Villa Florica, Ștefănești, Argeș

1. Villa Florica

At the end of the asphalted alley that winds gently through the forest of the former Bratienilor's property, you can park your car next to a small two-story palace - the Bratienilors' Mansion also called Villa Florica. Today it hosts the Bratianu National Museum.

The building has preserved very well over time. The visit is only with an accompanying guide, even if you are a solo visitor. The guard on duty announced the guide to come for a tour of the villa. Before the guide arrived we spotted a funeral cross. It marks the place where Florica (1865) and Ion C. Bratianu (1891) were buried, Florica being his daughter.

The remains have since been moved to the nearby chapel, which I will come back to. Several colorful birdhouses were set up in the forest with landscaped walkways, but here came the guide...

Villa Florica

2. The reception hall

The visit begins with a tour of two high rooms, with solid wooden furniture and a wooden coffered ceiling with small ceramic decorations. The first room is probably the largest in the manor and is called the Reception Room. It leads to the other rooms of the mansion.

3. Fumoir Salon

We head towards the Fumoir Salon which displays 20th century oriental furniture, Transylvanian ceramics, and a suitcase that belonged to Ion I. C. Bratianu.
Several libraries begin to appear before our eyes. By the way, according to the guide, this villa was home to tens of thousands of volumes of books, which were burned by the communists in front of the villa, needing for this for days. A caisson stove catches the eye.

4. Tea room

We also pass through the Tea Room with its 19th century western furniture. Simple and so different from the other rooms. This is where the family served tea.

Also on the ground floor we visit a room with folk costumes, where Romanian fabrics are also presented.

5. Living room with German furniture

The living room with German furniture is more generous, but still with simple furnishings. In the middle of the room is a particularly valuable piece - a round cherry wood table, ornamented with 8 cherry wood plaques.

6. Turkish Salon

The Turkish parlor is unmistakable because of the narghiulele, low chairs with cushions and other objects. There was always a Turkish parlor in the houses of the settled families, as can be seen from a visit to the neighboring Goleștilor House.

7. Library

We go up to the first floor. The piece de resistance is library. It is, in my opinion, the most impressive room. On all the walls, on different levels, in a solid wooden furniture, once "lived" those thousands of books. Some still exist today, but unfortunately most of the 30,000 volumes of books were burned by the communists. Also on display here are busts of Ion C. Bratianu, a head sculpture, busts of King Carol I and Queen Elisabeta, royal portraits.

On the same floor we visit 2 other rooms where we learn more about the great Brătien family and its members.

8. Semi-covered terrace

From the library we are invited to another beautiful place. We step out onto a semi-covered terrace with a huge stove, where food was heated and family meals were served. Here we have a superb view of the forest. The front doors are original and have a large, heavy, impressive locking mechanism. On the edge of the balcony there are pots of mustard. Among the branches of the trees you can see the sculpture La Vulturi. Part of the terrace is not covered, being a sunbathing area.

9. Library office

The wooden staircase invites us to the second floor, where we cross the library office. On a wall there is a large map with the family tree of the Brătianu family, as well as the map of Great Romania, which reminds us of Ionel Brătianu's role in the Great Union of December 1, 1918.

From this office you exit onto a second terrace, smaller than the first one, which overlooks the city of Pitesti and is located above the one on the 1st floor.

10. The Vultures

After visiting the villa, the role of the guide ended with the recommendation to visit La Vulturi monument and the nearby chapel.

We set off on a wide paved path, through the forest, through the yellow carpet of leaves, gently climbing the stairs. In a few minutes we arrived at the Statuary Group "The Eagles". The work was made by a Croatian sculptor. Local tradition says that the marble eagles symbolize the three Bratianu brothers, powerful personalities, leading liberal politicians in the interwar period: Ion I. C. Bratianu, Constantin (Dinu) Bratianu and Vintila Bratianu.

The group of statues shows 3 eagles with combed eagles looking towards different skies, covering the whole spectrum in front of them. I liked the work.

Know that the way through the forest is very short and easy. When we visited in 2023, access to the statuary group La Vulturi was closed.

11. Chapel

I drove to the chapel because it was further down the valley and it didn't make sense to walk back to the villa. There is, however, a path through the forest that connects the villa with the chapel. At the first fork left, after the asphalt path descends into the loop, a few hundred meters follow a rough road to a church. Here we also see the boundary of a monastic property, inhabited by nuns, a phone number to call and a small shop with natural products prepared by the nuns (juices, syrups, preserves, etc).

A little nun came a few minutes later to open the church, actually the Bratin Chapel. A building with a side staircase going up into the main church, and downstairs, below the staircase, is the access to the chapel and the vaults. The Bratian Chapel is dedicated to the Nativity of St. John the Baptist and was built in 1898. Most members of the Bratianu family are buried here. Down in the chapel, directly in front are two large black marble tombs of Ion C. and Ion I. C. Bratianu. In a side chamber to the right of the entrance are the graves of other family members.

I can't help noticing the key for access to the chapel, which the nun allowed us to film and even unlock the door with. An old, big, metal key, I've posted it in the pictures. Upstairs is the church.