MEMORIILE UNOR EROI OLTENI DIN PRIMUL RĂZBOI MONDIAL

Abstract

As Romania celebrates 100 years since the First World War, The National Archives organized research projects aiming at discovering diaries, memorialist writings, or other contemporary sources. Thus, new, particularly interesting and relevant documents were identified. Among them, two manuscripts from the Service of the National Archives in Vâlcea County are impressive: the Diary of the 1916-Campaign, of Captain Ioan Ciulei, from the Second Vâlcea Infantry Regiment, and the Daily Notes from the Romanian-Hungarian-Bulgarian War in 1916, August 15, recording the memories of sub-lieutenant doctor S. Demetrescu, from the 44th Infantry Regiment. I transcribed the manuscripts in the collection of documents entitled Life on the Front War in Personal Writings, published in 2021. These memorialist writings describe the beginning of the Romanian-Bulgarian-Hungarian hostilities in the Olt valley and in southern Transylvania, the battles at Tălmaci, Cisnădia, Șelimbăr, Poplaca – in the Sibiu area -, the route of doctor S. Demetrescu’s regiment, and the imprisonment of Captain Ioan Ciulei in the German camp on the island of Dänholm. Memorialists mention various military units, officers with initiatives (Brigadier Generals Ion Manolescu, Matei Castriș, Ioan Oprescu, Ioan Popovici, David Praporgescu, Colonel Traian Moșoiu, Lt. Col. Gheorghe Zizi Cantacuzino), the experiences of many soldiers, living or deceased, lists of German camp prisoners, sequences of military operations and their aftermath.