Best Moldova History Timeline. Will Moldova join Romania?

The Moldova History Timeline: The land occupied today by the Republic of Moldavia was originally inhabited by the Dacians, settled at a transition point between Europe and Asia. Due to this strategic location, the area has been invaded numerous times by both Russians and Mongols. In the Middle Ages, the Moldavian territory comprised the area between the Carpathians and the Dniester River populated mainly by Romanians.

Sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova emerged as an independent republic following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The Republic of Moldova (Moldova) is one of the most recently created countries in existence. As a result of the disintegration of the USSR, it has had strong internal tensions, which even provoked a civil war.

History On Moldova

• Capital: Chisinau
• Area: 33,851 sq km
• Population: 2.6 million
• Languages: Moldovan, plus Gagauz, Russian, Ukranian
• Life expectancy: 67 years (men) 76 years (women)

What was Moldova called before?

Moldovan history: The Moldovan region has undergone several name changes throughout its rich history. During the time when the area was under the control of the Ottoman Empire it was called Black Wallachia which in Turkish can be translated to Kara-Eflak. This name is rooted back to the time of the reign of Bogdan I (or Bogdan the Founder) which spanned the years 1359 to 1367. Moldova was also once called Bogdania, again in connection with the Romanian founder of the region.

Formerly known as Bessarabia, this region was an integral part of the Romanian principality of Moldavia until 1812, when it was ceded to Russia by its suzerain, the sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Bessarabia remained a province of the Russian Empire until after World War I, when it became a part of Greater Romania, and it reverted to Russian control in 1940–41 and again after World War II, when it was joined to a strip of formerly Ukrainian territory, the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, on the left bank of the Dniester River (Moldovan: Nistru) to form the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic.

Prehistory of Moldova

Archaeological finds have indicated that humans were present at least 800,000 years ago in the area that is now Moldova. The oldest artifacts to date were found near the town of Dubasari, on the Dniester river: three paleolithic stone tools made from sandstone, and four flint pieces. 1

Other cultures lived in the area at later dates, including the Linear Pottery culture (ranging from Poland to the Carpathians), the Cucuteni–Trypillia culture (centered on Moldova but ranging from western Ukraine to northern Romania) and the Yamnaya culture (a culture between the Dniester and the Ural rivers).

• 300 BC Moldova History

Throughout recorded antiquity, Moldova was inhabited by many tribes. The most notable of these were the Akatziri, the Sarmatians, the Scythians, and the Bastarnae – coming from Turkish, Germanic, Iranian, and Celtic origins.

The Bastarnae were a Celtic/Germanic tribe, speaking proto-Celtic. They emigrated from the Vistula River valley (now southern Poland).

• 106 AD Moldova History

The Roman Empire, at its peak, conquered what they called Dacia, a wide range of lands spreading between the Danube, the Carpathians, and Ukraine. The Roman province of Budjak made up the Black Sea area of Ukraine and southern Moldova. 2

• 300 History of Moldova

The Bastarnae tribe was essentially assimilated by the Sarmatians, an early nomadic tribe with origins in the Caucasus that spoke a form of Iranian. The Sarmatians started migrating west during the 3rd and 4th centuries, first into the area that is now the Crimean Peninsula and finally into the Dniester basin.

• 400 History Moldova

The Scythians were a Eurasian nomadic tribe, wandering around the Eurasian steppe. Scholars estimate that by 300-400 AD, the Scythians had merged with and assimilated most of the earlier tribes in the area, including the Sarmatians.

• 447 Moldova History

Another tribe in the area, the Akatzirs, were conquered by Attila the Hun, who swept through Eastern Europe with his army on their way to sack Rome in 452. After Attila’s death in 453, the Huns were broken and ceased to be a major influence in the ancient world. Rome’s influence on the region increased. 3

• 500 Moldova History

During the Early Middle Ages, the area that is now Moldova was populated by the Early Slavs, a proto-Slavic people that had absorbed the incoming nomads from the steppes. Although Rome was declining in power, the region was still under Roman rule until the 6th century. 4

• 904 Moldova History

In the 8th century, with the rise of the Byzantine Empire, the lower half of Moldova was under the rule of the First Bulgarian Empire. The upper half was allied with the Empire. Along with this shift in power dynamics, the Slavs began to convert to Christianity. Writing was first introduced in the form of Old Church Slavonic, which remained the dominant form of literature in Moldova until the 1800s.

• 1100 Moldova History Timeline

During the 12th century, Moldova was ruled by the Principality of Halychian Rus, which was centered around Halych, a large city in southwestern Ukraine. Sandwiched in between the Kievan Rus and the Kingdom of Poland, the governance of Halych reached an apex at the year 1144 and was closely allied with the Byzantine Empire to the south. After a long decline, Halych was finally captured in 1241 by the Mongol army.

• 1218 In Moldova

The Second Bulgarian Empire, which lasted from 1185 to 1396, ruled over the lands of Moldova throughout the 13th century. Under the rule of Boril in 1218, Bulgarian territory reached almost as far as Odessa, covering most of the territory in between the Prut and the Dniester rivers.

• 1300 In History of Moldova

In the 13th and 14th centuries, large numbers of Jewish migrants from Central Europe settled in the region of Ukraine, Poland, and Moldova. Over the next five hundred years, the Jewish population would ebb and flow but remain a major portion of the population. 5

• 1359 Moldova History

The Principality of Moldavia, which covered areas of modern Moldova, Ukraine, and Romania, was established in 1359. Bogdan I, a vassal in Hungarian-controlled Maramures, rebelled and fled Hungarian lands. He marched his army across the mountains and settled on the banks of the Moldova River, taking control of the region and establishing the Principality of Moldavia.

• 1457 Moldova History

Stephen the Great, also known as Stephen III of Moldavia, was the voivode (prince) of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504. Hailed as one of the greatest leaders of Moldova, as a young man his family was deposed from the throne. He returned to Moldavia with the help of Vlad III Dracula, and seized control of the throne in 1457. During his reign, Moldavia was at perhaps it’s highest prominence, though wars with Hungary, Wallachia, Poland, and the Ottoman Empire were a constant source of troubles. Stephen the Great died in 1504.

Origin and Antiquity of Moldova

Interesting facts about Moldova: To know the origins of Moldova, you must first know what its geographical location is. Only then will you be able to understand many of the historical events that this nation has gone through.

Beyond the Carpathians, it borders Romania to the west, and Ukraine, which surrounds it to the north, east and south, lies Moldova (Moldova), until 1991 one of the republics of the Soviet Union. It is an elongated piece of land drawn between the Dniester and Prut rivers, with the exception of the strip closest to the coast, which belongs to Ukraine.

In ancient times, the territory of the current Republic of Moldavia was inhabited by the Dacians. Due to its strategic location on the route between Europe and Asia, Moldavia suffered numerous invasions from other peoples, including the Mongols and Kievan Rus’. The lands that formed the medieval Principality of Moldova are currently divided between Ukraine, Moldova and Romania.

Middle Ages History Moldova

Mid age Moldova History: During the Middle Ages, Moldavia was made up of a territory populated by Vlachs for the most part. These lands are located between the Dniester River to the east and the Carpathian Mountains to the west.

Having as its nucleus the Bukovina, during the fourteenth century, the Principality of Moldavia was created. In the first decade of the fifteenth century he was a subject of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In 1512 occupied and invaded by the Ottomans. Moldavia became a tributary member of the Ottoman Empire, with Podolia as its northern limit, and Jedisan as its eastern boundary.

Modern Age

Modern history of Moldova: With the Treaty of Bucharest in 1812, Bessarabia was transferred to the Russian Empire which became one of the “Danube Principalities”. Instead, the western part of Moldova became part of Romania. After the Crimean War, Russia’s borders receded. But Bessarabia remained in Russian rule.

Soviet occupation of Moldova

After the Russian Revolution, Bessarabia became an independent republic in 1918. However, most of the population was ethnic Romanian and it was decided to Union with Romania in 1918. Thus, only a small strip of land in Transnistria remained within the USSR.

In June 1940, the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact caused the Soviet Union to take Bessarabia. However, in 1941 the soldiers were expelled by Nazi soldiers in an operation called “Operation Barbarossa”. In 1944, Soviet soldiers reoccupied this area.

During Soviet rule, the southern (inhabited by Romanians) and northern (inhabited by Ukrainians) regions became part of Ukraine. The territory of Transnistria (of Russian and Ukrainian population) was annexed with the rest forming part of a new Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic.

How long has Moldova been a country?

In 1991 Moldova declared an independent country. During the Second World War it was occupied by the Soviet Union which reclaimed it from Romania. It joined the Union as the Moldavian ASSR, until the dissolution of the USSR. In 1991 the country declared independence as the Republic of Moldova. On 27 August 1991, following the coup’s collapse, Moldova declared its independence from the Soviet Union. In May 1991, the country’s official name was changed to the Republic of Moldova (Republica Moldova). The name of the Supreme Soviet also was changed to the Moldovan Parliament. On March 2, 1992, the country achieved formal recognition as an independent state at the United Nations.

Independence of Moldova

Independence Moldova History: After the demise of the USSR in 1991, the country was plunged into strong ethnic and political tensions. The Moldovan Supreme Soviet declared the independence of Moldova (1991) and Mircea Snegur, chairman of the Supreme Soviet, was elected president of the Republic.

Are Moldovans Slavic? In Moldova history, Two predominantly Slavic enclaves, Transnistria and Gagauzia, unilaterally proclaimed their independence. In March 1992 Moldova was admitted to the United Nations (UN) and joined the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Moldova war history: The Transnistrian conflict provoked clashes between armed groups, which degenerated into a civil war (May-June 1992). But, under pressure from Moscow, Russophiles and Moldovans signed a peace agreement (July 21, 1992) that included a statute of autonomy for Transnistria and the right of secession in case of union of Moldova with Romania.

Faced with strong economic dependence and Russian pressures, Snegur abandoned the integration project in Romania, defended the option of “one people, two states” (Moldovan and Romanian) and signed an agreement with Bucharest (December 6, 1992) that aimed towards a policy of economic and cultural integration. The Gagauz minority also achieved the status of “national autonomous department” in Komrat district.

In the first multiparty legislative elections (1994) the Agrarian Democratic Party, in favour of maintaining independence, won the majority of the votes, and that same month, the results of a referendum on independence ratified the popular will to maintain territorial integrity.

Recent History of Moldova Timeline

On 8 May 1997, under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Russia and Ukraine, a memorandum was signed ratifying the territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova on its 1990 borders.

In the legislative elections of 1998 the Socialist Party (ex-communist) triumphed which advocates a closer collaboration with Russia, but the Democratic and center parties formed a coalition to support the president of the pro-Russian left Petru Lucinschi (elected in 1996) and the government of Ion Giubuc.

In 2000, a parliamentary act was passed replacing universal suffrage in the election of the president with a parliamentary vote and limiting his term of office to four years. A year later the Communists (CPM) came to power with an absolute majority, and their leader, Vladimir Voronin, held the presidency, and later announced his intention to join the economic union of Russia and Belarus.

Moldova joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001. While the Transnistrian conflict remains unresolved and Russian troops remain in the area, popular revolts of Moldovans demanding a change in the policy of the communist government are intensifying.

History of the flag of Moldova

On the Moldovan flag stands the golden eagle of the Danubian principality of Wallachia, formerly integrated into the kingdom of Romania. It carries on its beak a cross, and on its legs, a bouquet and the scepter of Stephen III the Great (1433-1504).

Protected by the wings of the bird of prey (ancestral Moldovan symbol), a rose, a buffalo head, a crescent and a star adorn the Moldovan shield. A year before independence, in 1990 the current Moldovan flag was introduced with the colors of the Romanian pavilion, blue-yellow-red. Blue as the sky, yellow for the riches of the subsoil and red for bravery.

Bessarabia, located between the Prut and Dniester rivers, bordering Romania and Ukraine respectively, constitutes the main part of Moldova. In 1918 this country, with a mild climate and conducive to agriculture, was integrated into neighboring Romania, with which it maintains close relations.

In 1940 the Soviets annexed Moldova. Baptized as the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, it was invaded by the troops of the German Third Reich in June 1941, within the framework of “Operation Barbarossa” against the USSR, and was not recovered by the Red Army until the end of 1944.

Will Moldova join Romania?

Will Moldova join Romania? The system under study is highly unstable determined by the high level of corruption that mainly affects Moldova but also Romania. The main risk variables, in addition to the unresolved conflict in Transnistria, are: the political influence exerted by the two most powerful actors on the ground, the EU and Russia.

On the other hand, the desire for unity between Romania and Moldova remains strong in part of the population of these countries.

In view of the most likely future scenario, the resolution of the conflict in Transnistria is not foreseeable. This territory will remain outside the control of the Government of Chisinau. In this sense, the direct reunification of Romania and Moldova is unlikely. This is all about Moldova History timeline.

Read Also History of Romania 

References

History of Moldova | Historical events in Moldova | (curiosfera-historia.com)

Brief history of Moldova : Journey to Eastern Europe (viajeaeuropadeleste.com)

THE POSSIBLE UNIFICATION OF ROMANIA AND MOLDOVA – Fesei.org

https://www.britannica.com/

The History of Moldova