history of bucharest
First mentioned as "the Citadel of Bucuresti" in 1459, it became a residence
of the Wallachian prince Vlad III the Impaler. The Old Princely Court (Curtea
Veche) was built by Mircea Ciobanul, and during following rules, Bucharest was
established as the summer residence of the court, competing with Târgoviste
for the status of capital after an increase in the importance of southern Muntenia
brought about by the demands of the suzerain power, the Ottoman Empire.
Partly destroyed by natural disasters and rebuilt several times during the following
300 years, hit by Caragea's plague in 1813-1814, the city was wrested from Ottoman
control and occupied at several intervals by the Habsburg Monarchy and Imperial
Russia. It was placed under Russian administration between 1828 and the Crimean
War, with an interlude during the Bucharest-centered 1848 Wallachian revolution,
and an Austrian garrison took possession after the Russian departure (remaining
in the city until March 1857). Additionally, on March 23, 1847, a fire consumed
about 2,000 buildings of Bucharest, destroying a third of the city. In 1861, when
Wallachia and Moldavia were united to form the Principality of Romania, Bucharest
became the new nation's capital; in 1881, it became the political center of the
newly-proclaimed Kingdom of Romania.
During Nicolae Ceausescu's leadership (1965-1989), most of the historic part of
the city was destroyed and replaced with Communist-style buildings, particularly
high-rise apartment blocks. The best example of this is the development called
Centrul Civic (the Civic Centre), including the Palace of the Parliament, where
an entire historic quarter was razed to make way for Ceausescu's megalomaniac
constructions. In 1977, a 7.4 Richter-scale earthquake claimed 1,500 lives and
destroyed many old buildings. Nevertheless, some historic neighbourhoods did survive
to this day.
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 began with mass anti-Ceausescu protests in Timisoara
in December 1989 and continued in Bucharest, leading to the overthrow of the Communist
regime. Dissatisfied with the post-revolutionary leadership of the National Salvation
Front, students' leagues and opposition groups organized large-scale protests
continued in 1990 (the Golaniad), which were violently stopped by the miners of
Valea Jiului (the Mineriad). Several other Mineriads followed, the results of
which included a government change.
After the year 2000, due to the advent of Romania's economic boom, the city has
modernised and is currently undergoing a period of urban renewal. Various residential
and commercial developments are underway, particularly in the northern districts,
while Bucharest's historic centre is currently undergoing significant restoration.
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