Bucharest during the Peace of 1812

Abstract

Abstract The year 1812 remains in the history of the Romanian Principalities as the year when the peace treaty to end the Russian-Turkish war is signed. Bessarabia was acquired by the Russian Empire from Moldavia as a consequence of the warfare. The peace treaty was signed in Bucharest, at Manuc's Inn, who was owned by Manuc Bei. He was an important Armenian merchant in Bucharest, who played a key role during the negotiation. The diplomats who participated in the peace have left travel journals depicting aspects of the city organization, how the peace talks were held and the role of the host in preparing the discussion sessions. This article describes the city, using testimonies left by Count Langeron Andrault, by the Russian general Mihail Kutuzov and by the English Attached Ambassador at the Ottoman Empire, Sir Robert Thomas Wilson. It article also encompasses diplomatic and consular reports from the volume Consular and Diplomatic English Reports about the Danubian Principalities, 1800–1812, coordinated by the historian Paul Cernovodeanu and from the “Hurmuzaki” collection of documents. The purpose of the research is to analyze the following aspects: the image of the city, the impact of the peace organization on residents, the role played by Manuc Bei in the negotiations and the consequences of the peace treaty on the local population.