Mitiţă Constantinescu

Mitiţă Constantinescu (October 20, 1890—1946) was a Romanian economist and liberal politician. He was an advocate of industrialization and a degree of dirigisme.

Biography

Born in Bucharest, he graduated from the Gheorghe Lazăr High School and from the University of Bucharest's Faculty of Law. Applying for a doctorate in Paris, Constantinescu was forced to postpone it after Romania entered World War I, being drafted into the Romanian Army.

In 1918, he was awarded his first high-ranking administrative position, as chief of staff in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce in the National Liberal Party (PNL) cabinet of Ion I. C. Brătianu; Constantinescu held the office of General Secretary in of the Ministry of Agriculture and Royal Domains in a new Brătianu administration (1922–1926), was a PNL deputy for Hunedoara County in 1927-1933, and, between 1935 and 1940, Governor of the National Bank of Romania. In 1939, under the authoritarian regime established by King Carol II and his National Renaissance Front, he was Romania's Minister of Finance.

Retreating from public life during World War II, in protest against Ion Antonescu's fascist dictatorship (see Romania during World War II), Constantinescu was a member of Romania's Gheorghe Tătărescu-led delegation to the Paris Peace Conference (1946). During his later years, he became close to the Romanian Communist Party, created a minor political party named Liga Patrioţilor (League of Patriots) which described itself as "progressive" (and was ultimately led by the communist Petre Constantinescu-Iaşi), and authored a volume supportive of Stalinism and the Soviet Union (Continentul URSS, "The USSR Continent").

A hall at the National Bank is named after him.

Second Miron Cristea cabinet (March 30, 1938 – February 1, 1939)
Prime Minister
Ministers
Armand Călinescu (Interior) • Nicolae Petrescu-Commen / Grigore Gafencu (External Affairs) • Mircea Cancicov (Finances) • Victor Iamandi (Justice) • Nicolae Colan / Armand Călinescu / Petre Andrei (National Education) • Nicolae Colan (Religious Affairs and Arts) • Gheorghe Argeşanu / Nicolae G. Ciupercă (National Defence) • Paul Teodorescu (Air and Marine) • Iosif Iacobici (Armament Endowment) • Gheorghe Ionescu-Şişeşti (Agriculture, Domains and Cooperatives) • Mitiţă Constantinescu (Industry and Commerce/National Economy) • Mihail Ghelmegeanu (Public Works and Communications) • Mihai Ralea (Labour) • Armand Călinescu / Nicolae Marinescu (Labour, Health and Social Protection)
Undersecretaries of State

Mihail Măgureanu (Government Presidency) • Eugen Titeanu (Interior for Press and Information) • Dumitru V. Ţoni (National Education) • Nae Popescu (Religious Affairs and Arts) • Alexandru Glatz (National Defence)
Third Miron Cristea cabinet (February 1, 1939 – September 28, 1939)
Prime-Minister
Vice-Prime-Minister
Ministers
Armand Călinescu / Gabriel Marinescu (Interior) • Grigore Gafencu (External Affairs) • Mitiţă Constantinescu (Finances) • Victor Iamandi (Justice) • Petre Andrei (National Education) • Nicolae Zegre (Religious Affairs and Arts) • Armand Călinescu / Ioan Ilcuş (National Defence) • Paul Teodorescu (Air and Marine) • Victor Slăvescu (Armament Endowment) • Nicolae D. Cornăţeanu (Agriculture and Domains) • Ion Bujoiu (National Economy) • Mihail Ghelmegeanu (Public Works and Communications) • Mihai Ralea (Labour) • Nicolae Marinescu (Health and Social Protection)
Secretaries of State
Traian Pop (Public Wealth Registering) • Silviu Dragomir (Minorities)
Subsecretaries of State

Mihail Măgureanu (Government Presidency) • Gabriel Marinescu (Interior) • Coriolan Băran (Interior) • Eugen Titeanu (Propaganda) • Dumitru V. Ţoni (National Education) • Ion Marin Sadoveanu (Religious Affairs and Arts) • Gheorghe Mihail (National Defence) • Mihail Şerban (Agriculture and Domains) • Victor Jinga (National Economy)

References