As a three-term president, he guided the country toward democracy, but he was called an authoritarian at heart and accused of brutality during the revolt that put him in power.

Iliescu, who held de facto military authority during the anticommunist revolt, assumed power after Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and his wife Elena, were executed on Dec. 25, 1989.

"To understand Iliescu, you must grasp the complexity of Romania's 1990s," says political analyst Teodor Tita. "He was neither a simple hero, nor a straightforward villain. He emb