ADMINISTRATIVE REGIONALISM IN INTERWAR ROMANIA:

THE CASE OF THE LOWER DANUBE LAND

Abstract

The article examines the evolution of administrative regionalism in interwar Romania, with
a particular focus on the Carlist reform of 1938–1940 and on the case study of the Lower
Danube Land, as an expression of the tension between modernisation and centralism. The
study traces the genesis and functioning of the land system, introduced by the Law on the
Administrative Organisation of Romania (14 August 1938), within the broader context of
the transformation of the political regime into an authoritarian monarchy.
Building on an analysis of the normative framework, the competencies of the royal residents
and the relationship between the centre and the periphery, the article poofs that the
administrative reform of 1938 represented a form of formal regionalisation rather than
genuine decentralisation. The Lower Danube Land, headquartered in Galați, offers a
revealing example of how the modernising discourse, emphasising efficiency, inter-county
coordination, and economic planning, was employed as an instrument of centralised political
control.
The analysis of the documents shows that, although the royal residency introduced incipient
forms of territorial planning and administrative standardisation, the lack of financial
autonomy, overlapping competencies, and the reform's short lifespan ultimately hindered
the achievement of its declared objectives. While the reform did contribute to the
uniformisation of procedures and the partial professionalisation of the administration, it
ultimately reinforced a culture of executive centralism.