ARHIVELE OLTENIEI - Universitatea din Craiova

140Tudor NedelceaBalkans, while verifying their provenience or their objectivity or contradictingwhen needed: “There isn’t truth in every piece of news regarding the Russian’sretreat from the Balkans gorges”, bringing the argument of the military logistic:“these strategic positions can’t be taken back from Russians so easy, because 5000 people are able to hold down 100 000 people” 15 .In order to verify, from a scientific point of view, the information andthe comments made by Eminescu, we must note down few historical dataregarding the Balkan war and the involving of Russia 16 .In 4 th / 6 th January 1876, Lascăr Catargiu, the president of the MinistersCouncil and the ad-interim minister, sent, to the Romanian diplomats fromabroad, a note to find the opinion of the guarantor powers regarding thepossibility for Romania to be declared neuter and independent. In 15 th / 27 thJanuary 1876, Mihail Kogălniceanu, our famous External Affairs minister, alsosent a memorial towards the diplomatic agents from abroad, in which he claimedto be done intense actions for the individual recognition of the Romanian state.In September 1876, these external initiatives began to take form: atLivadia, our prime minister, I. C. Brătianu and the War minister, N. Ionescu,accompanied by Romanian officers, were discussing with the tsar of Russia,Alexandru the Second and with Gorceakov, the Russian chancellor, thepossibility of the Russian troops to cross, towards Balkans, on the Romanianterritory. I. C. Brătianu required a written agreement for this particular case andhis proposal was accepted: in November / December 1876 was secretlyconcluded a treaty, although many of the negotiation’s questions weren’tfinalized. The Russian troops crossed The Prut at 11 th / 23 rd April 1877 withoutnoticing the Romanian authorities, and the proclamation of the great dukeNicholas, directly addressed to the “Romanian inhabitants” had the apt toundermine the authority of the prince and govern. The agreement for the tsaristarmy to cross the Romanian territory was approved in 16 th / 28 th April 1877 bythe Deputies Assembly and in 17 th / 29 th April 1877 by The Senate.In what concerns the top-level meeting between Russians andRomanians from Livadia, Eminescu adopted a critical position about keeping thetreaties secretly (although necessary in such cases) and for “the strange rumorthat our president minister would have been gone at Livadia to propose to Russiathe alliance and the supreme command of the Romanian army” 17 . Because of thesame reason was complaining Titu Maiorescu, although he, as a politician, knew15 Turcia, in “Curierul de Iaşi”, IX, nr. 88, 14 th August. 1877, p. 3.16 Apud Istoria Românilor, vol. VIII, tom. I, Constituirea României moderne (1821-1878), Bucureşti, The Enciclopedic Publishing House, 3003 (chapter elaborated by NicolaeAdăniloae).17 [“The foreign press is preoccupied …”], in “Curierul de Iaşi”, 9, nr. 110, 6thOctoberber 1876, p.1. Eminescu became acquainted and registered for his readers, but also for theposterity, all the Russian-Romanian top-level meetings, such was the meeting from Ungheni(Russia [“The day before yesterday, in 11 th /12 th April …”], in “Curierul de Iaşi”, 10, nr. 39, 13 thApril 1877, p. 3; Russia [“In order to complete the sayings …”], idem, nr.40, 15 th April 1877, p.3.)