He joined the military school in 1854, becoming an artillery Sub-Lieutenant in 1859. As a captain, he took part in the coup of February 11, 1866 that toppled Alexandru Ioan Cuza, the ruling Domnitor of the United Principalities. In 1867, he resigned from the Romanian Army and started two newspapers: Perseverenţa and Democraţia, in which he supported democratic ideas. Considered a "political agitator", he was arrested three times, including once in Austria-Hungary, where he was imprisoned for several weeks in the fortress of Arad.