Craiova
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Wikipedia-Article "Craiova"
| Craiova | |
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| Facts | |
| County | Dolj |
| Status | County capital |
| Mayor | Antonie Solomon since 2004 |
| Area | km² |
| Population |
320,000 inh/km² |
| Geographical coordinates | 44°20' N /22°40' E |
| Web | City Website |
Craiova (/kra'jo.va/, formerly spelled Krajova) is a Romanian city, the capital of the county of Dolj, situated near the left bank of the river Jiu.Craiova is the chief commercial city west of Bucharest.
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Agricultural products
The surrounding uplands of the city are very rich in grain, pasturage and vegetable products, and contain extensive forests.
Downtown
In the town, which is the headquarters of the First Army Corps, there are military and commercial academies, an appeal court and a chamber of commerce, along with many churches — Orthodox.
Map
Frequently named "town" after the first half of the XVI century, Craiova was always regarded as an important economic region of Romania.
History
Craiova, which occupied the site of the Roman Castra Nova (Dacian name Pelendava), was formerly the capital of Little Walachia (Oltenia). Its ancient bans or military governors were, next to the princes, the chief dignitaries of Walachia, and the district is still styled the banat of Craiova. Among the holders of this office were Michael the Brave (1593-1601), and several members of the celebrated Bassarab familly or the Craiovesti familly. The bans had the right of coining money stamped with their own effigies, and hence arose the name of bani (centimes). In 1395 Craiova was probablly the scene of a victory won by Prince Mircea over Bayezid I, sultan of the Turks.
The Austrian domination in Oltenia during 1718-1739 caused a considerable worsening of the economical obligations and of the fiscality, thus leading to a strong movement of the outlaws and even to opposing actions of the nobility towards the Habsburgian administration. Between the years 1770-1771, Craiova, the city of the Bania, carried on the duty of being the capital of Wallachia. Wallachia's last two rulers , Grigorie Dimitrie Bibescu and Barbu Dimitrie Stirbei,were given by another aristocratic great family in Craiova-the Bibescu family:.
The inhabitants of this part of country took part to all the important moments of Romanian history. In 1821 the inhabitants of the nowdays Dolj county participated in great number to the revolution led by Tudor Vladimirescu . In 1848 Nicolae Balcescu, Gheorghe Magheru, I.Heliade Radulescu and the citizen of Craiova Costache Romanescu took the leadership of the provisional government. The 1877-1878 Independence War reunited in the line of fire many soldiers coming from this geographical area, directly territorially involved through the towns near the Danube: Calafat and Poiana Mare, where the Headquarters of the Romanian troops carried on their activity.
The period following the Independence War was a time of economical and cultural progress. As a result, at the end of the nineteenth century, in the 40,000-inhabitants city of Craiova, there were small factories and workshops of textiles, chemical products, farming machines and construction materials.
During the First World War the people of the Dolj county fought hard against the foreign occupation, giving their lives for the 1918 reunification of Romania.
The period between the two World Wars can be characterized by an economy preponderantly based on farming, situation that slowed the process of industrialization and led to the development of a social class of important landowners, people who invested their fortunes in magnificent palaces, banks and commercial companies. After the Second World War, the machine industry, the food industry, the chemical industry, the light industry, the construction materials industry, the electrotechnic industry, the drilling and mining industry and also the aeronautical industry developed quickily.
For the tourist visiting the Dolj county there are available 1,100 accommodation places in hotels, inns, motels and villas.
Besides historical sights, the architectural and art monuments lure the tourists to visiting Dolj, a stroll through the "Romanescu" Park becomes compulsory, as the Park is an architectural landscape monument and it is considered to be the most beautiful in the country and the largest in Europe.
Economy
A proof of the continuous demographic development of Craiova is the increase of the urban population:In 1735 there were over 4000 inhabitants (836 families),and figure rose to 25,000 inhabitants in 1859.By the end of the 19th century it rose above 40 000 inhabitants. In the year 1910 Craiova's population numbered 51,400 inhabitants, which was the second town after the capital. Statistics of subsequent years are listed as follows:
- in 1930 - 63,215 inhabitants.
- in 1948 - 84,574 inhabitants.
- in 1956 - 96,897 inhabitants.
- in 1965 - 150,098 inhabitants.
- in 1975 - 197,820 inhabitants.
- in 1985 - 275,098 inhabitants.
- in 1995 - 308,000 inhabitants.
- in 2005 - 320,000 inhabitants.
During the first two decades of the 19th century, Craiova was characterized by the economic town flourish, increasing interest of its inhabitants in the handicraft commercial (trade) field, and public services. In comparison with other urbane centers, Craiova is regarded as an important commercial administrative cultural center.
During the Czarist rule (1828-1834), Craiova underwent important economic development. In 1832 there were 595 shops, from which 197 made of wood and 398 made of brick (wall). The town was still the commercial center of Oltenia; Craiova exported cereals (grains), furs (skins), animals etc. to in Austria and Turkey.
Around 1860, there were 4 633 buildings in Craiova, from which 3220 houses, 26 churches, 11 school, 60 factories and work shop. There were about 90 industrial establishments from which 12 mills, 3 beer factories, 2 gas and oil factories, 4 tanning yards and 2 printing works. Statistics mention the existence of 57% from the total number of handicraftsmen of county Dolj in Craiova (1088 handicraftsmen, 687 journeymen and 485 apprentices).
On October 26, 1896, the power station from Craiova began to function (with AEG -Allemeine Elektricitats- Gesellschaft Equipments) having an installed power of 310 CP and which supplied 365 lamps on 39 sheets in a net that was 30 km length. Craiova was the first town supplied with electric power on the bases of internal combustion motors.
In 1900 Craiova had 43.1% of industrial units of Oltenia, counting 924 industrial concerns (include 20 big industry establishments, hiring 1078 workers).
In 1925 there were 40 big industry establishments and in 1930 there were 5530 workers.
The banking trade also developed at the beginning of the 20th century (there were 6 banks and 2 exchange houses already).
In the period between the two wars, Craiova situated in an eminently agrarian region with little industrialization. The number of people who chose the industrialized way was very small.
In 1939 there were in Craiova 7 shops (industrial units) with over 100 workers: Cloth Industry "Oltenia", "Scrisul Romanesc" were well-known all over the country and abroad.
Since 1960 the city has become a powerful industrial center: the construction of machines and equipment industry, aeronautic industry, chemical industry, food industry, building materials industry, electrotechnical industry, extractive industry, power industry.
The Revolution from the 1989 brought many important changes in the economic field, by setting up the free market and by decentralizing the management of all national economic sector. The spirit of property was enforced by the liberalization of private initiative and by the privatization of some goods that had belonged exclusively to the State.
The working population - about 11,000 persons - is distributed in the following way: 38% in the industrial field, 15% in the trade and repair field, 10% in the transport and depositing field, 8% in the education field, 5.7% medical field.
Sources:
- History of Craiova - "Scrisul Romanesc" Publishing House -1977
- Craiova , guide of the town - Florea Firan, Alex Firescu, Sport-Turism Publishing House, 1982
- Statistical documentary about the economic and social evolution of Craiova municipality - Dolj County Statistical Office, 1992
- The history of Craiova - "Scrisul Romanesc" Publishing House, 1977
- Serving the light for a century. Oltenia Energetic - monography - "Aius" Publishing House, Craiova, 1996
Famous people
Here is a short list of the most important persons of this town:
- Petrache Poenaru (1799-1875), the founder of the national colleges of Bucharest and Craiova, the leader of the schooling in Wallachia during 3 decades, the inventor of the fountain-pen;
- the diplomat Nicolae Titulescu, the single diplomat who was twice elected in 1930 and 1931 the President of the United Nations League, member of the Romanian Academy, Honoris Causa Doctor of the Universities of Athena and Bratislava, President of International Diplomatic Academy;
- the engineer Gogu Constantinescu, inventor, the creator of the science of sonicity;
- the famous scientist Henri Coanda, inventor of the jet, the father of "the Coanda effect", important member of the Royal British Academy;
- mathematicians Gheorghe Titeica and Traian Lalescu;
- the astronomer Nicolae Coculescu, the founder of the Astronomical Observatory of Bucharest, laureate of the Academy of Science of Paris;
- the doctors Dimitrie Gerota, Demetru Paulian;
- the writers Alexandru Macedonski, Traian Demetrescu, Gib I. Mihaescu, Alexandru Mitru, Marin Sorescu;
- the philosopher C.Radulescu-Motru the last president of the Romanian Academy;
- the famous sculptor Constantin Brancusi;
- the painters Theodor Aman, Constantin Lecca, Eustatiu Stoenescu, Ion Tuculescu;
- the composer Ion Vasilescu;
- the tenor Grigore Gabrielescu;