O good old man, how well in thee appears the constant service of the antique world.I have been very busy and had simply no time to blog about the death of the King which, even though he was 96 and had been very sick for two years, was a huge sadness to me and almost everyone in Romania.
The Guardian obituary is here.
When I first came to live in Romania almost twenty years ago I was told that all nice Romanians are monarchists. It is true. The monarchy in 1990 was the rallying cry of the people who rejected the National Salvation Front and the (ex-)Communist structure of power.
For many years until this century the words Monarhia Salveaza Romania ('The monarchy will save Romania') remained painted on a wall in Piata 21 Decembrie, a remnant from the days in the summer of 1990 when the golani ('hooligans')occupied the square before being expelled with violence and murder by the miners called into Bucharest by the ex-Communist government.
The monarchy and the King represented conservatism, the nation, freedom, the antithesis of the 'structure of power' that ruled Romania since the Communist takeover till today.
It made Romania a better country knowing the King, who bravely dismissed and arrested Marshal Antonescu in 1944, was alive.
For many years until this century the words Monarhia Salveaza Romania ('The monarchy will save Romania') remained painted on a wall in Piata 21 Decembrie, a remnant from the days in the summer of 1990 when the golani ('hooligans')occupied the square before being expelled with violence and murder by the miners called into Bucharest by the ex-Communist government.
The monarchy and the King represented conservatism, the nation, freedom, the antithesis of the 'structure of power' that ruled Romania since the Communist takeover till today.
It made Romania a better country knowing the King, who bravely dismissed and arrested Marshal Antonescu in 1944, was alive.
He represented another, better Romania and an elite which was destroyed by socialism. Though dethroned kings are very sad, their faces like worn coins.
Which head of state in the world today can compare with him for bravery, patriotism and principle?
Romanian politics surely prove the advantages of a hereditary monarch and a head of state who is, like Caesar's wife, above suspicion.
Which head of state in the world today can compare with him for bravery, patriotism and principle?
Romanian politics surely prove the advantages of a hereditary monarch and a head of state who is, like Caesar's wife, above suspicion.
No comments:
Post a Comment