THE MAKING OF A COMMUNIST POLITICAL PRISONER 1925-1944.

Dr. Dan-Simion Grecu, Devao Romania

TheCammutrsl Pco'r) qf lloncoucr (this was the originalname, and not the ]?oma idn Cammukist Pdl4r, as the conmunist post -1945 history tried to convince everyonel) was established during the meeting of May 8-12, 1921 asasectionof fte Comnunisl lnlernqtionale lcomi len,.Frcfithe
beginning, the Parly was seen as an extremist, conspiratorial, and an anti-nationa] organization (having as its platform first and only the dismemberment ofthe Ronanian state), therelore the Romanian police arrested all the delegates to this first Congress. Tts allegiance was clearly stated at the 2nd Congress ofPloieqti, when the organization was renamed as the Comn nist Pctrll of Romania vt tton uJ the autnmttnL,, lnu nut,otnle The Comintefi established August 8'r' 1924 an 'operational project' for the communists ofRomania, which lad to the bolshevik interventions and bloody telrorist actions oflatar-Bunar (Bessarabia) of September i924 (which was in iict a failed coup d'etat, aimed to provoke the 'communist revolution' in Romania). This s'as the culmjnation ofevents, which lead to the total clamp down ofall communist activities in Romania. The outlawing ofthe Communist Parry's was made in several sleps:

Romanian PostalHisrcry Bulletin 200,r: 1l::l (Wrole No. .12)

. . .

First, two Military Ordlnances rvere issued by the 2"d AJmy Corps: the first o15.4.1924 (stating and forbidding communist activities) and the second from 23.7.1924 (issued against Bolshevik instigatlons and revolts) Leged Persod elor Juridice G The Justice Persons Law of6.2.1924), which provided the legal liamework for dissolving antinational political or-ganizations .rtii publice (= The Law for repression of Leged penltu rept'imdreau ot ifi'ctclitni conlra some infractions against public order" promulgated with the Decree 4100 / 92'1, published in Monitorul Oficial no. 2'79 I 19 l2.l921, then modified by the Lax of 15.I 1.1927), specially lssued against communist actjvities as a result ofBessarabian unrests, the poiitical ollenses being then considered simllar to common risht ofenses. and lherelore hardly punished:

li

c ArLll.
oi

villconsider os att olfence [...]a) cotttLtcting d person ar associdtion )tith the aim lo ahlaifi itsltttclio .t or Lod o:f dq) kilttl for the preparation of lo11 ablo.id the cai1ifi1urt.tt rc),ahrtia I J
one

From nou lre Parr - ocl r'r'es t ere rlleea. and .he\ '\eni uroelground witl its corgres.e. no\ held ahroad For e\arnple. the l'u Congress q'as held in Vienna The Pan1, never received wide popular suppoft There were 2000 members as of 1922 and only 800 - 1000 members between l94l-ls:14 An impofiant aspect is that all the leaders (apart the lirst leader, Gheorghe Cristescu, a Romanian, r.vho was the head ofthe Pany between 1921-1929) were foreigners, being, for example, from Hungary, PoLand, ard the Litraine, etc, and all directly appolnted b]' N'loscow. As a result, the eniire 'Romanian' communist agenda was in l'act anti-Romarianl Here are some examples:

it always rejected the Bessarabian union

lnclusion into thc USSR. the 4'r' Congress of 1928 asked for the annexation ofBucovinia by the Ukraine; in I93i ir supponed the principie ofthe Dobroudja being annexed by Bulgaria; it wasjubilant with the great territo.ial losses of 1940 (Norlhem Transl'1vania, Bessarabia Northern Bucovina- and the Southern Dobroudja)

"vith

Romania of 1918, predicting the Bessarabian

&

It is now easy to Lrnderstand why, after lhe Conunu ist Pdrr' of Rotndni1 \\as declaled illegal in 1924, for at least one decade. the communists alone provided the vast majority ofRomanian Po1i1ic,r/ c/erailee.s. Only beginning in the late '30s, the variety ofpolitical detainees rl,as widened to include the 'legionnaires' (Iron Guard members), but this is another slory.

It is interestlng to

see how the underground communist activities and the fate

ofthe activists durjng

will attempt below to lollou', step-by-step, how a dedicated 'comrade' transformed himselffiom a Aee citizen into a political prisoner
this time is reflected in postai documents. We

Steo

l:

The informers

The conmunists weren't (at all) beloved by the people, therefore it was not difficult for the Security Services to receive infbrmation for t.acking them down. Sometimes, spontaneous accusctions occured, as the below items, originating from the SiI3r/ar,td (Romanian Secret Se.vices ofthat time) archives. r.vill prove

Ronanian Posml History Bulletjn 2003r

1,1:3

(Wholc No. 42)

"./'a\*'_,"',--"=-.
r'.!\{-Jl/"a.

*/a
r$**4--pt*-z*'"'*

9 81937: a postcard sent by a S/El0a?ld inlormer fiom CONSTANTA to lr.tpectot Strdtilescu, Buculetti, Sigur.tnli Genelaki a Stat lui, arrived I L8.1937 at BUCL,RE$TI I, with red handmarkjng S II. 19 Aug 37, Raprrdfi (: 2"d Section, to repoftl) Here is the translated text:

I!g:L

'I inlarln )au thctt the contmunist and bolshevik Paul [ttrian is hiLlitY in our ci+1.lt his mislress' on Elena Doanlnd stteel. Here he orgdnites t eetings v,ith lhe co unist,t oflhe lovn, especially bt llte evenifig, a d here they receive instructions froln Russia. He was;followed and see by me Llrlntig the months of June and July. / have alreculy itfurmed you about this cammunis. who is very d':t gerous to the Slctte and lhe King. You cdn arlesl him qt his mi..nress' plqce .hring he night. 11,hi le he,t le ep.e'.
home

Romaman Postal Hislory Bulletin 2003t l,l:3 (Whole No. 42)

10

RfT

)t :l i=
t"i n:r"9
't

CE BAi

v 1.9',515

t.

/ 3,*; t '.1 s ," r- ,,.1 L *., *:::! :f l'f+*':

.-o-t,.,"*,.. .i ia'r a,-r,, . l:,t l, . <'-lj t tr

t'.S\"---r
Iig=z! I I 6
local postcard mailed in Bucharest by an infbrmer, named 'Gheorghiu'. addressed to $eful Sigwan4ei Publice Bucutetti, ptoviding inlbrmation on a Jewish-ethdc communist. Here is the translated text:
193 5: a

.
The

The Bolshevik Bernharcl Lupescu of Btrcharesl, tvho has lo

refuge in IaSi, s*. I.C. Btdtia Socialii' issued by the Minisxy

a year fafprison], is ,ow in u 69, under the cover o.frtorkingJor the mdgdzine '()cratirect

frlfll

ofIlotkt'

si3?rdrl.i olicials ma.ked the item with the following notes (translations).
Notes on front: S.II (:2'd Section), 11.17.35. In our.files 2 )edrs interned ta Cat'ansebe; as communisl sentenced dgain la one ),eat 4) lhe Military Trihundl Craiara. Mtssitlg ton his

. .

donicile.
Notes on b.ck:. ye rified, 14 Vl 35. Arrest him! 15 Vl.

And that's how another (imprisoned) 'working class hero' rvas born.... A third postcard (not illustrated here) was sent on June 19th lg4o by Shte altoney lonesat o.fPloetti ta Chief spectot aJ the Generul Securit! Service of Riimnicu Stirat, \aith a similar text.

I s.tr toddy in our

cit!^ [PloeSli], alang Carol streel, the cohmunisl Marin Popa, whowas condemned in absence ta 3 yeqts [of ptison]. I think he liws clandesti ely in the town. I'd like to came personally 1o yot! but I hclve to leow lhe tor)n.

Romarian Postdl History Bulletin 2001; 1,1:3 (Whole No. ,12)

t1

Tl-e oo-rcard r'.d.ianJmar^ec

ctre esituolia ? ' I Secttou,Junc2lt'l910.S.tlc:tu[rhtsr,asetrtofficial],irhcttt.ethesitucttionl)I-nlbrtunatelv-rve

2: The follow-up and decoding ofsecret (?) messages

or helror .5L21 tuhie 40. Strnrilcttu.

do not know \.vhat Stratilescu answered to this

SteD

Apafi from the described situation, sometimes their own simplicily lofthe communists. not ofthe informers], allou'ed rhe Police to turn them fi-om communisr activists into political pdsoners The naive 'coded' secret messages (on open postcardsL), u'here the first rvord ofeach line had to be read viceversa to obtain lhe 'coded' phrase. are only a spectacular exarnple ofineffective 'underground acrivity'. The writers probably dldn't kno\.v that a1l the open postcards were submitted during those years to a kind of postal controle' (provided bv postal clerks, it wasn't censorhip properly speaking) in order to detect any illegal, obscene, itteLle ttol. subwtsi|e, lenderlialts ttzxts. Seebelowtwo examples ofverv rare iterns intercepted by the Siguranli:

by the local Srgrrra4ri serr,ice, which noted on the fiontside: Lltgent to llucharcst, 12.11137 To Angelescu Here is the decoded and tmnslated message:

Iigg

3l 3 1937 'coded'

postcard sent fiom RADNA to TI\,II$OARA 'Post restante', but intercepted

Pleacd urgent Bucule$ti vechea adrese dela Doftana, trimis mesai, reactivezi ajutom roSlL. necesar alimente, incAllAminte, tovari$i suferd Ferelte Pascu inlormator siguranli. Inapoiere prime:tj matedal Totul aranjat bine. (=Go (|l!ickb. lo Buchcltes., ftol the ald address oJ Doflana, message sen!, !-olt h.!t:e lo rcacti|ate the Red Heh), [they] need.food, shoes, the comrades are su:fJettug. laok

Romanim Posial l{isrory Bulletin 2003t

3 (Wlrc1e No. 42)

12.

aut at Pdsclt, [he is] is v,ell olganised).

i fonler ofthe SiSurdnlii. yolr will receire materictls on rehrni g. eNerylhing

In fact, nothing was 'lvell o|ganised' as the postcard fell (too) easily into the hands olthe Secret Police (probably together with its addressee. ).

'ea*ogork ir'
tl)

:i

a#

+;! I ."',,

1938 intercepted 'coded' postcard, sent fron MOINE$TI to AIBA ILILIA (Post Restante) and redirected fiom here to TARGOVISTE, arrival 8.12.1938. Notes on the &ontsjder -li X11J& Prortted (sicl. one can imagine what this means...) Here is the decoded and translated message.

!!94612

Mitu arrested [in] PlaieSti, hide everything, leave quickly far Bucharest, stay hidden until you receive news, be careful, ftheyl perfarm hause searches, [they] are laoking for teaflets, anly few [for] May 1't were found, the rest in secure place, announce to all the conrades, ta take great care.

But it u'as diflicult to 'take care' with such stupid methods...

Ronanian Postal Histo[ Bullclin 200]: 14r3 (wllolc No. 42)

ll
Step 3: The Arrest
The next logical step was the arrest ofcommunist activists This \!ould happen fbllowing infbrmalion or the inrerception ofconpromising materials (see above) Such a situation rvas described by personal nrall interccpted by the Sig|clt|!at. Lrsing the same 'poslal control' aLready mentioned:

a\\

fida>fr

EgiL i.2.l9i

3: a postcard mailed bet\'veen two related rvomen. senl ITom BUCLIRE$TI GARA DE \ORl)- arrived.i.:.1918 in PLOE$TI, describing the arresr ofa conmunlst'courier' carryine leaflets Here ls the tr-anslated text:

. 'l

the Ruchafesl tdt]tr.o slttit)n, hto t)1e at rc.\leLl Ghilii, ny ct)tlsir. Ghitti ran otcty, Jell dovn .oid hi.\ b.E apehed, .ot,tl co nnunist ledflels enrcrgcd. The! hedt him eatll lo deLlth dnll sald thev .|itts a cr:ntnunist. A ttreel serged l satid lhtil lhq look him ta lhe Sig r.thl.i, wi l/ shool htkl L1s d he

vhere thel. ktke all the cantmunisls.

M!

Gad, trhdt d hig mis-larluttc'.

The itenr bears a note w.itten on the l'ront by the IIE?r/ar(7 officers: For verilicutirtn by the police olrtce st.ttion, S I, 14 II 38, The arested communists \{ere kept du ng the preliminarl investigation at the local Police station. at the local Siguranli stations, or in special sections ofthe coLrnt],'s penitenciaries (known in thcse cases as 'police imprisonment') Nlail fiom these situations is extremely rare, even if it u'as theoretically allowed.
Here are some regulations regarding the mail olthose arrested

Ronanian Post Hislon Brllelin:003:

l.l:i

(whole No 12)

14

From 1938: lhe Rcgul.tio s Ltpon...lhe preNenliw delenalot?, issued with the Decree no. 1439 / 2 ,1 193E" published in Moniroml Oficlal no. 9l i 2l :+ 1938. pp 2008-2061 . ,\tt. 292. Duriry the preliminary itst'uction itlquim. lhe Ltccused cdnnot recei)e or send letler.t or ha,e any kind o-f conmunicalion oul.ti./e llTe petlitenliLtr!-, \|ilhoul the examining mdgislrate's pennis\ion. He i.sJrce to senc:l closeLl lcllefi lo lhe .rt.tlice l.liuish')r ot b lhe c\LthllntttF nfigjrn.ttc

From 19,13: the Cade.i C tinliu.tl Procedrrre published in Nlonitorul Oficia1 no 167/2a'7 1943 . Arl. 266. the arreste,:lprisoner ts allofie.l lo rcceije or send telegrcns, /ellc/\, or olher catnnuttrcatians ouly y,ilh lhe exdntitilg n.!.qisltate s penlis.tian. Thc .ffrcsled is clllatLecl lo tlnhuile.l closed lellers lo lhe.rtslice Mi i\ y ot lo lhe exdtrlitting
The only known exairple of a mail senl by au arrested person is illustrated belorv. beirg very rare even if i! jsn'l in very good shapel

tl

senc!

9*'*L

Iig.]!,1 3 1933:

postcard written by an arrestcd comnunist. kept lor inquiry at the Ploieqti Police (naned Station at that ttme'('hestnrc Poliliei"). f he item was censored *,ith the Police's round marking, reacling ROI\{,iNIA * Chsturn Pulitiei NInicipiului Ploetti postmarked PLOE$TI on 6 19i3 and arived FAGARA$ on 7.3 i933 Here is irs transiated text:

Dear N{a and Brother, I have the approval to u'rite to you, I am arrested in Ploie;ti lor distributing communjst leallets until the tial reaches a conclusion I didn't tell you that I am a communisl as you u'ouldn't understand this, maybe later you will undeBtand. I kiss,vou all. and don't cry. as I am not dead, and I shall come home one day

Ronilrjan Poslel Histo4 Buiiehn

200,1:

l,l 3 (Wlolc No

1?)

l5
Ster, ,li The

T.ial bv Militare Tribunals

After the suspects' initjai examination (named in Romanian 'preliminary instruction'), they could be released, proven innocent, or sent lor further trial Civilian political offenders were subjected to a special arrangement" their trial fbr political offences being conducted oaly by one ofthe 10 lrltlit.try Tribunal.s (Trbrnale mllitare) ofRomania; during this time, the offenders (named in Romanian 'prevenili' - preventives, or kept in preventive custod],) were kept in the respective Mlrlary Prisons (inchisori militare) This is the explanation why the majority ofthe mail originating from the Military Prisons was nritten by civilians and not by the militaryl

The Military Tribunals (initially known as Wat Ca kcils) werc establlshed near some ofthe High Commands (Army Corps or Divisions), as lollorvs:

l"

Armv Corps in Craiova

2'd Arm]' Corps in Jilava (Bucharest) 3'd Arrny Corps in Chiqiniu 4'r'Army Corps in Galali / Iaqi 5'r' Armv Corps in Braiov 6'h.\rmy Corps in CIL! (up to 1940) 7'h \rm1 ( or ps in Sibiu

l"

Infantry Division in Timiqoara

8't' lnthntry Division in cernauli 9'r' Inlbntry Division in Constanla

Inforrration regarding the civilian detainees' rights can be extracted flafilhe Reg:.!latkrts fot the milit.u)) ptitot):; (issied \.vjth the Decree 2968 / 9.4 1925 pubiished in Monitorui Oficial no. 228 / 16 1 0 19251:

o.f d y rctnk d the cifilians in preventiw dete tiot| dutitlg the lridl by the War Councils [i.e. the'politics']. Art. 6- The milit.t)1 prisofls dre put under lhe authotit, oJ the nearby Headqudrle5 . A/t. 7. -All conJined to these prisans \ill participate in a cofle(lional progrtrm [...] The ciilidtl prere t e detdinees \|ill ctlso he usedJd difktenl'|ork i side the prison. AtL 16. The prison's comma detvtllexamine all the mqil \,hic]1e te$ ar leiies from lhe confined. Atry douhtful letter that t auld not preiudice the secrec! of the investigdtion will be fontarded to lhe royal cammtstioner. lcheck thisl

A/t. Art.

1 A milnary ptiso it esl.tbli.thed neft l1e ,l/at Coaficil Headquarters. 2. In the nilildty prisotl.t o e c.ut canfine: ... b) the military pteventiNe detqinees

AtL63.-'lheinternees'nailv)illbeetaminedbytheprito'scomlndndel.Arytcompromising mcul t tll be.lonrarded to the 1o)nl (ommt'.toner.

An example of mail sent by
a confined 'preventjve detainee'

ftom a N1ilitary Prison can be seen below:

Romanian Poslal Histon Bulletin 2001: 1,1:3 (Whole No. 42)

t6

:i\-*rtiYu t

'iltrfl i[i\i y'"r) %zrz 'E'* i*iliIblFi$' iuri!llll$Y i'iltt" xi)F; /t:--*tu , sti..tttrriql s\
s

$iiil*iiilil iF:i!FstlN F'

F,i

i' /"-4."'.^.'mtz-,-i llf: Xl l*'l [t i -\' /, w---zt. ;

{D+l^,1t'//

dZ,

Fie.7a: 24 .1 I927 postcard sent fiom ORADEA to a I lungarlan-ethnic communist political detainee lron the Nlilltary Prison ofthe 7rh Army Corps in Slbiu (see the address Delihut politic, Sibiu, Inchisoarea Militdri Cotp IlII Amati) The item arrivcd SIBIU on 25.4 1927 and was censored wlth the marking Inchisoaror Nlilitrri a C. VII Arm. / CENZI, RAT

Fis.7b: a much more visible censor-marking imprint. from ar inner letter mailed to the same detainee in 15 1 192'1
Romanlan Poslal

Histo{ Bulletln 200:: 1l:3 (Whol r'o

.12)

1',7

When those confined were ill, they were temporadly transferred to Military Hospitals (whlch were functioning in same area, near the mentioned High Commands), according to the safie Regulatians... a.f 1913 mentioned above:

Afi. 33. Ilhen dn arrested

is ill. he is .kimilted lo lhe nlihtary hospital He is senl under escolt to the ha\pil.tl d d h.mcle.l o\iet tNith dn oLt'iciql reporl. F'rcn lhe nan|ent aJ his httnding oi'er, his guardiug it the responsibilit),^ af the hospilcl adni islrdlion, vho rcmainfully responsible.

Here is an example ofa political confined's mail from a military hospital (note that there is no more censorship and the mention'political detainee' disappears from the address):

9a/" (-'/'.

t>A_-r.-JC,-t4

"W
/t/
/''+'z-o'z o

f*

t.-4,/

///.

rJ;:

*
:

Fis.s. cover sent from Oradea to the same detainee, no$, admitted to the Military Hospital near the 7e Army Corps, see the address: Spilalul Militat Coryul VII Artuatd, Salon 26 (ward 26). Franking and
markings on backside, not censored. Step 5: The Detention

After their trial, the condemned *ere sent to penitentiaries or internment camps An example ofa correspondence {iom a communist intemee ofthe Targu-Jiu canp can be seen in,Repressrori 1,,1 Ronania Pdtt l y- The Ronanian Postdl Histary oJ Intenees Mal i916 -1945 Grecu, D RPIIB 1l, 2 (32):32 41Fig. 7, so lle will not discuss these intemment camps again.
As far as the penitentiaries are concerned, there was a kind of specialisation, some penitentiaries being lor political detainees; we *i]l see examples ofmail tom the tu'o most important: Doftana and Caransebes. But trst let's look at some general regulations regarding the political detainees' mail:

Romanian Postal Hislory Bulletin 2001' 1:l:3

(wlole No 42)

l8
The Penitenciary Larv of 1929:

Art. 12.

The

political detainees\rill

he

dlloved to [...] coftespond by lettets !...J.tccording to

specidl rcylations.

Att

91. Ihe

pe itel]ciaty director [.. ] d) Cotltroles all

the

mdil

The Decree

oflaw no
7'he

2418 / 1935 (pLrbiished in Nlonitorul Ohcial no. 262

/ l1.II

1935): lhe

. Aft 54. . .

penitenciart admini.tlrdlor (i.e lhe Dt1'ectal

[ . ]: L Examines

mail

The Regulations of April 1938

,h7. 39. The (plitic.tl) condemned only once a month.

A/1.

lo

heav,'-

detenlio ) dte allowed to receive and.send letters

lvice a na

13.

/1he
th.

p,:liliccl condent e.l to tigotaus delentiotl) .tre dlbved ta

receiNe and send

letterd

. Art, 16. (Thcpoliticdlcan.lentneeltr,.tunl.bclerennon)ote,Iln\rJt,treLLbecnalsettdlettersJ

tines a nonth.

c .

Art. 189.

The con.len/Ed ot it)terned are alloted ta |eceive at send lellers ar corresponclance r:nly after being exantnted by the sttl lion's administralion.

ant kind

oJ

Afi. 190. Mctil

appnrttl.

is allotLed.fitr condemned or ixerne.l per.'ons onl).- bebteetl genLlets or reldti)es up to the ]nd degree: in dll olher c..ses, s1rch mail is dlla',red t) b \rith the centrql adninislrdtio 's

. A . 191.
pctlLlltt.

The lail dntou l is limite.l

hr- the special

rcgulations according k) each individtnl

. A -230. t

The rcvdrLls trhich ccot of;ferec! to the condemned

vith goad conduct are [

...

olJer;for Jiee the necessar! )ttilittg peper cDttl

sttmpsfor one or more cLlrrespandences.

3. 'l he

Ar1.244.lhedisciplndryneasutesc.rfibe[../.5.Thelbrhiddingofdnyconmvticdtionsin \rriting or afi)isits fot a m.Lrin|um of ht,o con:jecuthre ddtes.

Special Penitentiaries for PoliticalDetainees: Qgftglg (Prahova count, was, after 1924, the main penitentiary lor all political sentences It was disbanded following the earthquake of9/10 November 19,10, when a1l the communist convicts were transfered to Caransebe$. It v/as then reestablished as TB Sanatorium (1944), Resting House and Agrioultural Colony (1945) and final1y as a museum. Here are examples of mail lrom or to Doftana penitenciary:

Romanian Postel Hisron Bullerin 2003r

t1:l

awholc

No

.12)

t9

ord"

/^:*l

Iig:2: 5.3 l92B: Postcard fiom the Jlrst perlod ol activity (lvithout censor markings, only

censor

signature on front), sent trom OR{DEA to the same Hungarlan-ethnic communist political, now a detainee ofDoftana (see the address delirul politic, inchisoarca centralii, l)oftana-Telega). Arrrtal 9 3 1923 in TELEGA * JLD PRAHOVA.

.r,"

,."

t '.,...;

' l' *.
.

7'

' ":"";

c" 't:1"' / "- " '' " t'

-.-1--- i' ''

'

i.:,

-, [-:,,..

/L"-,.,',e..r-- ..1t. ,t,'-. t.' -.--.

ai

r^zpo.rte decAt romAneEte (: One canw te Elg.2A: a note written by the censor on the inner letter only in Romanian) as an ans$-er to the sender's inteffogatlon ^ra ilshe could w.ite i! Hungadan, as she doesn't know Romanian well. This means that no one knew Hunga.ian among the Penitentiary's personnel, in contradiction lvith the Military Prison ofSibiu, where Hungarian te),1s we.e allowed (see above).
Romanian Postel History

letin 2003; l4:3 (Whoie No '12)

" I .tN" .'"t':a./' - >"

//..:.-.-.---1-

-a--',ri=:-tr

20

Y-::-,7H

"

lt, \'/''/rn..' i \<

J
rZ

Fie.10: l5 9 1923: letter from CLUJ sent to the sanle political detainee. bearing the first knou'n* penitentiaq, censoring marking. rvith the tert l.\CH LSUAREA cEYTff I I DOFTANA / UAZUT,/ Director (- Itte Centrul Prtsrn Dofttuttt Examinetl 1)//'eal{t'. stamped also on the inner letter) Iransit posrmark CANIPI trA and alTival TELEG.\ + J LtD. PRAHOVA, both ln 17.9.1928 (on the
backside)

i;atr..r\

l,Tl'*li' i s-s l:'!'..! \t

lltt,:'"i 1:-l I'J."\,i
t ^ : l:-l !.? l^ rc! -

NM;;

Fffir \{::ffi lrlsrl\Fi .ITNWff

-j
s\si\s,'
S

\= - \

gr*;rU:1

l1,l: jirr uq

lii!lRJ b$xr" e..). ^\n"-; iA.f \

!.\ Nri'
Rornarian Postal History Buuetin 2001:

iiI]' iJ. F\N \ N.,.,

-\" * I N.L"\d,S i.i r

' t Jc..t\7 c4 S li\ if-\L L\ 5) F\h r\t^'

,.1/t " --'-'-

.r.:*'l*!N-lr

mtui":l

-."t lra"-- l|l' ,*-'7 /'---11

,12)

/h-,-:l -,1

l1:l (wllol No

2l
ofDoftana, arrival i0 7 19i8 in TELEGA * JLD PRAHOVA delivered only after the postage due was paid on I3 8 l9i8 and censorship took place \.vith the oval red marking (used in l9l8-1939) reading Penitenciarul Special . DOFTAN-4. / CENSUR{T (= 1he .\pecj.tl Pen i tenc ury L)oft dt kt C etrored).

Fig.1l: 29.7

1938: Posrcard sent lrorn PREDEAL to a political detalnee

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the same political convict. censored u'ith the reciangular green marldng PINITENCLARUL SPICIAL / DOFTAN.{ / CENSU RAT" postmarked 26.6 19.10 il] TELEGA- arrived BLICLRESTI2 in 27.6.1910 25 5 19,10t Poslcard rvritren
b1,

Special Penitentiaries for politicil detninees: gjlI4llgbsi Prison built by Austro-Hungarians at the of 19(h century. it became liott Nov 1940. \.vhen all the I50-200 convicts *ere transferred from Doftana to Caransebe$" and speciaLly alier 1942. the main detention center lor co[lmunists (besides the camp at Tergu Jiu) In Nlay I9:12 some 40 Jen'ish political detainees with less severe penalties (mostly originating from la5i and Timifoara) $,ere transferred to Transnistria (to the prison Vapniarka, then to Rabnita) From the spring 194,1- some 20-30 women polilical detairees were transferred to Caransebeg lrom Chi5iniu All the inmates were u'orking in rvorkshops, in agricLrlture. or (only as volunteers) at the Caransebeq airlield's construction site. They had the right to receive each month a 20 kg parcel Here are the examples ofitems.
end

Romanian Posrrl Hislo^ Bdletun 200i: l4:3 rwlroie No +2)

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postcard u'ritten by a communist Jew fiarn Penitenciatul ,Sp(acttt!) CurunsebeE. The Jud. Seterin( Speciql Peiilenciaryt (-)aransebes, Serer in couttq.-), censored there with a narking adapted liorn the Iast tlpe ofDoFtana (*ith the name erased in the middle), so reading only

PENITENCLq.RLL SPECIAL / CENSLRA.T, postmarked 21 5 1941 ln CARA.NSEBE$" arrival BUCLfRE$TI in 24.5.l9.l I

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Romanian Postal Hislory Bxlletin 2003:

l.l:i

(whole No. 42)

23 10.7. l94l . postcard written bJ' a Hungarian-ethnic Feritarh!1 stsrhl Caam&l communist liom Peritenc iarul Special Carazsebeq, censored C E NSTJRAT R!grs $<r'1i !!tinutilrr in rcFi here with the 5line marklng reading: Penitenciarul Special n.rt. ri nufr.i FA .iril Potta{. Caransebeg / CENSURdT / Rugim scriti detinu.tilor in romi- / neqte pi numai pe cirti po$tale. / DIRECTIUNEA 7'he Specic Penilentiary Caransebes .t (lensored / Ple1se write lo lhe detainees in Romanidn dnd anly an postcatds) - postmarked l5 7.1941 in CAI-ANSEBE$, censored in Lugoj with a neutral marking

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