Some Postage Stamp Heroes of Magical Moldova Quiz

Answer: Hungary

Although historical records are a bit vague, it seems that King Charles I of Hungary (1308-1342) appointed Bogdan as voivode (a title that originally referred to a leader of armed forces, and then to the governor of a region) of Marmures, a region which was at that time a district of Hungary.

A quarrel with Louis I, son and successor of Charles I, led to the loss of this title, and Bogdan's move across the Carpathian mountains to what is now Moldova. There he established control, or at least started the process of removing Hungarian and Tartar influence from the region.

While Bogdan I was not the first to be considered a prince of Moldavia (that was Dragos of Bedeu who defended the region against the Golden Horde from 1352 to 1353), he was the first to do so as an autonomous ruler, not a delegate of Hungarian authority.

He successfully wrested control from Balc, son of Sas, who had succeeded to the title on the death of Dragos.

Answer: Son

As shown on the stamp, Stefan I ruled from 1394 until 1399. He was succeeded by his brother Iuga (also called George in English), whose short rule was ended in 1400 when Mircea I of Wallachia supported the challenge of another brother, Alexandru. Alexandru the Good managed to keep control for over 30 years, a period of amazing stability for this tumultuous region.

Answer: Ottoman Empire

Moldavia was right in the thick of the conflicting political interests in the area during the 15th century. Stefan successfully maintained independence (winning 46 out of 48 significant battles), and gained fame throughout Europe for his defeat of Hadim Suleiman Pasha, Bylerbey (Lord of lords) for the Balkan region in the battle of Vaslui in 1475.

This victory led to his being declared a "Champion of Christian Faith" by Pope Sixtus IV. In 1503, however, Stefan signed a treaty with Sultan Beyazid II which agreed to the payment of an annual tribute to the Turks in exchange for maintaining autonomy.

This was the beginning of the end for Moldavian independence.

Answer: Bald

It seems that the nickname did not actually apply to Petru himself, but to his mother's husband, thought to have been a wealthy fish merchant. Petru was apparently not as good a military tactician as his father, and was forced to flee in 1538 when the forces of Suleiman the Magnificent brought Moldavia under the control of the Ottoman Empire.

The sultan put him back in charge of the area in 1541. Petru IV is buried in the Probota Monastery, one of many ecclesiastical buildings for which he arranged the construction and/or refurbishment.

Answer: Russia

Dimitrie Cantemir had only been on the throne for a few weeks when he signed an agreement with Peter the Great of Russia granting Russian suzerainty over Moldavia. They then waged war together against the Ottoman Empire. After a defeat in 1711, Cantemir and his family fled to Russia, where they settled, his children eventually playing some prominent roles in Russian society.

Cantemir was known as a linguist (fluent in at least ten languages) and author of many works, including his 'History of the Growth and Decay of the Ottoman Empire', which was considered the authoritative work on the subject until the middle of the 19th century, when the authenticity of many of its sources was cast into doubt. He also produced the first thorough political and geographical map of Moldavia in 1737.

Answer: Emancipation of serfs

Constantin Mavrocordat had interrupted reigns as Prince of Moldavia (1733-1735, 1741-1743, 1748-1749, 1769) and as Prince of nearby Wallachia (1730, 1731-1733, 1735-1741, 1744-1748, 1756-1758, 1761-1763). In both regions he instituted a number of fiscal and administrative reforms, many of them pragmatic responses to existing political realities. Because many serfs were leaving for Transylvania, he allowed them to move freely within Moldavia for a fee, encouraging them to stay in that region and, effectively, granting them freedom for a price.

He reduced the power of the boyars, feudal aristocrats ranking just under princes, by setting up professional administrators to control financial and judicial matters.

Answer: Bessarabia

After the Russo-Turkish War that ended in 1812, the eastern part of Moldavia became part of the Russian Empire, and was renamed as the oblast (district), and later guberniya (province), of Bessarabia. In 1940, most of Bessarabia was established as the Moldovan Socialist Republic, subsequently to become Moldova. The northernmost part, along with the southern region on the coast of the Black Sea, became part of Ukraine, leaving Moldova as a landlocked country.

Nicolae Donici came from a Romanian family, attended university in Odessa (Ukraine), and held a clerical post in St Petersburg (Russia). He used the name Donitch for most of his published astronomical work, which was conducted not only at his own private observatory, but also at observatories in a number of countries around the world. His primary area of research was solar astronomy.

Answer: National Moldavian Party

The National Moldavian Party (1917-1918) stood for Bessarabian autonomy. It evolved into the Bessarabian Peasants' Party in 1918, which successfully pushed for radical land reform prior to its demise in 1923. Pan Halippa was a leader in the movement for political union with Romania after independence from Russia was declared in 1918.

He held a number of government positions over the years, until his arrest and imprisonment in 1950. Sentenced in 1952 to 25 years hard labor in Siberia, he was actually incarcerated until 1957 in Romania, and died in Bucharest, where he is buried.

Answer: Pediatric surgery

After graduating from Bucharest University in 1940, Natalia Gheorghiu moved to Chisinau, the capital of Moldova, and started working as a pediatric surgeon. Thanks to her efforts, the first pediatric surgical ward in the country was opened in 1957, and a pediatric surgical centre, now named after her, followed.

She published several hundred papers on pediatric surgery, and received a number of awards in recognition of her work. A street in Chisinau was renamed in her honor.

Answer: Movie actor

Born in a town now called Causeni, Grigore Grigoriu made his film debut in 'Krasnye Polyany' (1966), but reached a wider audience in 'Queen of the Gypsies' (1976). This Soviet film, loosely based on several stories by Maxim Gorky, was one of the most popular movies of 1976 in the Soviet Union. Grigoriu starred as Loiko Zobar, a horse thief who becomes romantically entangled with the gypsy girl Rada.

After a career of over 20 films, Grigore Grigoriu died in a motor accident in the Moldovan district of Stefan Voda in 2003, aged 62.