Grain market integration in the Lower Danube region : from the Moldo-Wallachian hinterland to European entrepôts (1857-1866)

Between 1829 and 1853, the Lower Danube region became one of the strategic grain supply points for the Mediterranean entrepôts and a source for supplementing Britain's food requirements. The Crimean War ended in 1856 with Russia's removal from the Mouths of the Danube. In this context, in conjunction with the outbreak of the American Civil War, a phrase was coined which was later exploited by politicians in Bucharest: "Romania - the granary of Europe". In this study, we will retrace the route of products from the Danube hinterland and see how, by whom and for whom the grain from Moldavia and Wallachia was produced. At the same time, we will analyse how foreign entrepreneurs innovated in the Lower Danube in the mid-19th century. On the basis of contemporary sources, mostly ignored by historiography, we were able to construct econometric series of the grain trade conducted through the ports of Brǎila and Galaţi. But, following the introduction of cargo ships, we have also considered the growing importance of the port of Sulina for the maritime trade on the western Black Sea coast. In so doing, we could understand how long-distance transport can transform an inland region, involving the local production structures in profitable long-distance trade games.