Carol I, the new Romania and the new Bucharest
Queen Elisabeth of Wied said about her husband, King Carol (Charles) I, that "he used to wear the crown even in his sleep". The King of Romania (of German origin), 1866-1914, marked deeply the history of the country and proved to be "a great Romanian".When he was 27, Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (!) accepted to come to a foreign country. The trip was not at all pleasant, he used a fake name and kept a low profile, travelled by horse-pulled wagon (which later made him pay extra attention to the construction of railroads) and was appaled by the poverty and lack of organization he noticed on his roads through Romanian villages.
When Carol, supported by Napoleon III and brought by I.C. Bratianu, came here, the country was paying tribute to the Ottoman Empire, was in a poor economic shape and among the least developped European countries regarding the civilization, infrastructure and education.
Paul Morand says that during those times "Bucharest was nothing more than the shadow of a great city. Three quarters of it had been destroyed during the great fire in 1847, by the continuous marches back and forth of the Russian troups, while floods, cholera and famine finished it off" (Paul Morand, "Bucuresti", Echinox printing house, 2000).
Plus, Carol was not really impressed even by the "house" prepared for him, former residence of boyar Golescu, patched up as royal residence after having served as military school, barracks and hospital. It is said that the future king asked "But where is the Palace?" In time, the house Golescu was modernized, enlarged with new wings, but after being partially destroyed in a fire, it was completeley torn down. The contemporary shape of the Royal Palace dates back from 1935 and it was built by Carol II.
Carol I and Queen Elisabeth used to take time off at Peles, a palace built throughout their entire reign period and was finished in the year of the king's death.
Neagu Djuvara said that 1866-1914 was the happiest period in Romania's existence. Why? because the King was set to modernize the country, to ensure its independence and make Bucharest a capital respected throughout Euurope. In 1866, the new Constitution of Romania proclaimes constitutional monarchy. It was not always easy for him, because his discipline and intransigence were not easy to deal with.
At one point, the extremist francophones, angry because France had just lost the war with Prussia, attacked House Capsa where the German king was celebrating his birthday. Carol could not count on the guards and, extremely disappointed, he announced that he wanted to abdicate. Realizing what a loss this would mean, including the end of all the reforms, the political elite convinced him to give up his decision. The government was changed and Lascar Catargiu became prime-minister.
Carol I did not accept the country's dependence on the Ottomans. He took advantage of the Russian-Turk war in 1877 to win Romania's independence. The story goes that when he first heard the canons firing at Calafat, he exclaimed "That's music to my ears!".
Romania became a free country and in 1881 becomes a kingdom, with the coronation of Prince Carol. He never wanted a golden crown, with diamonds and gems. Carol had his crown made from the steel of a canon captured during the war of independence.
Photo from here
Due to him, Bucharest has Filaret train station, the Central Library of the University, the Athaeneum, Palace Cotroceni, the Medical School, BNR Palace, the Palace of Justice, the Postal Palace, CEC building, the building of the City Hall, monuments, museums, a modernized river Dambovita - "almost everything goes back to that beautiful reign when for the first time Bucharest was able to grow free of natural or human-made disasters" (Paul Morand in his book, printed for the first time in 1935).
In a continuously changing world, after King Carol made his crown from the captured Turkish canon, the bronze of his statue, which was once in Revolution Square was used by the communists to make a statue of Lenin...
