![[Alt-WWII] July-September 1940- Battle of Bessarabia Aftermath (Pt 2) | by Sgt._Johnson](http://live.staticflickr.com/7817/47010580922_09569274dd.jpg)
Sgt._Johnson
[Alt-WWII] July-September 1940- Battle of Bessarabia Aftermath (Pt 2)
At first, the Soviet occupiers tried to come off as benevolent. Soviet officials made speeches about “liberating Bessarabia from the oppression of Boyar Romania,” and quickly set up the Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic. They launched extensive reconstruction projects across Chișinău and other areas heavily damaged by the fighting, with most of the labor done by Romanian prisoners of war and relocated Gulag prisoners. They also built over 300 km of paved roads, hospitals, and a trade school. The general quality of life for the poorest residents of major cities improved somewhat under Soviet rule, but the majority of the peasantry in the countryside noticed little change. Many others, however, would experience a different fate.
Approximately 9,000 civilians were caught at the border trying to evacuate in the days following the Soviets assuming full control of Bessarabia. Some were simply shot on site, but many were deported to Gulags in Siberia. Once it seemed that the new government had the approval of the remnants of the general population, they began cracking down on those they deemed to be enemies of the state, mainly intellectuals, clergymen of the Romanian Orthodox Church, and land owners. In July alone, 400 citizens of Chișinău were killed by the NKVD and buried in mass graves. By September, the number of persons deported or otherwise disappeared had risen to 12,000. At first, the NKVD claimed it was under the guise of rounding up Siguranța spies and saboteurs, but eventually the civilians learned to stop asking questions about their missing neighbors.
27 agents of the Serviciul Secret de Informații were still operating throughout Bessarabia at the time of its occupation, and only 3 were ever captured. While some had initially proposed raising a partisan movement, they were ultimately ordered to monitor and record the effects of Soviet rule, as well as map out important landmarks such as the NKVD headquarters. They were to gather this information and wait for a time when it could be used against the Soviet invaders.
[Alt-WWII] July-September 1940- Battle of Bessarabia Aftermath (Pt 2)
At first, the Soviet occupiers tried to come off as benevolent. Soviet officials made speeches about “liberating Bessarabia from the oppression of Boyar Romania,” and quickly set up the Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic. They launched extensive reconstruction projects across Chișinău and other areas heavily damaged by the fighting, with most of the labor done by Romanian prisoners of war and relocated Gulag prisoners. They also built over 300 km of paved roads, hospitals, and a trade school. The general quality of life for the poorest residents of major cities improved somewhat under Soviet rule, but the majority of the peasantry in the countryside noticed little change. Many others, however, would experience a different fate.
Approximately 9,000 civilians were caught at the border trying to evacuate in the days following the Soviets assuming full control of Bessarabia. Some were simply shot on site, but many were deported to Gulags in Siberia. Once it seemed that the new government had the approval of the remnants of the general population, they began cracking down on those they deemed to be enemies of the state, mainly intellectuals, clergymen of the Romanian Orthodox Church, and land owners. In July alone, 400 citizens of Chișinău were killed by the NKVD and buried in mass graves. By September, the number of persons deported or otherwise disappeared had risen to 12,000. At first, the NKVD claimed it was under the guise of rounding up Siguranța spies and saboteurs, but eventually the civilians learned to stop asking questions about their missing neighbors.
27 agents of the Serviciul Secret de Informații were still operating throughout Bessarabia at the time of its occupation, and only 3 were ever captured. While some had initially proposed raising a partisan movement, they were ultimately ordered to monitor and record the effects of Soviet rule, as well as map out important landmarks such as the NKVD headquarters. They were to gather this information and wait for a time when it could be used against the Soviet invaders.