Bucharest hotel that hosted the 1859 union to undergo refurbishment

The Concordia Hotel in the capital will undergo refurbishment beginning this spring, the Bucharest City Hall said. The hotel, a historical monument building, hosted on January 24, 1859, the election of prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza as ruler of the Ţara Românească principality. This came after Cuza was elected ruler of the Moldova principality on January 5 of the same year, and began the unification process of the two regions of Romania. The hotel is located in Bucharest’s Old Town, on Smârdan street. The City Hall said the current owner of the building is set to finalize within two weeks the paperwork needed to receive the construction authorization. After its refurbishment, the building will continue to be a hotel, and also host conferences and other events. The hotel was built in 1852, with a total of 90 rooms. The building was damaged in a fire in 1884 and, after being rebuilt, it was damaged again in another fire in 1901-1902. The hotel remained opened throughout the Second World War. Historians describe the hotel as the capital’s most European of its time, with foreign clients who were able to find there the same standard of service they would in Vienna. During the communist period, it was administered by the state, and given for use to workers. It is currently in a derelict state, and numerous NGOs and patrimony protection groups launched appeals to have it refurbished. In 2013, a petition, signed by historians, professors and Romanian Academy members, called for the renovation of the building. In 2016, the Bucharest branch of the Romanian Architects’ Order (OAR) asked the City Hall to ensure the right use of the patrimony building as “a public place, keeper of the memory of a national history moment.” This week, on Tuesday, January 23, one day before the 1859 union celebration, architect Şerban Sturdza (pictured) published on his Facebook page a manifesto that showed the ruin state of the Concordia Hotel. The manifesto was written under the headline “Shame! We are celebrating a century since the Great Union in the same damaging way that has come to characterize us.” “The Bucharest building where the union between Moldova and Ţara Românească was made is in a state of collapse for several years now. The same elected officials that are celebrating [e.n. the union] in Iaşi, do not care about it. Just as it happens with almost anything that means patrimony. Shame!” This year, Romania is celebrating 100 years since the 1918 union, when Transylvania, and other provinces, joined the Romanian Kingdom, made up at the time of Ţara Românească and Moldova. (Photos: Serban Sturdza on Facebook) editor@romania-insider.com