In September 1848, after the muffling of the revolution, Bucharest is subject to amphibious occupation, both Turkish and Russian (the latter grasping, as usual, the lion?s share). But the tranformation zeal of the epoch could no longer be hindered by such temporary details (the occupation troops retreat completely after only a few years). In 1850, a new committee for the embellishment of the city is elected. In order of priority, a new bridge over Dimbovita is planned, while new and modernized cemeteries are acclimatized; of these, Bellu (as a garden, it had been the stage of sonorous fancy balls and parties, half through the century) and Ghencea went down in history thanks to figures who went out of it (Ceausescu, for instance).

7. Highschools, tramways and dorobanti*

            In 1859, Bucharest becomes, and only naturally, the capital city of the United Wallachia and Moldavia during the reign of Alexandru Ioan Cuza. Not that Iasi (in Moldavia) did not have its charms, but Bucharest had twice the former?s population, a more vivid economic life and a very dynamic cultural life ? while the entertainment dimension, oscillating between flirtation, fancy balls and orgies, was establishing a name on the continent. (Incidentally, let it be remembered that the night of February 11^th 1866, when plotters entered the premises of Cuza, they did not catch him in his bedroom with his lawful wife, but with Maria Obrenovici, his beautiful lover.) Starting with 1853, the celebrated Assan?s mill ground autochthonous wheat by means of imported steam engines; starting with 1854, street lighting was oil-based and only three years later Bucharest was the world?s first city to use petroleum for lamp-posts (Vienna would resort to the same method as late as 1859). Thereon, gas is introduced in 1868, while in 1882, the first few electric bulbs made their appearance in Bucharest, lighting the façade of the Royal Palace. Starting with 1855, anyone could send a wire at will and after 1890 the well-to-do could even communicate by telephone.   

            The 1860 population census speaks of a city with more than 120 thousand inhabitants, one sixth of which were merchants. The city totaled 2000 wooden houses, some 5 thousand earth buildings and already over 16 thousand brick houses. Also in 1860, street paving was given a start, a sign of modernity that pleased the lovers of carriage strolls (or coach strolls for those who had a sense of nostalgia) ? thus they would be safe from mingling too closely with ?all those merchants? in the tram-and-horses that appeared in a quite impressive number after 1871. Somewhat later, in 1894, a new company, later known as BTC (Rom. STB), The Bucharest Tramway Company, will introduce electric tramways, without eliminating the former type or the carriages. The habitual destination of a respectable Bucharest dweller was the center, or one of the public gardens. Or the ?bulivar?, since the city was never in need of provincial master Goe?s*, coming to visit the capital. After 1872, one of the frequent destinations was the Tirgoviste station (called, from 1888 on, ?the North Station?, ? la parisienne). The first station had been Filaret, where in 1869 the first railroad was festively inaugurated; pomposity was not discouraged by the pettiness of the railroad, which merely connected the capital to Giurgiu (60 km). But it didn?t matter, the first step had been taken and that made all the difference. Railroad expansion would later on engender several important disputes. We could say that, in the recent history of Bucharest, these political-fashionable scandals got themselves noticed just as the great fires, the pest and the Turkish invasions had done previously, without causing as many victims, though ? in other words, such scandals didn?t lead to any clear changes or results.