Constantin Ion Parhon
Constantin Parhon | |
|---|---|
Great National Assembly | |
| In office 1948–1961 | |
| Member of the Assembly of Deputies | |
| In office 19 November 1946 – 25 February 1948 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 October 1874 Câmpulung, Argeș County, Kingdom of Romania |
| Died | 9 August 1969 (aged 94) Bucharest, Socialist Republic of Romania |
| Resting place | Carol Park, Bucharest, Romania (until 1991) |
| Political party | Peasants' Party (1919–1921) Romanian Communist Party (1921–1969) |
| Alma mater | University of Bucharest |
| Profession | Physician, Professor, Politician |
| Awards | Hero of Socialist Labour |
| Signature |  |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Iași Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy |
Constantin Ion Parhon (Romanian pronunciation: [konstanˈtin iˈon parˈhon] ⓘ; 15 October 1874 – 9 August 1969) was a Romanian neuropsychiatrist, endocrinologist and politician. He was the first head of state of the Romanian People's Republic from 1947 to 1952. Parhon was President of the Physicians and Naturalists Society in Iași, director of medical institutes, professor, and a titular member of the Romanian Academy.
Early life and education
Born in
Working career
After completing his studies and obtaining his doctorate, he worked as a doctor at the "Rallet" Rural Hospital in Dâmbovița county ( 1901 - 1902 ) and then as a secondary doctor at the Pantelimon Hospital ( 1903 - 1909 ). During this period, he became a professor at the Clinic for Nervous Diseases in Bucharest (1903), following a training course in Munich ( 1906 ). Then, he became primary doctor at the Mărcuța Hospice (1909-1912 ) .
He is employed in higher medical education, as a university professor of neurology and psychiatry at the Faculty of Medicine in Iași (1913-1933 ) and of the endocrinology clinic at the Faculty of Medicine in Bucharest (1933-1940 and 1944-1958 ) .
Parhon taught Neurology and Psychiatry at the School of Medicine of the University of Iași (1912–1933), and, from 1933, Endocrinology at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Bucharest. Parhon was the founder of the Romanian school of endocrinology. In 1909, he co-authored with Moise Goldstein the first book on endocrinology, Secrețiile Interne ("Internal Secretions"). Later on, he published a Handbook of Endocrinology, co-written with M. Goldstein and Ștefan-Marius Milcu (3 volumes, 1945–1949). Parhon published over 400 titles, and was known for his encyclopaedic knowledge. Besides the afore-mentioned works, some of his other well-known works are Old Age and Its Treatment (1948), The Age Biology (1955), and Selected Works (5 volumes, 1954–1962). He was an honorary member of the Soviet, Bulgarian and East German academies, as well as the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, as well as several foreign scientific societies. In 1948, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of the University of Prague.
Politics
As a
After the forced abdication of King Michael I on 30 December 1947, the Deputies' Assembly adopted Law No. 363, through which Romania became a People's Republic and the 1923 Constitution was repealed. The same law provided for a Presidium composed of five members (elected by the Deputies' Assembly) to exercise the executive powers in the state; alongside Parhon, its members were Mihail Sadoveanu, Ștefan Voitec, Gheorghe Stere, and Ion Niculi. Shortly afterwards, Parhon became the President of the Presidium, thus becoming Romania's head of state.
On 13 April 1948, the Parliament adopted a new Constitution, which borrowed heavily from the
Parhon was a member of the Romanian Academy and other scientific societies. He was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor and received the State Prize. He liked to be referred to as a "citizen-scientist".
Death
Legacy
He remained in public knowledge as Doctor Constantin I. Parhon, founder of the Romanian school of endocrinology, active full member and honorary president (1948-1969) of the Romanian Academy.
Notes
References
- Adrian Cioroianu, Pe umerii lui Marx. O introducere în istoria comunismului românesc ("On the Shoulders of Marx. An Incursion into the History of Romanian Communism"), Editura Curtea Veche, Bucharest, 2005
- Vasile Niculae, Ion Ilincioiu, Stelian Neagoe, Doctrina țărănistă în România. Antologie de texte ("Peasant doctrine in Romania. Collected Texts"), Editura Noua Alternativă, Social Theory Institute of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, 1994