Ana Pauker: The Rise and Fall of a Jewish Communist

421 Pages·2001·1.22 MB·English

by  Robert Levy

Ana Pauker

Ana Pauker
The Rise and Fall
of a Jewish Communist
Robert Levy
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS
Berkeley . Los Angeles . London
Frontispiece: Ana Pauker, 1926. Courtesy
of Tatiana Bra˘tescu and Gheorghe Bra˘tescu.
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
© 2001 by
The Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Levy, Robert, 1957–.
Ana Pauker: the rise and fall of a Jewish
Communist / Robert Levy.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn0-520-22395-0 (cloth: alk. paper).
1. Pauker, Ana, 1893–1960. 2. Romania—
Politics and government—1944–1989.
3. Cabinet officers—Romania—Biography.
4. Communists—Romania—Biography.
5. Jews—Romania—Biography. I. Title.
dr267.5.p38 l48 2001
949.803(cid:2)1(cid:2)092—dc21
[b]
99-087890
cip
Manufactured in the United States of America
09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
The paper used in this publication meets the
minimum requirements of ansi/niso
z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper). (cid:2)(cid:3)
To Mary and Isaac Rosenberg
Last, but most certainly not least, there was Ana Pauker....
I have always felt when I was with her that she was like a boa
constrictor which has just been fed, and therefore is not
going to eat you—at the moment! Heavy and sluggish as
she seemed, she had all that is repellent and yet horribly
fascinating in a snake. I could well imagine, simply from
watching her, that she had denounced her own husband, who
in consequence was shot; and my further acquaintance with
her showed me the cold and dehumanized brilliance by which
she had reached the powerful position she occupied.
Ileana, Princess of Romania,
Archduchess of Austria,I Live Again
Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
1. Early Years 15
2. In the Movement 33
3. In Power 68
4. The Agriculture Secretary 90
5. Party Purges 134
6. Jewish Emigration 163
7. “The Empress’s Brother” 183
8. The Purge 194
Epilogue 221
Appendix: Biographical Notes 239
Notes 255
Bibliography 369
Index 387

Illustrations
Frontispiece. Ana Pauker, 1926
Following p.162
1. Map of Romania, 1944–51
2. Ana Pauker, 1913
3. Ana Pauker with her daughter Tatiana, ca. 1928–29
4. Marcel Pauker at Magtitogorsk, USSR, ca. 1931–32
5. AnaPaukerspeakingathertrial,Craiova,Romania,1936
6. Marcel Pauker in a Soviet prison, March1938
7. Ana Pauker in prison, 1938
8. Hersh Rabinsohn, Ana Pauker’s father
9. Lucret¸iu Patras¸canu and Teohari Georgescu, May1, 1946
10. Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, 1946
11. Ana Pauker receiving a foreign delegation, November
1947
12. Ana Pauker, official portrait, 1948
13. Prime Minister Petru Groza and Ana Pauker at a rally
honoring Georgi Dimitrov, July 1949
14. Ana Pauker at the Palace of the Republic, May 9, 1948