August 1944 in Constanța. The Case of Rear Admiral Horia Macellariu

This paper focuses on the role of the Romanian Royal Navy and of the personality of the most capable commander of its maritime forces during the campaign in the East, in the 23 August 1944 decisive moments – Rear Admiral Horia Macellariu. In the context of the country’s exit from the alliance with Germany and of the political-military changes, and under the impact of the proclamation issued by King Mihai I, in Constanța, the problem for the commanders of the Royal Navy was very sensitive: the detachment from the RomanianGerman mixed command. The situation was characterised by uncertainties, the ships of the Maritime Naval Force being interspersed with many more German ships, which had a superior artillery equipment. Rear Admiral Horia Macellariu, the Commander of the Navy and directly responsible for the fate of the crews, was also under the Commander of the 9th Infantry Division. His orders, from the General Staff and the Naval Staff, to disarm or force the German troops to withdraw Southward, in Bulgaria, required special tact and diplomacy. The excellent working relationship between Rear Admiral Macellariu and German Admiral Helmuth Brinkmann helped to avoid a bloody confrontation, which could prove disastrous for the port and the city of Constanța After the withdrawal of the Germans, appointed Superior Commander of the Dobruja territory, Rear Admiral Horia Macellariu had the ungrateful task of receiving the Soviet troops, whose generals and admirals considered the Romanian Armed Forces defeated and treated them as such. A series of pressures followed, doubled by insults and hostile attitude on the part of the Soviet occupant, culminating in the forcible takeover of Royal Navy ships on 5 September 1944.