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Ceaușima ("Ceaushima") is a vernacular word construction in Romanian, sarcastically linking former Communist leader Nicolae Ceaușescu to Hiroshima.〔Tismăneanu, Note 3, p.57〕 This portmanteau term was coined in the 1980s to describe the huge urban areas of Bucharest that Ceaușescu ordered torn down, comparing the results with the nuclear attack on Hiroshima. It has also been used to describe other actions of Ceaușescu not linked to the demolition of Bucharest, such as intense pollution in the Transylvanian city of Copșa Mică. During the final few years of Ceaușescu's tenure, significant portions of the historic center of Bucharest were demolished to accommodate standardized apartment blocks and government buildings, including the grandiose Centrul Civic and the palatial House of the People, now the Palace of the Parliament. == Systematization == (詳細はsystematization to demolish vast portions of the historic and central parts of Bucharest and replace them with giant representation buildings and high-density standardized apartment blocks. The latter was rooted in the ideology of "edifying the multilaterally developed socialist society" and it was considered an epitome of the Leninist formula of the "fight between old and new" (''see Historical materialism''). Started in 1974, and implemented some six years later, the program implied a comprehensive nationwide campaign of demolition, resettlement, and reconstruction. Historian Dinu C. Giurescu writes: "The urban systematization conducted by the communist regime has destroyed 29 traditional towns to 85-90% and also has heavily mutilated other 37 cities, including Bucharest."〔Giurescu, "De la "Sistematizare" la Planul Urbanistic. Ceaușescu redivivus", in ''Formula AS'' 716, 8–15 May 2006〕 The main target of the systematization was Bucharest. The triggering event of systematization in Bucharest was the major earthquake of 1977, which predominantly struck edifices built before World War II (preceded by another major earthquake, that of November 10, 1940), while the structures dating from the communist era held out well. This was interpreted by the communist regime as a proof of its superiority over the pre-war regimes, and led to a paradigm change in its urban development policy. Up to that time, the communist regime had concentrated on the clearance and redevelopment of slums like ''Groapa Floreasca'' or ''Groapa lui Ouatu'' (1950s) as well as on new high-density urban settlements in the suburbs, such as ''Bucureștii Noi'' (1950s), ''Balta Albă'' (later ''Titan''), ''Berceni'', ''Giurgiului'' or ''Drumul Taberei'' (1960s), while the city remained basically untouched. The impacts of the earthquake, more severe in the central city, provided both ideological and technical arguments for urban intervention in historical Bucharest. The immediate consequences of this new urban policy were the demolition of monuments like ''Enei Church'' (founded 1611, rebuilt 1723; with murals by Gheorghe Tattarescu), the Neo-gothic ''Casa Cerchez'' or the elegant ''Baia Centrală'' public bath house and the suppression of the Authority for the National Heritage.〔Mărgineanu, pp.125-136〕 However, the most pervasive consequence was the commitment of Ceauşescu to accomplish his earlier vision of the monumental Centrul Civic ("civic centre"), which would concentrate and symbolize the emblems of his power. Though the decision to build the new civic centre in the very heart of Bucharest was made in 1978, it took some six years for Ceaușescu to impose a wide-ranging reshaping. During that period, interventions in historical Bucharest, like rebuilding the traditional Calea Moșilor with uniform concrete apartment blocks, were still carried out respecting the pre-existing urban configuration. This can be explained by the significant opposition the project encountered from a majority of leading experts.〔Giurescu, p.23, 56, 126〕 To realize his project, Ceaușescu brought together some 400 urban planning professionals, visiting them at least once a week during the 1980s and providing what the press called "valuable instructions" (''indicații prețioase'') in front of a large scale model of Bucharest.〔Leahu, p.32〕 Since Ceaușescu succeeded in quelling disagreement and opposition expressed by authoritative architects, art historians and intellectuals, a coherent reshaping project never came to light. Instead, through what was largely a step-by-step approach, the implementation of Casa Poporului ("House of the People", now ''Palatul Parlamentului'', "Palace of the Parliament") could be imposed. The subsequent opening of the oversized Boulevard of the Victory of Socialism was but the consequence of architectural requirements aiming at creating a congruent perspective to the colossal House of the People.〔Leahu, p.48〕 The final result was compared to both the Pyongyang of Kim Il Sung〔Behr, p.165〕 and Adolf Hitler's Germania.〔Deletant, p.114-116; Verdery, p.134〕 After the project had been officially finalised, the frequent interventions of Ceaușescu continued to modify the situation on the ground, leading mostly to further demolitions.〔Leahu, p.50〕 The mass destructions in Bucharest began in 1983 and continued up until late 1988. Construction was very intense during the first year, so that in June 1984 the Ceaușescus could inaugurate the workings of what would become the House of the People.〔''Evenimentul Zilei''〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ceaușima」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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