Nicolae Cristea (communist) Nicolae Cristea (communist) Nicolas or Nicolae Cristea (also known under the "nom de guerre" Joseph Copla; November 26, 1906 – March 1943) was a Romanian communist, a volunteer in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War and in the French Resistance during World War II. Cristea was born in a poor workers family in Galaţi. During the Great Depression he participated in the protests organized by the Romanian Communist Party in Bucharest, afterwards being forced by the Siguranţa Statului (Romania's secret police) to move back to his native town. He returned to Bucharest in 1931, and in 1933 was
Nicolae Bretan Nicolae Bretan Nicolae Bretan (25 March 1887 – 1 December 1968) was a Romanian opera composer, baritone, conductor, and music critic. Bretan was born in Năsăud. He studied in Cluj, Vienna and Budapest before becoming one of the pioneers of Romanian opera - his opera "Luceafărul" (1921) is cited as the first opera in Romanian. Bretan also composed over 200 lieder. In 1944, Bretan wife's family, who were Jewish, were transported to the Nazi extermination camp at Auschwitz and murdered. Refusing to become a member of the Romanian Communist Party in 1948, he was not favoured by the Romanian communist