Ion Brătianu
| Ion C. Brătianu | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Prime Minister of Romania | |
|
In office July 24, 1876—April 9, 1881 June 9, 1881 – March 20, 1888 |
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| Preceded by |
Nicolae Golescu Manolache Costache Epureanu Dimitrie Brătianu |
| Succeeded by |
Dimitrie Ghica Dimitrie Brătianu Theodor Rosetti |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
June 2, 1821 Argeș County, Romania |
| Died | May 16, 1891 (aged 69) Romania |
| Political party | National Liberal Party |
Ion Constantin Brătianu (Romanian pronunciation: [iˈon brətiˈanu]; June 2, 1821 – May 16, 1891) was one of the major political figures of 19th-century Romania. He was the younger brother of Dimitrie, as well as the father of Ionel, Dinu, and Vintilă Brătianu. He also was the grandfather of poet Ion Pillat.
Born to wealthy Argeș landowners in Pitești, the state of Wallachia, he entered the Wallachian Army in 1838, and in 1841 started studying in Paris. Returning to his native land, Brătianu took part, with his friend C. A. Rosetti and other young politicians (including his brother), in the 1848 Wallachian Revolution, and acted as prefect of police in the provisional government formed in that year.
The restoration of Imperial Russian and Ottoman authority shortly afterwards drove him into exile. He took refuge to Paris, and endeavoured to influence French opinion in favor of the proposed union and autonomy of the Romanian Danubian Principalities. In 1854, however, he was sentenced to a fine and three months' imprisonment for sedition, and later confined in a lunatic asylum; in 1856, he returned to Wallachia with his brother - afterwards one of his foremost political opponents.
He was in favor of the Danubian Principalities' (Wallachia's and Moldavia) union, as a member of Partida Națională. During the reign of Alexander Ioan Cuza (1859–1866), Brătianu founded (in 1875) the National Liberal Party (PNL), until today a major political formation. Opposition to the land reform united the emerging Liberals and Conservatives against the Domnitor and his inner circle. Both parties comprised mainly landowners, and allied to block legislation in the Chamber - causing Cuza to impose his authoritarian government in May 1864. The two-party coalition, remembered as the monstrous coalition, opted for the removal of Cuza. Brătianu took part in the deposition of 1866 and in the subsequent election of Prince Carol of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, under whom he held several ministerial appointments throughout the next four years.
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