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Name of the town: Pitești
Region, country: Argeș County, Muntenia region (Romania)
Date of deportation: June – August 1942
Excerpt from testimony:
“[…] Once they arrived in Transnistria, [the deported Roma] were separated by families, and all their belongings were confiscated. They were placed in a large field near a kolkhoz in Tridubi [Golta County]. Half of the people placed in the field died. Most of them perished from starvation. The dead were buried by their families, and those left unburied were eaten by animals. He recounts the story of his uncle, who was taken to be executed but managed to save himself by bribing the gendarmes with a gold coin in exchange for his life […].”
Romanian archives (if they exist):
Local law enforcement (police officers and gendarmes) did not typically compile nominal lists but only numerical lists of the nomadic Roma proposed for deportation. According to the May 1942 census, the Pitești Police identified 54 Roma, 6 vehicles, and 2 animals within and around the city. It is possible that Ion Stănescu (the interviewee) and his family were included in this numerical list (ANI, IGJ fund, file no. 259/1042: f. 26).
Historical note on the Roma:
Pitești, the capital of Argeș County, is located approximately 120 km west of Bucharest. At the beginning of the 1900s, it had a population of 15,570, including a significant Roma community (MDGR 1901, IV: 735). The 1930 general census recorded 19,532 inhabitants in the city, of whom
422 were Roma (RGP 1930, vol. 2: 16–17). However, the actual number was likely higher, as a May 1942 police census identified more than 1,400 sedentary Roma (ANI, DGP fund, file no. 187/1942:f. 173). Many of them worked as blacksmiths, musicians, masons, shoemakers, and small traders.
422 were Roma (RGP 1930, vol. 2: 16–17). However, the actual number was likely higher, as a May 1942 police census identified more than 1,400 sedentary Roma (ANI, DGP fund, file no. 187/1942:f. 173). Many of them worked as blacksmiths, musicians, masons, shoemakers, and small traders.
Historical note on the deportation:
The General Inspectorate of the Gendarmerie developed a staged evacuation plan. First, in May
1942, a numerical census of nomadic Roma in rural areas and on the outskirts of cities was conducted. Then, between June and August, nomadic Roma settlements were evacuated in small groups using their own carts, under the strict surveillance of gendarmes. These groups were escorted from post to post by gendarmes until they reached Romania’s eastern border with Transnistria. According to the interviewee, the journey lasted about a month and a half. Before crossing the Dniester River, Roma belongings and animals were confiscated, and their carts were destroyed to prevent them from moving.
1942, a numerical census of nomadic Roma in rural areas and on the outskirts of cities was conducted. Then, between June and August, nomadic Roma settlements were evacuated in small groups using their own carts, under the strict surveillance of gendarmes. These groups were escorted from post to post by gendarmes until they reached Romania’s eastern border with Transnistria. According to the interviewee, the journey lasted about a month and a half. Before crossing the Dniester River, Roma belongings and animals were confiscated, and their carts were destroyed to prevent them from moving.
Once in Transnistria, the Roma deportees were divided into small groups of several families. The
interviewee and his family were placed in makeshift shelters near a kolkhoz in Tridubi (Golta County). Forced labor, extreme cold, and starvation led to high mortality among the deportees.
According to Ion Stănescu, around half of the deportees died of hunger. There were also summary executions, but some deportees (including the interviewee’s uncle) managed to escape execution by bribing the gendarmes.
The Roma deportees remained in Transnistria for approximately two and a half years. Their repatriation likely took place in the spring of 1944, as Romanian–German troops retreated in the face of the advancing Soviet Army. The interviewee walked part of the way back and later boarded a
freight train bound for Romania.
freight train bound for Romania.
Brief note on a Roma subgroup:
Before the war, the căldărari Roma living near Pitești resided in tents and specialized in metalworking, crafting copper vessels and utensils.
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