Two Romanian Dictators

1. Ion Antonescu

As prime minister of Romania, Ion Antonescu established a military dictatorship in Romania which joined the Axis Powers to protect its independence while Hungary wanted Transylvania back. Yes, Transylvania is real and it is a region in modern day Romania. The oil reserves in Romania were strategically important during the war which is another reason for Romania's becoming a formal member of the Axis. He forced Romania's king into exile and a pro German dictatorship was adopted though oddly enough Antonescu wasn't officially a fascist politician. He was just your average WW2 politician that was more in favour of sending soldiers to fight in Stalingrad and having minorities and the disabled king killed than having a Dig for Victory campaign.

So he did get his comeuppance like Mussolini or realise that allied victory was inevitable after D-Day.

In fact it was a coup that brought him down in August 1944 led by King Michael, the successor to the king Antonescu exiled but it was the  Romanian communists people's court that sentenced him to death and executed him as a war criminal in 1946.

2.Nicolae Ceausescu

Nicolae Ceausescu is probably the Romanian dictator you have heard more of than Antonescu because he was just as bad but more memorable than his WW2 counterpart. Life in Ceausescu's Romania was difficult. Food was rationed and there were long lines for it. Mocking him could destroy your career and your future. The official doctrine of the Communist Party forbade unemployment and the media was heavily censored.Anyone who wanted to to justify their trip to the authorities. The prevailing mood can be compared to modern day North Korea. In fact Ceasescu was one of Kim Il Sung's biggest fans. So it's no wonder there is such a comparison. In a karmatic twist of fate, Nicolae and his wife Elena Ceausescu were gunned down during the Romanian Revolution of 1989 after the Romanians couldn't handle his treatment of the country any more. Did we mention that his people booed him when he tried to make a speech some days beforehand?

Well now we did.