Abstract
HISTORIC DISCOURSE AND DIPLOMACY. CELEBRATION OF THE GREAT UNION IN POLAND (1928)
During the interwar period, Romanians paid special attention to the export of the autochthon historical discourse abroad. This was done, mainly, in order to reinforce the symbolism of the year 1918 and to argue that the Union was a natural event. This event was the outcome of a special frame of mind and of various strategies, consistently implemented in the past decades, which gradually built a destiny that culminated with the Great Union. If this was real or not, whether the national unity had been desired for several centuries or whether it was just a new and very bold project put into practice due to a favourable international political conjuncture, was of no importance anyway. Once the Union was accomplished, both the Romanian State and dispersed individuals (journalists, historians and politicians) were trying to catch the new political situation in a logical scheme, built in a historical becoming. Romanians rushed to use this type of explanation for other reasons: to prevent the revisionist dangers and to impose Europe a certain fact – the Union – which was not to be questioned by the external enemies in the future.
In this line, the use of history and historians in the external propaganda, favourable to Bucharest, seemed to be natural. They could do a more reliable service to Romania than the politicians by using scientific theories instead of dangerous political passions. However, as we notice, after 10 years since the Great Union, Romania did not have a coherent strategy in this regard. Whereas the historical discourse, produced in Romania, was released in Europe through diplomats, journalists and common Romanian citizens, historians were a part of this scheme only by chance or as a result of their personal initiatives.