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Taking advantage of the public unrest this generated, the pro-fascist Iron Guard and the administration of Marshal Ion Antonescu were able to
drive Carol II out of the land and put Michael back on the throne. Fleeing the country, Carol II and Lupescu narrowly escaped a final assassination attempt by the Iron Guard near the Yugoslavian border and went into exile abroad, settling for periods in Western Europe, Mexico, and South America, moving regularly due to her health. They were formally married in 1947, and Carol II died in Portugal in 1953. Under the Iron Guard and Antonescu, Romania allied with the Axis powers and participated in the invasion of
the Soviet Union. King Michael was later forced out by the Romanian Communist Party in 1947 after having denounced Romania’s alliance with the Axis powers and having helped a coup that ousted Antonescu; he never spoke to his father again and did not attend his funeral. As mentioned above, in the late 1930s until his abdication, King Carol II was heavily courted by the German leadership, though he remained neutral. Hitler
and other party officials wanted to secure an alliance so they could utilize and potentially seize the highly prized oil field and refineries at Ploiesti. Ploiesti, the site of the world’s first refinery, first opened in 1856, became an important source of oil accounting for approximately 35% of petroleum resources of the Axis during the war. The nine refineries there were the target of Operation Tidal Wave on August 1, 1943, as part of the Allied Oil Campaign designed to crush crucial German oil resources. This elaborately embellished pistol was undoubtedly a gift given to the King, likely from Hitler himself, during the attempts to garner his favor. It is the earliest known factory engraved Walther Mod. PP pistol (the 1249th Walther PP!) and displays all the rare early features including: the fat safety lever, split firing pin, large ring hammer, 90 degree safety, and early style magazine.
It was engraved by the Zella-Mehlis Guild/Walther factory engravers and
is profusely decorated with a very tight fancy English scroll engraving, highlighted by numerous Edelweiss flowers on the sides and top of slide as well as around the borders of the factory legends. It also features an overall gold plated finish, and the grips have an inset on the left side that features the Romanian Crown over the initials “CC”. The left side of the slide bears the Walther Banner, two line factory legend, and the caliber and model designation on three relief panels. The serial number is located vertically on the right side of the frame. “Crown/N” proof marks are present on the right side of the frame above the trigger, the slide below the ejection port, and the barrel at the muzzle.