Roman () is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

located in the central part of Western Moldavia, a traditional region of

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

. It is located 46 km east of Piatra Neamț, in

Neamț County Neamț County () is a county (județ) of Romania, in the historic region of Moldavia, with the county seat at Piatra Neamț. The county takes its name from the Neamț River. Demographics Population In 2011, it had a population of 470,766 ...

at the confluence of the rivers

Siret Siret (; german: Sereth; hu, Szeretvásár; uk, Серет, Seret; yi, סערעט, Seret) is a town, municipality and former Latin bishopric in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. Siret is ...

and Moldova. Its name was taken from Moldavian Voivode

Roman I of Moldavia Roman I (? – March 1394) was Voivode of Moldavia from December 1391 to March 1394. He was the second son of Costea and Margareta Muşata (= "the beautiful" in Old Romanian) the daughter of the first ruler of Moldavia, Bogdan I and the founder ...

. From here prince Roman realized the centralization of Moldavia, the city of Roman being the capital of the Lower Country of Moldavia ( ro, Țara de Jos).

History

The earliest mention of the city is in the Novgorod Chronicle (dated between 1387 and 1392). Five years later, the name appeared on a donation deed. The city is mentioned in a Moldavian document, signed by Moldavia's Voivode Roman I, on March 30. The document is one of the first of documents of the then-young state of Moldavia, being the first which holds a fully legible version of the Moldavia seal, bearing the aurochs, the moon, the star, and the flower, still in use on

coat of arms of Moldova The coat of arms of Moldova is the national emblem of the Republic of Moldova. Official description Moldovan law describes the arms as follows: ''Per fess gules and azure, an aurochs head cabossed overall, accompanied by a mullet of eight points ...

. Roman became a diocesan see in September 14, 1408, when Voivode Roman I's son,

Alexandru cel Bun Alexander the Good ( ro, Alexandru cel Bun or ''Alexandru I Mușat''; c. 1375 – 1 January 1432) was a Voivode (Lord) of Moldavia, reigning between 1400 and 1432, son of Roman I Mușat. He succeeded Iuga to the throne, and, as a ruler, init ...

, established an Orthodox bishopric in the city. The representatives of the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

population of Roman, shepherded by the Bishop of

Baia Baia (german: Baja, Stadt Molde, or Moldenmarkt; hu, Moldvabánya; lat, Civitas Moldaviae) is a commune in Suceava County, in the historical region of Western Moldavia, northeastern Romania with a population of 6,793 (2002 census).Council of Constance in 1412. Later on in the late 15th century, Ștefan cel Mare built a new stone fortress on the left bank of the Siret River, to replace the old earthen one. Several documents from 1458, 1465, and 1488 during Ștefan's reign mention the Cathedral of Saint Paraskeva (Paraschiva) in Roman. In 1467, the fortress resisted the siege of the Hungarian army under King Matthias Corvinus, before the

Battle of Baia The Battle of Baia ( ro, Bătălia de la Baia; hu, moldvabányai csata) was fought on December 15, 1467, between Moldavian prince Stephen the Great and the Hungarian king, Matthias Corvinus. The battle was the last Hungarian attempt to subdue ...

. In 1476, an Ottoman army, led by Mehmed II, besieged the new fortress again, with the Moldavians retreating after the

Battle of Valea Albă The Battle of Valea Albă, also known as the Battle of Războieni or the Battle of Akdere, was an important event in the medieval history of Moldavia. It took place at Războieni, also known as ''Valea Albă'', on July 26, 1476, between the Mold ...

Petru Rareș Petru Rareș (), sometimes known as Petryła or Peter IV (Petru IV; c. 1483 – 3 September 1546), was twice voivode of Moldavia: 20 January 1527 to 18 September 1538 and 19 February 1541 to 3 September 1546. He was an illegitimate child born (pr ...

ordered the construction of a new episcopal see on the same spot in 1542. The old fortress was apparently destroyed by

Dumitrașcu Cantacuzino Dumitrașcu Cantacuzino (c. 1620 – 1686) was Prince of Moldavia 1673, 1674 to 1675, and 1684 to 1685. Life Dumitrașcu Cantacuzène was the son of the Grand Treasurer (Marele Vistiernic) Michel Cantacuzène (in Romanian Mihai Cantacuzino) a ...

, following Ottoman command, together with all other Moldavian fortresses. One of the last mentions of it dates back to 1561–1563 during the reign of

Ioan Iacob Heraclid Iacob Heraclid (or Eraclid; el, Ἰάκωβος Ἡρακλείδης; 1527 – November 5, 1563), born Basilicò and also known as Iacobus Heraclides, Heraclid Despotul, or Despot Vodă ("Despot the Voivode"), was a Greek Maltese soldier, adv ...

. The catholic community had its rights restored around the same time, in 1562, as Ioan Belusiuș, an agent of the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I, wrote his master from Roman, after the severe limitations under Alexandru Lăpușneanu. In 1623, the Catholic community was described by the Franciscan missionary Andreas Bogoslavici in a letter sent to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, as Hungarian that understood and used Romanian. The Catholics appear to have a church dedicated to Saint Peter. In 1569, Lady Ruxandra Lăpușneanu built an Orthodox church dedicated to the Holy Virgin (''Precista Mare'') on the same spot the eponym church is placed today. In 1595, the church ''Sfinții Voievozi'' was built. The current Armenian Orthodox Church was built in 1610. Some demographic data from 1641, recorded by the

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

, who was passing through Roman, shows there were apparently 1,500 Eastern Orthodox, 450

Armenian Orthodox , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

, and 30 Hungarian Catholics. A major personality of the city was Orthodox bishop

Dosoftei Dimitrie Barilă (), better known under his monastical name Dosoftei (; October 26, 1624—December 13, 1693), was a Moldavian Metropolitan, scholar, poet and translator. Born in Suceava, he attended the school of the "Trei Ierarhi" Monaste ...

, who translated the Psalter into Romanian in 1665–1671. In December 1691, Miron Costin, one of the first historians and writers in Romanian, was decapitated here on the orders of Prince Constantin Cantemir (

Dimitrie Cantemir Dimitrie or Demetrius Cantemir (, russian: Дмитрий Кантемир; 26 October 1673 – 21 August 1723), also known by other spellings, was a Romanian prince, statesman, and man of letters, regarded as one of the most significant e ...

's father). Costin was in custody, being carried from Bărboși to Iași, where he hoped to prove his innocence; a few days earlier, the chronicler's brother had been killed in Iași, being believed to have attempted to obtain the throne for himself. The first hospital in Roman was built in 1798 on the place where the Municipal Hospital ''Precista Mare'' is located today. Talmud Torah, one of the first Jewish schools in the Principality of Moldova, was inaugurated in 1817, an important event in itself as Moldova did not grant citizenship to Jews. RO NT Roman railway station

Roman became a railway hub in the 19th century, when the second railway in Romania was opened in December 1869, from Roman to

Suceava Suceava () is the largest urban settlement and the seat town ( ro, oraș reședință de județ) of Suceava County, situated in the historical region of Bukovina, northeastern Romania, and at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. Klaus Pet ...

( Ițcani). One year later, on December 27, 1870, The

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

-Galați-Roman railway was also opened, linking Roman to the capital via

Mărășești Mărășești () is a small town in Vrancea County, Western Moldavia, Romania. It administers six villages: Călimănești, Haret, Modruzeni, Pădureni, Siretu and Tișița. Geography The town is located in the eastern part of the county, on th ...

Tecuci Tecuci () is a municipiu, city in Galați County, Romania, in the historical region of Western Moldavia. It is situated among wooded hills, on the right bank of the Bârlad River, and at the junction of railways from Galați, Bârlad, and Mără ...

, Galați, Brăila, and

Buzău The city of Buzău (formerly spelled ''Buzeu'' or ''Buzĕu''; ) is the county seat of Buzău County, Romania, in the historical region of Muntenia. It lies near the right bank of the Buzău River, between the south-eastern curvature of the Carp ...

. Right after the inauguration, this railway was closed due to technical problems, but it was reestablished on September 13, 1872. At the same time, after a reluctant government gave its long-waited approval, the first high school of the city, ''Roman-Vodă'', was opened on September 30 in the building that is still in use today as that of School No. 1. RO NT Roman Roman Voda gymnasium

In the

Communist era A Communist Era is a sustained period of national government by a single party following the philosophy of Marxism–Leninism. Many countries have experienced such a period of Communist rule. Current communist states China The Chinese Communist ...

, the city lost the county capital status, being included, in 1950-52 and 1956–68, in Bacău Region, in 1952–56 in Iași Region, and then, in 1968, in

. It also became the target of industrialization: in 1957, the steel tubes factory started production. Roman became an important industrial center in Romania. After the

fall of communism The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Nat ...

in 1989, most of the heavy industry, relying strongly on state subsidies, went bankrupt and Roman's economy struggled. The steel tubes factory was privatized, and it is now owned by the Mittal Steel Company, and the economy started to recover.

Geography and demographics

Roman is located in north-eastern Romania, in

, in the historic region of Moldavia, at the mouth of the Moldova River, a tributary to the

. The nearest large city is Bacău, away on

national road The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road) was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road connected the Potomac and Ohio Rivers and was a main tran ...

DN2 and on the CFR Suceava–Bucharest railway; Piatra Neamț, the county capital, is away and Iași, the historic capital of Moldavia, is away.

Natives

* * Daniel Baston * Ernest Broșteanu *

F. Brunea-Fox F. Brunea-Fox (born Filip Brauner; January 18, 1898–June 12, 1977) was a Romanian reporter, journalist and translator. Born into a Romanian Jews, Jewish family in Roman, Romania, Roman, his parents were Simcha Brauner and Leia (''née'' Gelbe ...

Sergiu Celibidache Sergiu Celibidache (; 14 August 1996) was a Romanian conductor, composer, musical theorist, and teacher. Educated in his native Romania, and later in Paris and Berlin, Celibidache's career in music spanned over five decades, including tenures ...

* Corneliu Codreanu (footballer) * Gheorghe Dănilă * Iliuță Dăscălescu * Constantin Drugă * Zicman Feider * Gheorghe Flondor * Bianca Ghelber *

Serban Ghenea Șerban Ghenea (born October 13, 1969) is a Grammy award-winning Romanian-Canadian audio engineer and mixer. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1969. In 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. He later attended ...

* Adrian Gheorghiu * Virgil Gheorghiu (poet) * Ion V. Gruia *

Ion Ionescu de la Brad Ion Ionescu de la Brad (June 24, 1818 – December 16, 1891), born Ion Isăcescu, was a Moldavian, later Romanian revolutionary, agronomist, statistician, scholar, and writer. Born in Roman, Romania, Roman, he was the son of a Moldavian Romani ...

* * Constantin Istrati * Ana Maria Iuganu * Mihail Jora * Zizi Lambrino * Ciprian Manea * Andreea Marin * * Petru Th. Missir * Vasile Morțun * Tereza Pîslaru * Mădălin Popa * Cornel Popescu * Andrei Răuță * * *

Simona Spiridon Simona Spiridon (née Popa; born 1 February 1980 in Roman, Romania) is a Romanian-Austrian handballer who plays for the Austrian club Hypo Niederösterreich. She is also member of the Austrian national team. Career Romanian born Spiridon moved ...

* * Ion Strat * Sorin Tabacariu * Sorin Ovidiu Vântu * Haralamb Zincă

Twin towns – sister cities

Roman is twinned with: * Dilijan, Armenia * Edineț, Moldova * Gedera, Israel *

Grugliasco Grugliasco (; pms, Grujasch ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about west of Turin. Grugliasco borders the municipalities of Turin, Collegno, and Rivoli. In 1945 here a ...

, Italy * Ștefan Vodă, Moldova * Sunchang, South Korea * Samothraki, Greece

References

External links

Roman-Romania.ro – website
*
Ziarul de Roman – Local newspaper

Melidonium
magazine * {{Authority control Cities in Romania 1234 establishments in Europe Capitals of former Romanian counties Populated places in Neamț County Localities in Western Moldavia