Ion Cuza or Cuzea, commonly known as Ioniță Cuza (ca. 1715 – August 18, 1778), was a Moldavian statesman and political conspirator, remembered as one of the first Romanian nationalists and Freemasons. His paternal family, the Cuzas (Cuzeas), were landowners of uncertain origin who, by the time of Ioniță's birth, had been established into the boyardom, being under the patronage of Doukas and Sturdza aristocrats. Ioniță's mother was a direct descendant of the statesman-chronicler Miron Costin; his father, Miron Cuza, had been involved in the pro-Habsburg conspiracy headed by François Ernaut, while his grandfather, Dumitrașco Cuzea, had been hanged during the clampdown. As boyars, both the Cuzas and the Costins opposed the Phanariote regime and devised other schemes to emancipate Moldavia from the Ottoman Empire.
Ioniță was at the forefront of this fight in 1759, when he managed to contain the actions of Prince Ioan Teodor Callimachi and his courtier Iordaki Stavraki. He was deceived by the latter into leading a diplomatic mission into the Crimean Khanate, where he was briefly imprisoned. After the resulting uprising in his favor, Cuza managed to expel Stavraki from Moldavia. He was propelled to high office, serving for years as the Moldavian Stolnic. In 1767, Cuza also had a standoff with Grigore III Ghica, who finally agreed to grant him and other native boyars access to higher offices, and thus earned Cuza's enduring political support. He was Paharnic before and during the Russo-Turkish War of 1768, returning as Spatharios, or commander of the Moldavian military forces, during Ghica's second and final reign. While conserving his standing in regional politics, Cuza built a large estate of his own, with clusters of villages in both Fălciu County and Bessarabia.
Cuza was finally executed, with Manolache Bogdan, after both were caught up in the intrigues against Prince Constantine Mourouzis. He was survived by five sons. Through one of them, Ioniță was the great-grandfather of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, Romanian nationalist campaigner and Domnitor of the United Principalities. His reign saw several rapprochements between the Cuzas and the Mourouzis, all of which created controversy and returned focus on Ioniță's rebellion. Another one of Ioniță's sons was the great-grandfather of A. C. Cuza, the antisemitic doctrinaire.
Biography Origins Ioniță Cuza's ethnic origins and ancestry are largely uncertain, subject to several competing theories. Some early hypotheses, centered on the name's resonance, have proposed that the Cuzas were Italians or Lorrainers.Gorovei, pp. 10–11 Historian N. Stoicescu believes that they were possibly ethnic Greeks.Gorovei, p. 11; Stoicescu, p. 392 According to genealogist Ștefan S. Gorovei, Ioniță's ancestry is entirely local and can be traced back to January 1588, with the first mention of a "Cozea" from Roșiori. This figure, identified by Gorovei as the Cuza patriarch, made lucrative land deals in other parts of Neamț County, leaving a fortune to his sons. One of these may be Toader Cuza, who is shown to be engaged in commercial exchanges with the boyar Toader Jora.Gorovei, p. 11 Another genealogist, Gheorghe G. Bezviconi, proposes that the Joras and the Cuzas had a common ancestor, the Vornic Băisan.Bezviconi I, p. 95 & II, p. 49 The family may have branched out into Bessarabia at an early stage, with records showing them as founders and owners of the village Cozești.Gorovei, p. 11 Unusually among Moldavian boyars, the Cuzas seem not to have adopted a coat of arms of their own.Iftimi, pp. 25–27 A tierced per fess shield is attributed to them by heraldists such as Mateiu Caragiale and Emanoil Hagi-Moscu, but is presumed by historian Sorin Iftimi to be a late-19th-century invention.Iftimi, pp. 27–38. See also Emanoil Hagi-Moscu, Steme boerești din România, [n. p.]. Bucharest: Socec, 1918
The first Cuza to reach high office may have been a Vistier Coza, serving in the 1630s. According to Stoicescu, he was father of the better-known Dumitrașco Cuza (or Cuzea).Stoicescu, p. 392 Contrarily, Gorovei argues that there is "no certain connection" between the Vistier and Dumitrașco, who was the known heir of Toader Cuza.Gorovei, pp. 10–11 It is also known that Dumitrașco married Safta, daughter of Toader Jora and sister-in-law of the Great Vornic Ioan Sturza (of the Greek Sturdzas).Stoicescu, p. 392. See also Bezviconi I, p. 111; Gorovei, p. 11; Iftimi, p. 41 One period writ describes him as the son of Safta Jora.Bezviconi I, p. 111 This dynastic arrangement also made Cuza a relative of the powerful Doukas and brought him a large dowry, including 15 estates in Moldavia-proper and Bessarabia.Gorovei, p. 11. See also Ploscaru, p. 491 He had a steady climb at the court, being first mentioned in June 1677 as Comis for Prince Antonie Ruset, granted ownership of Vlăicenii village in recognition for his service.Gorovei, p. 10 He became Spatharios in 1679, under George Ducas, returning as Great Stolnic and Great Spatharios under Constantine Ducas.Stoicescu, p. 392. See also Gorovei, p. 11; Iftimi, p. 41
Dumitrașco also cultivated a close relationship with the Costin boyars, and in particular with Hetman Ioniță Costin, orphaned son of the writer and politician Miron Costin. Cuza's own three sons, Miron, Toader and Velicico, were involved in cementing such links. Miron Cuza (fl. 1680–1742)Popa & Rotaru, p. 139 may have been named after Ioniță's father.Gorovei, p. 11 Holding office as Logothete, he married Ilinca, daughter of Ioniță Costin, granddaughter of his namesake and niece of Nicolae Costin.Iftimi, p. 41; Stoicescu, pp. 391, 393. See also Atanasiu, p. 77; Gorovei, p. 12; Popa & Rotaru, p. 140 The Costins had been one of the most powerful players after the Moldavian Magnate Wars, keeping Princes as the "instruments of [their] party".Djuvara, p. 346 Through her mother Ileana, Ilinca also descended from Movilești royalty, whose coat of arms was sometimes attributed to her Cuza descendants.Iftimi, pp. 25, 41. See also Bezviconi I, p. 185
In 1701–1702, Cuza Sr and the Hetman tried to mediate a conflict between Prince Ducas and his Spatharios, Mihai Racoviță.Atanasiu, p. 73; Gorovei, p. 11 Instead, they came to be detested by the latter. Cuza was sidelined later that year, when Racoviță managed to topple and replace Ducas.Gorovei, p. 11 Over the following decades, Phanariote bureaucrats acting under the supervision of the Ottoman Empire instituted a regime which cut back on the privileges of established boyar families. Racoviță participated in its creation, returning to rule as a Phanariote in December 1715. However, in 1716, Moldavia was dragged into the Austro–Turkish War. Racoviță and his Seimeni "put up no resistance" to the Imperial Army, which then imposed terror on the city of Iași.Vogoride-Konaki, pp. 17–18
Following this regime change, Miron and Velicico involved themselves in a plot to topple Racoviță, alongside boyar Vasile Ceaurul and the mercenary François "Franță" Ernaut.Gorovei, pp. 11–12; Iftimi, pp. 41–42; Papadopol-Calimah, pp. 352, 356–357. See also Vogoride-Konaki, pp. 16–20; Xenopol, pp. 37–40 In January 1717, the Seimeni defeated Ernaut, and resumed control of the country. Racoviță ordered Cuza Sr's hanging on the scrânciob ("cradle") prepared outside the princely court,Papadopol-Calimah, pp. 352, 357. See also Stoicescu, p. 392; Vogoride-Konaki, p. 20; Xenopol, p. 39 in what was seen by chronicler Ion Neculce as a blind retaliation for his sons' doings.Gorovei, p. 12; Iftimi, pp. 41–42 His body was dropped in a mass grave by the side of Cetățuia Monastery.Xenopol, p. 39 The three younger Cuzas escaped vengeance, but were kept out of political affairs; Toader's sons declined socially, losing their boyar status.Gorovei, p. 12
Career Rise The son of Miron and Ilinca, Ioniță was born at an unknown date, referred to by historians as "before 1720"Popa & Rotaru, p. 139 or "around 1715".Gorovei, p. 12 He is known to have had a brother, Mihalache, who is recorded as deceased before 1760.Popa & Rotaru, p. 138 His grandfather Costin died late in 1729, leaving Miron an heir to much of his estate.Atanasiu, p. 77 According to an oral tradition attested among the peasants of Trifești-Neamț, Miron, also referred to as Cuza Bărbosul ("Cuza the Bearded"), was "slaughtered by the Prince" (whose name is not given) at Roman.V. A. Urechia, "Mormĕntul lui Miron Costin", in Convorbiri Literare, Vol. XX, Issue 10, January 1887, pp. 806–807, 809–810, 816 In 1742–1748, Ioniță was a Postelnic, and then a Pitar to 1752,Iftimi, p. 42; Popa & Rotaru, p. 139 being consulted by Prince Constantine Mavrocordatos during the abolition of Moldavian serfdom (April 1749). The same year, he and other boyars sent three letters of protest to Abdullah Pasha, the Ottoman Grand Vizier, demanding less taxation for locals, and fewer privileges for the foreign merchants.Gorovei, p. 12 According to Gorovei, these letters should be seen as early documents of Romanian nationalism, with Ioniță Cuza included on "something one may call the 'national party', or the homegrown party".Gorovei, p. 12
The Pitars anti-Phanariote sentiments were recorded under the reign of Ioan Teodor Callimachi, whose Spatharios, Iordaki Stavraki, blacklisted Cuza.Gorovei, p. 12 In 1759, the same Stavraki devised a plan to have Cuza and other 11 boyars removed, sending them on diplomatic mission to the Crimean Khanate, where they were to be kidnapped. One report suggests that they were in fact sent there, and arrested on arrival, finding themselves imprisoned at Yeni-Kale.Mihai Sorin Rădulescu, "Genealogie și cultură. O familie boierească din Moldova – Râșcanii", in Contemporanul, Issues 44–45/1992, p. 7 The plan was foiled when the other boyars rebelled: as noted by Cuza himself, they had support "from the whole country", obtaining Stavraki's removal and exile; Cuza then reconciled with the Prince, taking over as Stolnic.Gorovei, pp. 12–13. See also Xenopol, pp. 105–109 He was simultaneously Stolnic and Vistier to 1763, also serving as the Ispravnic of Vaslui from 1761 to 1767.Popa & Rotaru, p. 139. See also Iftimi, p. 42
As the head of his house, Ioniță was ktitor of the Moldavian Orthodox church in Negrești. Recognized for his philanthropy, in 1762 he received from the widow Safta Racleș the neighboring village of Bârzești.Popa & Rotaru, pp. 138–139 Around that time, he engaged in litigation over land with Vasile Crudul of Orhei, reportedly forcing the latter to seek a loan from Turkish usurers, who then wished to abduct his son as collateral."Floarea darurilor (Arhiva Ateneu). Jalba unui moldovean", in Ateneu, Vol. VIII, Issue 1, January 1971, p. 7 After 1770, Cuza himself became implicated in controversial credit ventures, earning the reputation of a usurer.Paul Cernovodeanu, "Elemente incipiente ale burgheziei în societatea românească sub fanarioți", in Revista de Istorie, Vol. 40, Issue 5, 1987, p. 484 The deeds he held in Negrești and Bârzești became the basis for a large Cuza domain, which also included Zăpodeni and Rebricea; he had inherited additional land in Cuzlău, as well as townhouses in Vaslui and Iași.Popa & Rotaru, p. 140. See also Iftimi, p. 42 Cuza married a daughter of Pitar Toader Râșcanu, Tudosica or Todosica (died 1775), with whom he had five sons and two daughters, whose birth dates he recorded in one of the few surviving private register of births.Iftimi, pp. 10, 42. See also Popa & Rotaru, p. 140 This matrimonial arrangement made him brothers-in-law with Constantin, Ioan and Alexandru Râșcanu.Mihai Sorin Rădulescu, "Genealogie și cultură. Grigore Gafencu, date genealogice", in Contemporanul, Issue 38/1991, p. 6 Of Ioniță and Tudosica's children, four sons are known to have survived into maturity: Nicolae (or Neculai), Arghirie, Gheorghe and Constantin.Gorovei, p. 13 All were educated at home, by tutors from Golia Monastery.Popa & Rotaru, p. 140