Tribulaţiile lui Mihail Ralea sub regimul Antonescu, 1940-1944
Mihail Ralea’s Trajectory during Ion Antonescu’s Rule, 1940-1944

Summary/Abstract: Using under-researched archives and other historical sources, the article examines the biographical path of Mihail Ralea during Ion Antonescu dictatorship (from 6 September 1940 to 23 August 1944). M. Ralea had been member of the National Peasant Party (1927-1938) and Minister of Labor under the authoritarian rule of Carol II (March 1938 – July 1940). He had reasons to fear for his life after the coming into power of General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, the most important Romanian fascist organization also called Legion of the Archangel Michael or the Legionnaire Movement. The hypothesis of this article is that M. Ralea’s survival in a period characterized by political assassinations against the dignitaries of the Royal dictatorship is explained by objective and conjunctural factors. Firstly, I focus both on the nature of the Antonescu political regime and M. Ralea’s relation with the government from September 1940 to August 1944. Secondly, the article highlights Ralea’s motives, after 6 September 1940, for becoming an enemy of the Antonescu regime. In order to clarify complicated biographical aspects and political events I had to work with highly contradictory historical sources. Analyzing the complete biography of Mihail Ralea one can notice that the wartime years constituted a period of transition to strong pro-Soviet and pro-communist orientations.

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