Costea Bucioc or Coste Băcioc (also known as Büczek; ?Stoicescu, p. 348. – July or September 1620) was a Moldavian statesman, commander of the military forces, and father-in-law of Prince Lupu (Vasile) Coci. He began his political career in the 1580s, emerging in the late 1590s as an ally of the Movilești dynasty, with then-Prince Ieremia Movilă advancing him to the post of Clucer. From 1601, he was Constantin Movilă's Paharnic, receiving from him the estate of Deleni and other villages around Hârlău, which formed part of a Bucioc domain that also extended into Bukovina and Bessarabia. Together with the Movilești, he became one of the great landowners of his generation, and one of the first Moldavian boyars known to have owned serfs. Some of his assets went into refurbishing Râșca Monastery, of which he was patron, or ktitor.
As an army leader, Costea was involved in the Moldavian Magnate Wars, during which the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth fought to emancipate its Movilești clients from subservience to the Ottoman Empire. Although Buciuc followed the princely family into its Polish exile in 1611 or 1612, he criticized Constantin's repeated attempts to reconquer Moldavia. During the events that led to Constantin's defeat and drowning, he became a supporter of the Ottoman-appointed Radu Mihnea, emerging as great Vornic of the Lower Country. Bucioc maintained his standing under Prince Gaspar Graziani, despite a mutual hostility: reportedly, Graziani tried to poison his Vornic, and arrested Coci. The former two had reconciled by 1620, when Graziani involved Moldavia on the Polish side in a new war with the Ottomans, fought on Moldavian territory. While Coci spoke out against the project, Bucioc may have commanded the Moldavian troops and been present for the defeat at Țuțora. He was eventually captured by the enemy, possibly after attempting to hide in Braniște. He was finally a prisoner of Iskender Pasha, who had him impaled on charges of treason.
As an Ottoman loyalist, Coci climbed through the ranks of boyardom, and finally became Prince, as "Vasile Lupu" in 1634. Bucioc's grandchildren were Ioan Coci, who was at the center of his father's project for a takeover in Wallachia, but died young in 1639. His father's regime survived to 1653, by which time Bucioc's other granddaughter, Ruxandra, had become wife and widow of Tymofiy Khmelnytsky, an Otaman of the Cossack Hetmanate. Another granddaughter, Maria, moved to Lithuania with her husband Janusz Radziwiłł. The Bucioc inheritance, including Deleni, finally went to collateral relatives, who formed a Moldavian branch of the Cantacuzino family. The Vornics life was revisited in literature by V. A. Urechia, whose eponymous play was a major success in the 1860s and '70s.
Biography With and against the Movilești Bucioc was born during a time when Moldavia and Wallachia, the Danubian Principalities, were submitted to the Ottomans as tributary states. He probably belonged to the boyar aristocracy by right, being the son of an Ion Băcioc, who may or may not have been a Vornic, and brother of an Ilea Băcioc.Stoicescu, pp. 336, 347, 355. His uncles included a Dumitrașco Mălai, father of the Vistier (treasurer) Simion Mălai.Bacalov, p. 326. Costea's own career probably began in the 1580s: a 1585 writ by Prince Peter the Lame confirms Bucioc as an administrator (or Pârcălab) of Hotin.Rosetti, p. 244. The same document refers to Bucioc's earlier purchase, from Prince Iancu Sasul, of a village called Lunca Mare, with free use of its population as serfs or vecini (Church Slavonic: ); this is the first mention of such a category in Moldavia's history, and among the first in medieval Romanian history.Rosetti, pp. 244, 260, 274.
On February 20, 1598, Prince Ieremia Movilă made Bucioc Pârcălab of Orhei, also giving him a seat on the Boyar Council.Stoicescu, p. 347. After the brief conquest of Moldavia by Michael the Brave and the presence of Marcu Cercel on the Moldavian throne (1600), Bucioc regained high offices under the returning Ieremia. On March 4, 1601, he was attested as a Clucer, his tenure ending on August 30, 1603. Bucioc is not known to have held any office between that date and July 15, 1608, when another Movilești, the young monarch Constantin, appointed him great Paharnic. He was again mentioned as holding that position on September 28 of the following year, and served to November 19, 1611.Stoicescu, p. 347. See also Luca, p. 52.
According to various reports of the period, Constantin granted his Paharnic an estate at Deleni, in Fălciu County.Bacalov, p. 341; Botezatu, pp. 23–24. Various scholars believe that he was by then married to Irina Prăjescu, daughter of a tax farmer from Suceava.Ștefan S. Gorovei, "Recitind atent trecutul. Originea socială a înaltului cler monahal", in Magazin Istoric, June 1998, p. 65. See also Gorovei (2014), p. 261; Luca, pp. 53, 54; Stoicescu, pp. 347–348. This connection would have made Bucioc a member by proxy of the extended Movilești clan.Gorovei (2014), p. 261. According to such readings, she was the mother of his two sons, Lupașcu and Ionașco.Luca, pp. 53, 54. Costea's brother had wed Lupa Toader, daughter of Vistier Iosif Veveriță. Costea's niece Ileana went on to marry Dumitru Buhuș, also a Vistier.Stoicescu, pp. 336, 347, 355, 357.
Later, Costea is known to have been married to a Candachia Șoldan,Botezatu, p. 23; Gane, p. 248; Iorga, p. 120; Luca, pp. 53, 54, 73; Stoicescu, p. 347. daughter of the Logothete Pătrașcu Năbădaico Șoldan. From her family, Bucioc received as a gift the estate of Rușii, outside Deleni, which probably contained a deserted Ruthenian (or Ukrainian) village.Mircea Ciubotaru, "O problemă de demografie istorică de la sfârșitul domniei lui Ștefan cel Mare", in Analele Putnei, Vol. I, Issue 1, 2005, pp. 73–74. He also inherited from Pătrașcu a number of vineyards outside Cotnari, and several vacated villages around Hârlău. The latter were in fact purchased from the Prince as a disguised form of financial assistance for the central authority, which was at the time beleaguered by Ottoman fiscal demands.Botezatu, pp. 23, 29. As noted by the agricultural historian Radu Rosetti, the Bucioc family helped the Movilești exercise control over Moldavia's land fund through original accumulation, thus eliminating competition from other boyars.Rosetti, pp. 238–239, 244, 251, 307–308. By 1620 Costea, a "consumer of estates", had 38 or 39 villages to his name.Rosetti, pp. 244, 251. Some were in the eastern region later known as Bessarabia (presently, Moldova), including parts of Hîncești that he later sold, as well as Vădeni.Luca, pp. 53, 72–73; Rosetti, p. 244.
Prince Constantin's Polonophilia was viewed with alarm by his own liege, the Sultan Ahmed I, who put up Ștefan Tomșa as a replacement.Dumitrescu, p. 38. The Movilești, led by a dowager princess Elisabeta Movilă, decided to resist the Ottoman Army. Alongside Nestor Ureche, Bucioc led a delegation of boyars to the Polish king, Sigismund III Vasa, asking for military support.Dumitrescu, p. 38. See also Stoicescu, p. 347. The plan failed, and the Movilești, initially barricaded in Hotin Fortress, entered Poland at Kamieniec.Dumitrescu, pp. 38–39; Gane, pp. 165–168. Tomșa declined Bucioc's services, and under his subsequent rule he appears as "former great Paharnic". During that interval, Bucioc was a ktitor of Râșca Monastery, which had been devastated in 1574 by Crimean Tatars. Anca Brătuleanu, "SOS provincia. Mănăstirea Râșca", in Dilema Veche, Issue 486, June 2013. His restoration of the building included the addition of a porch or peristyle which art historians describe as "unusually large" or "distasteful".Iorga, pp. 120–121.
From exile, the Movilești still made attempts to recover Moldavia, but their expedition of July 1612 ended in defeat at Cornul lui Sas. Constantin was captured by Tomșa's allies from the Budjak Horde, and accidentally drowned while in its custody.Dumitrescu, p. 40; Gane, pp. 166–170. At some point in 1611 or 1612,Dumitrescu, p. 47; Stoicescu, pp. 333, 348. Bucioc joined the Movilești in Uście (Ustia). While here, he purchased Bobulești, in Dorohoi county, from Princess Ana, a descendant of Alexandru Lăpușneanu.C. Bălan, "Recenzii. Alexandru I. Gonța. Documente privind istoria României. A. Moldova veacurile XIV—XVII (1384—1625). Indicele numelor de persoane", in Studii și Materiale de Istorie Medie, Vol. XIV, 1996, p. 160. This period cemented Bucioc's alliance with Ureche, together with whom he instigated riots against Radu Mihnea. However, by 1616 both had become dissidents, refusing to return to Moldavia with his new liege, Alexandru Movilă—reportedly, Ureche argued that doing so would have been certain death.Stoicescu, pp. 333, 348. See also Dumitrescu, p. 47. After some early successes, which included making Alexandru Prince of Moldavia and obtaining more support from exiled Wallachians under Radu Șerban, the Movilești and their Polish backers were defeated at Drăcșani by a coalition of Ottomans and Ottoman vassals, under Iskender Pasha.Dumitrescu, pp. 43–48; Gane, pp. 170–191. Alexandru was forcefully converted to Islam, while Elisabeta became an Ottoman sex slave.Dumitrescu, pp. 47–48; Gane, pp. 170–191, 198. According to historian Gavril Luca, Bucioc was actually in Tomșa's camp during the Drăcșani debacle, leading into battle a 2,000-strong regiment of Tatar mercenaries.Luca, p. 53.
As Vornic
Bucioc had switched his loyalties toward Radu Mihnea, the Ottoman-appointed Prince, and was thus able to return to Moldavia. On August 15, 1616, Bucioc was appointed great Vornic of the Lower Country. He maintained this office to October 13, but was reinstated on May 12, 1617, though he was probably moved to the Upper Country (or Bukovina).Luca, p. 71. His Deleni estate was briefly confiscated by princely command. Radu Mihnea eventually reinstated Bucioc as owner, with a writ in which he apologized for having believed the testimonies of "mendacious men".Botezatu, pp. 23, 24. According to historian Daniel Botezatu, the document may show that Radu Mihnea intended to warn his subordinate about what would happen should he switch sides again.Botezatu, p. 24.
Through the Șoldans, Bucioc was ultimately related to the Cantacuzino family, which rose to prominence later that century. Iordaki, son of Andronikos Kantakouzenos, was his brother-in-law, having married another one of Pătrașcu Năbădaico's daughters, CatrinaBacalov, pp. 322–323, 326, 343–345; Stoicescu, pp. 363–365, 415. (some authors describe Catrina as Costea's own daughter).Gane, p. 248; Luca, pp. 53–54, 63, 71, 72. Simion Mălai also became brothers-in-law with his cousin by marrying a third Șoldan sister, Alexandra.Stoicescu, p. 415. See also Gane, p. 248. The three brothers-in-law shared a deed for the ownership of Trifăuți, on Bessarabia's border with Podolia. According to historian N. Stoicescu, Bucioc remarried later in life, to a daughter of Hetman Orăș, whose name is unrecorded. However, records from 1626 show that Candachia was still alive, and describe her as his wife.Luca, p. 73.