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King
Carol I. of Romania Prince Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig von
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
(20.04.1839 - 10.10.1914)
place of birth: Sigmaringen, Provinz Hohenzollern
Romania:
His Majesty the King, hon. Generalfeldmarschall
Carol I
was elected prince of Romania in April 1866 following the
overthrow of Alexander John Cuza and proclaimed king on March 26, 1881.
He was the first ruler of the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen dynasty which
would rule the country until the proclamation of a republic in 1947.
During his reign, Romania achieved full independence from the Ottoman
Empire (Treaty of Berlin 1878) acquiring the southern part of the
Dobruja from Bulgaria in 1913. Domestic political life, still dominated
by the country's wealthy landowning families organized around the rival
Liberal and Conservative parties, was punctuated by two widespread
peasant uprisings, in Walachia (the southern half of the country) in
April 1888 and in Moldavia (the northern half) in March 1907.
King Carol I's childlessness left his elder
brother Leopold next in line to the throne. In October 1880 Leopold
renounced his right of succession in favor of his son William, who in
turn surrendered his claim eight years later in favor of his younger
brother, the future king Ferdinand. Carol I, known as Karl I in
Germany, was made an honorary Prussian field marshal in August 1913.
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