1st December, Romania's National Day

On 1 December, Romania's National Day, there will be held military parades, shows and special events throughout the country.

In Bucharest, the events planned for the National Day include wreath military ceremonies at the Heroes' Monument, erected in the memory of the Romanian soldiers killed in the line of duty, located in front of the National Palace of Children in the Tineretului Park, and at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Carol Park.

From 11 o'clock there will be a military parade in Piaţa Arcului de Triumf of Bucharest.

The parade will be attended by over 1 500 troops and the military equipment belongs to the Ministry of National Defence, Ministry of Administration and Interior, Romanian Information Service and the Protection and Guard Service and to 400 policemen, gendarmes, border guards, firefighters and pilots of the Ministry of Interior.

At 17.40, there will be a military ceremony and a concert of soldierly songs in Piaţa Tricolorului in front of the National Military Club Palace, followed by a torchlight withdrawal of the soldiers of the Regiment Mihai Viteazul on the route: National Military Club Palace, Bulevardul Queen Elizabeth, Piaţa Operei, Piaţa Leu, Bulevardul General Vasile Milea.
Romanian troops on mission abroad will organize specific events marking the National Day of Romania.

The national flag will be hoisted in all military institutions around the country and aboard the military ships the Marele Pavoaz will be raised.

In 21 tents located in District 2 of Bucharest there will be served over 16 000 servings of boiled beans with bacon and brandy, the local authority representatives announced.
The events will begin with the honour guard's greeting, flag raising, singing the national anthem and releasing the pigeons, during the sound of the Ode to Joy.

Traffic restrictions in Bucharest

On the 1 December there are placed road restrictions for the military parade march in Bucharest, the Brigade Road informed in a statement.

The traffic within the adjacent area of Piaţa Arcului de Triumf will be on diverted routes, between 05.00 and 15.00 o'clock. The traffic will be restricted on the central axis and the first traffic lane of the Kiselev street, the section between the Piaţa Presei Libere and Piaţa Arcului de Triumf, from the Piaţa Presei Libere and Piaţa Arcului de Triumf, and the traffic lane of the road between Bucharest and Ploiesti (from Fântâna Mioriţa towards Piaţa Presei Libere).

Between 17:00 - 19.00, on the occasion of the 'Torchlight withdrawal' ceremony', traffic will be restricted traffic on traffic lane 1 and 2 on the route: Military Club Palace – Bd. Queen Elizabeth – Bd. Mihail Kogalniceanu – P-ţa Operei – Bd. Medical Heroes – Bd. Heroes – Str. Gheorghe Marinescu – Şos. Cotroceni – Bd. Iuliu Maniu – Bd. Vasile Milea - the 30 Guards Regiment headquarters.

Stopping and parking are banned from the sockets next to Infantry Monument on the Kiseleff street.

More details about the traffic restrictions in Bucharest you can read here.

Official ceremonies throughout the country

In Alba Iulia, in the morning there are scheduled wreath official ceremonies at the statues of I.C. Brătianu, Iuliu Maniu, Mihai Viteazul, the contriver of the Great Union, a Te Deum, welcoming the messengers in the Union Hall and a parade of the Administration and Interior Ministry soldiers.

Wednesday, in Alba Iulia, among the events organized to celebrate 93 years of the Great Union there was the fourth edition of the International Salon of Molding, the exhibition Astra and the Great Union, unveiling the bust of writer Mihail Sadoveanu within the Congress of Spirituality and a folk concert organised by Radio Romania Actualităţi.

Romania's National Day will be celebrated in Brasov through a military and religious ceremonial and a series of events that will be held in the Council Square.

Also in the Council Square there will be presented stalls with technique and weapons of the second Mountain Brigade Sarmizegetusa, of the County Inspectorate of Gendarmes Braşov, Inspectorate for Emergency Situations Ţara Bârsei and the Romanian Information Service.

The National Day will be marked by events in Vrancea organised by the authorities in Focşani and Panciu.

Thus, in Focşani, in front of the Independence Monument, there will be held speeches, there will be deposited wreaths, then there will take place a military parade of the combat with the equipment owned by the soldiers within the Focşani Garrison.

The event will conclude with a scroll of the honour guard including military, employees of the County Inspectorate of Gendarmes in Vrancea and the Inspectorate for Emergency Situations.

At Panciu there shall be deposited wreaths at the Hero's Monument of the town's centre.

Te Deum Services for the heroes of the Great union

Diocesan cathedrals, parish churches and monasteries in the country and abroad, as well as “Orthodox theology schools chapel will hold Te Deum services for the heroes’ remembrance, who achieved the national unity of the Romanians in 1918”, the Romanian Patriarchy stated.

The Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest, the Te Deum service will be officiated at noon.

Also in Bucharest there will be officiated memorial services at the Romanian Military Heroes Monument in the Tineretului Park and at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Carol Park.

The 2011 marks 93 years since the Union of Transylvania with Romania and since the Great Assembly held in Platoul Romanilor of Alba Iulia on 1 December 1 1918, attended by over 100 000 Romanians.

Translated by: Iulia Florescu
MA student, MTTLC, Bucharest University