The Accusation of Dohnányi: The Legal Procedure in Hungary, 1945–1946

Abstract

AbstractErnő Dohnányi, the world-renowned musician, was almost entirely forgotten during the decades between his emigration in 1944 and the change of political regime in Hungary: his name actually disappeared from public cultural knowledge. Though there may have been several explanations for the ignorance, it is not an exaggeration to state that the main reasons behind the tragic gap in his posthumous reception are of a political nature. It is widely known nowadays that during the settlements after World War II, Dohnányi – in his absence – was charged with intellectual collaboration with the Hungarian far right-wing regime. According to the present state of research, the charges were finally withdrawn as they were mostly ungrounded. Yet, the formerly adored artist and central personality in cultural life had become persona non grata for more than 40 years. After the political changes, his oeuvre seemed to be rehabilitated but without a thorough investigation of the charges and their background. This is why political prejudices are currently experienced simultaneously with a total bagatellization of the possible mistakes in his interwar activity. Thus, a systematic research into this subject has become very urgent. This study, which is intended to be a chapter of a full-length monograph on Dohnányi and politics (expected in 2023/24), was founded by the János Bolyai Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and is one of the very first publications of this project in English. It aims to give a thorough description of the first two years of the official proceeding against Dohnányi at the different investigative levels such as the justificatory committees, public prosecutor, and government ministry.