Costache Negri, one of the great figures of Romanian patriotism, was crucial in the negotiations for the Union of Romanian Principalities, although he is often neglected by historians. Mihai Eminescu praised him as an exemplary patriot and a man with a noble and selfless character, to whom many of the major achievements of Romania's modern history are owed.
Negri, the son of a nobleman, began his education in Chisinau and Odessa, continuing it in France and Italy. Returning to Moldova in 1841, he became Venerable of a Masonic lodge in Bârlad. The revolution of 1848 caught him in Paris, where he presented the new Romanian tricolor. Prevented from returning to Moldova, he arrived in Brașov, where he participated in the drafting of the declaration of principles and the proclamation of dismissal of ruler Mihail Sturdza.
After the Revolution, he settled in Bucovina and coordinated the activity of the Moldovan revolutionary committee in exile, being supported by Alexandru Ioan Cuza. The failure of the revolution in Wallachia diminished hopes for political change in Moldova.
Negri became known as a politician and patriot after 1851, when he was named părcălab de Covurlui. From 1855, he began a notable diplomatic career, supporting the Union of Romanian Principalities in Constantinople and Vienna. He was a member of the Union Committee and a deputy in the Ad-hoc Assembly.
After the dethronement of Cuza, Negri retired from politics, disillusioned by the corruption in the field, and devoted himself to collecting coins and paintings, as well as correspondence with personalities such as Vasile Alecsandri and Mihail Kogălniceanu. He died on September 28, 1876, being buried at the former Răducanu monastery in Târgu Ocna. Although he published little, a few manuscripts and letters remain of documentary value.
In Târgu Ocna, where many personalities were born and lived, only one monument honors Negri: a bust unveiled in 1941 at the initiative of Gheorghe Sion, work of the sculptor Ion Dimitriu Bârlad, located in Piațeta Costache Negri.
Sursa: cnipttirguocna.ro
