Nicolae Condeescu Nicolae Condeescu (February 27, 1876–July 11, 1936) was a

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

n general. Born in

Coșereni Coșereni is a commune located in Ialomița County, Muntenia, Romania, about to the northeast of Bucharest. It is composed of a single village, Coșereni. Geography The commune is situated in the Wallachian Plain, on the right bank of the Ialo ...

Ialomița County Ialomița County () is a county () of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Slobozia. Demographics In 2011, the county had a population of 258,669 and the population density was 58.08/km2. Romanians make up 95.6% of the population, t ...

, his parents were Grigore and Maria. Condeescu attended the officers’ school in

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 ...

from 1894 to 1896, following which he was enrolled in a regiment. He advanced to lieutenant in 1899 and attended the Higher War School from 1903 to 1905. Sent to work for the general staff in 1906, he became a captain the following year. For most of 1908, he was sent to train with an elite regiment of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

, following which he returned to the general staff.Spânu, p. 215 In August 1916, when Romania entered

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Condeescu was made lieutenant-colonel. During much of the war, he did not command battle troops, instead working in military intelligence. He essentially built up this capacity of the Romanian Army from scratch, centralizing reports, studying the enemy armies, publishing orders and news bulletins, organizing espionage missions, identifying spies. The work eventually paid off with the victories at Mărăști and

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 ...

, as the Romanian side was well informed about the position and plans of its adversaries. He also took measures to address the emerging threat of

Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

. Made a colonel in 1917, he was placed in command of an infantry regiment in June 1918. In November, as the war wound down, he was named adjutant to Crown Prince Carol, whose associate he would henceforth remain. Condeescu continued his intelligence work through 1919, when he left on a world tour with the prince.Spânu, p. 217 He was an active

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

. In 1926, Condeescu was made a brigadier general in charge of an infantry corps. In 1927, he returned to the general staff. Advanced to division general the following year, he also became head of the royal military guard. From April 1930 to April 1931, he served as Army Minister under

Iuliu Maniu Iuliu Maniu (; 8 January 1873 – 5 February 1953) was a Romanian lawyer and politician. He was a leader of the National Party of Transylvania and Banat before and after World War I, playing an important role in the Union of Transylvania wi ...

and

Gheorghe Mironescu Gheorghe G. Mironescu, commonly known as G. G. Mironescu (January 28, 1874 – October 8, 1949), was a Romanian politician, member of the National Peasants' Party (PNȚ), who served as Prime Minister of Romania for two terms. Biography Born in V ...

. He subsequently became inspector general of the territorial command.Spânu, pp. 215-16 His awards included the Order of the Crown, knight (1913) and commander; the

Order of Saint Anna The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, on 14 February 1735, in hono ...

and the

Order of Saint Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir () was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine the Great, Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev, Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of ...

; and the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, officer.Spânu, p. 216 Condeescu married Virginia Petrescu of

Târgoviște Târgoviște (, alternatively spelled ''Tîrgoviște'') is a Municipiu, city and county seat in Dâmbovița County, Romania. It is situated north-west of Bucharest, on the right bank of the Ialomița (river), Ialomița River. Târgoviște was ...

in 1907; their son Dan was born in 1911. In the summer of 1936, months after turning 60, Condeescu died on his estate in

Urlați Urlați () is a town in Prahova County, Muntenia, Romania. In 2021, it had a population of 10,131. Sixteen villages are administered by the town: Arioneștii Noi, Arioneștii Vechi, Cherba, Jercălăi, Mărunțiș, Orzoaia de Jos, Orzoaia de Sus, ...

Notes

References

*Alin Spânu, “Colonelul Nicolae Condeescu, șeful secției informații din Marele Cartier General în războiul de întregire (1916–1919)”, in Marian Moșneagu, Petrișor Florea, Cornel Țucă (eds.), ''Armata română și societatea civilă'', pp. 215–18. Brăila: Editura Istros, 2012, {{DEFAULTSORT:Condeescu, Nicolae 1876 births 1936 deaths People from Ialomița County Romanian military personnel of World War I Romanian Land Forces generals Ministers of defence of Romania Romanian Freemasons Carol I National Defence University alumni Knights of the Order of the Crown (Romania) Commanders of the Order of the Crown (Romania) Recipients of the Order of St. Anna Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir Officers of the Legion of Honour