Constantin Petrovicescu
Encyclopedia
Constantin Petrovicescu was a Romania
n soldier and politician, who served as Interior Minister from September 14, 1940 to January 21, 1941 during the National Legionary State
. A sympathizer and secret member of the fascist
Iron Guard
movement, he was also the royal commissioner involved in the 1934 acquittal of Guard leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
. Petrovicescu was assigned his ministerial position by Codreanu's successor Horia Sima
, serving as one of the main Iron Guardists in the conflicted cabinet headed by Ion Antonescu
. In this capacity, he helped Sima obtain control of an armed structure, and, taking the party's side during the Legionnaires' rebellion
of 1941, helped organize it in combat against Antonescu.
Captured and tried, Petrovicescu spent the longer part of World War II
in confinement or house arrest. He was retried for war crime
s two years after the King Michael Coup, and sentenced to life imprisonment. He died in Aiud prison
almost two years after a Romanian communist regime
had been established.
, Petrovicescu attended the military school for infantry in Craiova
from 1896 to 1899, the officers' school in Bucharest
from 1899 to 1900, and the military school for infantry and cavalry from 1906 to 1908. During the World War I
Romanian Campaign, he fought on the Moldavia
n front. Following the Union of Bessarabia with Romania
in 1918, Petrovicescu, by then a high-ranking officer, was named chief of the general staff in that province's territorial command. Later, until 1933, he was royal commissioner at the Chişinău
army corps.
After being named Brigadier General
, at the beginning of 1934 he was transferred to the national capital, where he served as royal commissioner at the Bucharest Military Tribunal. In this capacity, he was part of a panel of judges who tried the Iron Guard (Legionnaire) assassins of Prime Minister
Ion G. Duca
and their moral accomplices. The latter category included Guard leaders Codreanu and retired general Gheorghe Cantacuzino-Grănicerul, as well as prominent affiliates such as Gheorghe Clime, Nichifor Crainic
and Mihai Stelescu
. He voted to convict the assassins themselves (the Nicadori), but supported the acquittal of Codreanu and Cantacuzino-Grănicerul. He soon after secretly joined the banned Guard and, in recognition for his stance during the trial, was named a member of its senate. At Codreanu's trial in April-May 1938, Petrovicescu appeared as a witness for the defence, praising Codreanu's "proper behaviour" and "patriotism". Due to his repeatedly expressed pro-Iron Guard sympathies, King
Carol II
retired him in September 1938.
Two years later, following Carol's abdication and the assumption of power by General Ion Antonescu
and the Guard (together ruling a National Legionary State, with Antonescu as Conducător
and Prime Minister), the new ruling party recommended Petrovicescu as Interior Minister, and he assumed that post. In October 1940, upon the recommendation of vice premier and new Legion head Horia Sima
, Antonescu promoted Petrovicescu to the rank of Divisional General
retroactive to June 1, 1938, and returned him to active duty. As minister, he worked with Sima to create a well-armed Legionary police force, and actively supported arresting or even killing politicians who in the past had suppressed the Guard. The new police force also turned itself into a tool of racial repression, targeting the Jewish-Romanian community
.
Constantin Petrovicescu irritated Antonescu by upholding public acts of violent retribution, and this fall-out acquired importance by the close of 1940. In particular, the Conducător suspected his Legionnaire subordinate of having played a part in organizing the Jilava Massacre
of November 1940, during which the political elite associated with Carol's rule was mass murdered. On January 19, 1941, after the Nazi German
Major Döring had been mysteriously assassinated in Bucharest, Sima's faction publicly questioned Antonescu's commitment to Romania's Axis
allies, and the Conducător used the occasion to strip Petrovicescu of his cabinet office. The official explanation for his decision was that Petrovicescu had not taken the proper measures to secure the perimeter within nine hours of Döring's shooting. The next day, as Antonescu signaled his marginalization of the Guard, a large part of the country was gripped by a Legionnaires' rebellion
. At an early stage of the riots, leading Guard member Viorel Trifa
issued a manifesto which directly blamed the "brave and upright" minister's dismissal on Antonescu's alleged sympathy for "the British
government of freemasons
", accompanying such claims with antisemitic language. Other such theories popularized by the Legionnaires had it that Antonescu had personally encouraged Demetrios Sarandos, Döring's Greek-Turkish
killer, to carry out his action, thus aiming to discredit Petrovicescu's political abilities.
Petrovicescu was an important destabilising element during the subsequent events, which saw his and the Guard's fall into disgrace. He is believed to have had the personal initiative for one of the most notorious acts of violence carried out at the time, by ordering the Legionnaires to occupy the headquarters of the Siguranţa Statului secret police and open fire on the soldiers and civilians outside. Petrovicescu was arrested and tried along with other former Legionnaire government officials. In summer 1941, he was sentenced to five or seven years' imprisonment. In 1944, he was sent to Sibiu
to live under house arrest.
Following the King Michael Coup, which changed Romania's political orientation away from the Axis, Constantin Petrovicescu was again arrested, being held in the prisons of Alba Iulia
and later Sibiu. In 1946, he was tried (simultaneously with Antonescu himself) before the first of a series of Romanian People's Tribunals
as a war criminal
. Sentenced to life imprisonment, he was sent to Aiud prison
after his appeal was rejected. He died there three years later.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n soldier and politician, who served as Interior Minister from September 14, 1940 to January 21, 1941 during the National Legionary State
National Legionary State
The National Legionary State was the Romanian government from September 6, 1940 to January 23, 1941. It was a single-party regime dictatorship dominated by the overtly fascist Iron Guard in uneasy conjunction with the head of government and Conducător Ion Antonescu, the leader of the Romanian...
. A sympathizer and secret member of the fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
Iron Guard
Iron Guard
The Iron Guard is the name most commonly given to a far-right movement and political party in Romania in the period from 1927 into the early part of World War II. The Iron Guard was ultra-nationalist, fascist, anti-communist, and promoted the Orthodox Christian faith...
movement, he was also the royal commissioner involved in the 1934 acquittal of Guard leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu was a Romanian politician of the far right, the founder and charismatic leader of the Iron Guard or The Legion of the Archangel Michael , an ultra-nationalist and violently antisemitic organization active throughout most of the interwar period...
. Petrovicescu was assigned his ministerial position by Codreanu's successor Horia Sima
Horia Sima
Horia Sima was a Romanian fascist politician. After 1938, he was the second and last leader of the fascist and antisemitic para-military movement known as the Iron Guard.-In Romania:...
, serving as one of the main Iron Guardists in the conflicted cabinet headed by Ion Antonescu
Ion Antonescu
Ion Victor Antonescu was a Romanian soldier, authoritarian politician and convicted war criminal. The Prime Minister and Conducător during most of World War II, he presided over two successive wartime dictatorships...
. In this capacity, he helped Sima obtain control of an armed structure, and, taking the party's side during the Legionnaires' rebellion
Legionnaires' Rebellion and Bucharest Pogrom
The Legionnaires' rebellion and the Bucharest pogrom occurred in Bucharest, Romania, between 21 and 23 January 1941.As the privileges of the Iron Guard were being cut off by Conducător Ion Antonescu, members of the Iron Guard, also known as the Legionnaires, revolted...
of 1941, helped organize it in combat against Antonescu.
Captured and tried, Petrovicescu spent the longer part of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in confinement or house arrest. He was retried for war crime
War crime
War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...
s two years after the King Michael Coup, and sentenced to life imprisonment. He died in Aiud prison
Aiud prison
Aiud prison is a prison complex in Aiud, central Transylvania, Romania.It is infamous for its political inmates, especially during the reign of Romania's by Nazi allies and later communists...
almost two years after a Romanian communist regime
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
had been established.
Biography
Born in Târgu JiuTârgu Jiu
Târgu Jiu is the capital of Gorj County, Oltenia, Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu. Eight villages are administered by the city: Bârseşti, Drăgoeni, Iezureni, Polata, Preajba Mare, Româneşti, Slobozia and Ursaţi.-History:The city takes its name...
, Petrovicescu attended the military school for infantry in Craiova
Craiova
Craiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
from 1896 to 1899, the officers' school in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
from 1899 to 1900, and the military school for infantry and cavalry from 1906 to 1908. During the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Romanian Campaign, he fought on the Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
n front. Following the Union of Bessarabia with Romania
Union of Bessarabia with Romania
On , the Sfatul Ţării, or National Council, of Bessarabia proclaimed union with the Kingdom of Romania.-Governorate of Bessarabia:The 1812 Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empires provided for Russian annexation of the eastern half of the territory of the Principality...
in 1918, Petrovicescu, by then a high-ranking officer, was named chief of the general staff in that province's territorial command. Later, until 1933, he was royal commissioner at the Chişinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
army corps.
After being named Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
, at the beginning of 1934 he was transferred to the national capital, where he served as royal commissioner at the Bucharest Military Tribunal. In this capacity, he was part of a panel of judges who tried the Iron Guard (Legionnaire) assassins of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Romania
The Prime Minister of Romania is the head of the Government of Romania. Initially, the office was styled President of the Council of Ministers , when the term "Government" included more than the Cabinet, and the Cabinet was called The Council of Ministers...
Ion G. Duca
Ion G. Duca
Ion Gheorghe Duca was prime minister of Romania from November 14 to December 30, 1933, when he was assassinated for his efforts to suppress the fascist Iron Guard movement.-Life and political career:...
and their moral accomplices. The latter category included Guard leaders Codreanu and retired general Gheorghe Cantacuzino-Grănicerul, as well as prominent affiliates such as Gheorghe Clime, Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic
Nichifor Crainic was a Romanian writer, editor, philosopher, poet and theologian famed for his traditionalist and antisemitic activities...
and Mihai Stelescu
Mihai Stelescu
-With the Iron Guard:Born in Galaţi, he joined, while still in high school, the Legion of the Archangel Michael , an ultra-nationalist, Fascist, and anti-Semitic political movement led by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu....
. He voted to convict the assassins themselves (the Nicadori), but supported the acquittal of Codreanu and Cantacuzino-Grănicerul. He soon after secretly joined the banned Guard and, in recognition for his stance during the trial, was named a member of its senate. At Codreanu's trial in April-May 1938, Petrovicescu appeared as a witness for the defence, praising Codreanu's "proper behaviour" and "patriotism". Due to his repeatedly expressed pro-Iron Guard sympathies, King
King of Romania
King of the Romanians , rather than King of Romania , was the official title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Romania from 1881 until 1947, when Romania was proclaimed a republic....
Carol II
Carol II of Romania
Carol II reigned as King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until 6 September 1940. Eldest son of Ferdinand, King of Romania, and his wife, Queen Marie, a daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second eldest son of Queen Victoria...
retired him in September 1938.
Two years later, following Carol's abdication and the assumption of power by General Ion Antonescu
Ion Antonescu
Ion Victor Antonescu was a Romanian soldier, authoritarian politician and convicted war criminal. The Prime Minister and Conducător during most of World War II, he presided over two successive wartime dictatorships...
and the Guard (together ruling a National Legionary State, with Antonescu as Conducător
Conducator
Conducător was the title used officially in two instances by Romanian politicians, and earlier by Carol II.-History:...
and Prime Minister), the new ruling party recommended Petrovicescu as Interior Minister, and he assumed that post. In October 1940, upon the recommendation of vice premier and new Legion head Horia Sima
Horia Sima
Horia Sima was a Romanian fascist politician. After 1938, he was the second and last leader of the fascist and antisemitic para-military movement known as the Iron Guard.-In Romania:...
, Antonescu promoted Petrovicescu to the rank of Divisional General
Divisional General
Divisional General is a rank used in many armies to denote a rank of general, corresponding to command of a division. For convenience Divisional General is almost always translated into English as Major-General, the equivalent rank used by the UK, USA, etc., although this translation is, strictly...
retroactive to June 1, 1938, and returned him to active duty. As minister, he worked with Sima to create a well-armed Legionary police force, and actively supported arresting or even killing politicians who in the past had suppressed the Guard. The new police force also turned itself into a tool of racial repression, targeting the Jewish-Romanian community
History of the Jews in Romania
The history of Jews in Romania concerns the Jews of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is nowadays Romanian territory....
.
Constantin Petrovicescu irritated Antonescu by upholding public acts of violent retribution, and this fall-out acquired importance by the close of 1940. In particular, the Conducător suspected his Legionnaire subordinate of having played a part in organizing the Jilava Massacre
Jilava Massacre
The Jilava Massacre took place during the night beginning on November 26, 1940, at Jilava penitentiary, near Bucharest, Romania. 64 political detainees were killed by the Iron Guard , with further high-profile assassinations in the immediate aftermath...
of November 1940, during which the political elite associated with Carol's rule was mass murdered. On January 19, 1941, after the Nazi German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Major Döring had been mysteriously assassinated in Bucharest, Sima's faction publicly questioned Antonescu's commitment to Romania's Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
allies, and the Conducător used the occasion to strip Petrovicescu of his cabinet office. The official explanation for his decision was that Petrovicescu had not taken the proper measures to secure the perimeter within nine hours of Döring's shooting. The next day, as Antonescu signaled his marginalization of the Guard, a large part of the country was gripped by a Legionnaires' rebellion
Legionnaires' Rebellion and Bucharest Pogrom
The Legionnaires' rebellion and the Bucharest pogrom occurred in Bucharest, Romania, between 21 and 23 January 1941.As the privileges of the Iron Guard were being cut off by Conducător Ion Antonescu, members of the Iron Guard, also known as the Legionnaires, revolted...
. At an early stage of the riots, leading Guard member Viorel Trifa
Valerian Trifa
Valerian Trifa was a Romanian Orthodox cleric and fascist political activist, who served as archbishop of the Romanian Orthodox Church in America and Canada...
issued a manifesto which directly blamed the "brave and upright" minister's dismissal on Antonescu's alleged sympathy for "the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
government of freemasons
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
", accompanying such claims with antisemitic language. Other such theories popularized by the Legionnaires had it that Antonescu had personally encouraged Demetrios Sarandos, Döring's Greek-Turkish
Greeks in Turkey
The Greeks in Turkey constitute a population of Greek and Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox Christians who mostly live in Istanbul, including its district Princes' Islands, as well as on the two islands of the western entrance to the Dardanelles: Imbros and Tenedos .They are the remnants of the...
killer, to carry out his action, thus aiming to discredit Petrovicescu's political abilities.
Petrovicescu was an important destabilising element during the subsequent events, which saw his and the Guard's fall into disgrace. He is believed to have had the personal initiative for one of the most notorious acts of violence carried out at the time, by ordering the Legionnaires to occupy the headquarters of the Siguranţa Statului secret police and open fire on the soldiers and civilians outside. Petrovicescu was arrested and tried along with other former Legionnaire government officials. In summer 1941, he was sentenced to five or seven years' imprisonment. In 1944, he was sent to Sibiu
Sibiu
Sibiu is a city in Transylvania, Romania with a population of 154,548. Located some 282 km north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Cibin River, a tributary of the river Olt...
to live under house arrest.
Following the King Michael Coup, which changed Romania's political orientation away from the Axis, Constantin Petrovicescu was again arrested, being held in the prisons of Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
and later Sibiu. In 1946, he was tried (simultaneously with Antonescu himself) before the first of a series of Romanian People's Tribunals
Romanian People's Tribunals
The two Romanian People's Tribunals , the Bucharest People's Tribunal and the Northern Transylvania People's Tribunal were set up by the post-World War II government of Romania, overseen by the Allied Control Commission to try suspected war criminals, in line with Article 14 of the Armistice...
as a war criminal
War crime
War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...
. Sentenced to life imprisonment, he was sent to Aiud prison
Aiud prison
Aiud prison is a prison complex in Aiud, central Transylvania, Romania.It is infamous for its political inmates, especially during the reign of Romania's by Nazi allies and later communists...
after his appeal was rejected. He died there three years later.