Dolj County

Dolj County exists because the lower Jiu River ("Dol-Jiu") created Oltenia's commercial gateway. First documented in 1444 as Balta County, the region appears on Roman maps as Pelendava. Craiova, seventh-largest Romanian city, emerged as the Great Bania of Oltenia's seat during the medieval period. Despite an 1790 earthquake, 1795 plague, and 1802 Turkish assault that burned it down, Craiova became the chief commercial city west of Bucharest. In 1846, it hosted Romania's first cereal shipping society on the Danube. Communist-era industrialization brought automotive and aerospace manufacturing, with Electroputere becoming Romania's largest factory. Today Ford operates a plant; industry provides 30% of regional GDP including ferrous metallurgy, electrical equipment, and chemicals. Agriculture thrives on ideal cereal, vegetable, and vineyard land - though 6% of the county is desert. The Calafat-Vidin bridge over the Danube connects Romania and Bulgaria on Pan-European Corridor VII. Two Danube ports (Bechet, Calafat), 225km of railway, and a European-standard airport serve the county. By 2026, the Danube corridor and Ford manufacturing will drive economic integration with EU markets.