Following the Second World War, communist rule was gradually established in Romania as Soviet influence expanded. The rigged elections of 1946, the abolition of the monarchy in 1947, and the establishment of the Securitate in 1948 were decisive steps in consolidating the one-party state.
Under Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, nationalisation, agricultural collectivisation, and industrialisation profoundly transformed Romanian society. Through propaganda, censorship, and surveillance, the regime sought to control not only people's private lives but also their ways of thinking.
The exhibition pays particular attention to Transylvania and the Székely region, changes affecting national minorities, the establishment of the Hungarian Autonomous Region in 1952, and the consequences of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution in Romania. Red Banner examines how the Communist Party extended its control over almost every aspect of political and social life.
