What Ceausescu accomplished in 10 years, wont be equalled [by the new democratic regime] in 100 years File history Legend: (cur) = this is... Casa Poporului (Peoples House) People often say in Romania: Ce a construit Ceausescu in 10 ani astia nu or sa mai faca in 100, meaning What Ceausescu accomplished in 10 years, wont be equalled [by the new democratic regime] in 100 years File history Legend: (cur) = this is... Adolf Hitler built a strong cult of personality, based on the Führerprinzip. ... This page is a candidate to be moved to Wiktionary. ... The King of Romania was the title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Romania from 1881 until 1947 when Romania was proclaimed a republic. ... Salvador Dalí as photographed in 1934 by Carl Van Vechten Salvador Felip Jacint Dalí Domènech (May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989) was an important Catalan-Spanish painter, best known for his surrealist works. ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ...

Ceauşescu's Statesmanship

Under Ceauşescu, Romania was Europe's fourth biggest exporter of weapons. Nevertheless, several of Ceauşescu's actions suggest that one of his ambitions was to win a Nobel Prize for peace. In pursuing this goal, he made considerable efforts to act as a mediator between PLO and Israel. He organized a successful referendum for reducing the size of the Romanian Army by 5%. He held large rallies for peace and wrote a poem that was part of each literature manual. His poem was (in a word for word translation): Photographs of Nobel Prize Medals. ... The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (Arabic Munazzamat al-Tahrir Filastiniyyah منظمة تحرير فلسطينية ) is a political and paramilitary organization of Palestinian Arabs dedicated to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state to consist of the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, with an intent to destroy Israel. ... The Romanian Military has compleetly overhauled its equipment and today it is one of the most modernized armies in its region. ...

Let us make from cannons tractors

From atom lights and sources

From nuclear missiles

Plows to labour fields.

Ceauşescu also tried to play the role of a father to poor African countries. He was one of the friends of Mobutu Sese Seko of Congo, sending them money and technology, and used to be acclaimed as a hero by the people of these countries when he was visiting them. Africa is the worlds second-largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. ... Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku wa za Banga (or Mobutu Sese Seko Koko Ngbendu Wa Za Banga; October 14, 1930 - September 7, 1997) was the President of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) from 1965 to 1997. ...

Foreign debt

Despite his increasingly totalitarian rule, Ceauşescu's political independence from the Soviet Union drew the interest of western powers. Ceauşescu was able to borrow heavily from the west to finance economic development programs, but these loans ultimately devastated the country's financial situation. In an attempt to correct this situation, Ceauşescu decided to eradicate Romania's foreign debts. He organized a referendum and managed to change the constitution, adding a clause that barred Romania from taking foreign debts in the future. The referendum yielded results typical for Communist states of that era: a nearly unanimous "yes" vote. The concept of Totalitarianism is a typology or ideal-type used by some political scientists to encapsulate the characteristics of a number of twentieth century regimes that mobilized entire populations in support of the state or an ideology. ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ...

In the 1980s, Ceauşescu ordered the export of much of the country's agricultural and industrial production in order to repay its debts. The resulting domestic shortages made the everyday life of Romanian citizens a fight for survival as food rationing was introduced and heating, gas and electricity black-outs were becoming the rule. There was a steady decrease in the living standard (and especially the availability of food and general goods in stores) between 1980 and 1989. The official explanation was that the country was paying its debts, and people accepted the suffering, believing it to be for a short time only and for the ultimate good. Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ...

The debt was fully paid in summer 1989, shortly before Ceauşescu was overthrown. During that period, the state TV often showed Ceauşescu entering well stocked stores.

The constitutional prohibition of debt was the first thing changed, without any referendum, by the leaders of the FSN as they assumed power after the December 1989 revolution. The National Salvation Front (Romanian: Frontul Salvării Naţionale; FSN) was the governing body of Romania in the first weeks after the Romanian Revolution of 1989, subsequently turned into a political party. ... People on the streets of Bucharest The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a week-long series of riots and protests in late December of 1989 that overthrew the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu. ...

Leadership weaknesses

Ceauşescu on trial

Ceauşescu's social policies further aggravated the situation. For instance, forcibly maintaining the population growth rate became a top political priority. A key element of this process was the 1966 decree that prohibited abortion and contraception and made divorce more difficult to obtain. The law allowed abortions only for women who were at least 42 years of age or who had already borne at least four (later five) children. Mothers of at least 5 children would be entitled to significant benefits, while mothers of at least 10 children were declared heroic mothers receiving a gold medal, a free ARO 4x4 car, free transportation on trains, and a free holiday travel each year to a resort. However few Romanian women acquired such "heroic mother" status, the average Romanian family having 2-3 children (see Demographics of Romania). This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... 1966 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the ending of a marriage, which can be contrasted with an annulment which is a declaration that a marriage is void, though the effects of marriage may be recognized in such unions, such as spousal support, child custody and distribution of property. ... About 89. ...

While the population growth rate was maintained, poverty and poor sexual education led to thousands of children being abandoned by their families at state-run orphanages (many of those were undesired children abandoned at birth or shortly thereafter, because poor parents could not support them). These institutionalized "decree babies" lived in squalid conditions, with a high mortality rate as one of the many consequences. Another disastrous policy was Ceauşescu's refusal to acknowledge the spread of AIDS within Romania's closely guarded borders. HIV-testing for blood donors was neither required by law, nor was it being practiced at that time; this fact, along with the government-sanctioned practice of using shared transfusion needles for orphans, propelled Romania to second place in the list of childhood HIV infections in Europe. The Red Ribbon symbol is used internationally to represent the fight against AIDS. AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, rarely written Aids) is a disease characterized by the destruction of the human immune system. ...

In 1987 an attempted strike at Braşov failed: the army occupied the factories and crushed the workers' demonstrations. Braşov (Hungarian: Brassó, German: Kronstadt) is a city in Romania, residence of Braşov county. ...

Throughout 1989, Ceauşescu became even more isolated in the Communist world: in August 1989 he proposed a summit to discuss the problems of Eastern European Communism and "defend socialism" in these countries, but his proposal was turned down by the Warsaw Pact states and the People's Republic of China. 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A summit is: A point higher than all the ground immediately surrounding it; see topographical summit. ... Map of Warsaw Pact member countries. ...

Tensions Grow

In 1989 Ceauşescu was showing signs of complete denial of reality. While the country was going through extremely difficult times with long bread lines in front of empty food stores, he was often shown on state TV entering stores jampacked with food supplies and praising the "high living standard" achieved under his rule. In the fall of 1989, daily TV broadcasts were showing endless scrolling lists of CAPs (kolkhozes) with alleged record harvests, in blatant contradiction with the shortages experienced by the average Romanian at the time. A kolkhoz  listen (Russian: колхо́з) was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms or sovkhozes. ...

Some people, believing that Ceauşescu was not aware of what was going on in the country, were attempting to hand him petition and complaint letters during his many visits around the country. However, each time he was getting a letter he would immediately pass it on to members of his security detail, and whether or not Ceauşescu ever came to read any of them, will probably remain an unsolved mystery. According to the rumors of the time, people attempting to hand letters directly to Ceauşescu had to take upon themselves a high risk of adverse consequences, "courtesy" of the secret police Securitate. People were strongly discouraged from addressing him and there was a general sense that things had reached an overall low. The Securitate (Romanian for Security; official full name Departamentul Securităţii statului, State Security Department), was the secret police force of Communist Romania. ...

Revolution

See main article Romanian Revolution of 1989. People on the streets of Bucharest The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a week-long series of riots and protests in late December of 1989 that overthrew the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu. ...

Ceauşescu's regime collapsed after a series of violent events in Timişoara and Bucharest in December 1989. Map of Romania showing Timisoara Timişoara  listen (Hungarian: Temesvár, German: Temeschwar or Temeschburg, Serbian: Temišvar, Turkish: Tamışvar) is a city in western Romania, in the Banat region, Timiş county, population 329,554 in 2000. ... Bucharest (population 2. ...

In November 1989 the XIVth Congress of PCR (Romanian Communist Party) saw Ceauşescu, now aged 72, reelected for another 5 years as leader of PCR.

Demonstrations in the city of Timişoara were triggered by the government-sponsored attempt to evict László Tőkés, an ethnic Hungarian church minister, accused by the government of inciting ethnic hate. Members of his ethnic Hungarian congregation surrounded his apartment in a show of support. Romanian students spontaneously joined the demonstration, which soon lost nearly all connection to its initial cause and became a more general anti-government demonstration. Regular military forces, police and Securitate fired on demonstrators on December 17, 1989. The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... December 17 is the 351st day of the year (352nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On December 18, 1989, Ceauşescu departed for a visit to Iran, leaving the duty of crushing the Timişoara revolt to his subordinates and his wife. Upon his return on the evening of December 20, the situation became even more tense, and he gave a televised speech from the TV studio inside Central Committee Building (CC Building), in which he spoke about the events at Timişoara in terms of an "interference of foreign forces in Romania's internal affairs" and an "external aggression on Romania's sovereignty". The country, which had no information of the Timişoara events from the national media, heard about the Timişoara revolt from western radio stations like Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, and by word of mouth. A mass meeting was staged for the next day, December 21, which, according to the official media, was presented as a "spontaneous movement of support for Ceauşescu", emulating the 1968 meeting in which Ceauşescu had spoken against the invasion of Czechoslovakia by forces of Warsaw Pact. December 18 is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Voice of America (VOA) is the official broadcasting service of the United States government. ... Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a radio and communications organization which is funded by the United States Congress. ... December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

On December 21, the mass meeting, held in what is now Revolution Square, degenerated into anarchy. A stunned Ceauşescu couple, failing to control the crowds, finally took cover inside the CC Building, where they remained until the next day. The rest of the day saw a revolt of the Bucharest population, who had assembled in University Square, and confronted the police and the army on barricades. These initial events are regarded to this day as the genuine revolution. However, the unarmed rioters were no match for the military apparatus concentrated in Bucharest, which cleared the streets by midnight and arrested hundreds of people in the process. December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

Although the broadcast of the "support meeting" and the subsequent events on the national television had been interrupted the previous day, Ceauşescu's senile reaction to the events had already become part of the country's collective memory. By the morning of December 22, the rebellion had already spread to all major cities. The suspicious death of Vasile Milea, the defense minister, was announced by the media. Immediately thereafter, Ceauşescu presided over the CPEX meeting and assumed the leadership of the army. He made an attempt to address the crowd gathered in front of the CC, but this desperate move was rejected by the rioters, who forced open the doors of the building, by now left unprotected by the army, police and Securitate. The Ceauşescu couple fled by helicopter from the top of the CC building in a poorly advised decision (since they would have had safer refuge using existing underground tunnels) [see Burlan]. December 22 is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

Coup

See main article Romanian Revolution of 1989. People on the streets of Bucharest The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a week-long series of riots and protests in late December of 1989 that overthrew the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu. ...

The events of December 1989 remain controversial. Many, including Filip Teodorescu, a high-ranking Securitate officer at the time, allege that a group of conspiring generals in the Securitate took advantage of this opportunity to launch a coup in Bucharest. Some have made more specific claims about the nature of the conspiracy. Colonel Burlan asserts that the coup had been prepared since 1982, and was originally planned to take place during the New Year celebrations, but it was spontaneously adapted to the new developments. It remains a matter of controversy whether there had been any advance conspiracy to stage a coup, and, if so, who was precisely involved. The two main alternative possibilities are that these events were simply a combination of genuine revolutionary drive and inherent confusion, or that various figures in the military simply took opportunistic advantage of public protests, in an effort to capture power for themselves or for others whom they supported. The Securitate (Romanian for Security; official full name Departamentul Securităţii statului, State Security Department), was the secret police force of Communist Romania. ...

According to Burlan, the plot leaders were generals Stănculescu and Neagoe, Ceauşescu's closest security advisors; Burlan claims that they convinced him to hold the first mass rally in the Square by the Central Committee building, and that it was prepared in advance with remotely controlled automatic guns. During Ceauşescu's speech, the remotely controlled guns were set to fire randomly over the crowd and agitators started to cry anti-Ceauşescu slogans through loudspeakers. Scared by these developments, the people first tried to run away. However, given the loudspeaker messages stating that they were being shot at by Ceauşescu's forces and that a "revolution" was underway, the people were compelled to join the "revolution". The rally turned into a protest demonstration. The machine-gun fire and the messages over the loudspeakers appear to be universally acknowledged; the other aspects of this remain controversial.

On December 22 the army found itself without a leader: Ceauşescu (the official commander-in-chief of the army) had vanished, being sent by his (possibly conspiring) advisor Stănculescu to the countryside, and defense minister Vasile Milea was dead. (Initially the "revolutionary" leaders claimed that Milea was assassinated on behalf of Ceauşescu. This is possible, but other possibilities abound, notably that he might have refused to join them and been killed on that account. The (still) official account that he committed suicide has almost no credibility.) Confused, the army leadership in Bucharest decided to avoid conflicts and ordered their troops to fraternize with the demonstrators. December 22 is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Milea Vasile was Nicolae Ceauşescus minister of defence and the head of the Romanian Army during the Romanian Revolution of 1989 and was involved in the reprisal of the revolution that took 162 lives. ...

Fierce fighting occurred at that time at Bucharest Otopeni International Airport between troops sent one against another under claims that they were going to meet terrorists. There are various reports of other similar events. Filip Teodorescu claims that a number of instigators—possibly a small number, and probably Russians—started various incidents (including the violence in Timişoara); he also alleges that the level of violence was greatly exacerbated by elements within the military who propagated a myth of "securist-terrorists". According to Colonel Dumitru Burlan's book, the generals who were part of the conspiracy (led by general Victor Stănculescu) did their best to create such terrorist stories in order to induce fear and to draw the army on the conspirators' side. Generally, there is a consensus that there were some people instigating terror, and that others effectively caused incidents out of confusion. The relative magnitude of the two factors is not agreed upon, and no individual has ever been charged with or convicted of participating in deliberate acts of terror. Henri Coandă International Airport (Aeroportul Internaţional Henri Coandă in Romanian, IATA Airport Code: OTP) is the largest airport in Romania, as well as one of two major airports serving Bucharest. ... Dumitru Burlan was the chief of bodyguards of Nicolae Ceauşescu, and served once as his replacement. ...

There are any number of popular theories about the motivation of the coup. Some point out that the first law passed by the incoming leadership abolished (without any referendum or legal basis) the constitution article that forbade external debts. At that time, the debts had been fully paid, and there are various allegations about the intended beneficiaries of these new desired debts: corrupt politicians, or international banks. There is no question that some individuals who were active in the December events greatly profited in terms of money and power (especially in the form of ownership in privatized industries), fame, advancement in rank, or merely the settling of personal grievances; it is also possible that any number of foreign interests may have been involved, possibly including the KGB and/or other Soviet interests. The Committee for State Security, or KGB, (Russian: Комите́т Госуда́рственной Безопа́сности; Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti  listen?), was the name of the main Soviet Security Agency and intelligence agency, as well as the main secret police agency from March 13, 1954 to November 6, 1991. ...

The End of Ceauşescu

A Romanian holds a book with the portrait of the late Nicolae Ceauşescu at his grave in a Bucharest cemetery on January 26, 2005 to mark his eighty-seventh birthday. Every year, Romanians nostalgic for the Ceauşescu years gather to mourn him at this cemetery.

Ceauşescu and his wife Elena fled the capital by helicopter together with Emil Bobu and Manea Manescu. They headed for Ceauşescu's Snagov residence, from where they fled again, this time for Târgovişte. The presidential couple kept moving through the countryside more or less aimlessly. Near Târgovişte they abandoned the helicopter, which was ordered to land by the army, which by that time had already declared Romania to be restricted air space. The flight included grotesque episodes: a car chase to evade citizens attempting an arrest, leaving behind of their aides, a short stay in a school. The Ceauşescus were finally held in a police car for several hours, while the policemen listened to the radio, presumably in an attempt to get a clue as to which political faction was about to win. Police eventually turned over the presidential couple to the army. On December 25, the two were condemned to death by a military kangaroo court on charges ranging from illegal gathering of wealth to genocide, and were executed by firing squad in Târgovişte. During their trial and before the firing squad the couple recited from the "Internationale". They were shot dead after they sang the 4th word. This work is copyrighted. ... This work is copyrighted. ... January 26 is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Ilfov county with Snagov commune highlighted Snagov (population: 7,000) is a commune located 40 km north of Bucharest in Ilfov county, Romania. ... Map of Romania showing Târgovişte The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 6 days remaining. ... A kangaroo court (also known as a kangaroo trial or a Drumhead trial) is a sham legal proceeding or court. ... Look up Genocide in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Genocide has been defined as the deliberate killing of people based on their ethnicity, nationality, race, religion, or (sometimes) politics, as well as other deliberate action(s)leading to the physical elimination of any of the above categories. ... World War I firing squad Execution by firing squad is a method of capital punishment, especially in times of war. ... Map of Romania showing Târgovişte The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... The Internationale (LInternationale in French) is the most famous socialist song and one of the most widely recognized songs in the world. ...

The firing squad was not well-prepared for the execution. One of the guards accidentally shot Ceauşescu in the foot before then firing the fatal shot.

The "trial" and execution were videotaped. The footage was promptly released in France and other western countries. Several days later, footage of their trial and pictures of their corpses (but not of the execution itself) was released on television for the Romanian public.

Other

The Ceauşescus had one adopted son, Valentin Ceauşescu (he was adopted in order to give a personal example of how people should take care of orphans, a big problem in Romania), a daughter Zoia Ceauşescu (born 1950) and a younger son, Nicu Ceauşescu (born 1951). 1950 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... . Nicu Ceauşescu Nicu Ceauşescu (IPA , or approximately NIK-oo cha-ow-SHESS-koo] (September 1, 1951 - September 25, 1996) was the youngest son of Romanian dictator Nicolae and Elena Ceauşescu. ... 1951 was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ...

Ceauşescu's official annual salary was 18,000 lei (equivalent to 3,000 U.S. dollars at the official exchange rate). Of this, some 5,000 lei was deposited in a bank every month for the use of his children. Nevertheless, he used to receive presents (e.g., a golden plated door handle) from countries and organizations that he was visiting, the misappropriation of which was one of the accusations against him at his trial. While he tried to keep account of his finances, his biological son Nicu was much less restrained and rumors abounded that he paid a gambling debt incurred in Las Vegas with a herd of horses belonging to the Communist Party. The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ...

Ceauşescu's security detail was relatively small compared to that of the current Romanian government, numbering only 40 people for his residences and for his whole family. His security chief was Col. Dumitru Burlan who claims that his troops had only 2 guns (insufficient for any serious defense). Col. Burlan claims that Ceauşescu was overconfident that the Romanian people loved him, and believed that he did not need a protection. This explains much of the ease with which Ceauşescu was deposed and captured. Dumitru Burlan was the chief of bodyguards of Nicolae Ceauşescu, and served once as his replacement. ...

Bibliography

• Edward Behr, Kiss the Hand you Cannot Bite, ISBN 0679401288
• Dumitru Burlan, Dupa 14 ani - Sosia lui Ceauşescu se destăinuie ("After 14 Years - The Double of Ceauşescu confesses"). Editura Ergorom. July 31, 2003 (in Romanian).
• Marian Oprea, "Au trecut 15 ani -- Conspiratia Securitatii" ("After 15 years -- the conspiracy of Securitate"), in Lumea Magazin Nr 10, 2004 (http://www.lumeam.ro/nr10_2004/index.html): (in Romanian; link leads to table of contents, verifying that the article exists, but the article itself is not online).
• Viorel Patrichi, "Eu am fost sosia lui Nicolae Ceauşescu (http://www.lumeam.ro/nr12_2001/politica_si_servicii_secrete.html)" ("I was Ceauşescu's double"), Lumea Magazin Nr 12, 2001 (in Romanian)
• Stevens W. Sowards, Twenty-Five Lectures on Modern Balkan History (The Balkans in the Age of Nationalism) (http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/), 1996, in particular Lecture 24: The failure of Balkan Communism and the causes of the Revolutions of 1989 (http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/lect24.htm)
• Victor Stănculescu, "Nu vă fie milă, au 2 miliarde de lei in cont" (http://www.jurnalul.ro/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=14985) ("Do not have mercy, they have 2 billion lei [33 million dollars]"), in Jurnalul National, Nov 22, 2004
• John Sweeney, The Life and Evil Times of Nicolae Ceauşescu, ISBN 0091746728
• Filip Teodorescu, et.al., Extracts from the minutes of a Romanian senate hearing 14 December 1994, featuring the remarks of Filip Teodorescu.

Dumitru Burlan was the chief of bodyguards of Nicolae Ceauşescu, and served once as his replacement. ...

External links

• A website where romanians write their opinions about Nicolae Ceauşescu (http://www.nicolaeceausescu.ro)
• The Politicians and the revolution of 1989 (http://www.timisoara.com/newmioc/Politic.htm)
• Clipa 638: How Milea was killed, probably by Stanculescu, and the life of the Ceauşescu family (http://www.clipa.com/pagpolitica638.htm)
• Ceauşescu's trial transcription (http://www.timisoara.com/timisoara/rev/trialscript.html)
• Ceauşescu Nicolae - Romania's Dark Age under Communism (http://www.ceausescu.org/)
• AP, 30 Sep 1989 (http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=26903%40iuvax.cs.indiana.edu&output=gplain)
• Reuters, 25 Oct 1989 (http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=8910260017.AA03230%40hkucs.HKU.HK&output=gplain)

This is a list of Presidents of Romania: Note: The official function of President of Romania did not exist until March 1974. ... Coat of arms of Romania This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... The Soviets pressed for inclusion of Romanias heretofore negligible Communist Party in the post-war government, while non-communist political leaders were steadily eliminated from political life. ... Constantin Ion Parhon (October 15, 1874 - August 9, 1969) was a Romanian scientist, politician and head of state from 1947 to 1952. ... Categories: Romania-related stubs | 1884 births | 1958 deaths | Romanian Prime Ministers ... Ion Gheorghe Maurer (September 23, 1902 - February 8, 2000) was a Romanian politician and lawyer. ... Gheorghiu-Dej (center) and Ceauşescu (left) Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej (November 8, 1901, Bârlad - March 19, 1965, Bucharest) was the Communist leader of Romania from 1948 until his death in 1965. ... The Soviets pressed for inclusion of Romanias heretofore negligible Communist Party in the post-war government, while non-communist political leaders were steadily eliminated from political life. ... Romania (formerly spelled Rumania or Roumania; Romanian: România) is a country in southeastern Europe. ... Ion Ilici Iliescu (born March 3, 1930) is a Romanian politician. ... Emil Constantinescu (b. ... Ion Ilici Iliescu (born March 3, 1930) is a Romanian politician. ... Traian Băsescu (born November 4, 1951) is a Romanian politician. ...