1. Aristide Blank was drafted as a junior officer in the Second Balkan War and again in World War I, though he did not see action during the latter; instead, he advanced causes related to Romanian nationalism, as well as his own agenda, in the Russian Republic, in the Far East, and eventually in France.
Aristide Blank was removed from his managerial position following intervention by the National Bank of Romania, but used political channels to preserve some measure of control, and was instrumental in toppling National Bank Governor Mihail Manoilescu, who did not wish to refinance the BMB.
Aristide Blank's influence fluctuated for the remainder of Carol's reign; still unable to fully control the BMB, he still owned Discom, a lucrative retailer for products of state monopolies.
Aristide Blank reemerged as BMB manager after King Michael's Coup of 1944, but he and his business were finally repressed by the communist regime from 1948.
Aristide Blank became a published poet in his teenage years.
Aristide Blank took a graduation diploma from the University of Bucharest Faculty of Law and Philosophy.
Aristide Blank experimented in other fields as well: in March 1905, he played violin for attendees of a BMB banquet; he was interested in automobiles, and in early 1908 was issued license plate "118", as one of Romania's first registered car-owners.
Aristide Blank had spent most of 1905 undergoing specialization at banks in the City of London, and had been appointed branch subdirector at the BMB.
Aristide Blank was inducted into the Order of Commercial and Industrial Merit in 1912, when he served on the committee to establish the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies.
In June 1913, Aristide Blank was blackmailed by Seara newspaperman Alexandru Bogdan-Pitesti, who had inaugurated a smear campaign against the BMB.
Again drafted as a Lieutenant, Aristide Blank enlisted in the Romanian Air Corps.
Aristide Blank was spotted at Iasi, the provisional capital of a rump Romanian state.
Argetoianu reports that wartime Iasi was where Aristide Blank first earned the trust of Carol of Hohenzollern, the disgraced Romanian Crown Prince.
Also according to Argetoianu, Aristide Blank was faking asthma attacks, which saw him relieved of his duties and sent to Paris.
Aristide Blank was evicted "by some Englishmen" during the Red Guards' attack on Hotel Metropol.
Aristide Blank himself lived for a while in the Shanghai International Settlement.
Aristide Blank remained in French territory after that date, working primarily as a propagandist and financier for Romanian nationalist causes.
Aristide Blank envisaged the Danube as a commercial highway for Romanian grain and timber, but noted that its success relied on the internationalization of the Turkish Straits.
In 1919, when he was decommissioned as a Captain in the Second Cavalry Regiment, Aristide Blank put out the first volume of an illustrated propaganda album, La Roumanie en images.
Lapedatu recounts that, in doing so, Aristide Blank saved the former book from being shelved by Hachette.
At some point before 1919, Aristide Blank consolidated his art collection by purchasing most of Nicolae Grigorescu's paintings in the Alexandru Vlahuta collection.
Aristide Blank took painter Jean Alexandru Steriadi as his adviser, and finnced his wife Nora's ceramist workshop.
In 1920, Aristide Blank used BMB funds to set up CFRNA, alongside aviator Pierre de Fleurieu.
Fleurieu had worked as a minor clerk at the bank, until Aristide Blank became aware of his fighter-pilot record and his belief in the future of civil aviation.
Aristide Blank had remained involved in debates related to postwar recovery of Romania, and of Europe at large.
In 1921, Aristide Blank had founded the BMB's General Building Society, which managed construction firms in Bucharest and Campina.
Aristide Blank's son took up the same cause and, in 1921, was providing funds for Nicolae L Lupu's Peasantist daily, Aurora.
Aristide Blank then assisted the Peasantist-backed coalition in negotiating an international loan, which was to help Romania rebuild its internal market.
In 1920, Aristide Blank set up a luxurious Romanian restaurant in Paris' Latin Quarter, which was for a while managed by sociologist Mihai Ralea.
Aristide Blank provided funds for Iorga's son Mircea to study abroad, which, Argetoianu claims, effectively meant that the Iorga family was in his debt; Iorga responded to such accusations, noting that his son was under no obligation to work for Aristide Blank.
Aristide Blank himself debuted as a pseudonymous dramatist in Paris and Bucharest.
In 1920, Aristide Blank had funded a literary club called Societatea Filarmonica.
Also in 1920, Aristide Blank became the target of a renewed smear campaign, this time carried by Tudor Arghezi's Cronica.
Aristide Blank had agreed to sponsor Arghezi associate Gala Galaction, who asked for a grant of 160,000 lei in order to translate the Bible into Romanian.
In 1921, Aristide Blank partly withdrew his support, and only advanced Galaction 36,000 lei for his version of the New Testament.
Aristide Blank had by then decided to begin direct investments in the publishing industry.
Aristide Blank sponsored Grigore Filipescu, a BMB associate, helping him relaunch the conservative daily Epoca.
Aristide Blank maintained some say in Epocas editorial policy, preventing Liviu Rebreanu from publishing an article that was critical of Blank himself.
Aristide Blank purchased the left-wing dailies Adevarul and Dimineata, which became BMB and Cultura Nationala assets.
Mainly using Adevarul to air his polemics with the National Liberals at Viitorul, Aristide Blank immediately reassured its readers that the newspaper would remain a strong voice on the traditional left.
Also in 1923, Nae Ionescu purchased his Bucharest villa using an affordable credit obtained from the financier; a year later, Aristide Blank sponsored Constantin Daicoviciu's research at Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa.
Aristide Blank shielded Ionescu from prosecution, but forced him to write a letter of confession.
Seemingly imperturbable, Aristide Blank carried own with his speech and his blackboard demonstration.
In January 1925, Codreanu's student organizations again alleged that Aristide Blank was trafficking in influence through the Romanian universities, and used this issue as a rally call for a student strike.
In March 1925, Aristide Blank married Vota Vesnic, orphaned daughter of Yugoslav Premier Milenko Radomar Vesnic.
Also in March 1925, Iorga was enraged by Aristide Blank, who had presented a complete list of BMB sponsorships for Iorga's ventures; the two men parted ways.
That same year, Carol was forced out of the country by the political establishment, but Aristide Blank continued to cultivate their relationship.
Mauriciu, who had withdrawn from active participation at the BMB, died at Vienna in November 1929, with Aristide Blank organizing the funeral ceremony.
Aristide Blank Jr was by then head of the BMB, allegedly because Mauriciu had overestimated his son's business acumen.
Aristide Blank had troubles in the western Romanian city of Timisoara, where it had acquired control of Zsigmond Szana's local bank.
Aristide Blank himself argued that withdrawals were made possible by rumors of a looming war between Romania and the Soviet Union, but his explanation failed to convince the general public.
Aristide Blank believes that this claim was credible, in that Stoicescu always opposed state intervention in favor of the BMB.
Also frequenting this circle, Argetoianu noted that Aristide Blank was a second-wave inductee into the camarilla, arriving in at the same time as Tabacovici and "the pimp" Alexandru Mavrodi; but that, during the first year of Carol's reign, he became his most influential adviser, to the point of "ruling over Romania".
Aristide Blank continued his work as a literato, with the 1929 historical drama Satele lui Potemkin, which Faifer sees as echoing the theater of Luigi Pirandello.
Aristide Blank continued to write newspaper articles, studies and memorials on Romania's postwar situation.
Aristide Blank's books include, La crise economique en Roumanie, Economice, Literare and.
Argetoianu argues that this was because Aristide Blank had since earned the confidence of Carol's lover Magda Lupescu, buying her a villa and making it so that she would befriend Tabacovici and Wieder.
In 1930 Aristide Blank gave up on his main investment in the cultural field, allowing Cultura Nationala to be acquired by the State Printers and Monitorul Oficial.
Two years later, Aristide Blank's CIDNA was taken over by the French state and became a component of the state carrier, Air France.
Argetoianu and Aristide Blank were instrumental in helping Carol reach a settlement with his former wife, Queen Helen.
Hudita reports several accounts according to which Aristide Blank had arranged Gafencu's wedding to an actress, and that she had earlier been his mistress.
Aristide Blank associated himself with the "international gangster" Reschnitzer to obtain a lease on that enterprise, but, Argetoianu reports, "didn't get anything out of it, because I myself stood in [their] way".
Aristide Blank recalls agreeing to give Reschnitzer's consortium a pre-emption right to the Monopoly, thus placating Blank, but that he never actually intended to sell the company.
Aristide Blank was led by Aristide's nephew, Bela Blank-Csillag, who had squandered his own fortune while financing intrigues against the Greek Republic.
Aristide Blank "had poor Aristide grilled and spinning over burning coals", finally obtaining Blank's resignation and replacement with Sopkez.
Aristide Blank focused on philanthropic work, and, in 1933, opened up Caritas Hospital with a ceremony attended by Carol.
Aristide Blank left the architectural planning to George Matei Cantacuzino, who envisaged the entire town as a Streamline Moderne project.
Reportedly, Aristide Blank still had leverage in February 1935, when he obtained the sacking of Finance Minister Victor Slavescu.
Also according to Argetoianu, Aristide Blank's intrigues resulted in Mitita Constantinescu's appointment as Governor of the National Bank, who then proceeded to persecute investor Oskar Kaufmann, Elisabeth's alleged lover.
Constantinescu and Aristide Blank formed a clique which opposed Slavescu's attempts to regain control of credit institutions, and obtained conditional support from Premier Gheorghe Tatarescu.
In early 1936, Argetoianu claims, Aristide Blank was the "real master of this Romanian land", but had registered a defeat when Slavescu returned to the National Bank leadership.
Aristide Blank lost his father's home on Dionisie Street, which was bought by Eduard Mirto, and then leased to the American Legation.
Aristide Blank followed Carol on his final trip to Britain in November 1938, and was registered with the royal retinue at Claridge's of London.
Aristide Blank reports meeting the "all-too-serene" Blank visiting the Wallace Collection alongside diplomat Dimitrie N Ciotori: "I never asked him why he was in London: I don't doubt for a moment that he's here to pick up scraps from the table that's being set for King Carol".
The investigative commission resumed work after the events, and determined that Aristide Blank owed the Romanian state 600 million lei.
Aristide Blank still owned a paper mill, which was ordered to prepare for distribution in Bessarabia.
Aristide Blank's older son, Patrice, was a graduate of the ELSP.
Aristide Blank remained active during the Nazi occupation and joined the French Resistance, serving as organizer and publicist of the Defense de la France insurgent group.
In late 1942 or early 1943, Aristide Blank was included on a list of Jewish hostages, presented by the Central Jewish Office as a guarantee of its loyalism toward the Antonescu regime; featured were writers Henric Streitman and Iosif Brucar.
Aristide Blank served on the original editorial board of France-Soir, before being expelled and sued for mismanagement in 1949.
In 1944 Romania, the Jewish community still looked up to Aristide Blank Sr, believing him worthy of becoming the country's Minister of Finance.
In January 1945, Aristide Blank reopened Cultura Nationala as its majority stockholder.
From 1946, Aristide Blank rejoined the ranks of Romania's Freemasonry, which was reemerging after years of repression; this time around, he became an affiliate of Lantul de Unire Lodge, under Horia Hulubei.
Aristide Blank helped Rosetti and Ionel Jianu with printing an art magazine, Lumina si Culoare.
Aristide Blank persisted in attempting to have the BMB assets returned to him, initially by cultivating National Peasantists such as Hudita, but later focusing his efforts on the more powerful PCR.
In October 1945, she allowed him to access BMB funds, with Aristide Blank promising that he was going to fully repay his creditors.
However, Aristide Blank protected his family from the communist threat, sending Vota to live with Milenko in the United States; he visited them there in 1946, but opted to return to Romania in January 1947.
Aristide Blank himself was eventually singled out for retribution after having maintained contacts with British and American diplomats.
Aristide Blank witnessed the proclamation of a communist republic in 1948, by which time he had lost touch with his Western backers.
Aristide Blank himself was arrested as a spy on April 18,1952, and put on trial for high treason with his meeting with foreigners and some of his papers used as evidence, then sentenced to a 20-year imprisonment in May 1953.
Aristide Blank's health was compromised, and, having been made an Officer of the Legion of Honor before 1925, he relied on medical support from the French Embassy.
Aristide Blank's visits brought him attention by Securitate operatives, and he was placed under surveillance.
Aristide Blank was assisted by his other son Patrice, who returned to publishing after making and losing a fortune in the trade of precious metals.
Aristide Blank died there on January 1,1960, his official birthday.
Patrice Aristide Blank reportedly married a Rothschild and lived a life of luxury, but continued to be active in politics.
Aristide Blank was still active in publishing into the 1990s, as owner of the Liaisons group; he sold it to Wolters Kluwer in 1996.
Aristide Blank's son died in Paris, aged 73, on October 14,1998, having just inaugurated a new libertarian magazine, Societal.
Aristide Blank enjoys a posthumous fame as a central figure in conspiracy theories about the death of Robert Boulin in October 1979.