In the 'Parcul Catedralei' (Cathedral Park) in Chisinau is the
'Monumentul celor trei martiri ai neamului' (Monument of the three martyrs
of the nation). It commemorates three men, Simion Murafa, Alexei Mateevici
and Andrei Hodorogea. The monument includes one relief each for them and has
the name and date of birth and death. On the right side an inscription says
"Sculptor Ionesco-Varo". The monument is the reconstruction of a monument
that was errected in 1933 (other sources say 1923) and destroyed in 1940.
"Monument to Simion Murafa, Alexei Mateevici and Andrei Hodorogea
The monument was opened in 1933, in the park of the Nativity Cathedral in
Central Chişinău. The monument was dedicated to Simeon G. Murafa,
Alexei Mateevici, and Andrei Hodorogea. All of them died in August 1917.
In the evening of August 20, 1917 some 200 Russian soldiers, with Bolshevist
leaders, seized and murdered two of the most conspicuous Moldavian leaders,
Andrei Hodorogea and Simeon G. Murafa, in Chişinău itself.
On July 17, 1917 Alexei Mateevici wrote the poem Limba noastră
(English: Our Language), today the national anthem of the Republic of
Moldova. A month later, on August 24, 1917, he died of epidemic typhus.
After the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, the
monument was destroyed in 1940."
Source and further information (on the original monument):
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_to_Simion_Murafa,_Alexei_Mateevici_and_Andrei_Hodorogea
"A monument representing three Bessarabian martyrs: Alexei Mateevici,
Simeon Murafa and Andrei Hodorogea, known as activists for the reunification
of the Romanian nation, was inaugurated today, almost eight decades after a
similar work was destroyed by the Soviets. The sculpture was erected in the
square of the Metropolitan Cathedral, and its consecration was attended by
dozens of people who came to commemorate the great predecessors.
A monument to the three Bessarabian martyrs was installed in the Cathedral
square back in 1923, after Alexei Mateevici, Simeon Murafa and Andrei
Hodorogea died in August 1917. The poet Alexei Mateevici lost his life
first, who was stricken with typhus, a month after he wrote the poem 'Our
Language'. Shortly after, the other two leaders of the national movement
between Prut and Dniester, Simeon Murafa and Andrei Hodorogea, were shot by
a gang of Bolshevik soldiers.
With the occupation of Bessarabia in 1940, the sculpture was destroyed by
the Soviets. The monument was built through reconstruction, and today it was
placed exactly on the same spot. People from several districts of the
republic were present at the event. Among them was the grandson of Simeon
Murafa. Timofei Murafa and his wife live in Floreşti district.
The monument of the three personalities has a height of over three meters,
weighs approximately 20 tons and was carved in stone by Cosăuţi.
The work was designed by the late architect Eugen Bâzgu and executed
by the folk craftsman Veaceslav Lozan."
Translated from source:
www.jurnal.md
Simeon G. Murafa
"Simeon Gheorghevici Murafa (also spelled Simion or Semion Murafa; May 24,
1887 – August 20, 1917) was a Bessarabian politician in the Russian
Empire, also known as a publicist and composer. A trained classical singer
and a graduate of Saint Vladimir (Shevchenko) University, he was one of the
leading activists supporting ethnic Romanian emancipation in Bessarabia and
beyond. By 1914, he associated with the revolutionary core of the Romanian
nationalist movement, which he represented as director of Cuvânt
Moldovenesc newspaper.
An officer of the Imperial Russian Army during World War I, Murafa mainly
used his position to advance Romanian nationalism. In early 1917, he helped
establish the Moldavian National Party, helping to organize its cells in
Bessarabia and Odessa. He was murdered while attending a friend's party,
after a group of revolutionary soldiers identified him as a political enemy.
His legacy is honored in both Romania and Moldova."
Source and further information:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simeon_G._Murafa
Andrei Hodorogea
"Andrei Hodorogea (1878, Slobozia-Hodorogea - 20 August 1917, Chisinau)
was a politician from Bessarabia. He advocated the national cause and
in 1917 became an activist of the National Moldavian Party.
In the evening of 20 August 1917 some 200 Russian soldiers, with
Bolshevist leaders, seized and murdered two of the most conspicuous
Moldavian leaders, Andrei Hodorogea and Simeon G. Murafa, in Chisinau
itself."
Source and further information:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Hodorogea
Alexei Mateevici
"Alexei (or Alexe) Mateevici (March 27, 1888 – August 24, 1917) was one of the most prominent Romanian poets in Bessarabia.
He was born in the town Căinari, in Eastern Bessarabia, which was part of the Russian Empire, now in the Republic of Moldova. [...]
In the summer of 1917 he wrote the lyrics for Limba noastră (Our Language), which has been the national anthem of Moldova since 1994. He also volunteered as a World War One Romanian front prest, at Mărășești great battle.
He died a month later of epidemic typhus, and was buried at the Chișinău Central Cemetery. The street leading to the cemetery now bears his name."
Source and further information:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Mateevici