Arboroasa
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Arboroasa (roughly, "the woodland") was a society (''
Studentenverbindung () or , often referred to as , is the umbrella term for many different kinds of fraternity-type associations in German-speaking countries, including Corps, , , , and Catholic fraternities. Worldwide, there are over 1,600 , about a thousand in ...
'') for Romanian students in the
Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...
city of
Czernowitz Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivtsi serv ...
(''Cernăuți''; now
Chernivtsi Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also #Names, other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivt ...
,
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
), located in the
Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...
region of
Cisleithania Cisleithania, officially The Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council (), was the northern and western part of Austria-Hungary, the Dual Monarchy created in the Compromise of 1867—as distinguished from ''Transleithania'' (i.e., ...
. Operating between 1875 and 1877 and attracting several dozen participants, its activities were both cultural and patriotic in nature; a central figure within the group was composer
Ciprian Porumbescu Ciprian Porumbescu (; born Cyprian Gołęmbiowski on 14 October 1853 – 6 June 1883) was a Romanian composer born in Șipotele Sucevei in Bucovina. He was among the most celebrated Romanian composers of his time; his popular works include ...
. Arboroasa was shut down by the authorities and the leadership arrested after members sent two politically sensitive telegrams to the
Romanian Old Kingdom The Romanian Old Kingdom ( or just ''Regat''; or ) is a colloquial term referring to the territory covered by the first independent Romanian nation state, which was composed of the Romanian Principalities: Wallachia and Moldavia. The union of the ...
. However, a year later, the organization was largely reconstituted as
Societatea Academică Junimea Societatea Academică Junimea (Romanian for "Junimea Academic Society") was a society (''Studentenverbindung'') for Romanian students in the Austro-Hungarian city of Czernowitz, located in the Bukovina region of Cisleithania. The city was called '' ...
.


Founding and activity

The society, which was given an old name for Bukovina,Vatamaniuc, Ștefănescu, p. 258 was founded on December 22, 1875, at the newly established
Czernowitz University The Chernivtsi National University (named after Yuriy Fedkovych, full official title Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University, ) is a public university in the city of Chernivtsi in Western Ukraine. One of the leading Ukrainian institution ...
. Meanwhile, similar organizations were set up for German, Polish and Ruthenian students, as well as a pan-national group. Arboroasa's initiator,
Teodor V. Ștefanelli Teodor V. Ștefanelli (born Teodor Ștefaniuc; August 18, 1849–July 23, 1920) was an Austrian Empire, Imperial Austrian-born Romanian historian, poet, prose writer and lawyer. Born in Siret, part of Bukovina, his father Vasile Ștefaniuc w ...
, had been a member of the ''Romania Jună'' Society, and used the latter group's statute as a model for the new organization. Its stated purpose was to perfect members' patriotic, literary and cultural consciousness, to develop a social spirit and to assist poorer members, including free medical care in case of illness. Among its leaders were students
Ciprian Porumbescu Ciprian Porumbescu (; born Cyprian Gołęmbiowski on 14 October 1853 – 6 June 1883) was a Romanian composer born in Șipotele Sucevei in Bucovina. He was among the most celebrated Romanian composers of his time; his popular works include ...
, Gherasim Buliga, Ion Topală, Zaharia Voronca, Gheorghe Popescu and
Dimitrie Onciul Dimitrie Onciul (26 October / 7 November 1856 – 20 March 1923) was a Romanian historian. He was a member of the Romanian Academy and its president from 1920 until his death in 1923. Biography Onciul was born in Straja, at the time in the Duch ...
. They aimed to strengthen the identity and raise the prestige of Romanians in Bukovina. To this end, they organized conferences related to national literature and history, as well as Romanian-themed musical and literary evenings; set up a library and reading rooms; and maintained ties with other student societies in the
Romanian Old Kingdom The Romanian Old Kingdom ( or just ''Regat''; or ) is a colloquial term referring to the territory covered by the first independent Romanian nation state, which was composed of the Romanian Principalities: Wallachia and Moldavia. The union of the ...
and in
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
.Jumară, p. 173 Buliga was the first president, followed by Porumbescu. The motto was by
Vasile Alecsandri Vasile Alecsandri (; 21 July 182122 August 1890) was a Romanian patriot, poet, dramatist, politician and diplomat. He was one of the key figures during the 1848 revolutions in Moldavia and Wallachia. He fought for the unification of the Roma ...
(''Uniți să fim în cugete, uniți în Dumnezeu'' — "Let us be united in our thoughts, united under God"), members wore a ribbon with the blue-yellow-red of the Romanian tricolor, and the official song was written by Ștefanelli, with music by Porumbescu. Initially, of 53 Romanian students at Czernowitz, 44 joined Arboroasa as ordinary members.Glodariu, p. 66 It was financed through fees levied on these as well as through donations from supporters; other membership categories included founder, supporter, honorary and extraordinary. In 1877, learning through press reports that the Romanian government had set aside 1000 lei for cultural organizations located outside the country's borders, the leadership asked for part of this money, and received 250 lei. The same summer, as the
Romanian Army The Romanian Land Forces () is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. Since 2007, full professionalization and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Land Forces. The Romanian Land Forc ...
was winning victories in the
War of Independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
, members of Arboroasa were gleeful, toasting the successes of their "brothers fighting beyond". Meanwhile, the Bukovina authorities received instructions from Vienna to collect funds for wounded troops from the opposing Ottoman side.


Suppression and legacy

On October 1, 1877, members of the society sent a condolence telegram to the city hall of
Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the Cities in Romania, third largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical ...
in Romania, in order to mark the centenary of the beheading of
Grigore III Ghica Grigore III Ghica (1724 – 12 October 1777) was a prince of Moldavia and of Wallachia. Biography He was the son of Alexandru Matei Ghica, with the position of dragoman, who was beheaded by the Sublime Porte and nephew of Grigore II Ghica's b ...
, who had refused to cede Bukovina to Austria. A second, celebratory, telegram was sent to the Romanian capital
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
in order to mark the Fall of Plevna during the war. The imperial Austrian authorities, also taking into account the subsidies received from Romania, considered these as acts of treason, and disbanded the society on November 11.Nistor, p. 227 This act prompted a fierce reaction in the Romanian-language press, both in Hungarian-ruled
Oradea Oradea (, , ; ; ) is a city in Romania, located in the Crișana region. It serves as the administrative county seat, seat of Bihor County and an economic, social, and cultural hub in northwestern Romania. The city lies between rolling hills on ...
, and in Iași and Bucharest. In particular, an article by
C. A. Rosetti Constantin Alexandru Rosetti (; 2 June 1816 – 8 April 1885) was a Romanian literary and political leader, born in Bucharest into the princely Rosetti family. Biography Before 1848 Constantin Alexandru Rosetti was born in Bucharest, the ...
published repeatedly in ''
Românul ''Românul'' (, meaning "The Romanian"; originally spelled ''Romanulu'' or ''Românulŭ'', also known as ''Romînul'', ''Concordia'', ''Libertatea'' and ''Consciinti'a Nationala''), was a political and literary newspaper published in Bucharest, Ro ...
'' created a stir within Bucharest's diplomatic circles, and also drew notice from
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
. A search at Arboroasa headquarters revealed compromising documents from societies in the Transylvanian cities of
Blaj Blaj (; archaically spelled as ''Blaș''; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Blußendref'') is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It has a population of 17,816 inhabitants as of 2021. The city administers eight villages: Deleni-Obârșie ('' ...
and
Gherla Gherla (; ; ) is a municipality in Cluj County, Romania (in the historical region of Transylvania). It is located from Cluj-Napoca on the river Someșul Mic, and has a population of 19,873 as of 2021. Three villages are administered by the city: ...
, as well as in Vienna. The leadership committee, consisting of Porumbescu, Voronca, Constantin Morariu, Orest Popescu and Eugen Sireteanu, was arrested. After a trial held in Czernowitz in early February 1878, the accused were acquitted by unanimous jury verdict and released after being kept in prison for eleven weeks.Vatamaniuc, Ștefănescu, p. 259 It was during this prison stay that Porumbescu contracted the
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
that would lead to his death. The trial drew notice from
Mihai Eminescu Mihai Eminescu (; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 – 15 June 1889) was a Romanians, Romanian Romanticism, Romantic poet, novelist, and journalist from Moldavia, generally regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet. Emin ...
, who wrote about what he considered the mistaken policies adopted by the imperial court at Vienna toward Bukovina's Romanians. Despite the acquittal, the ringleaders were placed under surveillance and expected to limit themselves to cultural manifestations. Nevertheless, after a few months, the local Romanian students again increased their organizational activity. In December 1878, a new group,
Societatea Academică Junimea Societatea Academică Junimea (Romanian for "Junimea Academic Society") was a society (''Studentenverbindung'') for Romanian students in the Austro-Hungarian city of Czernowitz, located in the Bukovina region of Cisleithania. The city was called '' ...
, was established; it continued the objectives set forth by Arboroasa, and largely consisted of the same members.Jumară, p. 174


Notes


References

*Daniel Dieaconu, “Ciprian Porumbescu și lupta pentru emancipare națională a Bucovinei”, in ''Muzeul Național'', vol. 32/2020, pp. 103–16 *Eugenia Glodariu, ''Asociațiile culturale ale tineretului studios român din monarhia habsburgică 1860-1918'', Muzeul Național de Istorie a Transilvaniei, 1998 *Dan Jumară, "Studențimea bucovineană și Marea Unire", in ''Acta Moldaviae Meridionalis'', Anuarul Muzeului Județean Vaslui, Vaslui, Nr.XXI, 1999–2000, pp. 173–81 *
Ion Nistor Ion I. Nistor (August 16, 1876 – November 11, 1962) was a Romanian historian and politician. He was a titular member of the Romanian Academy from 1915 and a professor at the universities of Cernăuți and Bucharest, while also serving as Minis ...
(ed. Florin Rotaru), ''Istoria românilor'', vol. 2. Biblioteca Bucureștilor, 2002, *Emanuel Turczynski, "Czernowitz, eine vom Bildungsbürgertum errungene Universität im Dienst staatlicher Bildungs- und Wissenschaftsförderung", in Peter Wörster (ed.), ''Universitäten im östlichen Mitteleuropa: zwischen Kirche, Staat und Nation - Sozialgeschichtliche und politische Entwicklungen''. Oldenbourg Verlag, 2008, {{ISBN, 978-348-6584-94-3 *Dimitrie Vatamaniuc, Ștefan Ștefănescu, ''Bucovina între Occident și Orient: studii și documente''. Editura Academiei Române, 2006, 978-973-2714-80-5 1875 establishments in Austria-Hungary 1877 disestablishments Chernivtsi University Student organisations in Austria Romanian nationalism