Interbelicul militar. Prolegomene pentru un tablou al epocii
The Romanian Military During the Interwar Period. Prolegomena to an Era

Summary/Abstract: This study analyses the Romanian military system in the period between the two world wars, commonly known as the interwar period. During this time, it developed according to the experience of World War I, something that was very noticeable in the debates pertaining to the organization of the military body. In other words, Romania undeniably suffered from the “syndrome of the last war”. Another major influence was the French military model, which was adopted by the Romanian army in the period 1916-1918 and preserved during the interwar period. The military body has gone through several stages, consistent with the developments on the international stage. Thus, in the period 1919-1924, the military structures of unified Romania were brought together, a process not without its own challenges: the integration of a significant number of military personnel from the former Austro-Hungarian and Russian armies; the expansion of the military infrastructure in the territories that united with Romania in 1918; the creation of a legislative framework attuned to the new realities, etc. This was followed by roughly a decade in which the pace of the reforms was modest, meaning that the army suffered serious setbacks in terms of training and equipment. By the mid-1930s, concomitantly with the worsening of the international environment and the prospect of a new war, Romania launched a race against time for strengthening the army. However, the army was not able to avoid the dismantling of the country’s borders in the summer of 1940. Furthermore, it found itself in a humiliating position, being forced to withdraw from Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina, north-eastern Transylvania and from the Quadrilater without opposing any resistance.

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