The Military Organization of Moldavia and Wallachia in the Phanariot Era, 1709-1821

In the summer of 1806, Charles-Frédéric Reinhard (1761-1837), resident and general commissioner of France in the Romanian Principalities, stated that there weren't any armies in the two Romanian principalities, but rather `some individuals registered on the police lists and exempted from taxes'. Most of them `had to guard the borders, provide postal services, and serve the district prefect'. A series of reputable Romanian historians from the second half of the 20th century emphasized, during some public conferences, but very few in their scientific contributions, the fact that one of the negative consequences of the numbers of the Phanariot rulers at the head of Moldavia and Wallachia, was the abolition of the armies the two Romanian principalities. At the end of a careful analysis of the historical sources available to us up to this point, we can firmly affirm the fact that the armies of the two Romanian principalities were not abolished by the Phanariot rulers. But their numbers were significantly reduced, especially in peacetime, often for fiscal reasons. They were mainly used to defend borders, maintain internal peace and collect taxes. We would like to specify the fact that during the war, the Ottoman Gate requested the Phanariot rulers to increase the number of military servants, by recruiting local volunteers or Balkan mercenaries. The troops of Moldavia and Wallachia continued to be used as 'auxiliary troops' of the Ottoman army.