DANUBE DELTA
nature, history, civilization

Cultural itinerary

History of Sulina

First documentary mention - " De administrando Imperi" - a document from the times of Byzantine emperor Constantin Porfirogenetul (913 - 959 d.C).

In Anna Comnena's "Alexiada" it is a mention of Selinas or Solina at the Calonstoma river mouth. In 1318, the town becomes Genovian port. A july 1469 document speaks about the placement of the Turkish army in Soline, before attacking Chilia and Cetatea Alba. During Russian-Turkish war, XVIII-XiX, Sulina was known only as a settlements with 1000-1200 inhabitants. The Russian-Austrian Coventioned signed at Sankt Petersburg in 1840 nominates Sulina as a river-marine port and establishes the bases for free navigation on the Danube.

In 1843 the number of English vessels entering the Danube waters were 7, in 1849 this number raised to 128.


Following the Paris Treaty (1856) in Sulina are established the headquarters of the Danube European Comission (DEC), with a political mandate of neutralizing the specific zone. The Comission was composed by the representatives of Great Britain , France , Austria , Germany ( Prussia ), Italy (Sardinia), Russia and Turkey.

Sulina becomes free port (Porto Franco), and has a fast economic development under its neutrality status on times of war and peace.

In Sulina of those times it was developed for the first time, naturally, the United Europe Concept, sustained by a spirit of tolerance and multiethnic living together.

At the end of XIX century the census specified: from a total population of 4889 inhabitants they were 2056 Greeks, 803 Romanians, 546 Russians, 444 Armenians, 268 Turks, 211 Austro-Hungarians, 173 Jews, 117 Albanians, 49 Germans, 45 Italians, 35 Bulgarians, 24 English, 22 Tartars, 22 Montenegrians, 21 Serbians, 17 Poles, 11 French, & Lipovenians, 6 Danes, 5 Gagauzians, 4 Indians, 3 Egyptians. They were 1200 houses in the town, 154 shops, 3 mills, 70 small companies, a water factory (Queen's of Holland donation), an electrical factory, a telephonic line from Tulcea to Galati, a 5 miles modernized road, 2 hospitals and one 300 places theatre.

Between the 2 wars, the population number varied between 7000-15000, depending on the national corn harvest which was transported and stored in Sulina which represented an attraction to different European population. The education was sustained through 2 Greek schools, 2 Romanians, 1 German, 1 Jewish, a few other confessional schools, a gymnasium and a professional school for girls, an English Marine Institute.

The religious confessions were also sustained by 4 orthodox Churches (2 Romanians, one Russian and one Armenian), a Jewish temple, an Anglican Church, a Catholic Church, one Protestant and two Mosques.

They were 9 Consulates in town: the Austriac Cosulate, the English, German, Italian, Danish, Greek, Russian, and Turkish Viceconsulates, with a Consualry Agency for Belgium . The most important shipping companies present here were: Lloyd Austria Society (Austria), Deutsch Levante Linie - D.L.L. (Germany), Egeo (Greece), Johnston Line (England), Florio et Rubatino (Italia), Westcott Linea (Belgium), Messagerie Maritime (France), Serviciul Maritim Roman.
The official documents were written in French and English and the communication language was the Greek one. There was a printing house, where journals as "Gazeta Sulinei", "Curierul Sulinei", "Delta Sulinei and "Analele Sulinei" were printed in several languages.

The canons noise leads to the decision of dissolving the Danube European Comission in 1939. Losing the neutrality meant also the dissolving of the Consulates.

As a strategic point, the town is bombarded by the allied forces in 25 th of August 1944 when 60% of its buildings are destroyed. Under Soviet occupation after the war, the town assists at the effort of wiping any memory of the 83 years of existence of DEC.

The 2002 census recorded 4628 inhabitants, a marked depopulation of 20% in the last 12 years due to an accentuate decline of socio-economic life in the town.

The history marked the presence of several personalities in Sulina: Sir Charles Hartley (1856 - 1907), nicknamed "Danube's father", consultant on maritime problems of Austria, Russia, Egypt, Romania, Bulgaria and India, chief engineer of DEC for digging the Sulina Channel, member of the Technical International Commission for Suez Channel (1884) and for Panama Channel (1879); Admiral August Hobbart, commander of Queen's of England Yacht who fought the Crimean War. He speaks about Sulina in his work "Facing the Seas"; the Princess Ecaterina Moruzi, niece of Ioan Sturza, the Moldavian Prince; Constantin C. Moruzi, undergovernor of Sulina, writer; the conductor George Georgescu, director for 7 years of New York's Metropolitan Opera; the writer - ship commander Eugeniu P. Botez, the author of the novel "Europolis", signed under the Jean Bart name; the poet Alexandru Macedonski, director of Danube mouth.