In 2025, 143 years passed since the birth of Nicolae Titulescu, one of the brightest personalities of modern Romania. A politician, jurist, university professor, and exceptional diplomat, Titulescu is remembered as Romania’s greatest diplomat, a visionary of peace and European unity. His career, marked by both glory and suffering, unfolded between the ideal of a modern Romania and the turbulent realities of a Europe caught between two world wars.

Childhood and the Formation of a Legal Genius

Nicolae Titulescu was born on March 4, 1882, in Craiova, into an intellectual family. His father, Ion Titulescu, an attorney and prefect of Dolj County, was a model of integrity and civic devotion. 

His mother, Maria Urdăreanu, left him a small property in Titulești, where Nicolae spent his childhood. The family environment, shaped by discipline and respect for education, was essential for the young Titulescu’s development.

After attending primary school at the Jules Javet pension in Craiova and at the Obedeanu School, he went to the “Nicolae Bălcescu” High School, now known as Carol I College, from 1893 to 1900. He was the school’s first honor graduate, earning a scholarship to Paris. There, at the Faculty of Law, he studied under eminent French professors such as Marcel Planiol and Charles Lyon-Caën.

In 1903, he won the “Ernest Beaumont” prize, a national competition for all law faculties in France, and two years later earned his doctorate in civil law with a thesis titled La théorie des droits éventuels. 

By this time, the young Romanian was already recognized for his scientific rigor and oratory talent. During this period, he was initiated into Freemasonry, which gave him access to Parisian intellectual circles, and he mastered French, English, German, and Italian.

The Reforming Professor and Visionary Lawyer

Returning to Romania in 1905, Titulescu joined the Iași Bar and was appointed professor of civil law at the University of Iași, at the chair of the eminent jurist Dimitrie Alexandrescu. There, he published his first works advocating profound reforms in Romanian legal education. He championed a modern system focused on the practical analysis of law and professional ethics rather than mere memorization of legal texts.

In 1907, he married Ecaterina (Catherine) Burcă, from Roșiorii de Vede, a cultured and elegant woman who supported him discreetly throughout his life. Together, they were considered one of Europe’s most admired couples at the beginning of the 20th century.

In 1909, Titulescu earned his habilitation and transferred to the University of Bucharest’s civil law chair, becoming one of the youngest university professors of the time. Simultaneously, his career as a lawyer flourished; his pleadings were known for their logic, clarity, and persuasive power, earning him recognition both domestically and abroad.

Entering Politics and Fighting for National Unity

Also in 1909, Titulescu entered politics, joining the Conservative-Democratic Party led by Take Ionescu. He quickly distinguished himself through passionate speeches advocating social reforms, peasant land ownership, and universal suffrage. 

In 1912, he became a deputy, and in May 1915 delivered the famous speech “The Heart of Romania” in Ploiești, emphasizing the importance of Transylvania for the unity of Romania: “Romania cannot be whole without Transylvania… We need Transylvania. We cannot be without it.”

During World War I, Titulescu was appointed Minister of Finance in the Averescu government, promoting a national and equitable tax reform. In 1918, he went to Paris and became a founding member of the Romanian National Council, alongside Take Ionescu, Octavian Goga, Traian Vuia, and Constantin Mille. The council’s goal was the international recognition of the Romanian people’s right to national unity.

The Diplomat Who Brought Romania to the Table of Great Powers

After the Great Union, Titulescu became one of the architects of Romania’s international recognition. In 1920, he signed the Trianon Peace Treaty with Hungary, officially recognizing Transylvania’s union with Romania. That same year, he became Romania’s permanent delegate to the League of Nations, the precursor of today’s United Nations.

Between 1921 and 1932, he served as extraordinary minister plenipotentiary of Romania in London, becoming a central figure in Romanian foreign policy. Titulescu advocated the enforcement and preservation of international treaties and promoted dialogue with the Soviet Union, being among the first European leaders to recognize the need for East-West engagement.

He traveled extensively in Europe, attending conferences in Paris, Rome, Prague, and Belgrade, contributing to the formation of the Little Entente and the Balkan Pact—regional alliances designed to ensure peace and stability in Southeast Europe.

The Master of Peace and Europe’s Orator

Titulescu’s diplomatic career peaked in 1930 when he was elected President of the League of Nations, being reelected the following year—a first in the organization’s history. As president, he became a symbol of the fight for peace and international cooperation.

He promoted the idea of a united Europe, based on cultural and spiritual solidarity rather than military dominance. He was among the proponents of the Briand-Kellogg Pact, which outlawed war, and advocated the principle of the “indivisibility of peace”—the belief that one state’s peace cannot exist without global peace.

His speeches, delivered in Geneva or London, were masterpieces of oratory. Titulescu captivated audiences with his erudition, clarity, and passion, earning him the nickname “the voice of Europe’s conscience.”

Foreign Minister and Advocate of Collective Security

As Minister of Foreign Affairs in the governments of 1927–1928 and 1932–1936, Titulescu promoted a balanced foreign policy based on regional alliances and the rejection of aggression. Amid the rise of fascism and Nazism, he publicly warned of the dangers posed by Mussolini and Hitler, as well as the Romanian Communist Party.

He played a decisive role in restoring diplomatic relations between Romania and the USSR in 1934 and in signing the 1935 mutual assistance pact. That same year, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy of Iași, though international political dynamics prevented the award.

In 1935, he became a full member of the Romanian Academy. However, his pro-East stance and anti-fascist positions drew powerful enemies. King Carol II, under pressure from pro-Nazi and legionary circles, dismissed him from office on August 29, 1936, while Titulescu was abroad.

Exile and the Testament of a Great Romanian

Forced into exile, Titulescu settled first in Switzerland, then in Cannes, France. Despite political isolation, he remained active in diplomatic circles and continued advocating for Romania’s interests. In his writings and lectures, he condemned both fascism and communism, promoting a vision of a balanced Europe governed by law and international norms.

In his testament, written on January 5, 1940, in Saint Moritz, he expressed: “I wish to be buried in Brașov, in a somewhat secluded place. Take Ionescu above in Sinaia, and I at his feet, below in Brașov, for eternal rest.”

Nicolae Titulescu passed away on March 14, 1941, in Cannes, after a prolonged illness. He was buried in the Russian Orthodox Church cemetery of St. Michael, far from the country he had served with dedication and brilliance. 

Only after more than fifty years, in 1992, were his remains brought back to Romania and interred, according to his wish, in the courtyard of the St. Nicholas Church in Șcheii Brașovului, alongside his wife Ecaterina.

Nicolae Titulescu’s Legacy

Today, Nicolae Titulescu’s name remains synonymous with dignity, intelligence, and visionary diplomacy. He believed in the power of law, international dialogue, and European unity long before these concepts became reality.

He left behind not only treaties and alliances but also a model of political and moral conduct. A patriotic visionary, he consistently prioritized national interests over personal ambition and demonstrated exceptional foresight in diplomacy.

Romania owes much of its standing among civilized nations to him. Streets, boulevards, and institutions bearing his name are not merely symbolic tributes; they express gratitude to the man who made diplomacy an act of devotion.

Nicolae Titulescu remains, without question, Romania’s greatest diplomat of all time—a man who understood that a nation’s true power lies not in weapons, but in ideas, justice, and peace.

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