Great Union Day

Great Union Day
Official nameRomanian: Ziua Națională a României
Also calledRomanian: Ziua Marii Uniri
Observed byRomania
Moldova (unofficially)
CelebrationsMilitary parades (most notably in Alba Iulia and Bucharest), fireworks
ObservancesTe Deum at the Alba Iulia Orthodox Cathedral
Date1 December
Next time1 December 2024 (2024-12-01)
Related toDay of the Unification of the Romanian Principalities (24 January)
Map of Romania in 1919 with new regions annexed to it.

Great Union Day (Romanian: Ziua Marii Uniri, also called Unification Day[1] or National Day) is a national holiday in Romania, celebrated on 1 December, marking the unification of Transylvania, Bassarabia, and Bukovina with the Romanian Kingdom in 1918, something that is known as the Great Union.[2] This holiday was declared after the Romanian Revolution and commemorates the Great National Assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia, who declared the Union of Transylvania with Romania.[3]

Prior to 1948, until the abolition of the monarchy, the national holiday was on 10 May, which had a double meaning: it was the day on which King Carol I set foot on Romanian soil (in 1866), and the day on which the prince ratified the Declaration of Independence (from the Ottoman Empire) in 1877. From 1948, during the period of Communist administration, the national holiday was on 23 August, Liberation from Fascist Occupation Day, to mark the 1944 overthrow of the pro-fascist government of Marshal Ion Antonescu, with parades held in Charles de Gaulle Square (then called Stalin Square and later Aviators' Square).

  1. ^ "Romania – Government". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  2. ^ Sigmirean, Ioan (2018). "Marea Unire din anul 1918 – o minune istorică" [The Great Union of 1918 - a historical miracle]. Arhiva Someșană (in Romanian). 16: 11–20. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  3. ^ "TITLUL III – Timpul de muncă şi timpul de odihnă" [TITLE III – Working time and rest periods]. Romanian Labor Code. Archived from the original on 18 June 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2023.

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