The Monument of Buzesti Brothers

The "Eugeniu Carada" Monument in Craiova is a public monument located in the square known as " The Fountain of Romanescu" (near the Students Cultural House at the crossroads of Aries, C.D. Fortunescu and Eugeniu Carada streets). The 1936 work of art of the sculptor Mihai Onofrei is a tribute paid to the great economist, politician and journalist of Craiova, Eugeniu Carada.

The Monument of Tudor Vladimirescu is a monument of local public interest, the work of art of the French Romanian sculptor, Margareta Cosăceanu-Lavrillier. The bronze sculpture, donated to Craiova by the artist, was inaugurated in 1960. The monument is located in the square in front of the Faculty of Agronomy, oriented towards the Mihai Bravu Garden and the Glogoveanu House - the former headquarters of the Craiova Court, where the leader of the Revolution of 1821 lived. On the base of the statue is an inscription: "Tudor Vladimirescu 1780-1821". Source: www.monumenteoltenia.ro Photo: audiotravelguide.ro

The statue of Alexandru Ioan Cuza was executed in 1912 by the Italian sculptor Raffaello Romanelli. The sculptor cast in bronze two copies of the statue of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza (1859-1866), one for the city of Iasi, the other one being brought to Craiova in 1912. Located in 1935 in front of the Minerva Hotel, it will be inaugurated in 1939. One year later, it was moved downtown, on the north side of the English Park Garden, in front of the Town Hall. The statue represents the ruler standing up straight, holding his sword with both hands, a symbol of ​​determination and dignity.

The decision to erect a statue of Ioan Maiorescu was taken in 1909. The funds required were obtained by public subscription, the names of the donors being published in the Ramuri Magazine. The execution of Ioan Maiorescu's bust (bronze) was entrusted to the sculptor Ion Iordanescu. The work of art was finished in 1911 and the inauguration took place on January 7, 1913. Initially placed in Bibescu Park, in 1928 it was moved in front of the Carol I National College. After the earthquake in 1977 it was relocated on the square in front of Elena Cuza National College. The bust is cast in bronze, and the base is made of stone from Câmpulung. A male torso (the symbol of time) is detached from the socket rock, wrapping in a curtain, with both arms, the shoulders of the bust. On the stone socket is engraved: "To Ioan Maiorescu 1811-1864". On the back of the socket is a paragraph from one of the great Romanian diplomat speeches. Source: memorielocala.aman.ro Photo: www.monumenteoltenia.ro, www.audiotravelguide.ro

Considered to be the first public monument built in Craiova, it was inaugurated on December 8, 1918. It is located in the courtyard of the Holy Trinity Church - founded by Dumitrana Ştirbei (wife of the great stolnic Constantin Ştirbei, former caimacan of Craiova in 1741) - on the other side of the Carol I National College. The monument was made by the French sculptor Jean Lecomte du Nouy in 1907, and was cast in Varbedienne bronze. The monument shows the ruler standing, wearing a royal cloak on his shoulders, and several decorations on his chest. In his right hand, the ruler holds a parchment saying, "We have entrusted you with the defense of our country and our destiny." At his feet there is a young man holding a sickle in one hand and a wheat sheaf in the other hand. There is also an eagle with its wings spread out. There are a few bas-reliefs on the statue's base, representing Romania, a book listing the important documents in the history of the country, in which the ruler took part, a map representing the Danube plain, from Drobeta Turnu Severin to Braila and other elements. Lord Barbu Dimitrie Ştirbei was born in Craiova in August 1799 and died in Nizza, on 12 April 1869. He reigned between Jan. 1949 - 29 Oct 1853 and Oct. 5 1854 - 25 January 1856. He faced the weight of maintaining the Russian-Turkish armies and the power of the extraordinary commissioners. He obtained their retreat in 1851.He built the Theater in Bucharest, reopened many schools, closed during the 1848 Revolution, and improved the text of the Organic Regulation for Peasants. In 1853 he retired to Vienna due to the Russian occupation and returned on the throne in 1854, under Austrian occupation, having many restrictions. After the Congress of Paris (1856) his reign was no longer prolonged. Source: memorielocala.aman.ro

The Administrative Palace of Craiova, located at 19 Calea Unirii, is one of the most representative buildings in the city. Built in the first part of the 20th century according to the plans of architect Petre Antonescu, in the neo-Romanian style promoted by Ion Mincu, the edifice today houses two of the most important institutions of the county: the Prefecture and the Dolj County Council. The Administrative Palace was built at the beginning of the 20th century, most probably between 1912-1913 (the starting year of the construction differs from source to source, from 1907/1909/1910/1912). It is said that Prime Minister Ion I. C. Bratianu, present at Craiova at the liberal meeting of June 24, 1909, would have been present at the placement of the act at the foundation of the building. The constructor appointed by Antonescu for building the Administrative Palace was Giovanni Battista Peressutti. From an aesthetic point of view, the façade decoration is distinguished by the numerous original elements, but which reinterpret the elements of the old Romanian architecture: the roof with green enameled tile, decorative elements of zinc sheet and skylights, the loggias, balconies and bay windows on the side façades of the floor, the console crevasses, the trilobal springs from the windows, the window frames, the columns, friezes and stone sinks, the decorative brackets or rainwater gutters, modeled with the twisted rope motif. Starting with April 1, 1915, the Prefectural Palace hosted at the ground floor the Dolj County Antiquities and Ethnography Museum, set up at the initiative of history professor Ştefan Ciuceanu, and from 1928 it became the Regional Museum of Oltenia. During the period 1916-1918, during the German occupation in Craiova, the institutions that had their headquarters in the Administrative Palace were evacuated, as the German Railways Directorate was set up here. At the departure of the Germans from Oltenia, the furniture and the building were devastated, and the patrimony of the Regional Museum was severely affected by the German occupation robbery. On December 12, 1922, the Craiova Scientific Society (director professor Marin Demetrescu) was set up in the Prefecture's office, which aimed at endowing the capital of Oltenia with a Museum of Natural History. In 1934, the collections of the Regional Museum were moved to the basement of the Prefecture, in the halls facing Calea Unirii. In September of the same year, the festive hall of the Administrative Palace hosted the Congress of Numismatics and Archaeology in Craiova. In 1935, due to the works, a crack appeared in the dome of the honor stairs. The consolidation was done under the direct supervision of Petre Antonescu, the architect of the original project. Starting with February 24, 1945, the building will host the Regional People’s Council (until 1968), the Dolj County Committee of the Romanian Communist Party (PCR) and the Dolj County Council (until 1989), and since 1989 it has housed the Prefecture and the Dolj County Council . The earthquake in 1977 affected the Administrative Palace building, which has later undergone extensive repair works. Since 1989, the Administrative Palace of Craiova houses the Prefecture and Dolj County Council. Source: www.monumenteoltenia.ro

The building of the University of Craiova, originally built to serve as the Palace of Justice, is an architectural monument of national interest and one of the most representative buildings in the city. Designed in 1890 by the architect Ion Socolescu, the building is an illustration of Neoclassicism in architecture. It is located downtown, on Alexandru Ioan Cuza Street, no. 13. The building was built between 1894 and 1912. From the very beginning, were visible both from the outside and the inside, arechitectural elements borrowed from classicism, such as the triangular pediment and the peristyle of the three-door main entrance, surrounded by four composite columns (with corinthian and ionic elements). The palace was surrounded by a fence with a wrought iron grid fixed on a concrete foundation, with pillars from place to place. Between the building and the fence, on all sides of the building, is a green space. The initial form of the Palace of Justice building was a quadrangle crossed in the middle by a central structure that corresponded to the main entrance, dominated by a classic pediment, from where you can admire a group of statues picturing "The Blindfolded Justice", removed after 1948. After the change of the building's destination, the word "UNIVERSITY", written in capital letters, was placed under its pediment. In 1912 there was a partial inauguration of the building, and another one took place in 1914, when the palace already had 4 levels. Later, the edifice was extended, repaired and modernized successively, reaching 5 and 6 levels. The projects concerning the additions from the interwar period, through which a wing of the building was built, were drawn by the architect Iancu Atanasescu. The plans for the expansion of the building that was completed in the 1970s (1972-1975) were conceived by the architect Petre Falcon. The Palace of Justice was built to serve as the headquarters of various courts of justice in Craiova. Between 1941 and 1944, the palace was occupied by German troops. With the departure of the Germans, the courts of law (the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal) returned to this place until 1951. In 1948, the first higher education institution in Craiova ( The Agronomic Institute) has been established here. At the same time, the western side of the palace was occupied by local administrative institutions (The County Seat). Between 1951-1958, the eastern wing of the building sheltered the second higher education institute, the Institute of Machinery and Electrical Devices (The Technical Institute). For a short time, between 1958-1959, the Palace of Justice became the home of the regional, district and city courts, the prosecutor's office and the bar. Staring with 1966, the imposing building has been in use and has become the property of the newly established University of Craiova. Source: www.monumenteoltenia.ro Photo: https://www.facebook.com/ucvro/

The Carol I High School building in Craiova is an architectural monument of national interest, built at the end of the XIX th century. The edifice is located in the central area of ​​Craiova, near the Oteteleşanu School (the current Elena Cuza National College) and the Church of the Holy Trinity, on Ioan Maiorescu Street, no. 2. The building currently houses the Carol I National College, the second oldest secondary school institution in Romania. The history of this school begins in 1826, when two former students of Gheorghe Lazar and Ion Heliade Rădulescu, professor Stanciu Capataneanu and teacher Grigore Pleşoianu set up the Secondary National School, the second secondary school in the Principalities, after St. Sava College in Bucharest . In the beginning, the Central School functioned in the cells of the Obedeanu Monastery, then at the Madona Dudu Church. In October 1832, it was bought the current land of the College, in the centre of Craiova, with the amount of 300 gold coins donated by Iordache Otetelisanu. It was not until 1842 that the first location was inaugurated, the one immortalized by the painter Theodor Aman in the painting "Hora Unirii la Craiova ". In the big hall of the school, Ion Heliade Radulescu read The Proclamation of Izlaz, while Maiorescu, the head of the institution, climbed into a tree in front of the building and read the same Proclamation to pupils and other inhabitants of Craiova. After the defeat of the Revolution of 1848, for three years, the school closes because it does not have the necessary teachers, and the Turks turn the building into a garrison and a kitchen, heating their food with the furniture and the books in the library. Through the efforts of Professor G.M. Fontanin, who becomes head of the institution for almost 30 years, the school is reopened in 1854. In 1885, by high Royal Decree, the school was named "Carol I" High School. Between 1893 and 1895, was built the current high school building costing more than one million lei. King Carol I himself added at the foundation a metal cylinder containing the official document of the construction that will become a heritage building. The frescoes from the library and the round hall were made by the painter Francis Tribalski, and the new dome building was furnished with luxurious furniture. But this location also became a hospital during the First World War. In 1948, on the occasion of the centenary of the Revolution of 1848, the high school received the name "Nicolae Bălcescu" People's College, but in 1997 it will return to the old name "Carol I", which is preserved until today. Besides, both historical personalities are considered spiritual mentors of the College of Craiova. Over the years, the outstanding results of the students gave international recognition to the "Carol I" National College. The students, guided by outstanding teachers, gained 52 international awards, including 17 gold medals, 22 silver medals and 13 bronze medals. The school library is the most important school library in the country. It was founded in 1836 and bears the name of Mihail Strajan, a high school teacher during 1881-1902. He was the one who supplied the library with books and decorated it with expensive furniture. The Mihail Strajan Library contains heritage books, such as the Bible from Bucharest (1688). The oldest book dates back to 1514. Some heritage books were part of the library of Constantin Cantacuzino. The school also take pride in its butterfly collection (donated by Claudia and Ion Stănoiu and completed by Adrian and Ioana Rusescu), which includes thousands of specimens gathered around the globe. Another important piece from the high school's heritage is the collection of rocks collected by the teachers Dumitru and Ştefania Alexandrescu. One of the high value objects ​​sheltered by the high school is "The Ecorché" by Constantin Brâncuşi, made in collaboration with doctor D. Gerota and located in the biology laboratory. Source: www.cnc.ro; https://www.facebook.com/colegiulnational/ Photo: https://www.facebook.com/colegiulnational/

The Palace is located in Craiova, Frații Buzeşti Street, no. 10. Here, more than 100 years ago, Gogu Vorvoreanu, a well-known landowner and attorney-at-law, laid the foundation for his future family residence. For this purpose, the boyar has used the finest materials and the most talented craftsmen, desiring with all the urgency that the new construction will successfully pass through time his family crest and legacy. "Vorvoreanu" Palace was built at the beginning of the 20th century, between 1905-1910, according to the plans of famous architect Dimitrie Maimarolu. The harmony of shapes, authentically woven in a pure Renaissance style, brings together the delicacy and the finishing touches of an interior rich in ornaments with the impetuosity of the outer forms and bas-reliefs. Between 1916 and 1918 the German Military Command functioned in this palace. Vorvoreanu Palace and many other properties and assets of the family were nationalized by the Communists. Assets in the palace were not alienated. However, the sacrifice of the forerunners did not remain unpaid, and on May 31, 1964, after repeated attempts made by the representatives of the Craiova Archdiocese to the State Council of the Socialist Republic of Romania, the ”jewel” at Fratii Buzeşti Street no. 10 passed into the property of the Church, in exchange with the House of the Bania. In the old Vorvoreni courtyard, a beautiful wooden church was displaced from Tălpăşeşti, Gorj, in 1975. The holy place, dedicated to "All Saints", is more than 260 years old and was founded by the monk Daniil of the Tismana Lavra, with the support of the Tălpăşeşti population. Today it functions as a metropolitan chapel, with a liturgical daily program. Source: www.mitropoliaolteniei.ro Photo: www.monumenteromania.ro