Dinicu Golescu

Who was Dinicu Golescu?

Dinicu Golescu, a member of the Golescu family of boyars, was a Wallachian Romanian man of letters, mostly noted for his travel writings and journalism.

Born in Goleşti, Argeş County, Dinicu was the son of Radu Golescu. Together with his older brother George, he studied at the Phanariote-founded Greek Academy in Bucharest.

In 1804, he married Zoe Farfara, with whom he had five children: Ana, Ştefan, Nicolae, Radu, and Alexandru Golescu Albu. All of his sons were to play prominent parts in the Wallachian Revolution of 1848 and in the politics of Romania, as would his nephew, Alexandru Golescu Negru

In 1826, he published an account of his travels through Europe, Însemnarea călătoriei mele, which is the first travelogue of a Romanian in Western Europe. He uses his travelogue to study the administration and production systems in various countries, which he describes and recommends through comparisons with the situation at home. The text contains a plea for a general reform of domestic institutions in an "European" direction. Viewing European culture as more advanced, he managed, despite his middle age and the considerable difficulties he had in expressing himself, to convey a message of change. His travel journal had a great influence on the Romanian intelligentsia of the time.