Romanian general
Constantin Constantinescu-Claps
(February 20, 1884 ? June 1961) was a
Romanian
general during
World War II
, in command of the
Romanian Fourth Army
at the
Battle of Stalingrad
.
Biography
[
edit
]
He was born in
Beceni
,
Buz?u County
in 1884. From 1903 to 1905 he attended the Military School of Artillery and Genius, graduating with the rank of second lieutenant, advancing to lieutenant in 1909 and captain in 1913. During the
Second Balkan War
and the
Romanian Campaign
of
World War I
he served with the 12th Artillery Regiment. He fought in the
Battle of Transylvania
in 1916 and the battle of
M?gura Ca?in
in 1917. For his valor, he was promoted to major in 1917 and was awarded in 1917 the
Order of the Crown
, Knight rank.
[1]
After the war, Constantinescu-Claps was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1919, and attended the
Higher War School
in 1919?1920.
During the
interwar period
he rose through the ranks in the
Romanian Army
, being promoted to colonel in 1925 and brigadier general in 1935. On February 1, 1940, he was promoted to major general and was appointed the commander of X Corps. In June 1940 he coordinated the retreat of the Corps during the
Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina
. On May 9, 1941 he was awarded the
Order of the Star of Romania
, Commander rank.
[2]
After
Romania entered World War II
on the side of the
Axis
in June 1941, Constantinescu-Claps commanded the XI Corps from July 18, 1941, during
Operation Barbarossa
. He took part in
Operation Munchen
and the
Siege of Odessa
. In the early stages of Operation Barbarossa, General
Nicolae Ciuperc?
noted:
"General Constantinescu has led the army corps with a lot of competence, causing, indirectly, the withdrawal of the Soviet forces between the
Dniester River
and the Suhoz Lake. I consider him to be a very good army corps commander, who is distinguished by great devotion and precious optimism"
. On November 9, 1941, Constantinescu-Claps was appointed the commander of the
Romanian Fourth Army
and was promoted to lieutenant general in January 1942.
[3]
He fought later that year at the
Battle of Stalingrad
, where the
Romanian armies suffered a crushing defeat
. Constantinescu’s 4th Army, with 75,580 men, comprising the 6th Army Corps (1st, 2nd, 18th, and 20th Infantry Divisions) and the 7th Army Corps (4th Infantry Division, 5th and 8th Cavalry Divisions), was deployed to the south of
Stalingrad
. Most of these formations were in deplorable shape, with at best 73% of necessary manpower, with the 1st Infantry Division going as low as 25% and an almost nonexistent arsenal of heavy antitank guns.
[4]
The 4th Army occupied a line running approximately 170 miles (270 km) from
Staraya Otrada
to
Sarpa
, which provided the perfect spot for Marshal
Georgy Zhukov
's southern strike at the start of
Operation Uranus
.
[5]
On 20 November 1942, the Romanian Fourth Army was attacked by the Soviet
57th
and
51st
Armies, with the main blow in the sector of the 6th Army Corps.
[6]
In all, the Romanian Army lost 158,854 men (dead, wounded and missing) between November 19, 1942 and January 7, 1943.
On February 10, 1943, Constantinescu-Claps was relieved of his assignment and replaced by
Constantin S?n?tescu
. He retired from the Army in 1943. In spite of his rank and unlike many other Romanian generals, he never received any German medals and was in conflict with
Conduc?tor
Ion Antonescu
.
[7]
After
King Michael's Coup
of August 1944, Constantinescu-Claps received the
Order of Michael the Brave
, 3rd class, and was promoted to general (reserve) in September 1944. Once the
Communist regime
was established in Romania, he was arrested in September 1951, and incarcerated at
V?c?re?ti Prison
.
[1]
Accused of giving the order to execute four
Soviet partisans
at
Biliaivka
, he was condemned to 15 years' imprisonment in November 1954. One year later he was exonerated and released; he died in 1961 in
Bac?u
.
[8]
He was married to Henrietta, nee R?ileanu, a descendant on her mother's side of the
Sturdza
and
Rosetti
families; the two had a son, Radu Constantinescu (1919?1998).
[9]
[10]
In 2019, a street in
Buz?u
was named after Constantinescu-Claps.
[1]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
Bunila, Iulian (18 March 2019).
"Trei str?zi din ora?ul Buz?u, a doua garnizoan? ca m?rime din ?ar?, vor primi numele unor generali ai Armatei Romane"
.
Adev?rul
(in Romanian)
. Retrieved
16 October
2020
.
- ^
Decretul regal nr. 1.299 din 9 mai 1941 pentru acord?ri de decora?ii, publicat in
Monitorul Oficial
, anul CIX, nr. 109 din 10 mai 1941, partea I-a, p. 2.486.
- ^
Decretul Conduc?torului Statului nr. 505 din 19 februarie 1942 pentru inaint?ri in Armata de Uscat, publicat in
Monitorul Oficial
, anul CX, nr. 44 din 20 februarie 1942, partea I-a, p. 1.157.
- ^
Wijers, Hans J. (2008).
Eastern Front combat: the German soldier in battle from Stalingrad to Berlin
. Mechanicsburg, PA:
Stackpole Books
. p. 79.
ISBN
978-0-8117-4638-0
.
OCLC
774400491
.
- ^
"Beginning of the End for Hitler: The Soviet Miracle That Turned the Tides in Stalingrad"
.
The National Interest
. October 5, 2020
. Retrieved
October 16,
2020
.
- ^
Trigg, Jonathan (2013).
Death on the Don: the destruction of Germany's allies on the Eastern Front, 1941-44
. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Spellmount.
ISBN
978-0-7524-9010-6
.
OCLC
857109471
.
- ^
Du?u, Alexandru (January 16, 2022),
"1940–1944. Conflicte intre Mare?alul Antonescu ?i generali"
,
Revista Art-Emis
(in Romanian)
, retrieved
July 25,
2023
- ^
"Mecanisme represive – C"
,
inst-idst.ro
(in Romanian), Institutul Na?ional pentru Studiul Totalitarismului
, retrieved
July 25,
2023
- ^
R?dulescu, Mihai Sorin.
"In jurul a dou? scrisori de la George D. Florescu"
(PDF)
(in Romanian)
. Retrieved
August 8,
2021
.
- ^
R?dulescu, Mihai Sorin (2006),
"Istorie Literar?: O scrisoare de la Sadoveanu"
,
Romania Literar?
(in Romanian) (8)
, retrieved
August 9,
2021
External links
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