The Independence Monument
The Independence Monument

The Independence Monument

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Historic buildings and places Must-see places in Tulcea

Strada Gloriei 84, Tulcea, Romania

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About

The foundation stone was laid by King Carol I himself during his visit to Tulcea on October 17-18, 1879. On the parchment placed at the base of the foundation it was written: "The year of 1879, the month of October, in seventeen days, by His Royal Highness Carol I, Lord of Romania, this foundation stone of the monument erected in the city of Tulcea, in commemorating the annexation of Dobrogea by Romania."

The execution of the monument was entrusted to the Romanian sculptor George Vasilescu. The funds necessary for the construction of the work came from the public collection, through the care of the "League for the preservation of Dobrogea" established in 1896 and led by Ioan Nenițescu and architect Grigore Tocilescu.

The monument dedicated to the reunification of Dobrogea with Romania was designed in the form of a 22m obelisk, based on a two-step plinth topped by a pedestal. The obelisk was made of Ravenna granite, on it was the coat of arms of Romania surrounded by laurels, and below it two bronze plates commemorating the event in honor of which the monument was erected, as well as the date on which it was to be inaugurated. On one side and the other of the obelisk, on some semicircular pedestals, two other impressive sculptural elements were fixed - a dorobanț with a weapon on his shoulder and a horn in his hand, a symbol of the Romanian soldiers, and on the left an eagle, the main element of the coat of arms of Romania, symbol of courage and flight to heights. Both were cast in Venice, in bronze, in Munaretti's workshop.

Due to the unexpected death of the sculptor in November 1898, the monument remained unfinished. It was continued, in the next two years, according to G. Vasilescu's plans by the sculptor Constantin Bălăcescu. Thus, in November 1899 the statue of the dorobant was brought to Tulcea and installed, and in 1900 the effigy of the eagle also arrived.

The monument was inaugurated in a festive setting, on May 2, 1904, in the presence of the royal family. The mayor of the city, N. Comișani, then addressed the distinguished guests: "A wish of Your Majesty has been fulfilled: the towering Monument of the re-annexation of Dobrogea has risen on that beautiful rock designated by Your Majesty. He will speak to posterity of the bravery of the dorobant and of the Great Captain, our glorious King".

Destroyed during the First World War by the occupation troops, the monument will be rebuilt in 1935 by the architect G.T. Ionescu, head of the city's technical service, according to the model located at the Military Museum in Bucharest at that time. Due to the lack of funds, the two sculptural elements - the dorobant and the eagle - were no longer made.

On the occasion of the preparations for the celebration of the centenary of Romania's State Independence, the works to restore the monument also begin. Through the contribution of the people of Tulcea and the sculptor Cristea Grosu, the monument was created in its initial form and inaugurated on May 9, 1977.

HINT: Visit this place at sunrise, if you are early bird, or at sunset, to enjoy an impressive view of the city. Give yourself some quiet moments here to really connect with the atmosphere of a city steeped in history.

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The building, located on str. 9 Mai, no. 4, entered in the List of Historical Monuments (code TL-II-m-B -05972), was built around 1911, in the neo-Romanian style. Its owner was Alexandru Calafeteanu, a professor from Tulcea, who owned it until 1947. Between 1958 and 2005, it performed several public functions: the House of Pioneers, a space managed by the Tulcea "Danube Delta" Museum, originally intended for the collection of fine art and later that of folk art and ethnography. The building was retroceded in 2005 to the descendants of Alexandru Calafeteanu, and is currently a private residence.
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Georgescu House

The building was built in 1866 by Lazar Lazarov. In 1927 it was bought by Nicolae Georgescu, lawyer, deputy and senator in the interwar period from the National Peasant Party. In 1932, on the ground floor of the building, were the offices of the grain barn and the cattle fair in Piața Sfântu Gheorghe. Since 1950, SANEPID and several shops have operated here. Currently, the building is owned by the heirs of Nicolae Georgescu, and a pharmacy operates on the ground floor of the building. We invite you to read more details about the story of this historic house at https://mistereledunarii.wordpress.com/2021/04/27/misterele-dunarii-top-10-locul-07-cea-mai-veche-casa-din -tulcea/
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Borș House (Military Center)

Casa Borș is located in the historical area of ​​the city, a few steps from the "St. Nicolae" Cathedral, the "Jean Bart" Theater, the Avramide House and other heritage buildings. Ștefan Borș, the former owner of this beautiful house, built in 1905 and recently rehabilitated, was born in 1858 in Neamț. After graduating from higher education in Bucharest, he returned to his native county where he began his professional activity as a copyist in the Piatra-Neamț public works constituency office. In 1883, as a young engineer and entrepreneur, he carried out various infrastructure works in Iasi. Fate made him move to Tulcea at the age of 26, in 1884, taking over the management of the County Technical Service, an institution he managed professionally for four years. Six years later, in 1894, at the age of 36, he became the mayor of the municipality of Tulcea; likewise in 1906 and 1911. His political career continued as a senator in the Romanian Parliament. In the 43 years spent here, as an entrepreneur, engineer or politician, 14 schools, 12 churches, 3 barracks, 3 hospitals, a theater, a conference hall and the Fishery Palace were built in Tulcea through his direct involvement. He also rehabilitated the Administrative Palace, the former Pasha Mansion and the current Art Museum, completed the city cadastre, connected the population to the water and electricity network, built streets with paved sidewalks and much more. Ștefan Borș died on June 7, 1928, when the city was in full preparation for the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Dobrogea by the Romanian state. He is buried in the Eternitatea Cemetery in Tulcea alongside his first wife and one of the seven children he had. It is said that he lived in this beautiful building until 1921 when he sold the property to Banca Dunărea. From 1968, the building became the headquarters of the Tulcea Garrison Command, or the Army House as it was known by all Tulcea residents. The building has been recently rehabilitated and is worth admiring, even if it cannot be visited.
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Motomancea House

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Casa Lichiardopol

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Former Turkish Gendarmerie

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Former Turkish School

The Turkish School operated next to the Aziziye Window, being inaugurated in 1863, during the reign of Sultan Abdulaziz. The building was built in the architectural style specific to the period, with a ground floor, a first floor and a hipped roof. In this area was the Turkish slum, where the main public edifices of the city, which became the residence of the sangeac, were located: the window, the pasha's mansion, the bazaar, the port and others. We hope that this historic building will regain its former glory and importance.
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Synagogue

On the Babadag Street, one of the most important streets of the municipality, is located the Synagogue, known as the Israelit Temple, as it appears in official documents and as it is called by the local-jews people, as many as are left. It looks like a construction that has traveled through time, being the only one of its kind on the entire street, guarded on both sides by concrete blocks. In the old days, Babadag street, together with the surrounding streets, was the center of the Jewish quarter of Tulcea, whose number of souls reached, in 1910, approximately two thousand. The Israelite neighborhood, as it was called by the Tulceni, was formed later and more slowly than the Romanian, Greek or Bulgarian ones, perhaps also due to the fact that the Tulcean trade was for a long time a fiefdom of the Greeks and the Armenians. The Israelit Temple is an almost lonely vestige of a large and important community of the city, of which only a few dozen representatives still exist today. From time to time, the beautiful synagogue hosts various cultural events.
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Aziziye Mosque

The Azizyie Mosque in Tulcea was built in 1863, during the reign of Sultan Abdul Aziz, to whom it is dedicated and from which its name comes. It is one of the largest mosques built by the Ottoman Empire on the territory of Dobrogea, made of carved stone with a thickness of 85 cm. The beautiful construction is equipped with an impressive number of windows (32), their location being 18 in the upper area and ensuring natural lighting for the interior terrace that surrounds the glass on three sides and a number of 14 windows in the lower area. From the beginning, a Turkish school functioned next to the window, which had its headquarters in the building at (currently) 4 Independence Street, still existing today. The window minaret, still visible today, dates back to 1897, when it was rebuilt with funds made available by the Ministry of Religion and Public Instruction.
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