Early life The future writer, who listed himself as "of Romanian nationality and ethnic origin", was born as Nicu Porsena Ionescu on 13 January 1892. His exact place of birth is Strada Doamnei 14,
Lipscani,
Bucharest. This was the domicile of his father, the printer Gheorghe (or George) Ionescu, and mother Maria (née Cordea). The future writer's second birth name, and his selected pen name, was chosen by his father to honor
Lars Porsena, the
ancient Etruscan king. Gheorghe, who cultivated literature and corresponded with historian
Nicolae Iorga, had given unusual, bookish names, to all his children. Three of Nicu's sisters were known as Lucreția, Eugenia, and Gilberta; a brother was baptized Flavius. In February 1909, he and classmate
Adrian Maniu co-authored and recited a poem that parodied
Symbolist cliches. Both of them bonded with another schoolmate, the future journalist and theologian
Nae Ionescu, with whom they discussed "important philosophical problems". Porsenna was attending the high school literary club, chaired by folklorist
Theodor Speranția, where, in June, he restated his dislike of Symbolism in a public dispute with another colleague, C. Vlădescu. In 1910, when his poems first appeared in print in
Viața Socială journal, he had enlisted at the
University of Bucharest, ultimately majoring in Philosophy and Law in 1914. During his second year, in August 1912, he formed a student movement in opposition to the mainstream body, receiving pledges of support from young authors such as Maniu,
Scarlat Froda, and
Theodor Solacolu. It was around this time that Porsenna met
Ilie Cătărău, a
Bessarabian refugee, university colleague, and future terrorism suspect—seen by Porsenna (his reputed confidant) as a spy for the Romanian
Siguranța. Upon graduation, Porsenna was admitted into the
bar association of
Ilfov County. leaving him the family printing press; that year, he also began contributing to
Flacăra, with sporadic articles—a collaboration that only ended in 1923. With Sergiu Manolescu, Porsenna published a work of social psychology in French, as
Interdépendance des facteurs sociaux ("The Interdependence of Social Factors"). Appearing in 1913 at Tipografia George Ionescu, it was designed as a partial correction of
Émile Durkheim's theories, with input from the "opposing system" advanced by
Gabriel Tarde, and thus rehabilitated the notion and study of
human agency. In March 1914,
Noua Revistă Română hosted an article by Porsenna, wherein he outlined
Félix Le Dantec's "theory of life". In late 1913, Porsenna published his debut novellas, as
La judecata Zeilor ("A Tribunal of Gods"). The volume was reviewed as an oddity, by Albert Honigman, the columnist at
Universul Literar: mixing "
chrism, philosophy and pornography", it was designed to "rile up" the reader; the review suggests that Porsenna was partly suited for those who appreciated
literary naturalism, but also that each individual piece was in a different style, and with a different artistic perspective. This, Honigman notes, made Porsenna stand out as a major literary talent (despite seeming "young, for only youth may provide one with such vigor, such colors"). Literary scholar Călin Teutișan sees
La judecata Zeiilor as a study in
metafiction, similar to late-20th-century experiments in
Postmodern literature. One story mocks all the
world religions, depicting
Jesus Christ as the prime critic of Christianity—a discourse that Teutișan sees as anticipating satirical takes by
Gore Vidal and
José Saramago. with Froda as the editorial secretary. Porsenna's work as a raconteur was continued in 1915 by a collection of mainly satirical prose,
Dincolo de iubire și de moarte ("Beyond Love and Death"), which evidence the intellectual influence of
Anatole France and
Oscar Wilde. As clarified in the prologue, it was designed as an experiment in
anti-art and
unreliable narration, drawing attention to processes of self-mystification—to the lyricism of love imagined when compared to the banality of one's amorous biography. The country joined the Entente following an
August 1916 treaty. Upon the declaration of war, Porsenna volunteered for the
Romanian Land Forces, and fought throughout the
first Romanian Campaign, which saw
Bucharest being conquered by the
Central Powers. In October 1916, he was in
Iași, a cadet of the local artillery school. He and Vinea were serving in the same battery as other men of letters:
Alfred Hefter-Hidalgo,
Ion Marin Sadoveanu,
Ion Sân-Giorgiu, poet Alexandru Rally, and philosopher V. Zaborowski. This group sent its "warm regards" to
Mihail Dragomirescu, who had been their university professor. While stationed there, Porsenna also happened to meet the fugitive Cătărău; according to Porsenna, they discussed Cătărău's desperation regarding the Romanians' defeats, and his intention of committing suicide with Porsenna's revolver. Porsenna notes: "I advised him to hurl himself into the Râpa Galbenă [gully], which carried the same chance of success. To my knowledge, he never did." as a flag-bearer; June 1918 cartoon in
Adrian Maniu's
Urzica Porsenna resumed his career as an editor in March 1918, when Romania was considering
capitulating to the Central Powers. His new daily,
Arena, had contributions from Vinea,
Perpessicius,
Demostene Botez, and
Pamfil Șeicaru.
Arena was styled an independent newspaper—but was identified by the rivals at
Mișcarea as a mouthpiece for Marghiloman, the new
Prime Minister of Romania, and his Conservatives. This view is shared by historian
Lucian Boia, who notes that "[Porsenna] was again looking toward Marghiloman, seen by him as a 'new man', tasked with reforming the country at large". An anonymous author report for the opposition newspaper
Neamul Românesc, published in June, suggests that he spent his allocated speaking time monotonously reading from his own articles in
Arena, "produc[ing] deep somnolence in the Chamber." Another one of speeches, held on 23 July, lambasted the Ententist leader,
Ion I. C. Brătianu, and scandalized the opposition.
Mișcarea claimed that non-Marghilomanists simply left the hall, while also noting that Porsenna's speech was so exceedingly long that the
stenographer on duty ran out of paper. Porsenna ended his military service as a Lieutenant with the 1st Mountain Artillery Division, receiving in 1931 the
Order of Michael the Brave. The Marghilomanist episode, which implied a degree of cooperation with the occupying
German Army, endured as a topic of controversy. As late as 1937, lawyer and polemicist Traian Dimitriu-Șoimu spoke of Porsenna as a product of "Marghiloman's stables". The final stages of his mandate as a legislator saw a reversal of fortunes, which began in October 1918, with the
Aster Revolution in
Austria-Hungary. From the rostrum, he saluted these developments, encouraging the Romanians of Transylvania to seize the opportunity and obtain regional autonomy.
Interwar politics In the resulting
Greater Romania, which included both Transylvania and Bessarabia, Porsenna was recognized as a professional author: completing two more novels and two collections of stories by 1921, he was head of Gutenberg publishing house from 1920, and a member of the
Romanian Writers' Society from 1923. Literary historian
Paul Cernat notes that Porsenna was founder of the newspaper
Naționalul ("The National"); in 1921–1922, he was also
Flacăras co-editor, which implied an association with Brătianu's
National Liberal Party. Porsenna was, or was perceived to be, a member of the latter group.
Strigoii ("The Ghosts"), appearing in 1920, was supposed to be Porsenna's first work of "serious" literature, since it tackled the sobering experience of war. As Teutișan notes, interwar critics almost always ignored Porsenna, and their indifference was not unjustified: the novels evidenced a "mix of intelligence and naive, braggart attitudes", cultivating
sensationalism and interrupting the narrative flow with "wisecracking commentary, sometimes thrown in just for the feel of it." Porsenna was not dissuaded by the poor reception—his younger friend Gheorghe Penciu reports that he showed "exaggerated modesty and shyness" in his private life, being indifferent to public honors while also unrelenting in his polemics with more prestigious literary figures. He continued with a series of political novels and novellas, including
Spre fericire ("Toward Happiness") and the
Southern Dobrujan-themed
Visătorii ("The Dreamers"). In January 1923, while also co-opted as a board member by the local subsidiary of
Pirelli, Porsenna married an actress, Dorina Fundulescu. He published a translated version of
Războiul popoarelor, as
La guerre des peuples. Porsenna also had contributions as an inventor, especially between 1930 and 1944—holding patents to designs for a type of
insulated glazing, a
sound-to-film technique, a method for putting out
oil well fires, and a family car. Porsenna's own political involvement was with the far-right, beginning with the
National-Christian Defense League (LANC). In December 1925, when the LANC's
A. C. Cuza established a "Bank of National Defense", which "will supply cheap credit only to Christian Romanians", Porsenna signed on as one of the founding members—alongside
Sebastian Bornemisa,
Ion Zelea Codreanu,
Nicolae Paulescu,
Valer Pop, and some others. In September 1927, he was elected a member of the LANC's Central Executive Committee, voting to expel former chairman Cuza from his own party. Porsenna issued another collection of stories. Named after the main piece,
Se-aprind făcliile, it is primarily noted by Teutișan for a
Sherlock Holmes pastiche, in which
the titular character is outed as an unintelligent reprobate. The author's claim to a moral high ground, as expressed in that volume, was mocked by diarist-politician
Constantin Argetoianu. He alleged that Dorina Porsenna was being pimped out by her husband, who lived on the gifts provided by her wealthy clients (including Ion Boambă, who was Argetoianu's father-in-law). Also in 1935, Nicu Porsenna rallied with a far-right group called
Romanian Front (FR), which introduced a
Jewish quota, alongside similar restrictions for other minority groups. He praised this policy in an article originally published in
Parlamentul Românesc, noting that the FR represented the truest legacy of "Romanianism" and local agrarianism. Political scientist Victor Rizescu notes that the "protection of national labor", a concept introduced by G. Dulca in the spring of 1935, was fully embraced by Porsenna, now a "notorious anti-Semitic publicist"; both wrote for
D. R. Ioanițescu's journal,
Politica Socială. Porsenna was included on the Front's list of candidates in the
local elections of September 1936 (shared with members of Cuza's
National Christian Party). He ran again in the
May 1937 election, which saw the FR taking second place at Ilfov; the results were highly controversial, and open to litigation, since it remained unclear how many seats were legally reserved for the electoral minority. The local tribunal ruled on the issue on 2 June, with Porsenna validated as the seventh of fourteen FR county councilors. He was still outraged by the appointment of non-elected members who outweighed the vote, and, by 28 June, was only attending to ask that the council dissolve itself. Porsenna tried to litigate the invalidation of his party colleague, Constantin Dobrișan, who had run despite being a schoolteacher. According to Porsenna, the law allowed high-school teachers to engage in electoral politics, and this permission would also cover Dobrișan; his reading was dismissed as incompetent by
Stanciu Stoian, of the rival
National Peasantists, who claimed: "Mr N. Porsena is a sophist of the cheapest variety, who likes to hear himself speak". In the late 1930s, Porsenna also became a sympathizer of the
Iron Guard, and a regular contributor to, and editor of, With this collaboration, he rendered explicit his critique of
Nicolae Iorga's
Democratic Nationalists, sparking indignation among Iorga's disciples. The resulting polemic, peaking in October 1937, put an end to Porsenna's links with the FR, which clarified that it had no links with
Ideea Liberă, and that Iorga was a friend. With this tract, Porsenna also shared his beliefs about the "racial" characteristics of local subgroups. He thus argued that
Oltenians were the most detestable among the Romanians, equivalent to
Gascons in their supposed penchant for lying and their being "haughty to the point of insanity".
Social rise and downfall Porsenna, who was also co-opted as publisher at Editura Cugetarea, The period saw Porsenna returning to his psychic research, with ''Les hypostases de l'âme humaine
("The States of the Human Soul"), which was preserved as a manuscript by Valère Musatesco. It outlined a substance theory of the soul, seen by him as a doubling of the self. In 1939, Porsenna and Isaia Răcăciuni wrote a screenplay variant of Se-aprind făcliile'', but its production was beset by numerous difficulties, with Porsenna spending much of his own fortune it told the story of a young woman "falling prey to a love affair that is as irresistible as it is unbecoming", hinting at the "incongruity between superior intellects and a mundane, regular setting." It is now considered a
lost film. His main projects for 1941 included a translation (and critical study) of
Cicero's biography, originally by
Alphonse de Lamartine. In January 1942, he donated his own estate, a 900-
hectares plot outside
Otopeni, for the state to build a "citadel of the workers"; his own residence was recorded as
Lascăr Catargiu Boulevard 27, in downtown Bucharest. Porsenna was additionally employed as editor of
Muncitorul Național Român, the Ministry's publication, or "social tribune", and, between 1942 and 1945, served as vice president of
Filmul Românesc, the national film-making co-operative. it was a seeming praise of
hedonism, and in large part a retelling of
Spre fericire (disliked by Teutișan for is concessions to the melodramatic genre). As a researcher of the paranormal, he completed the preface to a translation from
William Crookes, as well as his own tome,
Visul Profetic ("On the Prophetic Dream"), which appeared in 1943. In early 1944, Porsenna was a literary reviewer at Crainic's magazine,
Gândirea. Also then, he completed a translation of
Oscar Wilde's
Ballad of Reading Gaol, praised by contemporary the staff critic at
Curentul for being both "beautiful and precise". It was published alongside his version of
Edgar Allan Poe's "
The Raven". In May,
Filmul Românesc stripped him of his membership (alongside Crainic,
Horia Igiroșanu, and
Dragoș Protopopescu); he had also lost his position at the Labor Ministry. Dorina divorced him around that time. Porsenna pursued a relationship with his former coworker, his future second wife, Zoe. He proposed to her, but she would not marry him at that stage, since she feared that his status as an undesirable would compromise her own financial independence. He was also in contact with the
Romanian Society for Friendship with the Soviet Union and its publishing venture,
Cartea Rusă. In November 1947, as part of a "Romanian–Soviet Friendship Week", these published Porsenna's translation of Tolstoy's
War and Peace, prefaced by
Alexandru A. Philippide.
Imprisonment and persecution The establishment of a
Romanian communist regime in 1948 came with renewed threats. Porsenna hid in Zoe's apartment on Saligny Street, and only went out when she could accompany him; at the time, she had a good reputation as an employee of ICRAL, a state venture overseeing the
nationalization of real estate. On 26 June 1957, which was Zoe's birthday, the
Securitate responded to an anonymous tip (allegedly from Dorina or from a woman picked up during the stake-out); its agents stormed the apartment, arresting both of its tenants. having been spuriously depicted as the "ideologue" of Țuțea's group. Porsenna was placed under a more liberal regimen in late 1962, by which time he had developed both
Parkinson's disease and
tuberculosis. Moved into Aiud's 12th section, set aside for those too weak for prison labor, he was allowed access to antibiotics, which stopped progression of tuberculosis; however, as noted by fellow inmate Penciu, his incurable Parkinson's had pushed him into self-isolation, making him reject the friendship of most others (including
Valeriu Anania and
Sandu Tudor). He was finally released in August 1964, but was prevented from publishing by the ongoing
communist censorship, He prefaced it with a study in which he expressed the view that "a good lyrical translation is like a collaboration [with the original author]"; Porsenna himself gladly followed Wilde in his unconventional use of 6- to 10-syllable
hemistichs. Porsenna was already hospitalized and dying when the
Ballad was under print, telling Zoe that it would "make him famous". The
Ballad appeared in shops shortly after—and sold out all copies within hours. ==Legacy==