This study examines the period leading up the unification of the Romanian principalities, an important period in modern Romanian history. It was a period that witnessed the birth of new ideas, and the struggle between revolution and reaction. The Romanian principalities, located on the crossroads between East and West, were at the centre of the conflict between the various empires dominating this part of Europe, making them a permanent subject of international diplomacy. With the expansion of Russia in the Balkans, amidst the decline of the Ottoman Empire, the struggle against Russia in the Romanian principalities, supported by Anglo-Turkish diplomacy, took on international significance. This English-language study analyses the international situation of the Romanian principalities during the period from 1821 to 1854. It is a comprehensive analysis of one of the most important aspects of this period that would eventually lead to the unification of the Romanian principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia in 1859, establishing the basis for the modern Romanian state.

The author, Radu R. Florescu, was a professor of history at Boston College. He received his B.A. and M.A. degrees from Christ Church, Oxford University in Great Britain, before moving to the United States where he completed his Ph.D. at Indiana University. Professor Florescu was a distinguished scholar and the author of numerous books and articles on Romanian and East European history.