Mircea the Old

Mircea the Old, mural paining (The National Museum of Art, Bucharest)

In my opinion, a hero can be a person who has certain qualities and is able to lead a group of people. A leader can be good or bad, he can have good qualities and bad qualities. A good leader must have the following qualities: to know how to be hear his fellows and be listened to, to win the respect of his people, to be an example for those who consider him a leader, to be a good diplomat and a skilled strategist; must think of the welfare of the whole group he leads, not just a few members of it. A good leader has to deal with any issue of the group he leads, regardless of the situation. According to me, all these qualities were owned by Mircea the Old, a former ruler of Wallachia, also known as the Romanian Country in the 14ht century.

Mircea the Old is the nickname he got, not because of his age but because of his wisdom. He was a good military strategist, leading the Romanian army against the Ottoman Empire, defending his country from all the invaders who came to plunder it. He was a good organizer, founded the alliance in order to increase the chances to keep the country's independence, and knew how to administrate the army and coordinate it in order to win many battles. An obvious example is the Battle of Rovine, where the army led by him had a remarkable victory against the Ottomans. He took measures to protect the peasantry and he organized the church and administration, both controlled by the law. During his time the Romanian Country was flourishing and developing. Mircea was brave in the battles and always a model for his fellows, encouraging them to fight with heroism for their independence. Mircea the Old was a very good Christian; he built a number of monasteries and churches throughout the country, such as the Cozia Monastery or the Snagov Monastery.

Mircea cel Batran was an important hero of our country because he made known the history of our nation in other countries, struggled to keep the independence of his people and never disappointed the ones who believed in him. As he was a good leader and a positive example for his people, he is considered a representative figure in our culture, being mentioned in patriotic poems written by our national poet, Mihai Eminescu, such as “The Third Letter”, where he is the symbol of the brave fighter against Baiazid, the famous sultan.

A lot could be said about such a brave man, and I consider him my hero not only for what he did for my country, but also because he can be a model of a good leader for nowadays politicians.