Corneliu Șumuleanu (November 4, 1869–December 15, 1937) was a Romanian chemist and

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

politician.

Biography

Born in

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, he attended the city's

National College National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, following which he enrolled in the Faculty of Physical and Chemical Sciences at the University of Iași. There, his professors included Petru Poni and

Grigore Cobălcescu Grigore Cobălcescu (September 22, 1831 – May 21, 1892) was a Moldavian, later Romanian geologist and paleontologist who is credited with introducing both fields into his country. Born in Iași, he graduated from the local Engineering and Arc ...

. In 1891, he was named assistant to Poni, and he earned his degree in 1894. In 1895, he was hired at the city's recently established food chemistry laboratory, where he showed a talent for organization. In late 1896, he married Clemansa Climescu, a 19-year-old student and the daughter of a university professor. In 1897, Șumuleanu left for the University of Berlin. There, after working in the laboratory of Emil Fischer and Robert Pschorr and distinguishing himself as a student, he earned a doctorate in 1901.Lițu, p.345 The same year, having returned to Iași, he was named head of the city's chemistry institute, under the Health Ministry. He would remain there for eleven years. Meanwhile, in November 1907, he was named associate professor in the medical chemistry and biology department of the Iași Medical Faculty, and was promoted to full professor in July 1913. Subsequently, he led the department until his death. As director of a medical and biochemical laboratory, Șumuleanu shaped a school of young chemists. His lectures were usually accompanied by demonstrations and were known for their clear and thorough presentation. His published work focused on organic chemistry. One article that appeared at Berlin in 1901 dealt with the synthesis of dimethylmorpholine and aminoaniline. Together with his assistants, he performed a series of analyses on domestic mineral water, at Bălțătești, Budachi,

Covasna Covasna (, hu, Kovászna, , german: Kowasna) is a town in Covasna County, Transylvania, Romania, at an altitude of . It is known for its natural mineral waters and mofettas. The town administers one village, Chiuruș ( hu, Csomakőrös). The ...

and Slănic-Moldova. He also devised several micro-analytic methods applied to Romanian wine. He became active in politics in 1910, when he joined the Democratic Nationalist Party (PND) founded by Nicolae Iorga and A. C. Cuza. Together with

Ion Zelea Codreanu An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by convent ...

, he belonged to the party's radical nationalist wing. He briefly gained notoriety in 1919, when, as vice president of the Romanian Senate, he read the decrees proclaiming the union of Transylvania, Bukovina and Bessarabia with Romania.Nastasă, p.219 When Cuza announced his definitive break with Iorga in March 1920, Șumuleanu followed him into Alexandru Averescu's People's Party. In early 1922, Cuza founded the National Christian Union, together with Nicolae Paulescu, Codreanu and Șumuleanu. This organization evolved into the National-Christian Defense League the following March. Also in 1922, student protests demanding a Jewish quota began at the Iași Medical Faculty; these were inspired by Cuza, Șumuleanu and

Ion Găvănescul An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conven ...

. He later became a leading member of the

Iron Guard The Iron Guard ( ro, Garda de Fier) was a Romanian militant revolutionary fascist movement and political party founded in 1927 by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu as the Legion of the Archangel Michael () or the Legionnaire Movement (). It was strongly ...

, whose leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu would recall this trio as the only professors at Iași who did not espouse "anti-Romanian ideas". Șumuleanu ran for and won a seat in the Assembly of Deputies in 1937, but died five days before the vote took place.Sandache, p.318

Notes

References

* Teohari Antonescu (ed. Lucian Nastasă)
''Jurnal (1893-1908)''
at the George Barițiu History Institute site * Horia-Florin Bozdoghină
"Relațiile politice dintre N. Iorga și A. C. Cuza (1900–1920)"
in ''Transilvania'', Nr. 10/2003, p. 68-74 *Corneliu Ciucanu, ''Dreapta politică românească. Politică și ideologie: 1919-1941''. Ed. Mica Valahie, Bucharest, 2009, 978-973785-863-4 *Armin Heinen, ''Legiunea "Arhanghelul Mihail" - mișcare socială și organizație politică: o contribuție la problema fascismului internațional'', Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1999, *Mihai Lițu, "Corneliu Șumuleanu", in Eugen Târcoveanu, Constantin Romanescu, Mihai Lițu (eds.), ''125 de ani de învăţământ medical superior la Iași''. Ed. Gr. T. Popa, Iași, 2004, *Lucian Nastasă, ''Antisemitismul universitar în România (1919-1939)''. Ed. Institutului pentru Studierea Problemelor Minorităților Naționale, Cluj-Napoca, 2011, * Marta Petreu, ''Cioran sau un trecut deocheat''. Ed. Polirom, Bucharest, 2011, *Cristian Sandache, ''Istorie și biografie: Corneliu Zelea Codreanu''. Ed. Mica Valahie, Bucharest, 2011, 978-973785-892-4 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sumuleanu, Corneliu 1869 births 1937 deaths Scientists from Iași Alexandru Ioan Cuza University alumni Academic staff of Alexandru Ioan Cuza University Romanian chemists Democratic Nationalist Party (Romania) politicians People's Party (interwar Romania) politicians Members of the Iron Guard 20th-century Romanian politicians Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Romania) Members of the Senate of Romania Romanian nationalists Politicians from Iași Antisemitism in Romania