Romanian Campaign of 1918 .Resurrection.

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In the limitrof zone have produced numerous armed conflicts.

At North-West of Cluj ,hungarian troops gather in Crisului Repede(Fast Cris water) Valley and a little to the North ,in region Jibou Zalau.This state of affairs constituted a grave threat for the rigth wing of our troops ,which could be turned by an attack of the enemy ,executed by North towards South ,on Somesului Valley.Encouraged by the vecinity of the hungarian troops ,the maghiar inhabitants from the region have started to become agressive towards Romanians .During the nigth of 4-5th of January ,the workers from the gold mines from Baia Mare ,instigated by military commanders attack with weapon of fire and hand grenades the Romanians:a Battalion of Infantry troops from Cluj has been sent to defend the Romanians and to put to safety the mines.Face to this situation and by the danger in which was finding city of Cluj ,the Allies ,by General Berthelot ,have permitted to the Romanian Commander to occupy the region Sighet -Baia Mare -Zalau.

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The 7th Division has organized two mixt Detachments ,composed each by an Infantry Regiment with artillery and Cavalry ,to operate ,one in direction Baia Mare -Sighet ,and the second in direction Jibou -Zalau.

The first Detachment ,made out of 14th Infantry Regiment ,liberates Baia Mare at 14th of January and starts in marching towards Sighet .During the marching presents a delegation ,speaking in the name of the "Ucrainian guard commandment"from Sighet and cautions the Commander of the Romanian Detachment that Sighet is occupied by Ucrainians and so,the Romanians to stop ,remaining that a mixt commission to establish the demarcation line based on the right of nationalities .The Romanian Commander did not took in to account this pretention and continued his advance.At Vadu ,4 km South of Sighet ,the Romanian parliamentaries send to somate the so called ucrainian guardists to evacuate the region,have been received with fire.Then the Romanians have attacked the Ucrainians .

A Detachment under the Command of Captain Luca ,which has made a march of 60 km in mountaineous terrain ,fells in the nigth of 16-17th of January in the back of the enemy much superior ,which was occupying the position at Vadu.

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Taken out of his positions the enemy retreats North .The Romanians continue to pursue ;Luca's Detachment succeeds to cut the retreat of Ucrainians to Sighet ,where the enemy, which has suffered great casualties ,is forced to scatter ;he has lost 30 dead ,50 wounded and has left in our hands seven officers and 337 soldiers prisoners ,numerous arms and machineguns.At 18th of January ,Sighet and the surrounding region were cleaned completely by ucrainians and in our hands.

The second Romanian Detachment was made of the 16th Infantry Regiment .The Commander of the Detachment ,receiving assurances from the hungarian commander by parliamentaries that Zalau is evacuated by hungarian troops ,has send from Jibou by railway two Companies and two Sections of machineguns ,to take it under control. However ,when the train was entering in Cireseni Train Station ,the hungarian troops attacked him by surprise;the Romanians had six dead ,15 wounded and seven missing.A Romanian Battalion intervened then ,occupying Zalau and cleaning it off of hungarian bands.

The liberation of region Zalau-Sighet has given to the Romanian troops the mastering of middle Somes River Valley and of the communication lines in this valley,as well as the protection of the rigth flank of the 7th Division against an eventual attack aimed from the North.

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At 22nd of January ,the Romanian troops liberate the entire territory to the demarcation line by the Allies.The hungarians ,which were gathering in front of us making an enemy Front with enemy intention ,were becoming more and more agrresives ,attacking and harassing the Romanian posts.Some of these attacks had a big amplitude.From 24th t5th of January ,the Romanian ports on Sebes ,on Crisu Alb Valley have been attacked by enemy forces in a power of 1000 -12000 men,with numerous machineguns sustained by artillery and by two armoured trains .our decission to react with energy ,to attack and destroy these forces and occupy Cris Repede Defile at Ciucea ,has been paralized by the Allies opposition.We were permitted only the occupation of Zam locality in Mures Defile ,the old Transilvanian border custom,,because at the factory in the locality was a big deposit ,which the hungarians wanted to lift.

Not being allowed to us to put master on Apuseni Mountains ,which would have given us the power to cut short any trial of the hungarians to attack us ,had to be thankful with the occupation of some points more advantageous .At the end of January ,the occupied line by Romanian troops started from North at Trebusa and Cimpulung at Tisa and descended towards South through Capului Fetei Peak ,Basesti ,Recea ,peaks Magura Priei ,Secatura ,Caprei ,Glavoiu ,Bihor ,Gaina then :Zam ,Pojoga ,Fintoag ,Runcu ,Bucova.

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His Majesty King Ferdinand of Romania and the Royal Family at the Monument of the Unknown Soldier -1923

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The hungarians slaugther and the Allies are deliberating...

The fury of hungarians against Romanians increases day by day .Winning back Ardeal it is now the principal object of their efforts.No dissonance produces now over this aim.The entire hungary mobilizes.Karolyi will be next to his disciple Tisza ,and the magnats next with the socialists.It is characteristic the attitude of the social democrat hungarian party which goes along with the most fiercy hungarian reactionaries and hungarian chauvinists ,opposing to the separation of Transilvania by hungary ,refusing to listen the voice of revendications of the popular masses in Transilvania.

The politicians are sawing intrigues in the Capitals of the Entente and next to the Commanders of the occupation Armies ,the hungarian aristocrats use all family connections and of friendship which links them with important personallities of Europe ,the socialists put to contribution the international organizations they have,and a new hungarian army starts to reconstitue from the ruins of the old one and to gather for to give an assault to the demarcation line.

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Debreten,Oradea and Bekescsaba are the three centers where concentrates and organizes fanatic secui population and "the red battalions".The whole territory beyond the demarcation line has remained filled by "the red guards" ,by the "steel guards" and by hungarian troops of irredentists volunteers which carry on their cap the inscription "For Ardeal" and are spiritted by a death rage against Romanians .The republican army of today is the same Hanovezi and Hussars of yesterday of feudal hungary ,which come now to defend thei "unitary patria".Karolyi ,Bela Linder ,Bartha and others come in the middle of the soldiers and excites them by flaming speeches.The hungarian exasperation is translated by violences against Romanians left beyond the demarcation line arbitrary without any dfence whatsoever ,because the the Romanian guards ,not being able to held chest ,run this side or have dissolved .The armed bands and encouraged by the hungarian government from Budapesta throw themselves over the Romanian cities and villages ,left without defence.

It is long the raw of Romanian martyrs which have spilled with their blood the sinistre "demarcation line ".The massacres have started even during November ,under the pretext of reestablishing of public order .The cereals sheds ,which during the War have been kept closed ,as a defiance brought to the starving population ,have been now attacked and robbed.Romanians though did not kill;not a drop of hungarian blood had dirty the Romanian hands.In the 300 killings made in Arad county from November 1918 until February 1919 all victims have been Romanians ,murdered by hungarians ;only one hungarian has been killed,and that one a hungarian guardist!Putting an end to the revolts has been a pretext which permitted the hungars to satisfy the death rage against Romanians .In general they entered the villages -few days after it was quiet again -and then they lifted the Romanians and shot them without trial.These mass executions ,accompanied by the most savage maltratations or by the most teriffying tortures ,continued until April,without even existing the pretext of troubles....

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Mass executions have taken place also in communes(several villages together one commune) Curtici and Faget ,where the peasants have been lifted and shot in the edge of the villages.At 20th of February ,a battalion of regulat hungar/hungarian troops ,coming from Arad with cannons ,machineguns and an armoured train ,they have attacked Siria commune ,under the pretext of disarming the national guard Romanian,have bombed it and have taken it with assault.Entering in to the village ,have massacrated many of inhabitants ,amongst which the entire family of Romanian leader ,Hotaran lawyer .Then,have extended the massacres in the neighbour communes in Podgorie;60 individuals have been murdered ,amongs which women and children ;many have been maltratated ,put in chains and locked up.In Socodor commune ,the two priests of the local Church ,Lencuta and Popescu ,have been murdered and their bodies thrown in to Cris River.At Ciucea ,Lieutenant Tamas has been put to dig his own grave hole.Armoured trains were circulating from Arad to Zam ,from Arad to Brad and from Timisoara to Faget ,firing with machineguns over the peasants in the train stations they were passing through ,and over those working in the field.In Arad ,the hungarians could not keep them not even during the visit of General Berthelot ;in the presence of the General ,which was leaving from Episcop Ioan Pap ,where he had a solemne reception ,the hungarian army stormed over the Romanian population ,which came from the surrounding villages ,broke their flags and murdered,wounded with rifle shots a great number of peasants .180 Romanians have been killed in Caras-Severin county and 300 in Arad.

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Bihor county has endured the most terrifying calvary.Regular troops and unregular ones ,hungarians,especially secui,which have concentrated in this region ,went down to the bloodiest blast.Plunderings,beatings and killings were taking place now in all villages .The intelectuals had to run away ;over 40 priest run in disguise and have hidden in Oradea ,where the Romanian Episcopal Vicar ,Ciorogaru, a worthy sheperd ,luminated ,energig and good patriot ,has dveloped a prodigious and curageous activity for saving and defending of the Romanians .Sighistel commune has been three times attacked :at 11th of November ,2 and 26 of March .The soldiers have surrounded the village ,fired with machineguns ,set fire to the houses ,burning the inhabitants in their houses ,killing over 50 inhabitants .At 26th of February ,the mortuary cortege of the great Romanian George Pop from Basesti ,the former president of the Romanian National Pary and of the Gathering of Alba Iulia ,has been attacked by secui with machineguns fires.It had the ROmanian troops to intervene ,which were making the guard of the demarcation line close by,to away the bands savages which did not know to spear not even the dead ones.

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One of the most infamous assasinates was the one which took place in Beius.During the nigth of 3-4th of April ,the hungarian captain Verboczy has lifted at midnigth from their homes the Romanian leader Ioan Ciordas,member of the Executive Commitee of the National Romanian Party and assigned by the Dirigent Council as prefect of Bihor County,as well as lawyer Dr. Nicolae Borcas ,threw them in an automobile and took them to the train station.From here ,a carriage with a locomotive took them in Lunca commune ,near Vascau ,20 km from Beius.Until the morning ,the two martyrs have been maltratated ,then taken to the edge of the ground hole ,dug for them in a ravine.Here the torture started again .Their nose have been cut ,their arms have been smashed with rifle beds ,they have been run with bayonet through the mouth and back of their necks ,their eyes have been taken out of their orbits and in the end have been throwed in the hole alive,one over the other ,and covered with ground.Long after the hungarians have been awayed ,the two bodies have been found almost entirely putrefied.In their stuck hands ,were holding tight ,pieces of ground.

Encouraged by the quiet in which the Romanian troops guarding the demarcation line kept themselves,detachments of hungarian troops have started to attack our posts or to make incurssions by the intervals between posts.During the nigth of 8-9th of March ,two batallions of secui ,with numerous machineguns and supported by the fires of two batteries of artillery ,have attacked our troops from the left wing of the 7th Romanian Division ,in Criseni -Zalau region .The hungarian population axcited and armed by the troops ,took part in the attack.Our posts ,inferior as number and scattered on a big distance ,have been forced to retreat,abandoning the two localities .The hungarians have made prisoners the two officers and 40 soldiers ,left in the city .It had to intervene the reserves of the 13th Brigade ,with artillery ,to beat and away the hungarians and to reoccupy the localities.Zalau has suffered much because of the artillery fire .The maghiar population which has associated with the stormers ,run towards Cehul Silvaniei.This kind of attacks repeated also in other points of the Front.

A deep upset and a live indignation took over the spirits of Romanians faced with these events.On one hand were the shouts of pain of martyrised brothers beyond the arbitrary line ,were the desperate appeals of the mourning families of the victims ,which have refugeed this side ,imploring the help of mother country.On the other hand was the inequity of the solution imposed to our country ,against the rights of Romanian population and of the formal text of the alliance treaty.The demarcation line was passing just through the heart of the Romanian territory which it was cutting in two ,levaing compact masses of Romanians under the most impiling and savage yoke.Banat has been left to the Serbs ,which have occupied it militarily and were giving themselves there against Romanians to vexations-maltratations and robberies -which did not want to go less than the ones of hungarians.As the time was passing by ,the situation was getting worse.In Arad ,Bihor and Satu Mare ,the hungarian armies were strengthening more and more ;it was obvious that the fulfilment of the revendications of ours will reclaim more and more bigger efforts and sacrifices.

The regulator of the politico-military international situation was during this time Paris,were has gathered the Peace Conference .In awayting of the definitive political solution of the matter ,which was of the competence of the Supreme Council ,the Romanian delegation ,led by Bratianu ,was making the greatest efforts next to the Interallied Military Council ,prezided by Marshal Foch ,to permit to Romanian the taking over under control over the entire territory in which we had right after the alliance treaty of 1916 ,to save the Romanian population by the hungarian blast.The principal formal obstacle opposing to this just request was the armistice treaty closed by Franchet d'Esperey in Belgrad with Karolyi ,by which the French General ,not knowing the real circumstances ,gave the hungarians the civil administration of the territory which was rightfuly ours .The mistake of this dispozition fatal was more obvious ,as the authority in this regions was the Romanian National Coucil ,which has been recognized by Karolyi government .The following events-the gathering of Alba Iulia and the installation of the Dirigent Council ,strengthened the juridic situation and international one of this government ,Romanian,and the unification with Romania, closed it by,by the powers of Entente

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Finally ,the Military Council had to admit the rightfulness of our request .At 28th of February ,the Allied Military Council ,in agreement with the Supreme Council of the Conference ,admitted the moving of the demarcation line towards West ,fixing as limit the line of the metal road Satu Mare-Orade -Arad.,without permitting the entrance in these cities as well.In front of this line and until 5km until beyond the line of our revendications it will be declared neutral zone,which will be occupied by Allied troops.These dispozition were to be brought to our knowledge and of the hungarians and to be seen through by the Allied Commandment from Salonic.It had though that first the hungarians to retreat their troops from that region ,then an officer of the Allies to come to Sibiu to accompany and watch the advance of the Romanian troops.The retreat of the hungarian troops beyond the Western line of the neutral zone had to start at 23rd of March and end in ten days at the most.

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Hungary under communist governation

At Budapesta ,Karolyi government ,formed of elements belonging of the Independence Party,burgess and chauvinist ,and of socialist elements ,but leaning to the rigth on to the partizans of the reactionary parties -Tisza ,Aponyi a.s.o.-as well as at the left extreme on the communists which have organized their party at 20th of November 1918 ,was carrying towards the Allied powers from the West a duplicitar politic ,making use when of nice words and offers of alliance ,when by the scarcrow ,of the "communism spectrum".Finally noticing that all his abilities do not meet belief and protection ,Karolyi diceded to set fire to his country ,to threaten Europe with general arson.

At 19th of March Colonel Vyx,the French officer ahead of the Allied Military Comission in Budapesta ,was presenting in the name of Franchet d'Esperey the decission of the Interallied Military Council from Paris ,asking for the retreat of the hungarian troops on the new line fixed .The note was explaining that the new lines were only military demarcation lines ,and that they were not making any prejudice about the frontiers ,politico-territorial ,which remained to be determined at alatter date by the Peace Conference.Then,Karolyi deforming the communicate made by Vyx ,addressed to the people of hungary a manifest ,by which he was declaring that it is impossible to him to receive the frontiers so harmful to hungarian interests ,passed the power to a government of left and made thus the alliance of the social democrats with the communists.The nominal presidency of the new government belonged to the social -democrat Garbai ,but the most important member of his was the commissary of the people at the Foreign Affairs ,the communist Bela Kun[1] which,imposing himself through energy ,and dynamism ,received soon dictatorial powers in the government .At 21st of March ,the new government has declared hungary,the "Hungarian Sovietic Republic".

The new communist government ,installed at Budapest ,salutted with enthuziasm by the sovietic government from Moscow,started to work imediatelly ,to acomplish the program of politico-social transformations of the international communism.Because of the intern and extern situation of hungary ,the planned reforms were going hard,hitting great difficulties ,which have caused troubles and severe measures which degenerated in terror ,and increased thus the intern chaos.Some military measures have been considered by the Allied Powers from the West as being the signs of the intention of colaboration with Moscow's government against the burgess states .That is why the Supreme Council from Paris has answered decreting the European blockus around hungary and taking ,in its turn,countermeasures for covering the frontier of South of hungary ,towards Jugoslavia and for concentrating of a fleet on Danube River;at these measures were taking part the French Army ,the British Army and the Serb one.

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With unrest were looking the governments of the Allies from the West to the unfolding events in hungary ,where bolsevism was marking the first European success ;by the effect of contagiuosness,made possible by the general state of sufferings and nevroze in Europe ,it was looked at as a great threat for the countries of Europe.

Angrenated solidly in the European confruntation ,Romania could not remain isolated.The Romanian Government was looking to the communist revolution in hungary not so much under the rapport of the ideology and of internal transformations ,but under the one of the echo of it over the national interests of the Romanian nation and of realyzing of its wholing ideal.Bela Kun has addressed to the Romanian government a note by which he declared that he recognizes in principle the Romanians pretentions to the revendications of territories ,but asks"the imediate cease of hostiities" and no mix in the internal affairs of hungary .The military measures executed in haste by the government at Budapesta and the unfolding of the terrorist events on the contact line of the two nations,were showing however that Bela Kun declarations were a hypocrisy and that the dictator from Budapest wanted only to gain time to prepare himself to preserve with the force ,the inheritance of old hungary;the propaganda for spreading the communism was a weapon for the preparation of this figth.

On the other hand ,the Western press was appreciating as very grave the situation of Romania ,tight now between two communist countries ,threatened by a double attack ,from Tisa and Nistru .And truthfully ,the incurssions and the attacks at Nistru River were intensifying ,as the Romanian population from over the demarcation line in Ardeal had to put up with the terrorist action of hungarian chauvinists.

The Romanian delegation at Paris intensified her interventions at the Council of the Great Powers ,proving that a Romanian action for occupying of the territories belonging to her is,in today circumstances ,an European interest.For fulfilling this mission ,Romania needs not only the authorization of the Allies to territories that are her's rightfully ,but also by their material help and moral one.It is also necessary the increasing of King's authority and of His government by recognizing the Romanian revendications ,an attitude decissively hostile at Pesta ,the forcing of the states which came out from the braking of austro-hungary to associate to the Romanians action and the afirmation of the solidarity of the great powers with us ,on to the new Front ,by sending of Allied contingents.

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But the Western Powes carry a politic of delaying and hesitation.Romania does not recieve nor the authorization ,neither the asked concur.The Romanian delegation is newsed verbally by the Supreme Council that the difficulties met with germania ,obstacle the Allies to make any decission about hungaria ,and two of the great powers of the Allies ,refuse to send troops in that direction.Moreover,the Allies are willing to enter negociations with the government in Budapesta.

This curious attitude is explained by the ignorrance in East-European matters and by the doctrinary spirit of some of the leaders of the Peace Conference .The Americans especially ,were not seeing in this matter but "only an intrigue " which "the French military group" ahead with Foch[2] -of which representative in the Orient was General Berthelot -would have tried to make behind the Supreme Council and even of Clemenceau .The intention of the French militars would have been to restart the fire in Europe ,making thus a motiv to start again the War against germany and of the bolsevic russia.Alarmed by this "planning " ,which he thought he had discovered ,General Bliss ,the military delegate of the United States at Paris,telegraphs at 28th of March to Wilson ,which was in Washington ,to get back soon in Europe to intervene to obstacle the danger and to set things in order .General Bliss considers the "hungarian intrugue " as the greatest threat for the Conference and advices its repelling by peaceful means .The situation of the Conference is,after the return of Wilson ,very difficult ;it is the time of the most grave crisis of the peace Conference .It has started the conflict between Wilson ,Loyd George and Clemenceau on the matter of the frontiers requested by France for defending the Eastern frontier.Wilson sick and enervated ,has called for "Washington " Cuirasat to transport him in America ,leaving the Conference and endangering the peace.Any other complications had to be sided .The Supreme Council decided to send the South-African general Smuts to Budapesta ,to enter tratatives with Bela Kun .It is recognized by this ,implicitelly ,the legality of the communist government at Budapesta!

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At 4th of April ,General Smuts proposed to Bela Kun government the retreat of free will of the hungar armies on a line which was aproximativelly the line of our Alliance Treaty ,following that the territory between this line and the occupied one by the Romanian Front to become neutral territory ,occupied by Allied troops.In exchange ,the general promised to hungarians the lifting of the blockus/embargo ,material aids in replenishments and a good will attitude in economical matters and of reglementations of the frontiers with the Romanians,Jugoslavs ,Czechslovaks .

Encouraged by this attitude which Bela Kun considers it as a proof of weakness ,he asks to the Allied powers that Romania retreats forcefully on Mures line.

Because of this pretention ,the mission of General Smuts did not succeed ,and the situation has remained stationary.The Interallied Commandment from Salonic was waiting in fulfilling the task given by the note of 13th of March ,and the atentates,plunderings and murders of the armed hungarian bands ,as the attacks of the regular army ,were intensifying more and more.The situation was becoming more threatening at Nistru as well .

Any patience has an end.The Romanian Government saw himself forced to take himself the measures needed to end the terror regime unleashed by bands ,to save the life and wealth of the population from over the demarcation line ,regardless of hood or religion ,for entering in the possesion of the territory rightfully ours by treaties and for the safety of own country thus threatened.It was acomplished in this way not only a national act ,but also a humanitarian act towards the population fibrilating in the claws of terror.

The decission of the Romanian Government came in time.It has been made now the proof that Bela Kun was not thinking to peace ,but to war.He was mobilizing in haste a new Army,with which he wanted to attack the Romanians and the Czechs .The situation became so tensed ,such that one side and the other could be felt the need of disentanglement with sword.The attacks executed by hungarians and precise informations showed that also the enemy is in the eve of a great offensive.It was absolutely necessary for us to go ahead of them.The Romanian Army received the order to take the offensive against hungary at 16th of April 1919.

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The Battle in Apuseni Mauntins ,16-18th of April

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The hungarian and Romanian forces in the eve of the April offensive

The Truce at Belgrade left to hungary the right to keep ,next to the forces of police and geandarns ,six more divissions of infantry and two of cavalry ,as army .The revolutionary storm wiped out though the regular organization of the army.Only some units remained with their old formation and with their ranks;the most part of the actual army was new ,lacking cohession and perfect discipline,which forms up the power of an army.Next to this, the socialist government has made appeal to the workers to form up armies of volunteers ,which to figth for the communist republic.In this way the hungarian army was made of a mixture of old troops and very good ,as were the Secui Regiments ,flamed by chauvinism,by Hanovezi troops and by bolsevic volunteers and fith small training ,grouped in regiments ,brigades and divissions.A great number of officers of the former regular army ,without job now,put themselves to the dispozition of the red army.Although opposing communism ,they thought that the only possibility to save as much as possible of the hungar territory was the resistance of the army.

The troops in the first line represented a total of of some 20 000 men .In the second line there were aproximativelly 60 000 more men ,asigned in the recruting centers and of mobilization at Salagiu .Behind the second line ,on the rigth side of Tisa River,there were other units in formation ,in region Kecskemet-Kiskun-Ketegyhaza and at Budapest .The armament of the infantry was good ;she had numerous machineguns and rifle-machineguns.The artillery was not enaugh and unmade yet in commandments.The total of fire mouths of the army from the first line and the second one was of 137,as well as five armoured cannons.Cavalry units have not organized yet.

In this way made ,the hungarian army was not capable of a well coordinated action and was not representing a real threat.It was however to be expected a serious resistance against our action.The recruting and organizing of the army not being yet finished,the government in Budapesta counted on the aids promissed by the Russian soviets ,with which it was in connection of cooperation and on the effects of the propaganda which they enterprized on a very large scale ,in the Romanian territories occupied by them ,as well as in Banat and even behind our Front ,through numerous emissaries .Our offensive came in time to put an end to this state of affairs ,before to be acomplished such that it would become dangerous.

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Our Army in Transilvania was made of ,in the eve of the offensive ,of four Divisions from the Old Kingdom ;1st and 2nd Hunters(Vinatori) ,6th and 7th of Infantry ,one Division and a Brigade of Cavalry and two Divisions of men from Ardeal.In total there were:64 Infantry Batallions ,28 Escadrons ,152 cannons ,32 howitzers ,eight aoto-cannons ,an armoured train and a Group of moto-machineguns ;as special troops were a Group of Aviation ,formed up on three Squadrons and two Pioneers Battalions .

The Romanian forces were dispozed into two big groups :

1) The Northern Group ,under the Command of General Traian Mosoiu ,was made up in the first line of :

a) The Mixt Detachment ,General Olteanu ,in Sighet region ,made out of a Brigade of Rosiori ,two

Infantry Battalions and an Artillery battery .

b)The 2nd Cavalry Division ,in Baia Mare region ,on Somes.

c)The 7th Infantry Division ,in Zalau region.

d)The 6th Infantry Division ,in Huedin-Ciucea ,on Crisu Repede.

In the second line ,as reserve of the Northern Group ,was the Ardelean Division , the 16th concentrated behind 6th and 7th Divisions ,on Almasului Valley ,at West of Dej and Gherla.

2)The Southern Group ,under the direct order of the Commander of troops in Transilvania ,was constituted in the first line of the 2nd Hunters(Vinatori) Division to which it was also attached the Ardealean Regiment Beius,mouned on Crisu Alb Valley in Halamagiu-Rosia region.Behind her was the 1st Hunters Division ,in Brad -Deva region .In the third line was the 18th Ardelean Division ,as general reserve ,dislocated in Cluj-Alba Iulia region.

At 12th of July General Mardarescu George,appointed Commander of the Romanian forces in Transilvania , arrives at Sibiu and assumes imediately Command of the troops.He was an officer of General -Staff with a long and rich experience ,as the Chief of General Staff of the II-nd Romanian Army,in Campaigns of 1916 and 1917.The operations plan ,made by the Superior Commandment ,was atributing the decissive action to the Northern Group ,in the close by where there were the first objectives which had to be met ,and which had a favorable terrain configuration of communication lines.The 7th and 6th Divisions had to runthrough the enemy Front ,aving as objective ,the first one Carei ,and the second one Oradea,separating in this way the Secui troops on Somes Valley ,which were more disciplined ,organized and prepared ,by the rest of their troops on Valleys of the two Cris Rivers.The Southern Group had to advance only to the line Radna -Beius ,serving as pivote during the time of execution of the decissive action of the Northern Group.After reaching these first objectives ,the action would have to unfold further ,towards Tisa.

The beginning of Romanian offensive has been fixed for the morning of the day of 16th of April.

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the Battle in Apuseni

Mountains

16-18th of April

Just as they would have felt the preparation of our offensive and would have wanted to dam it,in the nigth of 15-16th of April the hungarians have attacked with violence our troops in three points: in Somes Valley at Cicirlau ,at Criseni and Ciucea.By the intervention of the sector reserves the attacks have been repelled,and our positions maintained.

As a reply to the enemy attack ,unleashes at three in the morning our offensive.In the long of Apuseni Mountains ,from Hodod ,at North of Zalau ,until Mures,ona Front of over 200 km ,set in moving as an impetuous wave the soldiers of the three Divisions of attack ,Romanian:7th,6th and 2nd Hunters (Vinatori).In numerous columns ,in the power of a regiment each ,the Romanian soldiers have attacked with elan the hungarian positions ,placed almost all of them in long defiles of kilometers ,which runthrough the mountains.A multitude of defence works ,equiped with numerous machineguns ,have strengthened formidably these defiles.Especially in the Defile of Ciucea ,in Cris Repede Valley and in Ciuci Defile ,in the Valley of Cris Alb(Whithe Cris and the other one Fast Cris rivers),were considered by the hungarians as inexpungable.The days of 16th,17th and 18th of April have been days of fiercy figths given by Romanian troops for forcing of these defiles and breaking of the enemy Front in Apuseni Mountains.

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The 7th Division has operated in Hodod -Zalau region on three columns ,of aproximatively a regiment each ,figthing against 23rd and 32nd Hanovezi regiments ,which have buid powerfull positions of resistance in the woods of Bulzului and Archid.The troops of the Romanian Regiment 27th Bacau manage to occupy in the nigth of 16-17th Borla ,and at 17th in the evening ,the Southern Column has occupied Salagiu ,as the Northern Column was occupying Supuru de Jos(lower Supur).The hungarian troops from the sector ,defeated and suffering great losses ,retreat disorderly towards West .The victory of the Division the 7th permits to the Cavalry to enter in her turn in action .The 2nd Rosiori Brigade starts the entering on the rigth side of the 7th Division ;in the evening she is at Corund.

The 6th Romanian Division has to force Ciucea Defile and operate in Oradea direction ,having as advancing axis Crisu Repede Valley.The strong enemy positions in this region are defended by the 39th brigade of hungarian infantry.

The trooops of the Division place on to three columns ,from which the Northern Column and the Southern one will execute a veiling at great distance of the defile ,as the Central Column will attack it directly.

In the Northern Column ,the 24th Tecuci Regiment has attacked concentric the villages of Boian and Stirciu ,occupying them towards the evening ,after a lively figth.Continuing the advance ,has forced the next day the enterance in Crasna River Valley ,establishing the connection with the left of the 7th Division at Simleu Silvaniei.The Southern Column ,formed up by 12th "Cantemir" Regiment ,has made a great going around move by the South of the defile ,occupying Lusca Village and Scorosetului Hill ,25 km South of Ciucea .From here she went towards Bulz ,in Crisu Repede valley ,to fall on to the retreat line of the enemy at Ciucea.

In the same time ,as the columns from the edges were executing these wide manoeuvres of veiling,the Central Column ,formed of five Battalions of Regiments 10th and 11th ,with two field batteries and one for mountains,have attacked the positions of the defile by the Front ,as well as by the flank ,taking with assault the elevations which were edging imediately at North and South the defile.After heavy figths ,at 17th of April the defile was turned;threatened to have their retreat cut by the 12th Romanian Regiment "Cantemir" ,which was attacking Bulzul ,the hungarian troops see themselves forced to evacuate the defile ,on a length of 15 km and run towards Butani .In the evening of 17th of April ,Ciucea ,the key of the region ,together with the entire Crisu Repede Defile ,the entrance gate in Crisana ,were in the hands of the 6th Romanian Division.

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But first let's see how we got here in the first place:

The IV-th Part

Chapter I

The Remaking

After the storm

At the beginning of 1917 ,the entire Romanian Army which has escaped from the desastre of the Campaign of the year 1916 was in Moldavia.Her figthing strength was almost anihilated alltogether.Three monts of continuous figths ,one month and a half of unending retreats in permanent figthing contact with the strong enemy ,have reduced the beautiful Army ,with which we have entered at 28th of August 1916 in the spin of the War ,at some remains ,which were dragging on to the roads of Moldavia in the cold and sad days of the tragique ending of that year[1].

But the game was not lost.Believing in the justness of the holly cause for which we entered the great figth ,believing in the support of the grerat Allies ,together with which we were figthing and for which we have sacrificed in a diffcult hour ,we had to carry the figth further ,until the fulfilment of the aims for which we were bleeding.The arm,which carried the sword ,has weakened and the weapon fell to the ground ,scratched.It was needed thus a vigorous force up ,for that the sword to rise up again ,thundering over the heads of the enemy full of pride.To acomplish these things it was needed a long period of work.Rearming of the Army ,bringing her back in the state of being able to figth and give blows ,was a matter of belief ,of time ,work ,inspiration and human sacrifice.The leaders of the country did not hesitate to see what their duty was.They understood that only by this hangs the reabilitation of the honour of the country ,escaping her from slavery and the fulfilment of the dream for which we have martyred.They had also the belief ,that the strength of Romanian spirit will know to win over this crisis ,passing.And that is why ,the beginning of 1917 means also the beginning of our eforts for the great masterpiece of remaking ,of transforming of the Army of yesterday defeat in the Army of tomorrow victory.Would it be then possible to fulfil this mission ,as from the ruins of the Romanian military power ,to resurrect ,in short time ,a new Army which to retake with worthy her place of colaboration to the great masterpiece of the Allies?

The unfolding of the events showed that it was able to,to our honour and for the use of the commune cause.

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Moldavia of the refuge

At 1st of January 1917, the Russian-Romanian Front ,made in a single line ,was strapping by the West and by the South the piece of land which was still constituting the independent Romanian Country .In this Moldavia ,broken her as well in the South -Western part ,was concentrated the whole strength of the Romanian soldier:the Sovereign,the government ,the parliament ,the authorities ,the Army.Iasi,the old Moldavian Capital city ,sacrificed by the Unification of 1859 ,has become today the heart of the Romanian resistance .The entire activity of the government ,the whole nation's preoccupations ,the entire pulsing life ,agitated and febril ,in the old city ,were aimed during this time of hard trial to one goal:reorganyzing the Army ,puttig again in the state of figth of our Army ,first for defence ,for victory afterwards.

Unsaid hard were the circumstances in which had to be made the reorganization of the Army .As the Romanian troops ,decimated ,tired and disorganized ,were arriving in Moldavia from the South ,in the same measure were arriving from the North and East the Russian troops ,descending South ,to strengthen the barrier and stop the enemy.The metal road lines were occupied with transport of the Russian trops ,of the services and replenishments of them;the stations,filled by trains ,with the garage lines occupied ,did not allow the pouring of the convoys.The Romanian troops climbing North and crisscrossing with the Russians ,were finding in this way,in their way,the lines and houses occupied.The evacuation had,because of this ,to be mad on foot ,along the roads filled with snow ,on a distance in the middle of over 300 km,in the middle of a winter of frosts ,winds and urgy from the Sky ,which will remain amongst the tragic icons of War ,together with the winter of the retreat of Napoleonean Armies from Moscow and Berezina![2].

As the retreat North dragging with her also the imense convoys of refugees ,the territory was diminishing ,the crowding was increasing ,and the country's resources were decreasing .The Romanian State was reduced at 1st of January 1917 ,at one third of its territory.This region ,the less rich of the country ,had to host and maintain ,outside her own population ,the one of the refugees from Muntenia (Romanian Country or Valahia),the one evacuated from the operations zone of the Romanian-Russian Armies ,the Russian Army itself which climbed up to almost one million men ,the entire Romanian Army retreated from the Front and all services from behind of the Army on the Front.Leaving to the Russian Armies the entire zone between Carpathian Mountains and Siret River as well as the one between Siret River and Prut River ,the part at Barlad towards South ,was kept for the Romanian Army in reorganyzing ,the Northern half between Prut and Siret ;in fact ,merly one third of the Moldavian territory.

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In this small corner of country crowded the broken pieces of the escaped Army ,from the dezastre ,the sedentary parts of the Army ,the escaped wounded from the enemy and evacuated in Moldavia -over 20 000 -the young contingents 1917-18-19-20,evacuated and unrecruted yet ,the prisoners ,the enemy interned and the whole civilian population left in drifting from in front of the invasion ,with waggons ,lugages and their cattles.A population of one million and a half of souls ,militars and civilians ,came to get over the normal population in the six counties of Northern Moldavia ,around Iasi.This population adrift,tired by such a long way ,rove on foot,demoralized by the sufferings of defeat and of the retreat ,hungry ,had to be directed towards the cantoonment places ,sheltered ,fed ,and this in the middle of one of the hardest winters ever seen in our country ,in a region with a capacity of incartiruire reduced and in which the deposits and reserves of food have been emptied by the Russian Army120.The leaders of the Romanian State and of the Army knew,during this times of hard trial and deep pain,to not lose their heads.With decissivness ,courage and energy ,they started the work of reorganization ,to put an end to the depressing chaos ,to stop the things which were sliping down the catastrophe slope ,to reconstitute the law again the small wheels of the angrenage wiped out by the storm.And this work did not delay to show her fruits on all working terrains.

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The remaking crisis

The problems put in front of the leaders of the country and of the Army ,after the retreat in Moldavia,were of such dificulty which did not had pair in the until now life of the country.There were situations alltogether new and unforeseen ,which could not be treated after the usual recipe of normal times;there were inextricable entanglements which were asking for solutions ,quick and practical.Any delay could bring the catastrophe.Because,if in front was the enemy,which was hitting us,next to us was the Ally ,which was watching us,and all around us ,were the terrifying mizery and sickness.And they were not giving time.Along the roads filled with snow or through the poor bungalows ,were crowding the victims ,the unknown mucenics(the 40 Martyrs) of the great cause ,which were giving their spirit without glory ,frozen ,starved ,forgotten.There ,were the lacks were not killing the organizms ,they were debilitating it in such a way that they were preparing the terrain for epidemics.The months of January and February 1917 are the terrifying days of exantematic typhus and recurrent feever ,which have cut tens of thousands of spirits and stretched the black veil of death over Moldavia ,much trialed.

Three were the most considerable hardships which opposed to coming back to a normal life :the matter of aliments ,the difficulty of organyzing the transports and the lack of combustibil.

The matter of aliments was the gravest one :behind her was grimming sinister the hunger.It is true that in time,even during the neutrality ,has been taken into account the importance of Moldavia as base of operations of the Armies and has been organized in different centers deposits of subzistence ,in which have been crowded great quantities of provisions of all kinds.Shortly before the outbreak of the War have been send in Moldavia a number of 200 000 cattles and 500 000 sheeps requisitioned from the Dobrogean Cadrilater.As the unfolding of the War made possible to be foreseen the possibility of a retreat towards Moldavia ,the transports were intensified in that direction.They have started even during September 1916 with the evacuation of the deposits in Oltenia and propagated step by step towards West.A good deal of the wheat deposited in the sheds of the British Bureau took the road of Moldavia ,based on a convention closed with the British Government.At 24th of November ,the last 10 trains with replenishments from the deposits in Obor-Bucharest were starting towards Moldavia ,leaving in Bucharest only the necessary for the units figthing around the Capital and population of Bucharest.Still,great quantities have remained in Muntenia .Part of them have been destroyed by the Russians during the retreat ;the most part,especially in the Western part of the country ,fell into the hands of the enemy.

The retreat of the Army and of the population increased however in a considerable measure -at over three millions -the consumming population of Moldavia .The disorganyzing of the transports was imobilizing the provisions in deposits ;they were not being brought in time in the localities in which the panic transformed them in centers of great crowdings-real human ants colonies.It was also added the difficulty of milling ;the great mill centers -Craiova ,Bucuresti ,Braila -have remained in the occupied territory .The mills in Galati have been destroyed by the enemy cannon ;have remained only with Botosanii.

What has given however catastrophe proportions to the difficult situation ,has been the Russian's influence .Almost a million of Russians took over Moldavia in the months of the dezastre .This mass of men had to be fed-and by this means well fed.At the slightest difficulty in the matter of replenishing of the Russian armies ,the Russian Commanders were threatening with abandoning of the Front and retreat over Prut River.

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It had thus,to be made the greatest sacrifices to good will our difficult and unsure Ally;it had to be taken the last piece from children mouth ,to be given to the foreigners.From the beginning of the Campaign have been installed in Moldavia some few Russian deposits :at Pascani ,Roman and Bacau.The increasing enormous and unforeseen of the Russian contingents has made that these deposits to be quicly wasted.And then,the difficulty of Russian replenishing fell over Romanian deposits.A convention closed in January between the two governments ,obliged the Romanian government to "lend"to the Russians the wheat ,the flower and the necessary grains to the Russian Army for a month .This obligation to feed the enormous Russian masses of troops ,which came at once,produced a gread desorientation ,crowding and panic.Then when the Romanian authorities could not know if the provissions in Moldavia will be enaugh to feed the three millions of souls massed in this corner of country until the new crop ,appears all of a sudden an obligation to feed one more million of men for a month.There was no room for any discussion though.We have been forced to surrender imediately to the Rusians 2000 train carriages of flour and 4000 train carriages of grains (orz and ovaz).Others followed soon ,such that in January ,the terror month of the peril of hunger ,have been handed to the Russians 10 000 train carriages of corn and flour ,10 000 carriages of grains and 200 000 cattle heads.A painful contrast was ofered to the eyes bittered of Romanians ;the masses of Russian soldiers had plenty of food ,in the middle of Romanian population which suffered the hunger privations.

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