Stories

Visit to Tataru

A significant episode from the history of the ship “Republica”, among many other stories which are mostly focused on the sea fare hardening under extremely harsh condition both during day and night, is retold by commodore Dumitru Cucu.

The ship had the mission to sail downstream on Chilia branch, in order to meet the passenger ship “Nicolae Balcescu”. In this mission many historical figures had embarked, among whom we may name Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, the leader of the Romanian Communist Party, Alexandru Draghici, Interior minister and Vasile Valcu, first-secretary of Dobrogea party district.

Going on board and navigating on the Danube River were performed in outmost secrecy; the two ships mooring in Tataru, where the head of state secretly inspected a jail for political prisoners.

The meeting of Presidents

Another episode narrated in Captain Dumitru Cucu’s writings, is that in which the “Republica” received the order to return to Giurgiu while the ship was involved in training the crew and getting them acquainted with the Danube River.

When they got to the port, Dumitru Cucu received the order to prepare the ship for an extremely important visit.
The captain’s intuition was right: in the following night, at 10 p.m. aboard the “Republica” came the First Secretary of the Central Committee, Gheorghe Gheorghiu Dej and other important political figures of the country. Not long after, an armored Yugoslavian vessel arrived, carrying the leader of the second Yugoslavian Federation, Iosip Broz Tito. The meeting of the two leaders was carried out in great privacy on board the ship “Republica”, her crew providing the safety measures for the two presidents during the entire period.

In memory of the Soviet Army

Throughout time, the ship “Republica” performed many operations for the Romanian country. Another extremely important mission, with Captain Dumitru Cucu in the spotlight, was carried out when she was moored in Plants canal from Giurgiu area.

Thus, one night, the minister of Army Forces of that time, general Emil Bodnaras and the commander of the Warsaw Treaty, U.S.S.R. Marshal Koniev came aboard the ship. The two personalities had lunch on board “Republica”, while she was in motion for a few hours on the Danube River.

At the end of this small cruise, Captain Dumitru Cucu received from marshal Koniev a badge with the inscription “In memory of the Soviet Army”.

Two sister ships

Two paddle boats with identical engine, Joe-type alternative steamers with double effect.

They were both designed on October 30th 1883,in the shipyard from Lintz in Austria, but there is a big difference between them, nonetheless. Ioan Alexandru former military in the Romanian Navy, expert in naval constructions and skilled in pressure boiler and steam engine overhaul says „ Anghel Saligny and Republica were identical. The difference between the two was that Anghel Saligny had saloons for passengers and the sheer of the main deck was straight line from the bow to the stern. The sheer of Republica is curved towards stern-bow and from the centre towards the railing. As it is a warship, the curved deck rejects missiles.”

“Anghel Saligny” was bought from the Austrians, while “Republica”, being a spoil of war, holds a share of Romanian people history.