Nicu Ceaușescu
Nicu Ceaușescu | |
---|---|
First Secretary of the Sibiu Regional Committee of the Communist Party | |
In office 17 October 1987 – 22 December 1989 | |
General Secretary | Nicolae Ceaușescu |
Succeeded by | Office abolished |
Minister of Youth & First Secretary of the Union of Communist Youth | |
In office 11 December 1982 – 17 October 1987 | |
Prime Minister | Constantin Dăscălescu |
Preceded by | Pantelimon Găvănescu |
Succeeded by | Ioan Toma |
Member of the Great National Assembly | |
In office 1981–1989 | |
Constituency | Buzău County |
Personal details | |
Born | Nicolae Ceaușescu 1 September 1951 Bucharest, Romanian People's Republic |
Died | 26 September 1996 Vienna, Austria | (aged 45)
Political party | Romanian Communist Party (1971–1989) |
Spouse |
Poliana Cristescu
(m. 1983; div. 1985) |
Parent(s) | Nicolae Ceaușescu Elena Ceaușescu |
Relatives | Valentin Ceaușescu Zoia Ceaușescu |
Alma mater | University of Bucharest Ștefan Gheorghiu Academy |
Profession | Physicist, Politician |
Awards | Order of "August 23" Order of Labor |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Romania |
Branch/service | Romanian Air Force |
Years of service | 1975–1976 |
Rank | Lieutenant |
Nicu Ceaușescu (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈniku tʃe̯a.uˈʃesku]; 1 September 1951 – 26 September 1996) was a Romanian physicist and communist politician who was the youngest child of Romanian leaders Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu. He was a close associate of his father's political regime and considered the President's heir presumptive.
Life during communism
[edit]According to Ion Mihai Pacepa (who defected to the United States in 1978), Ceaușescu wanted Nicu to become his Foreign Minister and for that, he instructed two high-ranked Party members, Ștefan Andrei and Cornel Pacoste (whom he considered brilliant communist intellectuals) to take care of Nicu's education; Pacepa further claimed that, unlike his older siblings, he disliked school and was allegedly derided by them for never being seen reading a book.[1]
He graduated from Liceul no. 24 (now named Jean Monnet High School) and then studied physics at the University of Bucharest. He was involved in Uniunea Tineretului Comunist while a student, becoming its First Secretary and then Minister of Youth Issues, being elected to the Central Committee of the Romanian Communist Party in 1982.[2]
As an apprentice in politics, he was mentored by Ștefan Andrei, Ion Traian Ștefănescu and Cornel Pacoste. Toward the end of the 1980s, he was made a member of the Executive Committee of the Romanian Communist Party and in 1987 the leader for Sibiu County, being prepared by his parents to be his father's successor.[2]
Post-communist life and legacy
[edit]Since high school, Nicu was reputed to be a heavy drinker. Pacepa alleged that Nicu scandalized Bucharest with his rapes and car accidents.[citation needed] He claimed that his father heard about Nicu's drinking problem, but his solution was the one given to every problem in Romania: work harder.[1] He also allegedly lost large sums of money gambling around the world.[2][3] Latif Yahia — former body double of Uday Hussein, son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein — claimed that Nicu was good friends with Uday, and the two would visit each other in Switzerland and Monaco.[4]
The documentary Videograms of a Revolution shows him exhibited as a prisoner on state television on 22 December 1989 after being arrested on accusations of holding children as hostages and other crimes.[citation needed] He was also arrested in 1990 for misuse of government funds under his father's regime, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.[citation needed] Released in November 1992 because of cirrhosis, he died of the disease four years later, aged 45, in a Vienna hospital.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Ion Mihai Pacepa (1990) Red Horizons: The True Story of Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescus' Crimes, Lifestyle, and Corruption, Regnery Publishing, Inc. pp. 62–63. ISBN 0-89526-746-2.
- ^ a b c Vladimir Tismăneanu (2005) Stalinism pentru eternitate, Polirom, Iaşi. p. 295. ISBN 973-681-899-3.
- ^ a b "Nicu Ceaușescu, 45, Flamboyant Son of Romanian Dictator", in The New York Times 27 September 1996; p. B8
- ^ Latif Yahia; Karl Wendl (1997). I Was Saddam's Son. Little, Brown and Company. pp. 297. ISBN 978-155-970-373-4.
- Romanian Communist Party politicians
- Children of presidents
- Ceaușescu family
- People of the Romanian revolution
- University of Bucharest alumni
- 1951 births
- 1996 deaths
- Deaths from cirrhosis
- Romanian politicians convicted of crimes
- Romanian prisoners and detainees
- Prisoners and detainees of Romania
- Politicians from Bucharest
- Burials at Ghencea Cemetery