When the Austro-Hungarian Empire was in control of Transylvania , and the Ottoman Empire was in control of Wallachia and Moldavia , almost all of the Romanians were second-class citizens or non-citizens . During the period of Austro-Hungarian rule in Transylvania and Ottoman suzerainty over Wallachia and Moldavia , most Romanians were in the situation of being second-class citizens or even non-citizens in a territory where they formed the majority of the population .