Ioan Buteanu (1821-1849) Born in Maramures, Buteanu studied law in
Zagreb and Pest. After practicing law in Maramures, he moved to
Abrud in 1846. He participated in the March revolutionary
gatherings in Cluj and other Transylvanian towns in April (Abrud,
Cimpeni, Bistra) which culminated in the first Blaj meeting of
Romanian national leaders in April (of which he was a principal
leader).
At the second Blaj assembly in May, Buteanu was a major mover, and was elected to the Romanian National Committee established there. He was close to Simion Barnutiu and the radical wing of the Romanian national movement.
In support of t
he ideal of Romanian unity, Buteanu participated in
the Muntenian revolution from July to September 1848, returning to
Transylvania only after the Ottoman suppression of that revolt. He
attended the Third Blaj meeting in September as part of Iancu's
armed band. He subsequently became prefect of the Zarand Legion,
where he led the opposition to Bem's army. His forces successfully
fought Hungarian troops between January-April 1849, despite very
unfavorable odds. Engaged in negotiations with Kossuth
in April and May, Buteanu was captured and executed by the Magyars, becoming
a symbol of Romanian national resistance.
Silviu Dragomir, Ioan Buteanu Bucuresti: 1928.
JGC revised this file
(http://www.ohiou.edu/~chastain/ac/buteanu.htm) on
October 14, 2004.
Please E-mail comments or suggestions to chastain@www.ohiou.edu
© 1999, 2004 James Chastain.
Paul E. Michelson
Bibliography