The day the Austrian Empire annexed the north-west of Moldova, naming the area Bukowina. What the new rule meant for Romanians VIDEO

On May 7, 1775, the Austrian Empire annexed northwestern Moldavia, naming the area Bukowina. The unique ornaments of culture and art were founded here: the Bucovina monasteries.

Upper Moldova with the lands of Suceava and Chernivtsi represented the core of the new voivodeship since the beginning of the Moldavian statehood (1359). Here will be the first capitals of the country (Siret, Suceava), here, in Rădăuți, will be the necropolis of the first Musătini and also here will be founded those unique ornaments of culture and art: the Bucovina monasteries, the offering of faith and love of country brought by an Alexander the Good, Stephen the Great or Petru Rareș.

Until 1774, the current territory of Bucovina was a part of the Upland of Moldavia, the individuality of the region taking shape after its inclusion in the Habsburg Empire.

The Austrians, through blackmail and intimidation, managed to force the Ottoman Empire to sign, on May 7, 1775, the convention, composed of four points, by which the north of Moldova, with the old capital Suceava and the tomb of the great Stefan from Putna, became part of the Habsburg Empire.

In reality, Bucovina was the object of a rapture as odious as that of Bessarabia in 1812 in favor of the other great Christian power, bordering the Romanian Principalities, the Habsburg Empire, writes Dan Falcan in Historia.

The only one who opposed this Turkish-Austrian transaction with the complicity of the Russians, is the lord of Moldavia, Grigore III-lea Ghica (1774-1777) who in December 1774, protested vehemently at the Gate against the removal of Bucovina from the body of Moldavia, reminding that the said territory was not it was never part of Pocutia, and its occupation cannot be considered a “friendly act” on the part of Austria.

Map Collection https://deutsche-schutzgebiete.de

This firm position of Grigore III Ghica was also the determining factor of his death, Ion Nistor reproduces in the History of Bucovina the notes of a correspondent from Istanbul regarding the cause of the assassination of the ruler of Moldavia by order of the sultan: “the district of Bucovina was the main cause of the assassination of Prince Ghica. This gentleman did not want at any cost to consent to the cession of Bucovina in favor of Austria. As you can see, he behaves like an independent sovereign”.

The 144 years of Austrian rule in Bucovina had a contradictory balance for the Romanian population. On the one hand, the territory removed from Ottoman influence experienced a long period of peace, even during the Napoleonic wars, being safe from the invasions of the Turks or the Russians. Integrated into the Habsburg Empire, Bucovina was directly and more quickly influenced by modern European ideas.

The Austrian administration modernized institutions, introduced the separation of justice from administration, stimulated the development of the economy, encouraging agriculture, crafts and trade. On the other hand, the Orthodox Romanians were the target of abuses by the administration, which generated migrations, massive in certain periods, towards Moldova. Emigration to Moldova intensified after the abolition of the province of Bucovina and its inclusion in Galicia (1786).

The territory became a duchy in 1849, later uniting with Romania on November 15/28, 1918, so that, on June 28, 1940, as a result of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, its northern part together with Bessarabia and the Herța Territory were occupied by the USSR

In 1991, after the breakup of the USSR, the north of Bukovina and Herta Land became part of Ukraine (Cernăuţi region).

Chernivtsi Metropolitan Palace Archives

“When I say Bucovina I think of the charm and suffering of our history, which includes both cathedrals, superior music, fallen angels painted on icons, folk costumes, painted eggs and the straight lines of pastures on the hills”. Bucovina also reminds him of “teachers from Romanian schools who teach, in the north, the Romanian language according to the catalog and Cyrillic programs; but also to the native language needs of the Ukrainians from the south, equal to the native language needs of the Romanians from the north”, testifies Dorin Popescu, former diplomat of the Romanian state in Chernivtsi (2007-2011).

Bucovina is a historical region comprising a territory of over 10,000 square kilometers covering the area adjacent to the cities of Cajvana, Câmpulung Moldovenesc, Gura Humorului, Frasin, Milișăuți, Rădăuți, Siret, Solca, Suceava, Vatra Dornei and Vicovu de Sus in Romania, as well as Chernivtsi, Cozmeni, Zastavna, Vășcăuți on Ceremus, Vijnita, Sadagura and Storojineț from Ukraine.