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Resisting Sovietization

Sovietization meant replicating the model of state and society existing in the Soviet Union starting with 1917. It was the fastest process of turning Romanian society from a normal society, with its strong and weak points, into a schizophrenic society, repeatedly ravaged by the Romanian Communist party. In less than three years, between March 6th 1945, when the pro-Communist government led by Petru Groza took office and December 30th 1947, when King Mihai 1st was forced to abdicate, the Communists destroyed everything that had been created by generations of Romanians, starting with the 19th century, on the path of the modernisation and reformation of society. Sovietization would not have been possible without the presence of the Soviet army on Romania 's territory; this was done against the Romanians will for the benefit of a few people driven by ideological obsession and supported by an irrational regime.

But just like the other countries that were occupied by the Soviets and which underwent the same process, the Romanians put up resistance. The first example of resistance was given by King Mihai 1st who went on a royal strike in August 1945 refusing to endorse the laws introduced and voted by the Communist government. The king was not alone in that.

On November 8th 1945, on St. Michael and Gabriel's day, when the king celebrated his name day, young members of the National Liberal Party and the National Peasant Party organised a large demonstration of sympathy towards the king and against the abuses of the Communist government. The Young Liberals thus showed their solidarity with the king and wanted to prove to the West that Romanians agreed with the stance taken by the king and that they opposed the government's abuses. Mihai 1st was the king of their generation and they felt that they had to do something for him, since many of them knew him personally.

The gendarmes sent to stop the 1500 students fraternised with them. In an atmosphere of indescribable enthusiasm, the young people reached the Palace Square and tens of thousand of residents of Bucharest joined them on the route. The nearly 60 thousand protesters in the Palace Square joined hands in one big Romanian round dance. That's when troops from the "Tudor Vladimirescu" brigade were sent to the square to open fire on the protesters. The shootings resulted in seven dead and several injured. Some were arrested, but only three found guilty: Radu Campeanu, Ionel V. Sandulescu, former president of the Bucharest Liberal Youth, and Laura Sandulescu.

But the protests ended up having dire effects. The communists later arrested some 1000 students, whom they used as blackmail to oust the king on December 30th of 1947. The people who organised the protests were sentenced to many years in prison. Radu Campeanu was sentenced to 9 years behind bars, 4 of which in solitary confinement. The king had no hesitation in choosing between what the communists offered him - his crown, or the lives of the thousands of young men who had served him so devotedly.