The Socialist Party of Romania (, commonly known as Partidul Socialist, PS) was a Romanian socialist political party, created on December 11, 1918 by members of the Social Democratic Party of Romania (PSDR), after the latter emerged from clandestinity. Through its PSDR legacy, the PS maintained a close connection with the local labor movement and was symbolically linked to the first local socialist group, the Romanian Social-Democratic Workers' Party. Its creation coincided with the establishment of Greater Romania in the wake of World War I; after May 1919, it began a process of fusion with the social democratic groups of in the former territories of Austria-Hungary — the Social Democratic Parties of Transylvania, Banat and Bukovina. The parties adopted a common platform in October 1920. Progressively influenced by Leninism, the PS became divided between a maximalist majority supporting Bolshevik guidelines and a reformist-minded minority: the former affiliated with the Comintern as the Socialist-Communist Party in May 1921 (officially known as Communist Party of Romania from 1922), while the minority eventually established a new Romanian Social Democratic Party.
The PS had its headquarters in Bucharest, at the Socialist Club on Sfântul Ionică Street No.12, near the old National Theater (located just north of University Square, the street is currently a section of Ion Câmpineanu Street, after the latter was rerouted).Cioroianu, p.23; Diac; Felea, p.43; Liveanu, p.37, 38 The building eventually also housed all Romanian trade unions of the period, as well as the General Trade Unions' Commission.Felea, p.43 The Socialists edited the newspaper Socialismul, headquartered on Academiei Street.Cioroianu, p.23
History Context In 1915, at a time when Romania kept its neutrality, the PSDR, led by the revolutionary-minded Marxist Christian Rakovsky, played a prominent part inside the anti-war Zimmerwald Movement.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15; Tănase, "Cristian Racovski"; Tismăneanu, p.66-67 Throughout the following year, it organized rallies in support of non-intervention into what it deemed "an imperialist conflict".110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15 When Romania joined the Entente Powers in August 1916, the group came under suspicion of supporting the Central Powers, and was outlawed soon after.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15; Tănase, "Cristian Racovski" While its secretary Dumitru Marinescu was drafted and killed in action during the Romanian Campaign, several of its prominent activists, including Rakovsky, were arrested. Gheorghe Cristescu, Alecu Constantinescu, and others remained active in Bucharest under occupation by the Central Powers, and maintained links with the Social Democratic Party of Germany; the group, also including Ecaterina Arbore, Constantin Popovici, Ilie Moscovici, Ghiță Moscu, and Constantin Titel Petrescu, protested the peace with the Central powers and was arrested by the Alexandru Marghiloman government, but released through an amnesty soon after.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15; Brătescu
The PSDR's history was decisively marked by the Russian Revolution of 1917. Following the February Revolution, Rakovsky was set free by Russian troops present in Iaşi, and took refuge in Odessa — he became active in revolutionary politics against the Romanian state, and joined the Bolsheviks. As a member of the Rumcherod authority in Odessa, he joined with Mihai Gheorghiu Bujor, Alexandru Nicolau and Ion Dic Dicescu's short-lived Romanian Social Democratic Action Committee in planning an insurgency, before being driven out by a German military intervention.Tănase, "Cristian Racovski"
Creation The PSDR itself radicalized its message, adding to its previous calls for universal suffrage a republican program and support for land reform.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15, 18-19; Frunză, p.36 Its program also called for an end to all forms of exploitation, but argued that this was to be fulfilled inside the existing legislative framework.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.18 King Ferdinand I's promise to legislate the land reform, together with electoral reform, was embraced by PSDR's moderate wing.
After the party adopted its new name, it proclaimed its commitment to dictatorship of the proletariat, and became involved in supporting the radicalized labor movement, culminating in the 1920 general strike.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.18; Argetoianu, "Memorii (Magazin Istoric), p.75; Cioroianu, p.23; Tănase, "Procesul din Dealul Spirei"
On , just days after the party was founded, typesetters at various presses in Bucharest, who had been protesting since November, rallied in front of the Sfântul Ionică building and marched on the Ministry of Industry headquarters on Calea Victoriei, asking for the eight-hour day, salary increases, the guarantee of civil liberties, and more say for the trade unions.Brătescu; Liveanu, p.37-40 The group quickly swelled in numbers, to about as many as 15,000 workers in a contemporary account.General Mărgineanu, rendered in Liveanu, p.41 On orders of the Constantin Coandă cabinet, who feared Bolshevik agitation,Brătescu troops were ultimately ordered to fire on the crowd and assail it with bayonets in as many as three successive waves.Felea, p.43-45; Liveanu, p.40-41 They also stormed into the Sfântul Ionică building and arrested several Socialist leaders, including the general secretary Moscovici and I. C. Frimu110 ani de social-democraţie, p.15; Felea, p.45-46; Liveanu, p.41 (Frimu later died in custody). Four PS members, including Alecu Constantinescu, were each sentenced to five years in prison, while all others arrested were acquitted. Eventually, in February 1919, most demands of the Socialist group were fulfilled after the Transylvanian Socialists Iosif Jumanca and Ioan Flueraş, urged by Constantin Titel Petrescu, came to Bucharest and discussed the matter with both King Ferdinand and the new Premier, Ion I. C. Brătianu.
In May 1919, delegates of the Transylvanian and Bukovinian groups began negotiations with the PS to form a single political movement, and elected representatives to the newly created General Council of the Socialist Party.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.16-17, 18 A single statute was adopted in October 1920.
In late 1919, the main Socialist Party and the Transylvanian wing were approached by the emerging People's Party for a fusion; the matter was discussed between, on the Socialist side, Moscovici, Flueraş, and Jumanca, and, from among the People's Party, by Alexandru Averescu and Constantin Argetoianu.Argetoianu, "Memorii (Magazin Istoric), p.74-75 Talks yielded no results, especially after Averescu attempted to impose his party's platform on the Socialists.Argetoianu, "Memorii (Magazin Istoric), p.75 During negotiations, Argetoianu observed that unease was growing between Moscovici's group and the party's far left, rallied around Cristescu.
After the election of 1919, when it reused the PSDR's logo of two crossed hammers,Radu, p.575, 579 the PS sent 7 representatives to the Chamber of Deputies; it was awarded 19 seats in the latter and 3 in the Senate following the 1920 elections.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.18; Ţiu The three senatorial candidates of that year — Cristescu, Alexandru Dobrogeanu-Gherea and Boris Stefanov — were not validated into Parliament, despite having carried the popular vote.Ţiu The PS' involvement in the 1920 strike caused authorities to organize a swift crackdownCioroianu, p.23; Frunză, p.21, 23-24; Tănase, "Procesul din Dealul Spirei" (50 party members were still held in prisons by early 1921).Frunză, p.24
In early 1921, the PS had 27 branches nationwide, totaling 40,000 to 45,000 registered membersCioroianu, p.27; Frunză, p.28-29, 30 and rallying support from most workers affiliated with trade unions (more than 200,000 people).Cioroianu, p.27 Estimates place the industrial working class of the 1920s and 1930s at between 400,000 and 820,000 people.Tismăneanu, p.63
Notable PS activists at the time were David Fabian, Elena Filipescu, and Panait Muşoiu.Felea, p.46-47 Among the PS' sympathizers were the artist and former prisoner of war Nicolae Tonitza, who regularly contributed graphics to Socialismul,Zambaccian and the writer Gala Galaction.
Comintern and reformist split The major issue splitting the party involved affiliation to the Comintern, seen by many PS members as a successor to the Second International. In 1920 the party sent representatives to the 2nd World Congress of the Comintern in Moscow, were they engaged in prolonged talks over the issue of affiliation with Christian Rakovsky, Grigory Zinoviev, and Nikolai Bukharin.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.17, 19; Frunză, p.21-26; Tismăneanu, p.68-69 These were Cristescu, Dobrogeanu-Gherea, David Fabian, and Constantin Popovici; the two delegates representing the Socialist Party of Transylvania and Banat were Eugen Rozvan and Flueraş — as a former member of the National Romanian Council in Transylvania, Flueraş was deemed a "class enemy" by the Comintern.110 ani de social-democraţie, p.17; Frunză, p.21-27; Tismăneanu, p.68-69
Specifically, Bukharin called on the PS to accept the policy changes theorized by Vladimir Lenin (the so-called 21 points), to exclude Flueraş and others, to submit itself to supervision from the Comintern's Balkan Communist Federation, to vote in a new Central Committee, and to guarantee that Socialismul would be turned into a communist newspaper.Tismăneanu, p.69-70. Similar demands rendered in Frunză, p.22-26 According to journalist Victor Frunză, an additional and hotly contested demand involved submitting trade unions to party control.Frunză, p.25-26
Dobrogeanu-Gherea, Popovici, and Cristescu met with Lenin,Frunză, p.22, 24; Tismăneanu, p.71 who urged them to adopt the resolution in this form, while allegedly making some promises to preserve a certain degree of autonomy for the Romanian group.Tismăneanu, p.71 Returned to Bucharest, Flueraş called on the party to return to a reformist stance and support for Greater Romania; together with the similarly-minded Iosif Jumanca, he severed all links with the PS in after its Conference of January–February 1921 (they were later followed by George Grigorovici).110 ani de social-democraţie, p.17, 19; Cioroianu, p.24; Frunză, p.31-32; Diac
May Congress At the same time, the maximalist wing, led by Cristescu (who renounced his reserves after first engaging in a heated polemic with Rozvan),Cioroianu, p.24 passed the resolution to join the Comintern and accept Lenin's 21 points.Cioroianu, p.21, 23-29; Diac; Tismăneanu, p.71 The Cominternist motion was drafted with support from 18 out of 38 members of the General Council,Diac and submitted to the Congress which took place after May 8, with the maximalist faction adopting the name of Socialist-Communist Party (PCdR).110 ani de social-democraţie, p.19; Cioroianu, p.21, 23-29; Frunză, p.26-29