History of the Romanians

by Vlad Georgescu, Alexandra Bley-Vroman (Translator), Matei Călinescu (Editor)

"The A History" is the first and best single volume history of the Romanian people in the English language. Written without the fear of censorship, it provides a clear and coherent account that examines the ethnic communities from pre-Roman times to the present, and focuses on the social structures, economics and political institutions of the principalities inhabited by the Romanian people at various stages in their historical development.



Based on an exhaustive knowledge of the existing literature, Vlad Georgescu's book will become a key reference work on the subject. Originally published in Romanian in 1984, the text has been updated in an epilogue written by Matei Calinescu and Vladimir Tismaneanu that considers the events of the past decade and concentrates in particular on the 1989 revolution that deposed Ceaucescu and opened another chapter in Romania's turbulent history.



Vlad Georgescu was director of the Romanian Service of Radio Free Europe in Munich until his death in 1988.

Genres: History, Romania

357 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

Between 1942 and 1948 there was a clear split in which the extreme right went outside the national borders and the extreme left went inside. Strangely, over the years they have developed the exact same discourse and precisely the same myths. The only difference starts somewhere at the end of the 19th century when each team sees the same thing only in reverse. As bad as the communists were for the fascists, the fascists were for the communists. The only small exception is the church, used by both groups, but venerated by the fascists and brought to the background by the communists. Anyway, both teams promoted their men inside the church and did their best to placate the members of the other group.

In this context Vlad Georgescu is the same kind of propagandists as the others before him. The history is a series of myths on a string. Just like the official sanctioned history, his fairy tale starts at the key moment of the Roman conquest of Dacia, justifying the expansionist goals. And because everything is obvious, he humps from the year 100 to the year 1300.

Years ago I would have yawned and thrown this book on the pile of rubbish. But now I pause for the moment and think of the rabid ideology that clouds Georgescu's mind. He just can't put two and two together. I mean, he can, but for him the result can be anything from 1 to infinity as long as it fits his goal. This way, the five years following 1939 can be so eventful as to fill a few cabinets, yet the humans on a huge surface that he himself insists was never abandoned can be ignored for 12 centuries just like that and still see a continuity.

[Aurel Mihai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written in that it reads like a story rather than a reference book. Sometimes this means there is a bit of editorializing. I would have liked to have read more about Romanian history before the modern era, but the modern era is where the bulk of this history is focused. Overall I thought the information presented was balanced where the facts aren't clear, but I can't vouch for the accuracy of the information presented as I am no expert on Romanian history. There are about 50 pages of notes and bibliography at the end of the book for further reading. I would recommend this as an easy, introductory reading on the topic.