Romfilatelia introduces into circulation the postage stamps issue “Faculty of Law of the University of Bucharest – 150 years”.Romfilatelia introduces into circulation the postage stamps issue “Faculty of Law of the University of Bucharest – 150 years”.
150 years ago, on the 25th of November 1859, by the Decree no. 519, signed by the Ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza, the Bucharest Faculty of Law became an independent institution.
Nevertheless, the history of education in Bucharest began still during the reign of Constantin Brancoveanu, the Ruler of Wallachia, who founded the Princely Academy from St. Sava in 1694 in Bucharest, being advised to do so by the High Steward Constantin Cantacuzino, a great scholar having taken humanistic studies in Padua.
Then, under the reign of Alexandru Ipsilanti, new locations were built for the Academy during 1776-1779.
In 1818, the Transylvanian scholar Gheorghe Lazar created The School of St. Sava, where courses were taught in Romanian.
In 1832, Petrache Poenaru performed an educational reform at the St. Sava National College, developing upper juridical and scientific education.
In 1850, at the same time with the Education Reform, the upper courses having a juridical andscientific nature were established, and four years later the first class of lawyers appeared.
On the 25th of November 1859, the Faculty of Law became an independent institution, having Constantin Bosianu as its first Dean.
On the 4th/16th of July 1864, by the Decree no. 765, the Ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza approved the establishment of the University of Bucharest by reuniting the three existing faculties: the Faculty of Law, the Faculty of Sciences and the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy.
Since 1864, the year of its establishment, the University of Bucharest has been significantly contributing to the development and modernization of the Romanian education, science and culture.
The Faculty of Law had initially 9 departments, 9 Professors and 30 students. During the first academic years, the subjects taught were: Roman Law, Civil Romanian Law and Civil Law Procedure, Romanian Criminal Law and the Criminal Law Procedure, Commercial Law, Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Political Economics. The period of the studies was of four years.
In 1908 the first Doctor of Laws was awarded.
Due to the large number of students registered at the Faculty of Law, the need of a new headquarters became acutely. Thus, in the 4th decennium of the 20th century, at Nicolae Basilescu’s initiative, who was the Dean at that time, and with the support of King Carol II and the competent Ministry, the current Palace of the Faculty of Law was built, between 1934 and 1936 according to the design of the architect Petre Antonescu, member of the Romanian Academy. This building became one of the landmarks on the map of the historical monuments of Bucharest.
The statues on the façade of the palace, representing the great jurists of antiquity Lycurg, Solon, Cicero, Papinian, as well as the Emperor Iustinian, were created by the sculptors Ion Jalea and Ion Georgescu.
In its whole history of 150 years, the Faculty of Law of Bucharest proved one of the most valuable educational law institutions in Romania, the professors and the students contributing in a generally essential way to the juridical and national culture development, as well as to the democratic development of the Romanian society.
We would like to thank the Board of the Faculty of Law – University of Bucharest, for the support in accomplishing this postage stamps issue.
Issue date: 2009-11-25
