National Liberal Party (Romania, 1875)
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National Liberal Party
Partidul Național Liberal |
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| Abbreviation | PNL |
| Founders |
Ion C. Brătianu Ion Ghica Mihail Kogălniceanu C.A. Rosetti |
| Founded | 24 May 1875 |
| Dissolved | 1947 1950 |
| Newspaper |
Românul (1875–84) Voinţa naţională (1884–1914) Viitorul (1914–38, 1944–45) Liberalul (1946–47) Drapelul (1944–48) |
| Youth wing | National Liberal Youth |
| Political position | Right-wing |
| Slogan |
Prin noi înșine! (Through ourselves!) |
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The National Liberal Party (Romanian: Partidul Național Liberal, PNL) was the first organised political party in Romania, a major force in the country's politics from its foundation in 1875 to World War II. Established in order to represent the interests of the nascent local bourgeoisie, until World War I it contested power with the Conservative Party, supported primarily by wealthy landowners, effectively creating a two-party system in a political system which severely limited the representation of the peasant majority through census suffrage. Unlike its major opponent, the PNL managed to preserve its prominence after the implementation of universal male suffrage, playing an important role in shaping the institutional framework of Greater Romania during the 1920s. Though initially opposed to the restoration of deposed King Carol II, it became increasingly supportive of his authoritarian policies, with PNL governments paving the way to a royal dictatorship in the late 1930s. Formally disbanded along all political parties in 1938, party structures were preserved unofficially, with many party members also enlisting in Carol's National Renaissance Front. Tolerated by the totalitarian government of Ion Antonescu, it eventually joined King Michael I and the Communist, National Peasants' and Social Democratic parties in overthrowing the dictator in the closing phase of World War II, enabling the reorganisation of the party in 1944. Part of the first post-war grand coalition governments, it lost its importance as the new Communist-led coalition government used the denazification process in order to remove PNL supporters from government posts. With the Communist-dominated government gaining the upper hand in local politics and starting to crack down on opposition, the party decided to cease political activity in the late 1940s, effectively disbanding itself. After the overthrow of the Communist party rule in 1989, a new party was founded under the same name and assumed the National Liberal legacy.
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