Romanians on the Italian Front 1915-1918

Thank you for your rapid reply, Dragos. May I ask in what circumstances is this Nicolae Avram's journal mentiond in your book "Ferdinand I vazut de contemporanii sai"? Does it says which aspects of World War I is covering? Author's experiences in Serbia 1914 or Galicia 1914-15? His experiences from Russian captivity in Siberia?

How can I contact the State Archives in Sibiu?

Recently I have obtained a manuscript about the activities of the 50th k.u.k. Infantry Division during the Karfreit breakthrough in October 1917 from the War Archives in Budapest. The manuscript, written by the division commander at the time of the breakthrough, General Karel Gerabek also mentions the names of two Romanian deserters from IV/37 who deserted to the Italians two nights before the start of the offensive. One of them was Oberleutnant MIHAI MAXIM, who was acting "Stellvetreter" of his battalion commander and had acces to many classified documents, which he eventually took along during his escape to the Italians. He was also a very decorated officer.

Now what is particularly interesting in this manuscript is a note by General Gerabek in which he mentions that it was later revealed that one of Maxim's brother was a staff colonel in the Royal Romanian Army (Stabsoberst).

I am just curious but does anyone have any good idea who he might be?

Dear friends,

The following book has recently come to my attention as being one of the ones which could contain some useful information about the Romanians in the k.u.k. Army in World War I.

I am here however having great difficulties to find any detailed information about this book nor a free copy that could be up for sale, so I was wondering if anyone of you has already read this book or know some further information about its contents? Judging by the name of the publisher it seems the book was sponsored by the Romanian Ministry of Defense, so I guess it can't be about the "animals and floura" of Transilyania.

"In viltoarea vremurilor. Rememorari. Confesiuni. Attitudini" by Constantin Mustata, Editura Militara, 1988

I have only seen a few excerpts and from what I could decipher the author speaks about Transilyania in World War I. Dominic Stanca is mentioned in it and so is Captain Florea Medrea.

Best wishes,

Klemen

Hehee,
Found something new in the family arhives!
Another relative who served as a major ,in the A-H army!!
Soon .....

Gen. Boeriu, Gen. Moga and Lt. Iuliu Maniu commanded the Romanian units of the former A-H Imperial army which helped gen. Rudolf Freiherr von STOEGER-STEINER(War Minister) to save Vienna from anarchy caused by Communist propaganda in OCT. 1918 (they eliminated the soviet councils and militias).

Iuliu Maniu (future leader of inter-war Romanian National Peasant Party) was officer in AH Regiment no. 64 Orastie
For history of this regiment, info in this book published in 2004.
"ISTORIA REGIMENTULUI cezar si regesc Nr. 64 ORASTIE" (1860 - 1918)" by Mr. Dorin Petrescu and Ioan Lazarescu

This post has been edited by mateias on January 10, 2008 08:06 pm

EMIL REBREANU was the younger brother of LIVIU REBREANU, an important Romanian novelist. E.R. was born on 17 Dec. 1891 in Maieru (Bistrita-Nasaud county/Transylvania), as the 5th child in a family with 14 children. Due to poverty he decides to enlist as a volunteer in the AH army and in 1915 he is sent to the frontline in Galitzia, Russia, Italy (Doberdo) and Wolynia, being wounded severally times. In May 1917 he arrives to the Romanian front, at Ghimes Pass. He decides against fighting the Romanians and plans to cross over the barbed wire lines, but is caught by a patrol and sentenced by the court-martial to execution by hanging.
L.R., his older brother published in 1922 a novel on this subject (The Forest of the Hanged), and the Romanian director Liviu Ciulei made of it a famous pacifist film known under the title "The Lost Forest" (1965). Ciulei was awarded the Best Director Prize at Cannes Festival in 1965.

Link to
http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/173281/The...Forest/overview

This post has been edited by mateias on January 10, 2008 07:50 pm

The most senior officer position reached by a Romanian in AH army was gen. Traian Doda (from Caransebes, in Banat area), a former Chief of Staff of the Imperial Court in Vienna before WW1.
In Caransebes stands now his bronze statue (since 1995). See photo no. 7/11
at this link.
http://www.caransebes.ro/invatamant/LTD/istoric/istoric.htm


This post has been edited by mateias on January 10, 2008 08:17 pm

Thank you for this excellent info, mateias. Glad to see someone interested in the Romanians in the Austro-Hungarian Army on this forum.

But tell me have you during your research eevr come up with the names of Major Aurel Popovici who commanded a mixed Hungarian-Romanian Landsturm Battalion on the Isonzo Front in 1917 and won the MMThO on Fajtji hrib during the 11th Isonzo Battle in summer 1917? I believe he retired after the war to Temesvar where he passed away in early 1930s. Any further details about his post-war career?

I am also interested in Captain Florian Medrea whose name I have found in the short regimental history of 2nd Bosnian-Herzegowinian Infantry Regiment as commander of the MG detachment, so I was wondering whether this is the same man as the one Medrea who in 1918 helped to take power in Cluj.

MEDREA, Florian. Cpitan în armata austro-ungar, conductorul detaamentului ce a asigurat paza militar a Marii Adunri Naionale de la Alba Iulia la 1 decembrie 1918. Chestor în oraul Cluj (1928 œ 1934), prefect al judeului Bistria Nsud (1939), prefect de Orhei (1941), inspector la Sigurana Cluj. Ímpucat mortal pe strad, în 1946

Do you know when did Maniu come to the front?

I am searching for a copy of this book for ages! Still available anywhere for sale? But perhaps more than in this book I would be interested in a special unpublished manuscript about the History of IR.64 in Great War 1914-1918, which was written by General Avram and is listed as source in Petrescu's and Lazarescu's book.

Do you know which regiment was Rebreanu serving in?

Klemen

For Klemen,

I know much too little about AH army simply because I do not know German or Hungarian and all my sources are Romanian ones and English sites on Google.

A. COL. FLORIAN MEDREA
1. On Google there is an extensive report made by Col. Florian Medrea in his capacity of commander of "Horia" Volunteers Corps (forerunner of Reg. 86 Infantry) and military adviser for Dr. Ioan Suciu. This unit cooperated with Hunters 2nd Division in the Apuseni Mts. offensive (April 16, 1919).

This is the link
http://www.darnick.com/halmagiu/anexe4.html

2. On the other hand, there are other links on Google mentioning his outstanding role in Alba Iulia and Cluj.
Also that Medrea's deputy forced August von Mackensen to get off his train at Teius railway station (Arad county) and forced to accept Mackensen's train being checked according to truce conditions.

This is the link.
http://www.jurnalul.ro/articole/11794/seri...imentat-romania

3. There is also a strange remark on him being killed in mysterious ways by "Nazis" somewhere in Alba county in a link on RAOUL SERBAN, a Romanian patriot who saved thousands of Jews from Transylvania occupied by Horthy'a army after Vienna Diktat.

This is the link.
http://www.geocities.com/rsorban/cronica.htm

B. ROMANIAN PRIESTS IN AH ARMY

This might be an interesting thread. I found out that Mr. Dan Grecu is a very special "bookworm" as he wrote a lot in a specialized philatelic magazine (a long list is enclosed !). He mentions over 100 Romanian priests ! This might lead to over 100 Romanian regiments ? The article also mentions many of these units.

This is the link
http://membres.lycos.fr/dgrecu/preoti_ABB.htm

Excerpts from DG's article:

1. At a population of 3.5 m, Romanians from Transylvania and Banat gave to AH army almost 0.5 m conscripts in WW1 (6% of total Imperial troops).

2. Military priests (the article presents situation for the Romanian ones) were conscripted into the AH army both to the frontline (in the first line - at the level of divisions, regiments or batallions with Romanian troops, or at the level of Army and Army Corps), as well as behind the frontlines (in hospitals, prisoners' camps - where they looked after prisoners from Romanian or Russian armies, or providing Orthodox religious prayers in big garrisons).
Their number was estimated by Virgil Nistor/V.N. (the priest who collected all data - in 1917 freshly transferred to Hunters 28 Battalion in Bukowina) to 30-40 in Austrian Bukowina and about 60-70 in Hungarian areas such as Transylvania and Banat, thus a total of 90-110 Romanian orthodox priests in 1916.

Dear Klemen, if you understand Romanian, it will be OK, if not ...

This post has been edited by mateias on January 16, 2008 04:26 pm

All kinds of everything one may find at this link, including lists of Romanian troopers from AH army decorated in Italy, Romanian prisoners in Italy, etc. Many of them fought under AH flag, but for German army (?). These can be found in Cluj University Library (published in various magazines, books ,etc.

http://www.bcucluj.ro/re/oc/BistRO1999-200...PRINS/BV06f.HTM

This post has been edited by mateias on January 17, 2008 11:18 am

For Klemen,
http://www.timpulgj.ro/arhiva/385/cultura.htm

Mateias,

Actually in this case I am more interested in the Romanian sources about Transilyanians in the k.u.k. Army from 1914-1918. my plan was to find any memoires of Romanians from Transilyania or Bukowina who fought with the k.u.k. Army on the Serbian Front 1914 or Italian Front 1915-1918, but so far I have been fairly unsuccessful. I have been able to obtain Dumitru Ciumbrudean's memoires, which I think you probably already know them and I have been able to find the another title by Dominic Stanca, a military medic in WW1, but unfortunately his book seems to be non-existing anywhere because nobody can find it.

This could be he. But the problem is always the confirmation. I was told that Medrea and Florian are quite well-known Romanian names and surnames.

We have already discussed about this website at the beginning of this thread. Great article. Number of priests does not necessarly mean that there were also 100 Romanian regiments. Romanian field chaplains were also attached to the Navy, field hospitals, brigade headquarters and other institutions.

Yes, I noticed that this Virgil Nestor gets often quoted in his article. I wonder where did he get info about him. From what I have been able to understand he extracted these information from his postcard and letter fond and not his memoir or something like that.

Language has generally never been much of an issue for me.

Thank you for this list, M.! I went through it and there are two or three interesting articles. Most of other soruces seem to be about Romania in WW1 or Romanians in Russian or Italian Legion. I did notice this article:

Rus, Dorin Ioan; Szab�, Etelka; Szab�, Arthur. Lista solda�ilor din regimentul 22 Tirgu-Mure� decora�i dup� b�t�lia de la Asiago (La liste des soldats du r�giment 22 Tirgu-Mure� d�cor�s apres le combat d'Asiago). In: Angustia, 2004, 8, p.151-166.

Have you already had the chance to see it? The Hungarian-Romanian regiments on the Asiago Plateau in June 1918 fought together with Croatian regiments against the French forces. Interesting but widely forgotten story.

What is this Angustia??

This post has been edited by Klemen on January 18, 2008 10:55 am

I am not sure this is Dominic Stanca we are looking for. Dominic Stanca which I am looking for was no a poet and novelist but a doctor. He worked after the war as a doctor on improving the medical service in Transilyania and above others founded the Someseni Spa. Look here: http://someseni.tripod.com/

In 1930s he published his book "Intre doul fronturi", a book which I am having impossible times to find today. In 1918 he was namely a regimental doctor with one of the Romano-Hungarian Hussar regiments and sent to the Piave Front, where he saw some action at Montello Plateau.

BTW: Speaking of Romanian books tell me have you had the chance to read Liviu Maior's book about the Romanians in the Habsburg Army?

For Klemen,
1. Wow ! You're quite a fast reader, congratulations. I suppose you speak French too. Well, K.u.K. is not really my favourite subject and I'm amazed to see how much you know on it.
2. No, I did not read Ciumbrudean's memoirs. Not even Liviu Maior's book. But I promise you that I'll try.
3. Dominic Stanca, poet and novelist, was born in a physician's family (the site mentions it). His father was really good and Google says there are schools and streets named after him in Cluj and Orastie.
3. I think is "Augustia" instead of "Angustia" (probably related to a Roman emperor and a legion or city named after him in Dacian territory conquered by the Romans). Never heard of the magazine.

This post has been edited by mateias on January 18, 2008 06:42 pm

For Klemen (and any other people interested).

I know you're specifically interested in Romanian soldiers participating in Italy and Gallipoli during WWI.

This isn't about romanians, but it's an interesting read:

http://www.pattonhq.com/pdffiles/gallipoli.pdf

It's a historical study written in 1936 by (then) Colonel Patton, entitled "The Defense of Gallipoli".

I hope you'll find it interesting.

Take care.