General Gheorghe Avramescu (Romania) - information needed

[mabadesc]

Hello to everyone,

I'm trying to gather as much data as I can about my great-grandfather, General Gheorghe Avramescu.

All comments are welcome - postive or negative.
I'm interested in any information about him, but especially about the reason for his execution by the NKVD in March 1945, for which no explanation was given (actually, the Soviets denied it ever happened and sent us a note stating that he was killed in a German Bomb Raid).

I apologize for my selfish reasons, but I hope you understand my wanting to know about a family member.

P.S. I already know about Victor's great site, http://www.wwii.home.ro, and about the equally informative site www. generals.dk.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

[Aufklarer]

Apparently, general Avramescu was planning to hand himself and his remaining troops of the 4th Army to the Germans in winter 1944, but unfortunately his plan was unveiled. Could his pro-German stance have lead to his death?

[mabadesc]

Hi Aufklarer,

Thanks for posting.

I've heard the theory that he was planning to re-join the Axis and turn the 4th army against the Soviet Union, but supposedly this was planned for the spring of 1945. I haven't heard of this being planned in the winter of 1944. Very interesting...just curious, how did you hear about this?

On a personal note, I can tell you from a family perspective that I'm almost sure (99%) that he wasn't planning this. At the time, half of his family was in Romania (one daughter, her husband, and 2 grandchildren) and he must have known that the Soviets would have killed all of them. At least, he would have told them to get out of the country or to hide. But I've asked my grandmother (his daughter), my grandfather (his son-in-law, who was a colonel) and my great-grandmother (his wife) about this and none of them ever thought he would have done it without telling them in advance.

I think the reason some historians proposed this theory was because his other daughter (who commited suicide when the soviets took her) was married to Ilie Sturza, and the Sturza family was indeed very pro-german and members of the Iron Guard.

Good comment, though.....can you discuss further?

[Aufklarer]

Hello mabadesc,

I heard the latter from this page: http://www.itcnet.ro/history/archive/mi ... 1/mi59.htm
Dr. Miroslav Tejchman (author of the article) said there are documents proving the existence of this alleged counter-offensive but doesn’t comment further. He also makes reference to two issues of Magazin Istoric that could provide you with more information concerning the Avramescu case.

Anyway, I wouldn’t be too sure as to Avramescu’s decision to inform his family or not. Could he have put someone in charge of the family’s safety without telling them about this mysterious operation? The less people knew about it, the better.

[Aufklarer]

Here’s an interesting article dealing with the counter-offensive in the Carpathians: http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Se ... fensi.html

This one suggests that:
- Avramescu (along with the others) was betrayed by a double agent of the NKVD.
- the reason behind Vychinski’s attempt to "persuade" the king to oust the Radescu government was that of Radescu’s involvement in the planning of the counter-offensive operation

[mabadesc]

Thanks for the links, Aufklarer. I'll reply with some comments after I read them. I'm especially excited about Dr. Miroslav Tejchman's claim about the existence of documents.

Here's one question for you, though. Avramescu was inactive/retired (and happy) when Malinovsky intervened by King Michael and requested Avramescu's reinstatement as CO of 4th army. His reason (whether true or not) was that 4th army efficiency had dropped 50% since Avramescu had left the command. So Avramescu was called to an audience with the king and persuaded to resume command of the 4th army. This happened around February 19th. If that's the case, then when did he have the time to plan a counter-offensive? I suppose it's possible, but it doesn't make much sense, since he didn't ask to be re-activated, but rather he was recalled to duty pretty much against his wishes.

Anyway, thanks again for your research. I'll reply again after I read the articles. If you find anything else, please let me know.

Mihai.

[Victor]

Gheorghe Avramescu was born on 26 January 1884 at Botosani in a poor peasant family. Like many other young men in his social position he chose the military career. In 1906 he was admitted into the Infantry Officer School in Bucharest, which he finished in 1908, with the rank of 2nd lt. Unfortunately not much info is available on the units he served in until 1913 when he started the Military Academy, except for the fact that he had been promoted to 1st lt. in 1911. After the first year, he had to stop, probably because of the war which had just began in Europe. Major (since 1917) Avramescu continued the courses in 1919-1920, finishing second of his class.

A lt. colonel in 1923 and colonel in 1929 he became a brig. general in 1936. The beginning of the war found him with the rank of major genera and CO of the Mountain Corps, with which he participated in the offensive in Northern Bukovina in July 1941 (for which he received the Mihai Viteazu Order 3rd class) and then went as far as north of Crimea, where it took part in the Battle of the Azov Sea, contributing a lot to the defeat of the Soviet 9th and 18th Armies. Subordinated to the von Manstein's 11th Army he participated with his units in the breakthrough into the peninsula, then in the winter battles of 1941 and in the final assault on Sevastopol in 1942, when his two divisions (1st Mtn. Div. and 18th Inf. Div.) took some key defensive positions. The clear up of the Balaclava pocket was his doing, not Manoliu's as shown in an article about Romanian KC holders on Feldgrau (see Manoliu below). There were periods, when the Mountain Corps had practically only one unit or even none under its effective command in 1941 (because Manstein had assigned the Romanian units de facto to German corps). He protested and managed to obtain Antonescu's intervention in the matter.

I would also like to add that general Avramescu was the one who initiated the Mountain Corps' Simferopol Canteen for the poor inhabitants of the city, where up to 2000 people were fed daily in some periods.

In late 1943 he was named CO of the 3rd Corps and then of the 6th Corps, which took part in the battles in Moldavia in 1944. On the eve of the Soviet Jassy-Kishinev Operation, he took effective command of the 4th Army, because gen. Racovita was away on leave (see Racovita above). He could not prevent the disaster, but went on to command the 4th Army in its campaign in Transylvania and then into Hungary and Czechoslovakia, with an interruption of one month.

The state of the Romanian armies in the spring of 1945 was miserable. This was mainly the result of poor supply. The new allies were using the Romanian supply system for their own needs. Most of the Romanian products were sent to the Red Army units. General Gheorghe Avramescu protested vehemently on many occasions. Of course that marshal Rodion Malinovsky dismissed the facts as "the result of the sabotage of the officers of the old regime". After the Soviet command allowed 200 wagons of food to be delivered to the 4th Army, Avramescu continued to protest, especially because most of the Romanian units were under strength and were receiving missions beyond their possibilities.

On 2 March 1945 he and general Nicolae Dragomir were summoned to the command of the Soviet 40th Army in the Slovak town of Divin, to present the situation of the 4th Romanian Army. After an hour the officers that came with them were communicated that Avramescu and Dragomir left with general Filip Fedorovich Jmachenko to the command of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, where they were summoned by Malinovsky. In fact the two generals had been arrested. At 20:30 the chief Soviet liaison officer to the 4th Army communicated that general Dascalescu was the new CO. On 5 March Dacalescu sent an official letter to Jmachenko, asking him when did Avramescu and Dragomir leave to Bucharest (as he was told initially) and when are they going to return. Four days later, Jmachenko visited the command post of the 4th Army. Again Dascalescu asked where are the two generals. The only answer he could get was a recommendation to ask the Ministry of Defense or the Romanian General Staff.

On 3 March 1945 his wife (Adela) and his daughter (Felicia) were arrested and sent to Siberia, as already mentioned. His daughter killed herself on 6 March. His wife returned to Romania in 1956. She asked for a pension to which she was entitled to in the event of the death of her husband. The Romanian authorities addressed the Soviet Supreme Tribunal and found out that general Gheorghe Avramescu died on 3 March 1945 near the town Iasbereni, following an attack of German aircraft. He was buried in Budapest. Some believe that he was actually executed by the NKVD.

On 23 October 2000, general Avramescu returned to Romania and was buried in the Military Cemetery in Cluj.

The debate over his supposed intention to defect with his entire army to the German side, as the Soviets suspected following the defection of his son in law, is still opened. On one side we have to consider his very good military education and experience, which would have told him that the war was already lost and this action would be folly. On the other hand we have several German and Romanian (members of the Iron Guard) testimonies of this planned action. Only the Soviet archives could provide more information.

[mabadesc]

Victor - thanks for the biography! You're a good writer.

I have to agree with you that the only way to find out what really happened on March 3rd, 1945 is through Soviet military archives. I think we can be 100% certain, though, that the "German aircraft fighter attack" is completely false.
When the general was arrested, he was accompanied by a few other romanian officers. One of them was Captain Doroftei, the chief of his bodyguard group. Doroftei ended up in Siberia, but returned around 1960. I had the chance of speaking to him personally later on (mid 80's), since he visited our family regularly. He was an eyewitness to the arrest and confirmed it without a doubt, although once they were arrested, each officer was kept in solitary confinment until they were sent to Siberia.
In addition, when Avramescu's remains were brought to Cluj in 2000, the current CO of the 4th Army had a private conversation with my uncle, and told him that the general's skull had a round, small-caliber bullet hole in the back of the head. Otherwise, the skeleton was intact. His "Vinator de Munte" beret also had one single hole in it.

Thanks for the info to both of you (Victor and Aufklarer). I'll post some more stuff if I find out anything else.

Regards,

Mihai.

[Victor]

the current CO of the 4th Army had a private conversation with my uncle, and told him that the general's skull had a round, small-caliber bullet hole in the back of the head.

Let me guess . . . 7.62mm?

I do not doubt the fact that he executed. That is more than clear. However, I find it very hard to believe that he was actually planning to open the front for the Germans. It was senseless.

[mabadesc]

I find it very hard to believe that he was actually planning to open the front for the Germans. It was senseless.

I agree with you. Completely senseless from a strategic perspective, and I might add, not within his character.
I'm trying to be objective and not rule out the possibility, but I have yet to see any written document or concrete proof of it. The only argument is allowing Ilie Sturza to defect through the front line (which is true). But Sturza was his son-in-law and was facing execution. I've spoken with Ilie Sturza in Madrid, and he denies Avramescu's involvement in the pro-german movement.

Let me guess . . . 7.62mm?

Very good guess....

[mabadesc]

The following represents some new on-site research done by Paltin Sturza, one of General Avramescu's grand-sons. Mr. Sturza's mother, Felicia, was arrested the same day of Avramescu's arrest and, it is believed, commited suicide in the following few days. The narrative below is written by Paltin Sturza in Romanian. The information in the article was obtained by recent travel to Slovakia (Lucenec) and Hungary. Of interest pertaining to the general is the fact that the major NKVD interrogation/execution headquarters location was in fact in Hungary, in a town named Jaskiser. This raises the possibility that Avramescu himself may have been transported to Hungary and executed there, rather than in Slovakia. This is also consistent with the Avramescu's burial spot, which was in a cemetary on the outskirts of Budapest. Here is Paltin Sturza's narrative. Sorry, I don't have the time to translate it:

Jaskiser

Intr-o comunicare primita de la Ministerul Afacerilor Interne a Repulicii Populare Romane din 8 martie 1956 adresata Adelei Avramescu se specifica ca Felicia Avramescu casatorita Sturdza, “a decedat in 1945 si ca date cu privire la locul unde a fost inmormantata fiica d-v nu exista”. In 1963 intr-o nota a Crucii Rosii a RPR aparea precizarea ca s-a sinucis la 6 martie 1945. De abia in 2001 in urma cercetarilor efectuate la Arhiva Centrală a Serviciului Federal de Securitate al Federaţiei Ruse am descoperit un certificat medico-legal aflat ca locul unde a decedat mama mea a fost localitatea Jaskiser din Ungaria. Documentul descoperit, un certificat eliberat de maiorul Bagritskiy expert medico-legal al Frontului 2 Ucrainian la cererea sefului sectiei de contra-informatii SMERS, specifica urmatoarele detalii: “la 6 martie [1945] in jurul orei 7 dimineata, in timp ce se afla intr-una din incaperile sectiei de contra-informatii a SMERS-ului, [Jaskiser, Ungaria], Sturdza-Avramescu [Felicia] de nationalitate romana a luat otrava dizolvata in apa cu scopul de se sinucide. Locotenetul Polianski de la serviciul medical al armatei care a venit pentru a-i oferi asistenta medicala a gasit-o deja pe moarte. Cateva grame de cianura de potasiu (identificate prin teste chimice) au fost gasite asupra ei”. Urmeaza apoi descrierea imbracamintii in care a fost gasita si 27 de paragrafe care descriu starea organelor interne si efectele otravirii prin cianura. M-am gandit ca moartea prin cianură survine foarte repede aşa că speram să nu se fi chinuit. Mai târziu aveam să aflu că moartea fulgerătoare asociată cu cianură este un mit. Un studiu asupra execuţiilor făcute în închisorile americane a găsit că victimele supravieţuiesc în medie 9 minute. In primele 5 minute cianura blochează complet respiraţia celulară, provocând chinurile cumplite ale asfixiei. Tot in acest timp victima este constienta şi încearcă în zadar să respire, intră în convulsii şi apoi în comă expirând dupa o agonie cumplită.

La Moscova am cunsocut-o pe d-na Tatiana Pokivailova, cercetătoare la Institutul de Slavistică din Moscova care m-a ajutat la cercetarile in arhive. Tot d-na Pokivailova m-a pus in contact cu istoricul ungur Dr. Jozsa Antal care a facut cercetari la Jaskiser in vederea gasirii mormantului Feliciei. M-am pus in legaura cu d-l Antal, si la 4 martie 2003 am ajuns la Jaskiser si inceput explorarile la fata locului. Era in aceeiasi zi in care Felicia Avramescu Sturdza arestata impreuna cu Adela Avramescu, mama ei si cu mine la Lucenec (Slovakia) de catre SMERS ar fi ajuns la Jaskiser. Am ajuns si eu intr-o zi friguroasa si moharata de iarna asa cum probabil a fost acea zi fatidica din 4 martie 1945. Cladirea SMERSH-ului mentionata in documentul din arhivele rusesti este astazi sediul primariei din Jaskiser. La vre-o 30 de metri se afla alta caldire, astazi un cinema, in a carui subsol, o fosta crama, erau inchisi si executati cei detinuti de NKVD. Coborand treptele pivnitei m-am gandit ca poate si mama mea a coborit aceleasi trepte cu ani in urma spre partea din incapere rezervata detinutelor femei.

Dupa ce am vizitat sumbrele catacombe in care au expirat victimele NKVD-ului, profesorul Antal m-a pus in contact cu Istvan Duca, un supravietuitor al acelor triste vremuri care in martie 1945 avea insarcinarea sa aduca hrana garzilor care pazeau cladirea in care se flau prizonierii. D-l Duca aducea hrana de doua ori pe zi, la 6 dimineata si la 7 seara pe care o preda direct garzilor direct fara a avea acces in curtea cladirii unde erau inchisi prizonierii. A avut insa acces in cladirea birourilor NKVD de unde a putut auzi uneori noaptea zgomotul dubelor care aduceau prizonierii si chair auzi vociferarile inspaimantate ale prizonierilor impinsi pe trepetele care duceau in fosta crama. Istvan Duca afirma ca a auzit voci de femei si chiar plansete de copiii. M-am intrebat cu groaza daca nu cumva a auzit-o pe mama si chiar pe mine. Dupa marturiile doicei mele Marita, pe care am reintalnit-o in 1997, dupa arestarea familiei la Lucenec, eu si cu doica am ajuns si noi in Ungaria unde am ramas pana in mai 1945 cand am fost repatriati in Romania. Dupa ce NKVD a parasit Jaskiser-ul, Istvan Duca a facut parte din echipa de lucratori care au trebuit sa curete si sa renoveze fosta crama in care fusesera executati detinutii. Duca isi aminteste si azi peretii manjiti cu singe si pe care a victimele isi scrisesera numele: el ar fi vazut approximativ 100 de nume.

Destinul a facut ca sa gasesc la Jaskiser inca in viata pe Imre Fekety care a fost singurul un martor care a putut identifica locul unde NKVD a dispus de cadavrele celor executati in fosta crama. In perioada februarie-martie 1945, Imre Fekety, atunci un adolesecent, a observat in doua randuri cum pe un camp in afara satului, unde se afla o cariera de nisip, NKVD-stii au si-au ingropat victimele.

Am discutat cu autoritatile locale posibilitatea de a deshuma victimele necunoscute din aceasta groapa comuna si a le da o inmormantare crestineasca la cimitirul local. In aceasta operatie sper sa o identific si pe mama folosind metoda ADN-ului.

Sinucidere sau executie ¿ Documentele arhivelor rusesti indica sinucidere. Profesorului Antal sustine ca Felicia Avramescu Sturdza a fost executata. Numai dupa identificarea si osemintelor vom gasi raspuns la aceasta dureroasa intrebare despre sfarsitul Feliciei Avramescu Sturdza.