Hungarian Revolution Research Articles

Crowd Scenes in Péter Nádas’ Parallel Stories

The article examines the representation of the crowd in Péter Nádas’s Parallel Stories. In the plot, there are multiple scenes including the masses that highlight different features of the phenomenon. I argue that the 1956 Hungarian Revolution appears in the novel as a fundamental experience of society, influencing the nature of people’s gatherings even after its defeat. Firstly, I show that the characteristics of the swarm appear in the cooperation of people foraging for food during the revolution. However, the bread queue represents the extreme behaviour and the aggression of the acquisitive masses, whose collective action is always directed at acquiring something. Thereafter, I examine the representations of crowd panic in the basement scene of the 1956 cannonade and of the 1957 railway station gathering. Finally, I scrutinise two scenes with the seemingly liberated and intoxicated crowd. The analysis focuses on the relationship between the crowd and the individual, on the narrative representation of the crowd, on its influence on the participants’ perceptions, and the associated attributes.

“The Cluj Catechization Trial (1958).” The Story of a Regional Orthodox Educational Project in Stalinist Romania

The removal of religious education from the school curriculum by the Communist regime, through the educational reform of 1948, forced the Romanian Orthodox Church, like the other denominations, to reposition itself. Thus, in the new, unfavorable, context of the 1950s, when the regime tried to limit the Church’s institutional autonomy and reduce its social impact, the Romanian Orthodox Church attempted to initiate catechetical activities at the parish level to compensate for the pupils’ lack of religious education. The general context of the relationship between the State and the Church, with a focus on the institutional mechanisms and instruments of the regime of control over the educational activity of the Orthodox Church, will be approached in the first part of the article, which aims to outline the political‑ecclesial context in which the “Cluj catechization trial” of 1958 took place, while the second part of the research will focus on the development of the events surrounding the 1958 catechization. The Cluj catechization action, initiated by Bishop Teofil Herineanu, aimed to revive the religious education of the faithful, both students and adults. For this purpose, the bishop called upon the priests Galaction Munteanu, administrative vicar, and Ioan Bunea, professor at the Theological Seminary. They drew up a catechetical program which, after being sent to the archpriestships of the diocese, triggered the brutal intervention of the Securitate. A trial ensued, and clerics Ioan Bunea and Galaction Munteanu (the latter, deceased in the Aiud Prison) fell victims; the trial took place in the larger context of the Bucharest regime’s reaction towards the danger of the expansion of the 1956 Hungarian revolution. Using multiple sources: archives (CNSAS, the Department of Cults, the Cluj Archdiocese Archives), oral history (interviews with the descendants of the clergy involved) and memoirs, the article aims to radiograph the topic of religious education in Communist Romania in the 1950s, capturing the regional institutional context, its mechanisms and ecclesiastical practices, the educational objectives of the Church, the reaction of the political and repressive authorities (the Department of Cults, the Securitate) and last, but not least, the (post)carceral destinies of the clergy involved.

Cultural Goods Related to the Cult of Poet Sándor Petőfi from the Collections of the National Museum of Transylvanian History

The study aims to present several cultural goods from the patrimony of the National Museum of Transylvanian History (Muzeul Național de Istorie a Transilvaniei – MNIT) that reflect the cult of poet Sándor Petőfi among Hungarians during the nineteenth century. Sándor Petőfi (1823–1849) is one of the most representative poets of Hungarian literature and one of the most important personalities of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848–1849. Almost all the objects presented throughout this paper, and nowadays included in MNIT’s patrimony, pertained to the collections of two museums that had functioned in Cluj during the nineteenth century: the Transylvanian National Museum (Erdélyi Nemzeti Múzeum) and the Museum of Relics of the 1848–49 Revolution (1848‒49. Országos Történelmi és Ereklye‑Múzeum). The present paper was elaborated on the occasion of celebrating 200 years since the birth of Sándor Petőfi, an event marked by MNIT through the organization of two temporary exhibitions.

Violence in the Education: The Post-Revolutionary Situation in Hungary (1956-1957)

Background: The author attempts to introduce an unusual approach towards schools, universities, and dormitories, including their users (professors, teachers, parents, and students): How can the educational issues be seen through the lenses of special police forces in a specific historical moment? After the 1956 Hungarian revolution, a brutal pacification process took place all over the country, supported by the Soviet troops and special armed forces, police battalions of the restarting communist power. Methods: In this historical study, I used mainly military archive documents to show the perspective of the communist restauration and confront their viewpoints with party reports and some oral histories by eyewitnesses, who suffered several injuries during the repression. The paper is based on narrative analysis, as the official explanation presented various stories to justify their actions, while the reality in the background might be very different from this. Results: Between November 1956 and May 1957, these soldiers or officers became a familiar image in educational institutions. They blamed teachers and professors for misleading their students and thus creating a narrative of the counter-revolution of October 1956, while they identified themselves as parents or teachers (instead of the real ones, who lost their rights to do this, due to the participation in the revolution). Conversely, physical and verbal aggression was a widespread routine of the army officers. Conclusions: In extraordinary situations, during historical crises violence became suddenly real, allowed, and/or supported by many political actors to achieve their goals. After the consolidation of power, these special army and police forces were released and their activities were stopped by the authorities of the Ministry of National Defence because their presence was realized as an uncomfortable situation for the politicians. Such studies may give lessons us to learn, about how these scenes escalate into a point of no return.

A Hungarian Musician’s Memoir of Suffering, Survival, and Fate

Finding an aging manuscript written by a beloved teacher and musician, George Bánhalmi (1926–1935), led the author to investigate Bánhalmi’s detainment, as a Jew, in forced labor in Hungary during World War II, which was the focus of the manuscript. The author’s narrative in this article touches also on some of Bánhalmi’s accomplishments in life after surviving his time of forced labor: graduating with honors from Budapest’s famed Franz Liszt Academy; winning a top prize in the piano category in the 1956 Queen Elisabeth [of Belgium] Competition; concertizing in Eastern Europe and the United States; composing numerous musical works; and, and after settling in the United States in the wake of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, teaching several generations of young people, including the author. jeffwagner@aol.com

Polner Ödön ismeretlen előadása az 1848. évi áprilisi törvényekről

Professor Ödön Polner (1865-1961) was one of the outstanding scholars of Hungarian public law. His legacy includes the manuscript of a lecture he gave in 1948, in which he reviewed the basic laws adopted in the first phase of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. Within the framework of the historical constitution, these laws laid the foundations of nationalism and bourgeois constitutionalism in Hungary in the middle of the 19th century. Below, after a short description of Polner’s professional career and some introductory remarks, we publish the text of the lecture given in 1948.

“Den ensomme helt mod magtens og storpolitikkens skamfulde forsømmelser”: Den individuelle projektion af en nations kamp i FN-embedsmand Povl Bang-Jensens minde

The Hungarian political and social discourse of the last decades often makes use of a national myth based on Hungarian history that focuses on a constant struggle for survival. The myth is built around the concept of the heroic Hungarians, who from time to time fight against a political and / or military preponderance. A narrative characteristic for the countries of East-Central and Eastern Europe has been created, which in its distinction between itself and the other concentrates on self-defence and victimhood, but at the same time emphasizes the nation’s superiority over the others. The image of the nation characterized by the uninterrupted struggle for survival becomes a schematic but effective tool in the political discourse. It is not a new narrative, but the actualization of the well-known, that finds appropriate events and personalities to disseminate the existing, traditional self-image. The paper attempts to demonstrate how the Danish United Nations official Povl Bang-Jensen and the role he played in the international politics after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 has been used to convey this image. Based on memories, books and documentaries my goal is to discuss how individual recall of experienced events contributed to the (re)construction of Bang-Jensen’s personality. Furthermore, I try to shed light on how intertwining memories about a historical event, scientific research and history writing points to a changed perception of the scientific facts that are no longer considered objective and independent of human consciousness or actions. They describe a reality, which is influenced by consciousness and interpreted through textual formulations. The article argues that the subjective perspective constituted in the memories about Bang-Jensen creates an almost mythologized interpretation of the Danish diplomat as a symbol of freedom and morality, as well. The article was among others inspired by works of Maurice Halbwachs, Sabine Mollers, Annette Warrings and Bernard Eric Jensen on memory, historical awareness and the use of history.

István Deák: A Historian Who Cared about the Jews

Abstract This article will demonstrate how the Habsburg historian István Deák always paid significant attention in his scholarship to the role of Jews in Central European society. In his first book on left-wing intellectuals in Weimar Germany, his 1979 study of Louis Kossuth, the leader of the Hungarian revolution of 1848, his magnum opus on the Habsburg army officer corps (1990), and his later work on collaboration and resistance in Nazi-occupied Europe, Deák revealed much about both the assimilation of Jews into European society and their rejection by that society. In his book on Kossuth, Deák demonstrated the ambivalence of the revolutionaries, whose liberalism impelled them to emancipate the Jews at the same time as many thought them incapable of Magyarization. Ultimately, it was Jewish loyalty to the Hungarian cause that made the Hungarian revolutionaries extend equal rights to the Jews. In his book on the army officers, Deák clearly demonstrated how the late Habsburg army refused to allow anti-Jewish prejudice to flourish. Unfortunately, many Habsburg Jewish officers were deported to the death camps during World War II.

The Sino-Soviet Alliance: An International History by Austin Jersild

<i>The Sino-Soviet Alliance: An International History</i> by Austin Jersild

The Austrian Vice-Consulate in Rousse and the Hungarian Revolution (1848 – 1849)

The present study reveals the activities of the Austrian vice-consulate in Rousse along the Danubian coastline in the wake of the Hungarian Revolution (1848 – 1849). The Austrian vice-consul in the city, Emmanuel von Rössler, developed diligent intelligence and public service activities in Rousse, Vidin and Shumen, with which he privileged Habsburg loyalists and hindered the activity of separatist defectors in the Ottoman Empire. In the spirit of “new” diplomatic history, the contribution pays particular attention to the relationship between the vice-consul and the many disaffected soldiers and emigrants who relied on his instructions and resources in the tense political situation after the revolutionary 1848. Also, the article rethinks the place of consular institutions in the world of international relations through the lens of transnational history, emphasizing their relative independence and presenting a more accurate picture of the active interactions between different consular missions and units. Last but not least, the study uses the methodology of “entangled” history to rethink the role of local events in the Ottoman lands between Stara Planina and the Danube in the context of the global Age of Revolutions, analyzing the processes in this region as an integral part of revolutionary and counter-revolutionary dynamics in the middle of the “long” XIX century.

Revoluce národní a sociální 1848/1849 Uhry v Rakousku, Slovensko v Uhrách: revoluce v revoluci

In 1848-49 most of continental Europe was affected by revolution, which in Central and Eastern Europe was connected with national movements of particular nations. While the Germans, Italians and Romanians demanded national unification in one nation-state, in Austrian Empire the situation was oposite: particular nations demanded collective national rights, territorial home-rule and far reaching political autonomy. Hungarians on one hand fought for their independence and full national self-determination against Vienna and wanted to separate from Austrian Empire, but simultaneously refused to grant collective national rights to particular nations living in Hungary. This brought the non-Magyars, e. g: the Serbs of Vojvodina, the Croats, the Romanians in Transylvania and also the Slovaks to oposition and finaly to revolt against the Hungarian revolution on the side of Vienna Court. The essay describes the split among Slovaks vis-à-vis the Hungarian revolution. Many Slovaks joined the Hungarian National Guards and fought against the Imperial Austrian Army, while others joined the Slovak legions fighting against these National Guards alongside Imperial Army.

THE HISTORY OF THE GREEK CATHOLIC EPARCHY OF MUKACHEVO IN 1848–1849

The article addresses the problem of role of the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Mukachevo in the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence of 1848–1849. Considerable attention is paid to analyze the religious and political activity of Bishop Vasyl Popovych of Mukachevo. The author highlights that the spring events of 1848 created a new situation in Hungary. First in the history of the country a government accountable to the legislation was formed, whose first measures included the abolishment of serfdom. The so-called «April Laws» of 1848 sanctioned by Ferdinand V, the Habsburg king of Hungary had a great influence on the feudal system. The last Diet of Reform Era adopted laws, which paved a way for the bourgeois transformation of the country. It is alleged that one of the most important issues was the determination of the relationship between church and state in spring 1848. This time, the relationship between the Batthyány Goverment and the leaders of the Catholic Church of Hungary was not free from difficulties. The Catholic Church has lost its state religion status. The history of the Eparchy of Mukachevo in the revolutionary events of 1848–1849 is one of the less researched issues. On the basis of analysis of the review of archival sources and historiography of the topic, it is established that the Eparchy of Mukachevo played an exceptional role in support of hinterland of the Hungarian War of Independence. As noted, it had jurisdiction over seven counties in Northeastern Hungary (Zemplin, Ung, Bereg, Ugocha, Sotmar, Sabolch and Maramorosh) and the Hajdú District populated by Rusyn-, Hungarian- and Romanian-speaking believers. Thus, the Greek Catholic clergy had a strategic role to ensure peace between the different peoples. The author comes to the conclusion that Bishop Vasyl Popovych and his prelacy trusted in the goodwill of the Hungarian liberal leaders. The bishop focused on the interests of his eparchy in all circumstances. The years of 1848–1849 were abundant in political and military turns. Popovych was always far from any form of extremism, calmness and prudence controlled his actions. In the end, it is revealed that the Greek Catholic clergy believed: the Hungarian government wanted to create a country, where the Byzantine rite community gets into a favourable, more honoured position. Key words: Greek Catholic Eparchy of Mukachevo, Bishop Vasyl Popovych, Northeastern Hungary, Lajos Kossuth, Catholic Church of Hungary.

Short History of the so-called Kossuth Coat of Arms after 1956

The so-called Kossuth coat of arms (together with the national flag with a hole in the middle) became the symbol of the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence of 1956. Although the Soviet Union repressed the Hungarian Revolution on 4 November 1956, the Kossuth coat of arms remained the symbol of the state from late 1956 to early 1957. Moreover, a peculiar version of it (the second field of the coat of arms changed from red to blue) appeared. At the time of the fall of communism in Hungary, an important question was which version of the historical forms of the Hungarian coat of arms would become the state symbol. For the Hungarians, the Kossuth coat of arms is the symbol of the revolution, while the coat of arms with the Holy Crown of Hungary symbolizes the thousand- year-old statehood. The proclamation of the Republic of Hungary was on 23 October 1989 (on the 33rd anniversary of the Revolution of 1956) and the Kossuth coat of arms was also very popular. Finally, the ‘full form’ of the Hungarian coat of arms (with the crown) became official, expressing that the Holy Crown is a symbol of the Hungarian statehood, regardless of the form of government.

The role of Czechoslovakia in the Revolution of 1956 and in the consolidation of the Kádár regime

Czechoslovakia’s attitude to the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 is a little-known story, even if there have been a few works on the subject in the last three decades. However, these papers have presented either exclusively the reaction of Czechoslovak (Prague) or Slovak (Bratislava) political leaders to the events. This study promises more than that. It is the first attempt to present, in a complex way, not only the documents of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) and Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS), but also the documents of the Czechoslovak Peo- ple’s Army, the Interior Ministry and the economic documents, in order to show how Czechoslovakia reacted to the Hungarian Revolution and how it helped the Hungarian government headed by János Kádár, which was formed after the suppression of the Revolution, in the process of consolidation. The aim of this paper is to provide a synthesis of thousands of pages of documents from the archives of Prague and Bratislava relating to the events of the Hungarian Revolution and to answer the question of the role played by the Czechoslovak political, military, interior and economic leadership in the Hungarian events.

’56-os politikai elítéltek „nyugalmat adó menedéke” : Bibó István szakfordító és társai az állami fordítóirodában

This paper not only sets a new framework for the role of political prisoners of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, who served as language intermediaries for the state, including István Bibó, but also presents the history and operation of the Hungarian Office for Translation and Attestation Ltd. (OFFI) in the same period. The employment of intellectuals, who had been imprisoned and later released through amnesty or upon completion of their prison sentences, as translators is examined from the unique standpoint of their roles as professional translators.The paper also provides insights into the state’s translation orders by the state and the legislative background in the decades under study. This paper does not intend to go into more detail than is necessary for understanding the theoretical aspects of the functioning of the power in the 1950-60-70s, but it may well provide further insights into the subject. The tasks performed by translation trainees and proofreaders at the ‘Bibó Chair’ in the prison of Vác, as well as the actions of the leaders of OFFI at that time, who exhibited solidarity within the limits permitted by the period, continue to have a lasting impact even after six decades. These all point towards the targeted and controlled employment of political prisoners, the creation of a kind of internal Samizdat, and, during the decades after the amnesty, the exploitation of the mental resources of intellectuals, writers, university professors, lawyers and military leaders critical of the regime, as specialist translators for low pay. While, at the same time, the complicity, wit, intelligent humour, camaraderie and loyalty of the political intelligentsia concerned remained still evident.

1950년대 중립주의의 발흥과 남·북한의 반응

Examined in this article is how both South and North Koreas perceived and responded to the concept of Neutralism, which emerged all around the globe after the Korean War. Analyzed in particular is rather ‘symmetrical responses’ displayed by both South and North Korean governments, to global events that occurred in the wake of such ideology emerging in the 1950s, such as the Bandung Conference in 1955, Austria’s Neutralization and Unification during the same year, the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, and the drafting of the first version of the Yugoslav Communist Alliance Code in 1958.BR Research shows that both South and North Korean governments responded rather symmetrically toward the Asian and African regions where Neutralism prevailed(as we can see from the Bandung Conference), the Free World(as in the case of Austria), and the Communist realm(as in cases of Hungary and Yugoslavia), during the Cold War of the 1950s. Their such responses varied, depending on whether they could benefit from the effects of supporting neutrality.BR Previous studies of the Cold War History, either from Korean scholars or from scholars abroad, have concentrated on the relations between ‘Central regions,’ or relations between regions which were rather ‘Central’ while the other was mostly categorized ‘Peripheral.’ Attempted in this work conversely is to define and determine the relationship between regions that could both be considered as ‘Peripheries.’ It should be noted that South and North Koreas have together formed one of the last front-lines of the Cold War on the Korean peninsula which has always been perceived as a ‘Peripheral region,’ and that other countries which declared Neutralism in the hope of escaping clutches of the polarizing nature of the Cold War order were also such peripheries.

A Máramarosszigeti Református Jogakadémia „áttelepülése” Magyarországra

"The Relocation of the Reformed Law Academy in Máramarossziget to Hungary. The law academy in Máramarossziget, founded in 1837, was shut down in 1854 by Minister of the Interior Bach because of its participation in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. It reopened its gates to the students only in 1869. The law-academy flourished in the 20th century, having more than 120 students. It received support and sponsorship from the Prime Minister himself. However, the Great War sealed its fate. Two thirds of the whole faculty and most of the students were enrolled in the army. This tragedy was followed by an even greater one: the Spanish flu epidemic. Also, the Russian army ravaged the land, followed by the regime change. After the Peace Dictate, the law academy became part of the Romanian Kingdom’s territory. The faculty accepted the invitation of the town of Hódmezővásárhely and relocated itself to Hungary in 1921. Unfortunately, because of its unfavourable financial state and the decision of the Reformed Diocese of Tiszántúl, the Minister of Cults and Education closed down the academy for good in 1923. This was the last law academy founded by the church. Its rightful successor became the law academy of Kecskemét, one that was acknowledged nation-wide by the Reformed Church of Hungary. Keywords: Máramarossziget, law academy, hopelessness, relocation, Hódmezővásárhely, financial situation, liquidation, successor "

Anita Kurimay. Queer Budapest, 1873–1961

Anita Kurimay. <i>Queer Budapest, 1873–1961</i>

János Kádár’s Government and the Refugees of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956

During and following the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, approximately 200,000 people fled the country, the majority of them to Austria and others to Yugoslavia. After the suppression of the Revolution, the Hungarian authorities targeted the refugees with two simultaneous measures: on the one hand, they sought to persuade those who were willing and those whom the official propaganda considered as “misguided” to repatriate; and on the other hand, the said authorities did everything in their power to compromise “hostile” emigrant circles and persons, thereby weakening their influence among the refugees. In order to encourage and facilitate the repatriation, Hungary proclaimed amnesty and established a Hungarian–Yugoslav joint committee as well as a repatriation office in Vienna; however, the widespread repatriation propaganda of the Hungarian government was largely unsuccessful. Moreover, those returning after 31 March 1957 were meticulously screened and many repatriation requests were rejected, mostly for fear that Western intelligence might have planted spies among the applicants and repatriates. Initially, Hungarian leaders regarded the emigration of 1956 as a threat for fear that Western propaganda might use the migrants to influence Western public opinion and the foreign policy of other governments towards Hungary; they only changed their stance in the summer of 1958, when the Political Committee of the Central Committee of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party established a commission in charge of emigration affairs, which was to pay particular attention to financially supporting the repatriation of certain categories of 1956 emigrants. In 1960, “consular passports” were introduced to enable the relatives of “dissidents” to go abroad for family visits, and under certain conditions, “dissidents” were also allowed to visit Hungary. In 1963, the Hungarian repatriation policy reached a turning point with János Kádár’s proclamation of a general amnesty. From that period onward, maintaining relations with Hungarian emigration became an integral part of government policy, and the political system made concessions with regard to the perception and treatment of emigration circles, which were also showing signs of division.

Hungarian Refugee Students in Belgium after the Revolution of 1956: The Leuven Case

Students played a prominent role in the Hungarian revolution of 1956 and after its bloody suppression, many of them emigrated to the West from November of the same year to save their lives. This article presents the fate of a small Hungarian refugee community of the 1956 revolution, focusing especially on those students who arrived in Leuven, Belgium. Since the Catholic University of Leuven gave an outstanding opportunity to those refugee students who intended to pursue their already started studies in Belgium, it is not a coincidence that many have chosen Leuven deliberately. The present article discloses the different institutes and prominent persons who contributed considerably to the success of the refugee students.