Have you ever read the decree-law for the Great Union?
Updated: May 16
1918 – a year remembered by all Romanians. The Great Union, after centuries of separation. Like any other event with legal implications, it was formalized through law.
The first step was taken by Bassarabia, which, in the face of threats from Russia and Ukraine, proclaimed its independence on January 24/February 6, 1918. The Country Council, representing the diversity of nationalities, voted majority on March 27/April 9, 1918, for the union of Bessarabia with Romania.
The second notable event occurred on November 15/28, 1918, when the General Congress of Bukovina, composed of elected representatives of Romanians and nationalities in the region, unanimously adopted the decision of "unconditional and eternal union of Bukovina within its old borders up to Ceremuș, Colacin, and Nistru with the Kingdom of Romania."
In the fall of 1918, the national movement of Romanians in Transylvania gained momentum, unfolding in the context of the defeat of the Central Powers and the collapse of Austro-Hungary. The Executive Committee of the Romanian National Party, gathered in Oradea on September 29/October 12, 1918, unanimously adopted a declaration drafted by Vasile Goldiș. This declaration emphasized the determination of the Romanian nation in Transylvania to join "among the free nations" in accordance with the right of peoples to determine their own course of political, economic, cultural, and social development without direct or indirect external interventions.
On November 18/December 1, 1918, the Great National Assembly of Romanians from Transylvania, Banat, Crișana, and Maramureș, convened by its authorized representatives in Alba Iulia, decreed the union of these Romanians and the territories they inhabited with Romania.
On December 11, 1918, King Ferdinand I of Romania issued Decree-Law No. 3631, published in the Official Monitor No. 212 on December 13, 1918. This law enacting the Great Union has a single article:
The territories included in the decision of the National Assembly of Alba Iulia of November 18/December 1, 1918, are and remain forever united with the Kingdom of Romania. The report of the President of the Council of Ministers to His Majesty the King, in support of the above Decree No. 3631/1918. For centuries, the Romanian people have aspired to their unity. Therefore, when, through the general war, a part of humanity undertook the fight for freedom and the rights of nations, the Romanian Kingdom considered it its duty to join these Powers and sacrifice its sons alongside them for the liberation of our oppressed brothers. After great suffering, the marvelous bravery of our army finds its reward. Alongside its glorious allies, Romania is today among the victors of the world, Bessarabia and Bukovina have united with the motherland, and beyond the Carpathians, the Romanians who, together with us for so long, awaited the hour of the nation's reintegration, as soon as they could express their thoughts, proclaimed, through their Great National Assembly convened in Alba Iulia on November 18/December 1, 1918, their unconditional and eternal union with the Kingdom of Romania.
The delegation of the National Assembly presented Your Majesty with the Act of Union, which we ask through this Decree-Law to confirm, in order to give a definitive form to our national unity, now fully achieved across all the territories inhabited by Romanians. This union, on the day when our great allies are victorious, stems from the vitality of the Romanian people, the bravery of our soldiers, and the determined will of Romanians everywhere. It is based on the very essence of the Romanian nation, which for almost two thousand years, amid all vicissitudes, has known how to preserve untouched its character of national consciousness. It relies on the requirements of history, which impose the abolition of all unjust and unnatural borders and the establishment of States according to the principles of nationalities. It is finally willed by the needs of the Romanian people, who cannot live separated and who can only fulfill with usefulness for mankind and with brilliance for themselves the civilizing mission in this part of the world through the united effort of all its sons.
By confirming through this decree-law the will of the Assembly in Alba Iulia, Your Majesty inscribes in the eternal history of the Romanian people, both near and far, the greatest act of our national history, the one for which entire generations have fought and died, the one in the hope of which all Romanians from the Dniester to the Tisza lived separated by a ruthless fate and set, Your Majesty, for eternity the foundation of a great Romania and a national life that can now develop in peace and happiness for the entire Romanian people.
By Law no. 10 of 31 July 1990, regarding the proclamation of the national day of Romania, 1 December was recognized as the national day, replacing August 23, which had become the national day of Romania during the communist dictatorship, called, at the proposal of Nicolae Ceaușescu, the "Revolution for Social and National Liberation, Anti-fascist and Anti-imperialist."
By Law no. 75 of 16 July 1994, regarding the Romanian flag, the intonation of the national anthem, and the use of the seals with the coat of arms of Romania by public authorities and institutions, these symbols of national identity were also adopted.
Docs & Deeds wishes "Happy Anniversary!" to all Romanians and good luck in using contracts efficiently!
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