Mihail Codreanu

Mihai Codreanu (Romanian pronunciation: [miˈhaj koˈdre̯anu]; July 25, 1876 – October 23, 1957) was a Romanian poet, particularly noted for his sonnets. A native and lifelong resident of Iași, he published his first volume of verse in 1901, followed by another two years later that solidified his reputation. Aside from another book of sonnets in 1914 and two during the 1920s, he authored three highly successful translations of French plays. He also edited a series of newspapers and wrote widely for an array of literary reviews. Attracted to the stage from early on, he led and reformed the main theatre in his city for several years after World War I, and during the 1930s presided over the arts school in Iași. Beginning in 1905, he suffered from an eye disease that soon left him unable to read or write, tasks that he accomplished through intermediaries.

He was born in Iași. His father Mihail Costache Codreanu, a native of Târgu Ocna, was a judge and a Latin teacher at the National College who died of tuberculosis in September 1877. His mother Natalia was born in 1843 to Dimitrie Mânzariu, who later changed the family name to Mârzescu; she worked as an inspector at a maternity hospital. Her brother was Gheorghe Mârzescu, while Mihai's first cousin was Gheorghe Gh. Mârzescu.

He attended secondary school from 1887 to 1894 in Iași, Bacău and Bucharest, and probably moved around schools due to poor conduct. Codreanu's poetic debut came in Lumea ilustrată magazine in 1891. From 1896 to 1900 he studied at the law faculty of the University of Iași, also taking courses in medicine, philosophy and philology. His thesis focused on the patria potestas in Roman and Romanian law. He studied declamation at the Iași Conservatory from 1897 to 1899. In the summer of 1899, after graduation but before receiving his diploma, he attended a theatrical performance by State Dragomir, and began whistling to express his disapproval. An outraged Dragomir demanded punishment; the school's leadership met to discuss its options, and resumed its investigation in autumn. Finally, the Education Ministry decided to withhold his diploma for two years.

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