Valentin Sandulescu
I have defended my PhD dissertation in the history of Romanian fascism at the Central European University (Budapest, Hungary) in March 2011.
My main academic interests cover the history and historiography of fascism and anti-Semitism, with an emphasis on the history of the Romanian Iron Guard in the interwar period, and also the history of the Jewish community in Romania. On a broader level, my academic interests focus on the political, social and cultural history of the interwar period in East-Central Europe and its post-communist reception.
I was a fellow at the Centre for Advanced Study in Sofia and the New Europe College (Institute for Advanced Study) in Bucharest. In May 2010 I have been a Junior Visiting Research Associate at the Modern European History Research Centre, Faculty of History, University of Oxford.
Between 2015 and 2018 I was a senior researcher for the project "Post-WWII Anti-Semitic Pogroms in East and East Central Europe: Collective Violence and Popular Culture" funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation (Germany).
Also, between 2015 and 2017 I was a researcher for the project “Fragmented Modernities: Intellectual Elites and Historical Transformations in Contemporary Romania” hosted by the “Nicolae Iorga” Institute of History (Romanian Academy) and financed by the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI).
PEER REVIEWS:
Journals: Nationalities Papers (Cambridge University Press), Politics, Religion & Ideology (Routledge), East Central Europe (Brill), Fascism (Brill).
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS:
Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES)
Society for Romanian Studies (SRS)
American Historical Association (AHA)
Network editor: H-Romania https://networks.h-net.org/h-romania
My main academic interests cover the history and historiography of fascism and anti-Semitism, with an emphasis on the history of the Romanian Iron Guard in the interwar period, and also the history of the Jewish community in Romania. On a broader level, my academic interests focus on the political, social and cultural history of the interwar period in East-Central Europe and its post-communist reception.
I was a fellow at the Centre for Advanced Study in Sofia and the New Europe College (Institute for Advanced Study) in Bucharest. In May 2010 I have been a Junior Visiting Research Associate at the Modern European History Research Centre, Faculty of History, University of Oxford.
Between 2015 and 2018 I was a senior researcher for the project "Post-WWII Anti-Semitic Pogroms in East and East Central Europe: Collective Violence and Popular Culture" funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation (Germany).
Also, between 2015 and 2017 I was a researcher for the project “Fragmented Modernities: Intellectual Elites and Historical Transformations in Contemporary Romania” hosted by the “Nicolae Iorga” Institute of History (Romanian Academy) and financed by the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI).
PEER REVIEWS:
Journals: Nationalities Papers (Cambridge University Press), Politics, Religion & Ideology (Routledge), East Central Europe (Brill), Fascism (Brill).
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS:
Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES)
Society for Romanian Studies (SRS)
American Historical Association (AHA)
Network editor: H-Romania https://networks.h-net.org/h-romania
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Papers by Valentin Sandulescu
Review of Wilhelm Filderman, Adevărul asupra problemei evreești din România în lumina textelor religioase și a statisticei (The Truth regarding the Jewish Question in Romania in Light of Religious Texts and Statistics). Bucharest: Editura Hasefer 2018. 351pp. ISBN 978-9-73630-414-9.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0031322X.2020.1843825
https://academic.oup.com/gh/article-abstract/38/1/156/5732912?redirectedFrom=fulltext
By using primary sources such as memoirs, books, magazines and newspapers from the period under scrutiny, as well as archival material, the chapter documents the journey of these intellectuals from early political supporters of the Iron Guard to salient actors during its stay in power between September 1940 and January 1941. A special section will focus on the (re)conversion processes underwent by these intellectuals during Ion Antonescu's dictatorship (1941-1944) and also during the communist regime in the wider context of a chronic shortage of expertise at various levels of the state.
After 1989, some sociologists regarded Traian Herseni as an example for the sociological craft, a disciple and then colleague of Dimitrie Gusti, an important sociologist and an anthropologist, while also remembering him as an academic who helped re-launch the sociological profession during communist times. Although his political allegiances have been discussed, Herseni’s transformation from a left-wing intellectual in the early 1930s to a supporter of the fascist Iron Guard in the second half of the same decade still needs to be debated and contextualized. Furthermore, his trajectory since the 1940s, from holding an official position during the National-Legionary State, fully supporting the I. Antonescu - H. Sima regime, to post-war imprisonment in the 1950s and then to reconversion as a professional who also praised the communist regime deserves extensive attention.
A thorough, book length, account analyzing Herseni’s public and political stance throughout various regime changes that he experienced during his life and academic career is still lacking. Using primary sources such as archival records, memoirs, interwar and postwar books and journals, the present contribution aims at partially filling this gap.
Keywords: Traian Herseni, elites, fascism, communism, political change
Abstract
The current research aims at presenting the relationship between two of the most important extreme right-wing movements in interwar Romania (The National-Christian Defense League, led by A.C. Cuza, and The Legion of the Archangel Michael, founded by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu in 1927) by looking at their interactions throughout the late 1920s and early 1930s. Thus, the paper is focused on underlining the emerging differences between Cuza and Codreanu in terms of doctrine and political practices that consisted of a growing radicalization of the Legion, through embracing a more violent, action-oriented and visibly fascist agenda.
Employing a variety of primary and secondary sources, one traces the difficult separation process that took place between Codreanu and Cuza’s movement, a process that was still hesitant in 1927 but would develop in a fully-fledged revolt as years went by, and reached a political climax in the context of the 1933 elections. The analysis of doctrine elements that separated the two movements is combined with a look at the political practices that accompanied these developments. The Legion of the Archangel Michael clearly emerged as a victor in this competition, becoming the most important extreme right-wing movement in interwar Romania, as proven by the outcome of the 1937 elections.
Keywords: Fascism; Legionary Movement; Corneliu Zelea Codreanu; A.C. Cuza; Interwar Romania.
Drawing on the heuristic value of the theoretical and methodological insights of the cultural approach to the study of fascism, the present work focuses on the spiritual components used by the Romanian Iron Guard in order to shape the profile of its followers, with the final goal of creating a “new man”. The process of spiritually taming the young legionaries was realized with the help of elements such as songs, poetry, marches, and military and religious education.
http://www.editions-harmattan.fr/index.asp?navig=catalogue&obj=livre&no=32368
Abstract:
The current paper has a twofold focus. First, it analyzes the emergence and evolution of the legionary press, i.e. the publications belonging, or favorable to the Legion of the Archangel Michael, the most important fascist movement in interwar Romania. Second, it presents a case study of how the legionary press was used in order to construct the image of the political enemies of the Legion. The legionary press constructs the image of democracy and democratic parties as irreversibly harmful for Romanians, and regards politicians (especially liberals and national-peasantists) as traitors that had to be eliminated. Unfortunately, the violent images constructed by the legionaries in the press do not remain just at a discursive level; the legionaries also acted according to them, as it was the case with the assassination of liberal Prime Minister I.G. Duca in 1933.
http://www.routledgepolitics.com/books/Clerical-Fascism-in-Interwar-Europe-isbn9780415448246
Abstract (available on EBSCO Host):
"The article analyzes archival records in order to illuminate the Iron Guard's attempt to offer a sacralized version of politics under the guise of its project of creating a "new man" and a "new country." The case study on the mass burial of two Legionary leaders, Ion Mota and Vasile Marin provides a deeper look into the relationship between fascist ideology and the religious establishment represented by the Romanian Orthodox Church."
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=25135000&site=ehost-live
Review of Wilhelm Filderman, Adevărul asupra problemei evreești din România în lumina textelor religioase și a statisticei (The Truth regarding the Jewish Question in Romania in Light of Religious Texts and Statistics). Bucharest: Editura Hasefer 2018. 351pp. ISBN 978-9-73630-414-9.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0031322X.2020.1843825
https://academic.oup.com/gh/article-abstract/38/1/156/5732912?redirectedFrom=fulltext
By using primary sources such as memoirs, books, magazines and newspapers from the period under scrutiny, as well as archival material, the chapter documents the journey of these intellectuals from early political supporters of the Iron Guard to salient actors during its stay in power between September 1940 and January 1941. A special section will focus on the (re)conversion processes underwent by these intellectuals during Ion Antonescu's dictatorship (1941-1944) and also during the communist regime in the wider context of a chronic shortage of expertise at various levels of the state.
After 1989, some sociologists regarded Traian Herseni as an example for the sociological craft, a disciple and then colleague of Dimitrie Gusti, an important sociologist and an anthropologist, while also remembering him as an academic who helped re-launch the sociological profession during communist times. Although his political allegiances have been discussed, Herseni’s transformation from a left-wing intellectual in the early 1930s to a supporter of the fascist Iron Guard in the second half of the same decade still needs to be debated and contextualized. Furthermore, his trajectory since the 1940s, from holding an official position during the National-Legionary State, fully supporting the I. Antonescu - H. Sima regime, to post-war imprisonment in the 1950s and then to reconversion as a professional who also praised the communist regime deserves extensive attention.
A thorough, book length, account analyzing Herseni’s public and political stance throughout various regime changes that he experienced during his life and academic career is still lacking. Using primary sources such as archival records, memoirs, interwar and postwar books and journals, the present contribution aims at partially filling this gap.
Keywords: Traian Herseni, elites, fascism, communism, political change
Abstract
The current research aims at presenting the relationship between two of the most important extreme right-wing movements in interwar Romania (The National-Christian Defense League, led by A.C. Cuza, and The Legion of the Archangel Michael, founded by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu in 1927) by looking at their interactions throughout the late 1920s and early 1930s. Thus, the paper is focused on underlining the emerging differences between Cuza and Codreanu in terms of doctrine and political practices that consisted of a growing radicalization of the Legion, through embracing a more violent, action-oriented and visibly fascist agenda.
Employing a variety of primary and secondary sources, one traces the difficult separation process that took place between Codreanu and Cuza’s movement, a process that was still hesitant in 1927 but would develop in a fully-fledged revolt as years went by, and reached a political climax in the context of the 1933 elections. The analysis of doctrine elements that separated the two movements is combined with a look at the political practices that accompanied these developments. The Legion of the Archangel Michael clearly emerged as a victor in this competition, becoming the most important extreme right-wing movement in interwar Romania, as proven by the outcome of the 1937 elections.
Keywords: Fascism; Legionary Movement; Corneliu Zelea Codreanu; A.C. Cuza; Interwar Romania.
Drawing on the heuristic value of the theoretical and methodological insights of the cultural approach to the study of fascism, the present work focuses on the spiritual components used by the Romanian Iron Guard in order to shape the profile of its followers, with the final goal of creating a “new man”. The process of spiritually taming the young legionaries was realized with the help of elements such as songs, poetry, marches, and military and religious education.
http://www.editions-harmattan.fr/index.asp?navig=catalogue&obj=livre&no=32368
Abstract:
The current paper has a twofold focus. First, it analyzes the emergence and evolution of the legionary press, i.e. the publications belonging, or favorable to the Legion of the Archangel Michael, the most important fascist movement in interwar Romania. Second, it presents a case study of how the legionary press was used in order to construct the image of the political enemies of the Legion. The legionary press constructs the image of democracy and democratic parties as irreversibly harmful for Romanians, and regards politicians (especially liberals and national-peasantists) as traitors that had to be eliminated. Unfortunately, the violent images constructed by the legionaries in the press do not remain just at a discursive level; the legionaries also acted according to them, as it was the case with the assassination of liberal Prime Minister I.G. Duca in 1933.
http://www.routledgepolitics.com/books/Clerical-Fascism-in-Interwar-Europe-isbn9780415448246
Abstract (available on EBSCO Host):
"The article analyzes archival records in order to illuminate the Iron Guard's attempt to offer a sacralized version of politics under the guise of its project of creating a "new man" and a "new country." The case study on the mass burial of two Legionary leaders, Ion Mota and Vasile Marin provides a deeper look into the relationship between fascist ideology and the religious establishment represented by the Romanian Orthodox Church."
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=25135000&site=ehost-live
http://www.cas.bg/en/events/regimes-of-historicity-annual-colloquium-1486.html
http://www.nationalities.org/convention/pdfs/ASN_2009_prelim_program.pdf
formation of intellectual elites during successive projects of
modernization during 19th and 20th centuries. While existing
works on the topic focus either on the elimination of previous
elites in times of radical social change or on the creation of new
elites by each new political regime, we focus on a third
mechanism: the recuperation/conversion of previous intellectual
elites for new modernization projects. This mechanism of
historical and social change appears at every major transition
(“historical disjuncture”) but is given less importance both in
history/social sciences and in public discourse.
Almost without exception, the successive visions of
modernity fail in their attempt to transform the deep social
strata in spite of their explicit goals in that regard. Nevertheless,
each one creates new, imperfect, and fragmentary ways of
intervening and programming the newly instituted populations,
individuals and fields of activity. New conceptual vocabularies
were brought forth – by imitation or explicit distancing – out of
the failed discourses and reforms and larger spaces for expert-led
intervention were opened for subsequent reforms and projects
of modernization.
Scrutinizing the moments of discontinuity in modern and
contemporary Romanian history, this book will argue that, far
from a complete break with a past, each modernization projects
builds on and has to incorporate pre-existing social
processes/resources.