Steel Crown of Romania
The Steel Crown of King Carol I of Romania was forged at the Army Arsenal (Arsenalul Armatei) in Bucharest from the steel of a cannon captured by the Romanian Army from the Ottomans during its War of Independence (1877-1878).
Carol I chose steel, and not gold, to symbolize the bravery of the Romanian soldiers. He received it during the ceremonies of his coronation and of the proclamation of Romania as a kingdom in 1881. It is the same Crown used in 1922 at the coronation of King Ferdinand I and Queen Maria as sovereigns of Romania, which took place in Alba-Iulia. The Crown was used also during the coronation[1] and anointing as King of Michael I by the Orthodox Patriarch of Romania, Nicodim Munteanu, in the Patriarchal Cathedral of Bucharest, on the very day of his second accession, September 6, 1940.[2]
The National Socialist Party of Romania was a monarchist Nazi party. One of its logos was an eagle adapted from Nazi symbolism, clutching the swastika, but donning the Steel Crown of Romania.[3]
Image gallery
The symbol of the Royal Crown (the Romanian "Steel Crown"), depicted on the eastern façade of the Triumphal Arch ("Arcul de Triumf") in Bucharest.
References
- ↑ Fundamental Rules of the Royal Family of Romania Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine., The Romanian Royal Family website as retrieved on January 8, 2008
- ↑ (in Romanian) "The Joys of Suffering," Volume 2, "Dialogue with a few intellectuals", by Rev. Fr. Dimitrie Bejan - "Orthodox Advices" website as of January 21, 2008
- ↑ Francisco Veiga, Istoria Gărzii de Fier, 1919–1941: Mistica ultranaționalismului. page 133, Bucharest: Humanitas, 1993. ISBN 973-28-0392-4
