The officer, identified only as Gheorghe, said Ceausescus wife struggled to get free when she realized she was about to die. In 1969, Richard Nixon visited Bucharest, the first US president to set foot in a communist country. Side by side with the President was his wife, Elena. He is the author of many best-selling Kindle works on Amazon. Romanian researchers have called on academic publishers to remove Elena Ceauescus name from almost two dozen scientific papers and books fraudulently published as her work, more than 30 years after the wife of the former communist dictator Nicolae Ceauescu was executed. She was able to acquire only an elementary school level education. She never even acknowledged our existence. elena ceausescu smell. She. He did introduce some benefits to workers and over the course of his first years in office, made his own way in foreign policy at a time when most communist regimes in Eastern Europe took their cues from Moscow. Aspecte de teorie si practica judiciara. In response, she is said to have screamed You motherf***er! at him. As his rule went on, Ceausecu not only fostered his own cult of personality, but became prey to it. She attended night school at the Polytechnic Institute in . Joel Vostok is YPTs Soviet Europe manager and resident military history buff. Hanson, Roger. To avoid the public defense of a thesis that she likely did not write, the law was changed so that she only needed to submit a written defense. The Ceauescus took another car and told its driver, Nicolae Petrior, to drive them to Trgovite. She was mocked by many, including an official who called her by this nickname during her show trial. Edited by P. Gethers, Villard Books, 1991. Isloi believes the Ceauescus craving for international recognition and legitimacy was the reason Elenas scientific credentials were raised to such heights, but her connection to chemistry research began well before Nicolae came to power. When coal miners went on strike in 1977, party apparatchiks told the miners that their Great Leader and his wife were personally working on a solution to their problems and couldnt meet with them. She, as well as her husband, insisted, until the very end, that her academic achievements were not only valid, but also well-earned. Elena Ceauescu was celebrated by state propaganda under her husbands regime as a world-famous chemistry researcher, despite having no credible qualifications. Can religion save us from Artificial Intelligence? When it comes to covering Communist Romania, Nicolae Ceaucescus name is often at the forefront. 2018, https://www.mdr.de/geschichte/elena-ceausescu-100.html. Ceauescu was invited to the White House in 1970 and 1978, and in the same year was the first communist head of state to visit London. Dennis Deletant, a historian and emeritus professor of Romanian studies at University College London, says in 1978 he was approached by the principal of London University, who told him Romanian diplomats had been trying to get Ceauescu an honorary title ahead of her state visit in June of that year. I consider that it is a moral issue to correct this.. [10], The Independent characterized the trial as "what can best be described as an egregiously conducted summary trial, at worst a kangaroo court". During a state visit to China in 1971, she took note of how Chairman Maos wife maintained her position of power. Or just her? The Ceauescus were accused of having $1 billion in foreign, Nicolae Ceauescu openly disavowed the court. They were tried based on references, solely by offense-name or hearsay, to criminal acts they had committed in the opinion of prosecutors, or as alleged in press reports. Driven by a desire to be powerful and respected, and buoyed up by Stalinist ideas about gaining prestige through scientific acumen, Elena turned to the field of chemistry. It was easy for her to find scientists to publish studies and books in her name; they did not have much of a choice and were handsomely rewarded for their work. To the people of his country, Ceauescu was a man willing to risk the wrath of the U.S.S.R. to improve his country. Elena Ceauescu was born to a family of farmers and traders in 1916, according to her biography in the Romanian national archives. Photo byThe Romanian Communism Online Photo Collection. Though it was an open secret that Elena Ceausescu never did any of her own work/research, no one, either within Romania or internationally, called her on it she was the wife of the most powerful man in the country whose nation did millions of dollars in business internationally. Margaret Thatcher, herself a qualified chemist, visited Bucharest in 1975 as opposition leader and was received by the Ceauescus, then met them again on the 1978 visit, a year before her first election victory. For instance, she was never supposed to be shown in profile because of her large nose and overall homely appearance.[3]. Yet, she did not show any remorsequite the opposite. Join one of our many Group Adventures through the Central-Asian Stans (including Afghanistan), or let us plan an independent trip for you from our office Almaty, Kazakhstan. Attempting to flee the country using over $1 billion deposited in foreign banks. Theres a certain collective guilt over her hasty trial and execution, she says. [1], The main charge was genocide - namely, murdering "over 60,000 people" during the revolution in Timioara. She routinely sought international recognition from other scientists. The trial of Nicolae and Elena Ceauescu was held on 25 December 1989 by an Exceptional Military Tribunal, a drumhead court-martial created at the request of a newly formed group called the National Salvation Front. President Nicolae Ceausescu of Romania accompanied by Madame Elena Ceausescu is welcomed at Victoria Station by Queen Elizabeth. The Ceauescus brushed off the idea; according to Teodorescu, "When [he] suggested it, Elena in particular said it was an outrageous set-up. The Romanian embassy then turned to the Royal Society of Chemistry, which made Elena an honorary fellow, and the Polytechnic of Central London, which gave her the title of honorary professor. It was just a matter of chance, he says. Account. But the camera angle is too low and the lens is obscured by gunsmoke, preventing a clear look at the couple being shot, experts say. The co-authors are also calling for 36 patents registered under Elena Ceauescus name with the European Patent Office to be retracted.ICECHIMs website still lists her as a former general manager, but says nothing about her dark history, harsh cuts to scientific funding or lack of credentials. The execution happened too quickly for the television crew assigned to the trial and death sentence to videotape it in full; only the last round of shots was filmed. in Behr 184). Then why not join our tour extensions in North Korea or China? In her role as the head of the countries sciences, she gained a nickname, and not a flattering one: Codoi, which is the Romanian pronunciation of the abbreviation of CO. Ultimately, when an offer from a Washington-based organization did not appear, she was forced to accept the honorary membership from the IAS. [33] In 1990, a member of the National Salvation Front reported that 120 bullets were found in the couple's bodies. [37], The hasty trial and the images of the dead Ceauescus were videotaped and the footage promptly released in numerous Western countries two days after the execution. We have also made it possible for various media and film companies to visit and film not only in North Korea, but to many other of our destinations. Think our tours are cool? Arrival ceremony for President Ceausescu of Romania, south balcony of the White House. After a short trial, the couple was sentenced to death. Soldiers and militia said the Ceausescus were tried and shot without delay because the barracks was attacked by helicopters manned by Securitate forces determined to free them. Elena Ceauescu frequently accompanied her husband on official visits abroad. Let Us Now Praise a Famous Woman: The Questionable Wisdom of British Institutions in Honouring Elena Ceausescu in the Late 1970s.New Scientist, Jan. 1990, https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12517004-500-forum-let-us-now-praise-a-famous-woman-the-questionable-wisdom-of-british-institutions-in-honouring-elena-ceausescu-in-the-late-1970s/. Read another story from us:The Communist Romanian government had striking miners deliberately irradiated in order to trigger cancer. In their letter to Elsevier, sent on 10 December, Teodorescu, Isloi, Dumbrav and their co-authors call Ceauescus behaviour a ruthless act of intellectual misappropriation. Dumbrav says this is probably why she specialised in polymer research in her academic publications. For a time in the late 1970s/1980s, Elena Ceausescu (1916-89) of Romania was one of the two most powerful women on Earth. Honorary Member of the Mexican Chemical Society (1975), This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 07:50. A former educator, he values curiosity and diligent research. Pergamon, which was owned by Robert Maxwell, also published hagiographic biographies of several eastern bloc leaders, including one on the Romanian dictator titled: Nicolae Ceauescu: Builder of Modern Romania and International Statesman (1983). In contrast Elena Ceausescu smelled badly of body odour. The Mass Games is the worlds largest performance as approved by the Guinness Book of Records with over 100,000 individual performers participating in a synchronised dance or gymnastics act held in the worlds largest stadium. Photo by Andr Cros CC BY-SA 4.0. In fact, the teacher who oversaw the infamous exam "lived in fear of his life for decades afterward" (Behr 140). new affordable housing in richmond bc; johns hopkins all children's hospital t shirt Men umschalten. (Elena Ceausescu, the dictator's wife, was a peasant girl who never learned to read properly)." . Those who gave her titles or pressured others to do so are guilty of having contributed to an intellectual imposture of colossal proportions. [17] At one point, their forcibly-assigned lawyers abandoned their clients' defence and joined with the prosecutor, accusing them of capital crimes instead of defending them. However, we consider this correction of the scientific record to be crucial.. A portrait of Elena Ceauescu dressed as a member of the Romanian Academy. Ceauescu fled with her husband on 22 December 1989, after the events in Timioara led to the Romanian Revolution, but she and her husband were captured in the town of Trgovite. Her first recognitions came from France and the United States, before entering the Romanian Academy, Betea says. Nicolae Ceausescu et Mobutu Sese Seko et leurs pouses respectives Elena et Bobi Ladawa en avril 1987 au Zare. During the trip, the Ceauescus heard news of the revolution on the car radio (by then the revolutionaries had taken control of the state media), causing Ceauescu to angrily denounce the revolution as a coup d'tat. He says: The Romanian embassy in London made strenuous efforts to persuade certain British academic institutions to recognise Elenas scientific achievements she was trumpeted in the Romanian press as a scientist of world renown, even though her doctorate was the work, I was reliably informed by Romanian sources, of a professor at the University of Iai. [13] Teodorescu met the couple for the first time in the Trgovite "court room", when he was given ten minutes to consult with his clients. CO for Carbon-Oxygen and doi, the Romanian for two. Obviously, everyone knew she was an imposter. The couple fled as a crowd gathered and in the ensuing chase were forced to change cars after running out of gas. Offence of destruction of public property by destroying and damaging buildings, explosions in cities, etc. Destruction of public property by destroying and damaging buildings, explosions in cities, etc. Elena's rise to the top ranks of academic chemists was, subsequently, smooth. She wanted to be called Professor Doctor Engineer, and she found no opposition at the Romanian Academy, since resistance was both futile and dangerous. Ceausescu ruled Romania for 25 years with an iron fist before being ousted and executed during the 1989 anti-communist revolt in which more than 1,000 people were killed. April 22, 1990 PARIS (AP) _ Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu wept silently and his wife Elena begged for mercy as soldiers readied them for the firing squad, according to footage of their execution broadcast Sunday. Portrait of Elena Petrescu (Ceauescu) in 1939. Ed Vulliamy returns to Bucharest twenty years after the downfall of Ceausescu, Im still nervous, says soldier who shot Nicolae Ceausescu, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Elena Ceauescu ( Romanian pronunciation: [elena tea.uesku]; ne Lenua Petrescu; 7 January 1916 [2] - 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician who was the wife of Nicolae Ceauescu, General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party and leader of the Socialist Republic of Romania. After giving the emissary generous hospitality, in which alcohol played a significant part, Professor Todd asked the emissary in all frankness whether Elena deserved an honour from the society, Deletant says. Or that Elena was having an affair with Vasile Milea (the Minister . But her fraud had a lasting impact on politics and science. Our institute, as it is now, has no [qualification] in determining whether Elena Ceauescu would have asked to be the co-author of some scientific works to which she did not contribute, and even more, to ask the publishers to withdraw her name from the published works, she said. In June 1973, after having been nominated by Emil Bodnra, she was elected to the party's executive committee. It was on Christmas Day 30 years ago that Romania's tyrannical communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was executed by firing squad after a summary trial. (qtd. : 180", Enhanced Personality Cult for Elena Ceauescu, Ceauescus Scharfrichter der Diktator und sein Henker, "RAD Background Report/135 (Romania) 27 July 1984 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF THE CEAUSESCU CLAN", Amazon sale of Elena Ceausescu PhD thesis, "Viata lui Ceausescu. Elena and Nicolae Ceauescu with Emperor Hirohito during a visit in Tokyo in 1975. The pair were soon infatuated and, after their relationship was put to the test with Nicolaes frequent spells in jail as a result of his communist activities, the two married in 1947 as Romania began to turn into a communist state under the watchful eye of the Soviets. What Colombia plans for their descendants, Messy storms roll eastward after slamming Texas, Louisiana, Ukrainians dig up more bodies from makeshift graves in once-occupied towns, New crew from U.S, Russia and UAE arrives at space station, Two Americans arrested on charges of selling tech to Russia. [5][6][7][8][9] She was the only woman ever executed by the modern state of Romania.[10]. They felt deeply insultedThey rejected [his] help after that. elena ceausescu smell. An accusation of genocide was never proven. The pair were accused of ordering the deaths of 60,000 people during their reign and stashing up to a billion dollars in foreign bank accounts. The whole scientific output of this department had to have Elena Ceauescu as the first author, because of the orders of the Communist party, Teodorescu says. "[14] The dissertation is titled the "Stereospecific Polymerization of Isoprene" and has substantial scientific value, being still bought [15] and cited today. But even a necessarily brief reading makes one think that the field of research surveyed by the author is vast and recent.. However, the real story is that she paid off/coerced noted scientists to write her doctorate and other papers. What they found when they arrived were closed doors and a note saying that the public presentation had been moved to 6 am and was already over. They. The absolute up to date on guide, facts and fun information about where we visit and what we do, YPT Southern Iraq tour standing in Firdos "Paradis, While the idea of North Korea customs might, YPT's Spring Socotra group tour posing in front of, Greetings from #Australia! Nicu was an important member of the Romanian Communist Party, unlike his siblings. Young Pioneer Tours are the leading budget adventure travel company to off the wall, and off the beaten track destinations. This fabled orchid breeder loves to chat just not about Trader Joes orchids, Elliott: Kings use their heads over hearts in trading Jonathan Quick, Best coffee city in the world? As Elena traveled the world, she became more and more jealous of what others had. What did Disney actually lose from its Florida battle with DeSantis? Professor Mircea Teodorescu from the Polytechnic University of Bucharests Department of Bioresources and Polymer Science, co-authored papers with Elena Ceauescu between 1984 and 1989. Multisensorial exhibition. They were then led by four. Her enemies, real or perceived, found themselves in dead-end jobs in remote parts of the country, or worse, a bunk in a labor camp or at the end of a rifle barrel. Elsevier and Taylor & Francis did not respond to a request for comment. Without them, those like Elena Ceauescu would not have existed as a world-renowned scientist.. [42] The Ceauescus were the last people to be executed in Romania before the abolition of capital punishment on 7 January 1990. She is said to have spent hours listening to the tapes, in particular the people she didnt like within the party such as Violeta Andrei. We have a long and proud history of arranging cultural projects with the Korean people; be it through art, sport, or whatever medium brings people together. General Victor Stnculescu had brought with him a specially selected team of paratroopers from a crack regiment, handpicked earlier in the morning to act as a firing squad. A deputy police commander told Romanian television they were kept at a barracks near Buftea, north of Bucharest, after being taken there by two policemen following an abortive attempt to flee. Similar requests have been sent to Wiley and to Taylor & Francis. Juan Merodio Sin Categora elena ceausescu smell. Local residents said Ceausescu, lifted by helicopter from the roof of the Communist Party headquarters in Bucharest Dec. 22 as a crowd turned against him, landed in Buftea and headed for a secret airport 30 miles from Tirgoviste. Elena and Nicolae Ceauescu during their brief trial before a military tribunal on 25 December 1989. If you are interested in traveling through the old USSR, YPT are your people. After dropping out of school at 14, she moved in with her brother in the capital and held a variety of jobs, many of which she lost because she lacked skills and education. Nicolae is said to have begun to mumble before singing the first verse of the Internationale. The helicopters attacked the barracks, shooting machine-gun fire, a local militia chief said, adding that several people were killed. As the wife of the most powerful politician in the country, Elena Ceauescu wanted to portray herself as a role model, worthy of being next to the 'great political leader', her husband. As the wife of the most powerful politician in the country, Elena Ceauescu wanted to portray herself as a role model, worthy of being next to the great political leader, her husband. This was done to ensure and prolong his personal rule, not for the benefit of the country. Yet, she wasn't even a scientist. Since the Revolutions of 1989, several scientists have claimed that Ceauescu had forced them to write papers in her name,[3][12][13] and that the university gave her the honour of the doctorate solely because of her political position. A commotion broke out and one of the Romanian soldiers escorting them is said to have screamed at Elena to get a move on. (qtd. In March 1980, she was made a First Deputy Prime Minister, a state title she held until she was executed in the Romanian Revolution. I will not!" Photo by Romanian National History Museum. [36] Groups of Ceauescu supporters visit to place flowers on the grave, with large numbers of pensioners gathering on 26 January, Nicolae's birthday. Honorary Member of the International Society of Industrial Chemistry (1970). despite Elena Ceauescu's protests. This month, Romanias minister of innovation resigned after an investigation found significant irregularities on his rsum and evidence he plagiarised from an academic paper. In the name of the self-correcting nature of science, as well as the hard-earned Romanian democracy, we ask that you consider retracting the titles bearing her name, as her authorship on these works is not only fraudulent, but an offense to Romanian anti-communist protesters who were killed during the Romanian Revolution, as well as every Romanian scientist who has ever done honest work. "[17] The Ceauescus' hands were tied by four soldiers before the execution. During the Romanian Revolution in 1989, Elena was present throughout the entire affair at her husbands side. Twenty-five years ago, the Communist leaders of Eastern Europe were falling like dominoes. The only result, however, was Elenas wrath.. He argued that it was a coup d'tat organized by the Soviets. "[29], In December 2018, Iliescu, former Deputy Prime Minister Gelu Voican Voiculescu, former Romanian Air Force chief Iosif Rus, and former National Salvation Front council member Emil Dumitrescu were indicted by Romanian military prosecutors for crimes against humanity for the deaths that occurred during the Romanian Revolution, most of which took place after Ceauescu was overthrown. 6 January 1990. We are well aware that these titles have ended up in your catalogue through no fault of your own. Deb's father, a coal miner, told his daughter: "Stop complaining and go and do something about it." His death was ruled a suicide. But an often overlooked character in the regime is the wife of the Romanian dictator: Elena Ceaucescu. Elena Ceausescu (1916-89) was the wife of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu (1918-89). By all accounts, her vanity and desire for honours exceeded that of her husband. Elena Ceausescu (left) with Lyudmila Zhivkova. Those opposing Ceauescu, his wife, their family and cronies many times disappeared for good. Independent and Free!. One of the most bizarre facts about Elena Ceaucescu is her role as a world-renowned scientist. He can usually be found striking a manly pose in front of tanks or hunting Soviet relics in the former Eastern Bloc. She wouldnt hear of having just any job. Ceauescu was outlived by her mother, a near centenarian at the time of her death, her brother Gheorghe Petrescu (also an important figure in the party) and her three children: Valentin (b. June 13th 1978. Today, the grave is open to the public and is often visited on our range of tours to Romania. [38], In 2009 Valentin Ceauescu, elder son of the Ceauescus, argued that the revolutionary forces should have killed his parents when they had arrested them on 22 December since they did not need any trial. It was only at this point that she was finally confronted by her fraud. Before the legal proceedings began, Stnculescu had already selected the spot where the execution would take place: along one side of the wall in the barracks' square. Vol. Join 1000s of subscribers and receive the best Vintage News in your mailbox for FREE, The Human Remains of Skeleton Lake Visible Only when the Ice Melts, Two College Students Tried to Kidnap a Prime Minister Were Bribed Away with Beer, Police arrest a 72-year-old suburban grandfather suspected of being the Golden State Killer, Im not dead yet: some Buddhist monks followed self-mummification, Project Azorian: Howard Hughes secret mission, 1960s U.S. satellite that started transmitting again in 2013, The Walk of Shame in Game of Thrones historical inspiration, The only unsolved skyjacking case in U.S. history might have a break, Kurt Gdel became too paranoid to eat and died of starvation, Little Ease: One of the most feared torture devices in the Tower of London, The humble English girl who became Cora Pearl, Walt Disney softened the original Snow White story. omanian researchers have called on academic publishers to remove Elena Ceauescus name from almost two dozen scientific papers and books fraudulently published as her work, more than 30 years after the wife of the former communist dictator Nicolae Ceauescu was executed. To keep this charade up, she would bring a translator with her. Elena Ceauescu receiving an honorary doctorate in Manila (1975). Nicolae Ceausescu held Romania in an iron grip as communist leader from 1965 to 1989. In official statements, she was referred to as the Mother of the Nation. Many Romanians had other not so flattering names for her. Sotii Ceausescu au fost ucisi pentru a salva administratia comunista, care dureaza si azi, "Lovitur cumplit pentru Ion Iliescu! While we canno, according to one of the men who killed the coupl, Turkmenistan reopens to tourism March 1st 2023. Now, without further ado, lets delve into five shocking facts about Elena: the wife of the Romanian dictator who ruled the country for over two decades. As the leader of Romanias chemistry research team, she published various extensive research papers and books. Deposed Romanian president Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena have been shot by a firing squad after a secret military tribunal found them both guilty of crimes against the state. Teodorescu wants the works on which she was the sole author withdrawn and her name removed where she was a co-author. elena ceausescu smell. Around her another personality cult was constructed. She was soon expelled because she cheated on an exam and never received a bachelor's degree. [2][8], During the evening of 24 December 1989, Stnculescu sent the secret code "recourse to the method" to Kemenici, referring to the execution of the Ceauescus. Since receiving their letter, we have quickly initiated an investigation into four articles in Acta Polymerica, a journal which was discontinued in 2003, in accordance with industry standards set forward by the Committee on Publication Ethics.. The session had occurred in camera. In June 1973, she became a member of the Politburo of the Romanian Communist Party, becoming the second most important and influential person after her husband. It was here that she met a young Nicolae Ceaucescu. A title like "The rise and fall of Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu" suggested that this was a biography of Romania's power couple and the author's credentials as a renowned Oxford historian gave hope that this would be an in depth history but I was disappointed in both respects. ", Dan Voinea: Nu au existat teroristi in decembrie '89. Dumbrav says she had a childish desire to be showered with gifts from around the world as a sign of her prestige. The science in those papers was sound, Teodorescu says its just that Ceauescu had no involvement in it. Its outcome was pre-determined, and it resulted in guilty verdicts and death sentences for former Romanian President and Romanian Communist Party General Secretary, Nicolae Ceauescu, and his wife, Elena Ceauescu. Matthew Gaskill holds an MA in European History and writes on a variety of topics from the Medieval World to WWII to genealogy and more. The translator was actually an accomplished scientist who would ignore the factually incorrect statements made by Elena and give the correct answers to the audience instead. Ceauescus reputation was also promoted by Romanian officials who pushed for recognition from respected institutions in the west. Starting in July 1972, Elena Ceauescu started getting various offices at senior levels in the Romanian Communist Party. She was born to a peasant family and never finished high school. We were producing papers with words which, we knew, she could not pronounce, let alone understand." I was invited by the principal of London University to discuss with him the grounds for the award of an honorary doctorate to Elena, Deletant says. Behr, Edward.Kiss the Hand You Cannot Bite: The Rise and Fall of the Ceausescus. Fiul poporului" .pdf, Ceausescu, obsesia nemarturisita a romanilor, Transcript of the Trial of December 25, 1989, Chapter 96 Life under Communism: Hell on Earth, Biographical Sketches of the Ceausescu Clan, "Espacenet list of patents with inventor 'Ceauescu Elena', "@njbirse The process of revoking her association with the Royal Institute of Chemistry our antecedent society unt", "President's Week in Review: April 7 April 13, 1975", "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1984", "Biografia Elenei Ceauescu, n "Mic dicionar enciclopedic", 1972", "Why Ceausescu's 1978 state visit was far more humiliating than Trump's ever could be", Transcript of the closed trial of Nicolae and Elena Ceauescu, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Elena_Ceauescu&oldid=1141870859, Malaysia: Honorary Grand Commander of the. She was also the Deputy Prime Minister of Romania. Over the course of Ceausescu's rule, Nicolae and Elena constructed a personality cult around themselves, which in many ways paralleled those of Mao, Stalin, and Hitler. Got extra time before or after your North Korean group tour? [30] Before the execution, Nicolae Ceauescu declared, "We could have been shot without having this masquerade! As Behr explains in his history of the Ceaucescus' reign of terror, Mircea Corcioveci, one of the top scientists at the Institute, eventually discovered that Elena "didn't know what a chromatograph was and didn't recognize the formula for sulfuric acid," which was "taught to first-year chemistry students" (141). As is the Romanian politicians objective of having academic titles or PhDs, which is looked upon as a consequence of the obsession that the Ceauescus had of embodying both political and scientific figures..