Premium
The opening of the tribute exhibition "120 years since the birth of Prince Nicolae" took place on Tuesday, on board the Marasesti frigate, a ship that was in the service of the Romanian Navy between 1920 and 1961.
The Romanian Naval Forces informed, through a press release, that the opening of the tribute exhibition "120 years since the birth of Prince Nicolae" was organized, on board the frigate Marasesti, to mark, among the local community of Constanta and the personnel of the Navy Romanian Military, the special importance of the connection that Prince Nicolae had with the destroyer "Marasesti", a ship in the service of the Romanian Navy in the period 1920-1961. Later, in 1990, the traditions of this ship were taken over by the destroyer "Marasesti", classified, in 2001, in the class of frigates, as it is presented today.
"The largest warship ever built in Romania, in the Mangalia shipyard, after a Romanian project, between 1978 and 1985, was launched in 1985, and since then it has been part of the service of the Romanian Naval Forces, in which it executed numerous national and international missions, together with foreign partners, and participated in numerous multinational exercises carried out in the Black Sea basin", the press release states.
According to the cited source, the Romanian Navy had many special connections with the Royal House of Romania, as well as with Prince Nicolae, who, in February 1919, was admitted to the Royal Military College in Great Britain, being the youngest student in the history of the established school in the year 1440. In the summer of 1922, Prince Nicolae graduated from the Royal Military College, Naval Section, and, as a cadet, attended the Royal Naval School at Dartmouth for four years. In 1929, Prince Nicolae was in command of the Destroyer Marasesti, with which he executed an international march in the Mediterranean Sea.
In 1930, Prince Nicolae was promoted to the rank of vice admiral, and on May 1, 1931, by High Royal Decree no. 1558, he was appointed as Inspector General of the Navy.
In his capacity as Inspector General of the Navy, Prince Nicolae sent the following first message to the major subordinate units: "By High Order number 1558 of May 7, 1931, His Majesty the King entrusted me with the leadership of the Navy. Our little Navy, in order to advance with certainty in its development, it needs a strong tradition and a doctrine, which, once assimilated, will make the divergence of ideas disappear. In our life as a soldier and sailor, which is full of dangers and responsibilities, to be guided by Duty, Conscience and Honor."
The Chief of Staff of the Naval Forces, Vice-Admiral Mihai Panait, emphasized in the message addressed on the occasion of the opening that "today, the life of sailors remains governed by the same values of duty, conscience and honor, and what 100 years ago meant a small Navy, today the Romanian Naval Forces represent a pillar of regional stability and a credible provider of security to the standards of the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance".
