In the single decade of the 1860s, Bucharest developed from a large but unremarkable Romanian town into perhaps the most modern city in the Balkans, with modern sewers, telegraph lines, street lighting, and factories. The discovery of the nearby Oil Fields turned Bucharest into a bonafide economic powerhouse, which has continued its ceaseless expansion in both population and riches ever since.

Now the 3rd largest city in the Balkans, behind only Istanbul and Athens, the people and resources of Bucharest are widely coveted by Romania's neighbors. Whether this fact will lend the Romanian nation further strength, or invite its downfall, remains to be seen.