In 1956, an uprising against the communist regime took place in Hungary, which in the USSR was called a "counter-revolutionary rebellion." At that time, Matyas Rakosi, a big admirer of Stalin and a fan of persecuting people for any dissent and sending them to camps, was in power in Hungary. His draconian policy was very unpopular among the Hungarians (but generally suited the Soviet authorities). Therefore, an attempt to overthrow him turned into the intervention of Soviet troops and the bloody suppression of the rebellion. Among the Hungarians, 2,652 insurgents died that year, 348 civilians, and 19,226 were wounded.
I found a good material for you about how it was. Under the cut, only official documents and archival photographs.
Information of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR in the Central Committee of the CPSU on the situation in Hungary as of 12.00 November 4, 1956
Special folder. Owls. secret. Ex. No. 1
At 6 o'clock 15 min. November 4 p. Soviet troops began an operation to restore order and restore people's democratic power in Hungary.
Acting according to a predetermined plan, our units captured the main strongholds of the reaction in the province, which were Gyor, Miskolc, Gyongyes, Debrecen, as well as other regional centers of Hungary.
During the operation, Soviet troops occupied the most important communication centers, including a powerful broadcast radio station in the city of Szolnok, ammunition and weapons depots, and other important military installations.
Soviet troops operating in the city of Budapest, having broken the resistance of the rebels, occupied the parliament buildings, the TsR VPT, as well as a radio station in the parliament area.
Captured three bridges across the river. Danube, linking the eastern and western parts of the city, and an arsenal with weapons and ammunition. The entire composition of the counter-revolutionary government of Imre Nagy went into hiding. Searches are underway.
In Budapest, there was one large center of rebel resistance in the area of the Korvin cinema (south-eastern part of the city). The rebels defending this stronghold were presented with an ultimatum to surrender, in connection with the refusal of the rebels to surrender, the troops began the assault.
The main garrisons of the Hungarian troops are blocked. Many of them laid down their arms without serious resistance. Our troops have been instructed to return to command the Hungarian officers removed by the rebels, and to arrest the officers appointed to replace those removed.
In order to prevent the penetration of enemy agents into Hungary and the flight of the leaders of the rebels from Hungary, our troops occupied the Hungarian airfields and firmly blocked all roads on the Austro-Hungarian border. The troops, continuing to carry out their tasks, clear the territory of Hungary from the rebels.
APRF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 485.
Information of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR in the Central Committee of the CPSU on the situation in Hungary as of 9.00 on November 7, 1956
During the night of November 7, Soviet troops continued to liquidate small groups of rebels in the city of Budapest. In the western part of the city, our troops fought to destroy the center of resistance in the area of the former Horthy Palace.
During the night, there was a regrouping of the rebel forces in Budapest. Small groups tried to leave the city in a westerly direction. At the same time, a large center of resistance was discovered in the area of the city theater, the park to the east of this theater and in the neighborhoods adjacent to them.
On the territory of Hungary at night it was calm. Our troops carried out activities to identify and disarm groups of rebels and individual Hungarian units.
The government of the Hungarian People's Republic left Szolnok and arrived in Budapest at 06:10 on November 7. The troops continue to carry out their assigned tasks.
Note: "Comrade Khrushchev familiarized. Archive. 9.XI.56. Dolud".
AP RF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 486.
Information of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR in the Central Committee of the CPSU on the situation in Hungary as of 9.00 on November 9, 1956
Special folder Owls. secret. Ex. No. 1
During November 8, our troops restored order in Budapest, combed the forests in certain parts of the country, caught and disarmed scattered small groups of rebels, and also seized weapons from the local population.
District military commandant's offices have been set up in Budapest. A normal life is gradually being established in the country, a number of enterprises, urban transport, hospitals and schools have started to work. Local authorities are expanding their activities.
According to preliminary data, the losses of the Soviet troops during the period of hostilities in Hungary from October 24 to November 6 this year. 377 people are killed, 881 people are wounded. Including 37 killed and 74 wounded officers.
About 35,000 Hungarians have been disarmed by our troops. A large number of weapons, military equipment and ammunition were captured during the fighting and taken under guard as a result of disarmament, the accounting of which continues.
Note: "Comrade Khrushchev familiarized. Archive. 10.IX.56. Doluda".
AP RF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 486. L. 43.
Information of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR in the Central Committee of the CPSU on the situation in Hungary as of 9.00 on November 10, 1956
Special folder Owls. secret. Ex. No. 1
During November 9, our troops continued to eliminate small groups of rebels, disarmed former Hungarian army soldiers, and also seized weapons from the local population.
A group of rebels offered stubborn resistance in the suburbs of Budapest - on the northern outskirts of Csepel Island. Three of our tanks were hit and burned in this area.
The political situation in the country continues to improve. However, in some places, hostile elements are still trying to prevent the establishment of order and the normalization of life in the country.
The situation continues to be difficult in Budapest, where the population lacks food and fuel. The government of Janos Kadar, together with the Command of the Soviet Forces, is taking measures to provide the population of Budapest with food.
Note: "Comrade Khrushchev reported. Archive. 10.XI.56. Dolud".
AP RF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 486. L. 96.
Telephone message I.A. Serov from Budapest N.S. Khrushchev on the operational work carried out by the Soviet and Hungarian state security agencies
Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU comrade. Khrushchev N.S.
Yesterday the Minister of Public Security, Comrade Münnich, sent an order to the regional organizations, in which he pointed out that in the localities, contrary to the prohibition of the government, state security organs were being created. Therefore, he orders all employees of the state security organs to stop their work on the formation of organs and go home.
Considering that the special departments of the divisions carry out all the work on the removal of counter-revolutionary rebels through the Hungarian employees of the state security organs who appeared after the occupation of the cities by parts of the Soviet Army, today I talked with Comrade Münnich and asked how he further had in mind to carry out work to identify and arrest the counter-revolutionary element after such an order.
Tov. Münnich answered me that he issued the directive on the basis of instructions from the government, as provided for by the Government's Declaration.
Some time later, Comrade Kadar came to Comrade Münnich's office and said that he would also like to talk to me. During the conversation, Comrade Kadar focused on the following questions:
1. He had representatives of some regions, in particular the Salnok region, who informed Kadar that the officers of the Soviet Army were arresting a lot and, along with the arrest of the counter-revolutionary element, they were also arresting ordinary participants in the insurrectionary movement.
He believes that this should not be done, since people who participated in the insurgency are very afraid of revenge from the government, while the Government Declaration said that those who lay down their arms and stop resisting will not be punished. The Hungarian government should not take revenge and show cruelty against such persons.
The representative of the Salnok region told Comrade Kadar that when 40 people were arrested in the region, representatives from the workers came and said that they would not start working until they released the arrested. In other regions, there were rumors that 6,000 people had been arrested in Salnok.
Tov. Kadar pointed out that the arrests of the reactionaries were former employees of the state security organs, whom the government had dismissed. It is not to our advantage before the people that Hungarian state security officers participate in arrests. You must bear in mind that in our country the mood of the masses is of great importance. The Soviet comrades and our members of the state security organs may arouse the indignation of the masses with arrests.
I said that the members of the state security organs in Hungary are now doing positive work in the removal of counter-revolutionary rebels. In a few days, when those who pose a threat to the current government are isolated, then these employees should be transferred to another job. Tov. Kadar and comrade Munnich agreed with this.
I explained to Comrade Kadar that the special departments of the divisions were instructed to arrest all the organizers of the rebellion, persons who resisted units of the Soviet Army with weapons in their hands, as well as citizens who incited and kindled the hatred of the people (during the Nagy government) towards the Communists and employees of the state security, as a result of which some of them were shot, hanged and burned.
As for the rank and file participants in the uprising, they are not arrested. Tov. Kadar and comrade Munnich agreed that this indication was correct.
I further added that it was possible that individuals not belonging to the listed categories could be arrested. Therefore, all those arrested are carefully filtered and those who did not play an active role in the rebellion are released.
Taking into account the liberal attitude shown by the leading workers of Hungary towards the enemies, I instructed the special departments to send all those arrested as soon as possible from the regions and cities to the Chop station, and also explained the organization of the political department in the regions.
2. Further, Comrade Kadar said that in the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Budapest), where a large number of state security officers are concentrated, an unhealthy situation has arisen, since among the employees of the organs there are persons who worked in the organs under Rakosi and played a negative role.
Therefore, he believes that these employees should be immediately removed and given other jobs. In addition, he considers it appropriate to disband the security department, as these are dishonest people.
I expressed the wish that Comrade Münnich quickly issue an order, as we agreed, on the organization of the people's police and staffed it with the most dedicated honest employees, and also formed a "political department" (department of state security), which could begin work. Then this issue will be removed.
At the same time, we agreed with Comrade Münnich that there would be no more than 20-25 people in the political department of the center with an open staff, and the rest of the employees would work in a secret staff.
The political department will include: foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, secret political service, investigation and a special service of operational equipment. Tov. Munnich said that he would sign such an order tomorrow. I will report on the number of those arrested by regions and the seized weapons in a separate note.
AP RF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 487. L. 78-80.
Telephone message I.A. Serov and Yu.V. Andropov from Budapest to the Central Committee of the CPSU about sending the arrested Hungarians to the territory of the USSR
Today, throughout the day, Comrades Kadar and Münnich (each separately) called us repeatedly, who reported that the Soviet military authorities had sent to the Soviet Union (Siberia) a train of Hungarian youth who had taken part in an armed rebellion.
Kadar and Münnich declared in this connection that they did not approve of such actions on our part, since these actions caused an alleged general strike of the Hungarian railway workers and worsened the internal political situation in the country as a whole.
Tonight, the Budapest radio them. Kossuth conveyed a tendentious message about the deportation of Hungarian youth to Siberia. Tov. Munnich requested that the command of the Soviet troops make an official statement in the press that it did not and would not export anyone from Hungary to the USSR. On our part, Comrade Munnich was told that we would clarify this issue and tomorrow we would inform him of the answer.
In fact, today, November 14, a small echelon was sent to the Chop station with arrested persons, whose investigation files were registered as active participants and organizers of the armed rebellion. The echelon followed the border.
When the echelon was moving, the prisoners at two stations threw notes out the window, in which they said that they were being sent to Siberia. These notes were picked up by Hungarian railroad workers who reported it to the government. On our line, instructions have been given to send those arrested in the future in closed vehicles under reinforced escort.
Tomorrow, at a meeting with Comrade Munnich, Comrade Serov intends to tell him that in view of the absence in Hungary of a prison sufficiently prepared for keeping prisoners, where it would be possible to conduct an objective investigation, we had in mind to place a small group of arrested people in a room close to Soviet-Hungarian border. Comrades Suslov and Aristov have been informed of this.
Andropov
AP RF. F. 3. Op. 64. D. 486. L. 143-144.
Reference
According to statistics, in connection with the uprising and fighting in the period from October 23 to December 31, 1956, 2,652 Hungarian rebels died, 348 civilians, and 19,226 people were injured.
The losses of the Soviet army, according to official figures, amounted to 669 people killed, 51 missing and 1251 wounded.
The losses of the Hungarian People's Army were, according to official figures, 53 killed and 289 wounded soldiers.
The total number of lost military equipment is unknown.
2nd Guards MD, the first to enter the rebellious Budapest, lost 4 tanks on October 24, 1956.
The 33rd MD during the operation "Whirlwind" lost 14 tanks and self-propelled guns, 9 armored personnel carriers, 13 guns, 4 MLRS, 6 anti-aircraft guns and other equipment, as well as 111 military personnel.
According to Hungarian communist sources, after the liquidation of the armed groups, a large number of Western-made weapons fell into the hands of the troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the police: German MP-44 assault rifles and American Thompson submachine guns.
Budapest suffered as a result of street fighting between Soviet troops and rebels, 4,000 houses were completely destroyed in the city and another 40,000 were damaged.
Having received the first news of the February revolution in France, Nikolai exclaimed, addressing the guards officers: “Horse, gentlemen! Republic in France! However, in reality, the tsar did not even think about intervention and a campaign against France, as in 1830. Nicholas saw only well-deserved retribution in the death of Louis Philippe. But, even if he had at first the intention to go to France, he could not have carried it out according to the situation, since the March revolutions in Vienna, Berlin, Munich, Dresden, in all states of the German Confederation, the flight of Metternich, a complete failure the whole Metternich system, the panic fear before the revolution, which paralyzed Friedrich Wilhelm in Prussia and the Emperor Ferdinand in Austria, their immediate readiness for capitulation - all this seriously confused the cards of Nicholas. The king was clearly confused. This is evident from his correspondence during this period with Prince Paskevich, the only person whom he fully trusted. It was necessary to "appease the bastards." In the first half of 1848, Nicholas could not count on his own strength to carry out such a task. But then a ray of hope flashed for him: Cavaignac's massacre of the Parisian proletariat in the terrible June days of 1848 inspired the tsar and filled his hopes. Immediately through the ambassador in Paris, Kiselyov, he ordered to convey to General Cavaignac heartfelt royal gratitude. Nicholas, before many other representatives of the reaction, understood that not only the French, but also the all-European revolution had been broken on the Paris barricades, and that the danger had passed. From that time, and especially from the late autumn of 1848, Nicholas's intervention in both Austrian and Prussian affairs resumed. He scolds his brother-in-law Friedrich Wilhelm IV behind his back and irritably “advises” him in his face to quickly eliminate the traces of cowardice, that is, the constitution that was torn from the king by the Prussian revolution in March 1848. In softer tones, he gives the same advice. summer Franz Joseph, who ascended the Austrian throne on December 2, 1848 after the abdication of his uncle Emperor Ferdinand. Franz Joseph, helpless without the support of Nicholas, listened to the advice of the king with slavish obedience. And Nikolai was extremely pleased with both this obedience and the fact that Prince Felix Schwarzenberg was the actual dictator of Austria, the true successor of Metternich, in whom Nikolai for a long time saw only something like his governor-general, planted in Vienna to carry out the St. Petersburg "advice". Nikolai was wrong in both Schwarzenberg and Franz Josef. Schwarzenberg captivated him by the fact that, at his insistence, the delegate of the Frankfurt Parliament, Robert Blum, who was captured in Vienna, was shot. But Nicholas did not consider in Schwarzenberg a diplomat who would do everything in his power to interfere with the tsar in all his eastern plans, as soon as he completely got rid of the fear of the revolution. The tsar did not see in Franz Joseph a very independent, proud and persistent young man who obeys only because he is afraid of the revolution, but in the future he will not refuse to fight against Nicholas in the East.
During this period, the king twice, in 1849 and in 1850, intervened in. affairs of Central Europe - and both times in favor of Austria. As a result of this intervention, Austria won a decisive victory on two of its most important fronts.
Suppression of the Hungarian uprising
The first intervention of Nicholas was both diplomatic and military: it took place in 1849 in connection with the Hungarian uprising.
The second intervention was purely diplomatic; it was aimed at eliminating attempts to unify Germany.
The intervention of the king in the suppression of the Hungarian uprising was primarily due to fears for peace in Poland, if Hungary became a lasting independent state. Further, the existence of a state ruled by the revolutionary Kossuth was also considered a threat to the influence of Tsarist Russia in the Balkan Peninsula. Finally, the victory of pan-European reaction would not have been complete if revolutionary Hungary had triumphed.
Nicholas decided to speak only at the very end of the spring of 1849, just when the Austrian generals suffered a series of shameful defeats. Paskevich, the governor of the Kingdom of Poland, took over the supreme leadership of this intervention. The Austrian Empire, after the pacification of Hungary, could consider itself saved. But among all the subjects of Franz Joseph, there were no more fierce enemies of Russia from now on than the Hungarians. From that moment on, the Habsburg state stood firmly on its feet; her "political recovery", as the reactionary press wrote, she soon used against the same Russia. Nicholas realized this rather late - only in 1854 - when the hostile position of Austria began to be clearly indicated. Speaking with Adjutant General Count Rzewuski, a Polish native, Nikolai asked him: “Which of the Polish kings, in your opinion, was the most stupid? .. I’ll tell you,” he continued, “that the most stupid Polish king was Jan Sobieski, because that he liberated Vienna from the Turks. And the most stupid of the Russian sovereigns is me, because I helped the Austrians put down the Hungarian rebellion.” Nicholas realized his political mistake only when nothing could be corrected.
The second intervention of Nicholas in European affairs followed in 1850. It was also caused not only by the insistent requests of Franz Joseph and Prince Schwarzenberg, but also by the specific goals of the tsar himself.
Intervention of Nicholas I in Austro-Prussian relations
After the dissolution, in 1849, of the Frankfurt Parliament, which set itself the goal of the unification of Germany, the dream of this unification around Prussia did not leave broad sections of the German bourgeoisie. Nicholas I never wanted to allow this unification. To a large extent, under the influence of his formidable St. Petersburg brother-in-law - Nicholas I - Friedrich Wilhelm IV refused to accept the German imperial crown from the "revolutionary gathering", as he was ordered from St. Petersburg to call the Frankfurt Parliament. But under the influence of the general desire for unification, even the reactionary Prussian ministry of Count Brandenburg made in 1849-1850. some steps towards the reorganization of the impotent German Confederation. Then Nicholas I most decisively supported the Austrian Chancellor Schwarzenberg, who announced that Austria would not tolerate the strengthening of Prussia.
Nicholas opposed the creation of the German Empire in 1849 not only because the "revolutionary" Frankfurt Parliament took the initiative of unification: he also did not want Prussia to become too strong. In this matter, he fully agreed with the Austrian diplomacy.
Further, Nicholas began to agitate in favor of keeping Holstein for Denmark. On August 2, 1850, representatives of Russia, France, England and Austria signed an agreement in London, which secured the possession of Holstein by Denmark. This was the first heavy blow inflicted on Prussia. Schwarzenberg triumphed. Public excitement grew in Prussia. Returning from Warsaw, Count Brandenburg died suddenly; legend attributed his death to the humiliating treatment by the tsar and the agitation of the Prussian premier at the national humiliation of Prussia. Schwarzenberg, confident in the support of Nicholas, threatened Prussia with war.
In November 1850 there was a new conflict between Austria and Prussia over Hesse. After the intervention of Nicholas, in the city of Olmutz on November 29, an agreement was signed between Prussia and Austria, and Prussia had to completely reconcile. This "Olmutz humiliation" was forever remembered throughout Germany as the work of Nicholas.
The tsar triumphed on all fronts of the diplomatic struggle. Speaking later about these years (until 1853), the English minister Clarendon declared in one of his parliamentary speeches that in those days, according to the general opinion, Russia possessed not only "overwhelming military power", but also a diplomacy distinguished by "incomparable dexterity" . The power of Nicholas after the Hungarian campaign and after Olmutz seemed irresistible. “When I was young, Napoleon ruled over the continent of Europe. Now it looks like the Russian emperor has taken the place of Napoleon, and that, at least for several years, he, with other intentions and other means, will dictate laws to the continent. So wrote in 1851 a very knowledgeable observer, Baron Stockmar, a friend of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria of England.
These comparisons between Nicholas and Napoleon became common in those years when Russia's influence on European affairs was discussed. In 1849 - 1852. the opinion about the almost complete omnipotence of Nicholas in Central Europe was quite close to the truth. As for England and France, the situation was more complicated. From here, a thunderstorm approached Nikolai.
In 1848, a series of bourgeois revolutions swept across Europe. The young middle class, which appeared due to the development of capitalist relations and secularization, has become so strong that it has declared itself and its interests. Almost all of them were brutally suppressed. However, one of the most successful revolutions - the Hungarian one, could well have won if not for the intervention of the Russian Empire. In the spring and summer of 1849, the corps of General Paskevich conducted a very successful military operation against the Hungarian revolutionary army. Russia defended the Habsburg monarchy, although after 20 years our country became the worst enemy of the Austrian crown. That's why it happened.
Monarchist solidarity in the face of a democratic threat
The first half of the 19th century was marked by a severe crisis in the usual world order. Democracy, as an ideological doctrine, captures an increasing number of Europeans. Not only philosophers, but also ordinary citizens, primarily merchants and townspeople, begin to talk about liberalism. The very justice of the monarchy, the logic by which it legitimizes itself, is being questioned by wide circles of the public. And soon this public takes up arms. It all starts with the American Revolution of 1775 and the Great French Revolution of 1789-1799, which anticipated the entire movement of socio-political thought in the West for several decades to come. Revolutions are taking place in Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Belgium and even Serbia. The Decembrist uprising can also be attributed to this revolutionary wave. And in 1848, this process enters a new stage of development, and almost all the monarchies of Europe begin to have huge problems. Two global ideologies: autocracy and democracy enter into confrontation. The emperors and kings of different countries are well aware that this process threatens all of them, and they begin to unite, forgetting about past geopolitical differences. So Nicholas I perfectly understood that if the Hungarian separatists won in Austria, then this would be an example for the Russian national outskirts, and for Russian democratically minded aristocrats - the example of the Decembrists was still very fresh in memory. The support of the young Austrian emperor Franz Joseph I was a step for the Russian tsar to preserve autocracy as a global political doctrine.
Polish question
In 1815, almost all of Poland became part of the Russian Empire. Initially - on the rights of broad autonomy, the same as Finland had. But after 15 years - in 1830, the Polish uprising begins. It was brutally suppressed by the Russian army, and all privileges were taken away from the kingdom of Poland. Many of the instigators of the revolution were caught and punished, but others managed to escape into exile. When the uprisings begin in Hungary, these Polish émigré revolutionaries urgently come to the Austrian Empire to support the liberation struggle of the Hungarian people. Two of them - Jozef Vysotsky and Jozef Bem, Polish heroes of the 1830 uprising, create 2 revolutionary legions from Austrian Poles. At the same time, on the initiative of the great Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz, Polish detachments were created to help the Italians of Dalmatia, who also began an armed struggle against Austrian rule. Such a consolidation of the Polish national movement was very dangerous for the integrity of Nikolaev Russia. The Hungarian revolutionary republic laid claim to the lands originally inhabited by the Poles. If she won and became an independent state, she could support a new uprising in Russian Poland and greatly increase its chances of success. Therefore, for Nicholas I it was very important to strangle the Polish national movement in any form and in any country.
Slavic factor
With the exception of the Poles, the Hungarians were very dismissive of the Slavs who lived on their territory. They were even more interested in their assimilation than Austria itself. And the Habsburgs, on the contrary, tried to keep Slavic nationalism on a long leash, in order, in which case, to oppose it to the Hungarian one. The Slavs - the Serbs of Vojvodina, the Croats, Rusyns and Ukrainians of Galicia did not bode well for suddenly being not subject to the Vienna crown, but citizens of independent Hungary. And even the Serbian liberal intelligentsia at first supported the Hungarian revolution as a national liberation revolution, but soon clearly realized that the Hungarians were not going to improve the situation of the Slavs. The Hungarian national-liberal elite, after coming to power, set a course for the complete and harsh Magyarization of all the small peoples of Hungary. Therefore, the Slavs quickly realized that it was in their interest to suppress this revolution. [C-BLOCK] Vojvodina - then a Serbian region in the jurisdiction of Pest (then Budapest was two different cities), put up a militia against the Hungarians, for which, after the revolution, it was separated by the emperor into a separate province, which began to be considered an integral part of the Serbian, and not the Hungarian space. The Croatian ban (head of the province) Josip Jelacic did exactly the same. And from the Ukrainians and Rusyns of Galicia, the Russian Corps of Mountain Riflemen was created, who were guarded from the Hungarian uprising by the eastern borders of the empire. Russia could not ignore the position of the Slav brothers and supported their struggle.
And the suppression of the rebellion
Russian empire Russian empire
Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was a local version of the pan-European revolution, complicated by the acute crisis of the Austrian Empire and the growth of the national consciousness of the Hungarians. The main slogans of the Hungarian revolution were the decentralization of the Austrian Empire, democratization and Magyarization. The driving force behind the revolution was the liberal middle nobility and urban intelligentsia. However, the Magyarization policy ran into the resistance of the Slavic peoples, led to an increase in interethnic tension and a large-scale war, in which Russia (Paskevich's expeditionary force) was involved. As a result, the revolution was defeated. Hungary's independence was delayed for 70 years, and the Hungarians lost their positions in Transylvania, Slovakia and Vojvodina.
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Subtitles
Prerequisites
Socio-political position of Hungary
National movements on the eve of the revolution
| revolutions 1848-1849 years |
|---|
| France |
| Austrian Empire : |
| Austria |
| Hungary |
| Czech Republic |
| Croatia |
| Vojvodina |
| Transylvania |
| Slovakia |
| Galicia |
| Slovenia |
| Dalmatia and Istria |
| Lombardy and Venice |
| Germany |
| South Prussia (Greater Poland) |
| Italian states: |
| Sicily |
| Neapolitan kingdom |
| Papal States |
| Tuscany |
| Piedmont and duchies |
| Poland |
| Wallachia and Moldavia |
| Brazil |
At the same time, in the 1830s began a stormy upsurge of the national movement. Istvan Szechenyi came up with the idea of a broad renewal of the country, primarily in the economic sphere, and the dismantling of the feudal system. Szechenyi's speeches received a great public outcry and prompted many Hungarian nobles to engage in political activities. Miklos Veshshelenyi went even further and put forward the idea of eliminating absolutism and creating a constitutional monarchy in Hungary. Liberal ideas quickly spread among the nobility, especially the middle class, and the intelligentsia. By the end of the 1830s. there were several currents of the national movement: the “new conservatives” (Aurel Dezhevfi, Gyorgy Apponyi, Shama Yoshik and Istvan Szechenyi) advocated certain democratic reforms while strengthening centralization and maintaining the dominance of the aristocracy; liberals (Lajos Battyani, Ferenc Deak, Lajos Kossuth and, in part, Josef Eötvös) demanded the complete elimination of feudal remnants, the introduction of democratic freedoms, the expansion of Hungary's autonomy and the transformation of the country into a parliamentary monarchy. Later, a more radical movement of students and part of the intelligentsia arose, concentrating around the Young Hungary group (Sandor Petofi, Pal Vasvari and Mihai Tancic) and speaking from the positions of republicanism and the need for an armed uprising.
A feature of the Hungarian liberal movement was the fact that the nobility was the bearer of the ideas of democratic reforms and the driving force of the revolution. This was due to the underdevelopment of cities in Hungary, the weakness of the bourgeoisie and the historically established role of the nobility as a defender of the rights and freedoms of the Hungarian nation against foreign domination. Another significant feature of the movement was the inattention to the national question: the liberals believed that democratic reforms and the assertion of the priority of individual freedom would make unnecessary the corporate rights of national minorities, which they considered a relic of the feudal system. This conviction in the conditions of the Kingdom of Hungary, in which representatives of the titular nation made up only 38% of the population, threatened to burst into national conflicts. In parallel with the development of the Hungarian movement, the self-consciousness of other peoples of the country - Croats, Serbs, Slovaks, Romanians and Rusyns, was strengthened, often contradicting the interests of the Hungarians.
Reform attempts and their failure
At the state meeting - Messrs. the liberals succeeded in obtaining an amnesty for political prisoners, expanding the scope of the Hungarian language in the administration, and approving the possibility of emancipating the peasants for a ransom. In the 1840s a whole network of societies for social protection, mutual assistance, and support for domestic industry arose throughout the country. The newspaper became famous Peshti khirlap”, published by L. Kossuth and spreading the ideas of the immediate release of the peasants and the introduction of universal taxation. In the city of Vienna, the government handed over the reins of control of Hungary to the new conservatives: D. Apponyi was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the Kingdom of Hungary, and S. Yoshik - Transylvania. At the same time, centralization was strengthened, and the powers of administrators and feishpans, representatives of the central government in committees, were expanded. The new state assembly that opened in the city, however, reached an impasse due to contradictions between liberals and conservatives and could not decide on reforms.
The beginning of the revolution
On March 18, 1848, the State Assembly of Hungary approved a whole range of reforms. A law on urbarial duties was adopted, which abolished corvée, landlord court, church tithes and other feudal vestiges. Serfdom was abolished, and the land was transferred to the ownership of the peasants, and the redemption payments to the landowners were to be paid by the state. The implementation of this reform led to the elimination of feudalism in agrarian relations and opened the way for the transition of Hungarian agriculture to capitalist rails. A law was also passed introducing universal taxation and depriving the nobility and clergy of tax privileges. Freedom of the press, inviolability of the person and property, equality of Christian denominations, the responsibility of the government to parliament were introduced, suffrage was expanded (up to 7-9% of the population), and the state assembly was to be convened annually from now on. The union of Hungary and Transylvania was proclaimed.
Radicalization of Hungary
Based on the National Guard created in the first days of the revolution, the Hungarian government began to create its own army. This caused a conflict with Vienna demanding Hungarian soldiers to put down the revolution in Italy. Batthany agreed to send part of the Hungarian army contingents to the Italian front, on the condition that the king pacify Jelacic and the Serbs and undertake not to use Hungarian soldiers to suppress the freedoms of the Italian people.
Kossuth appointed Artur Görgey as commander-in-chief of the Hungarian rebel army. He rapidly began training troops and preparing for combat operations. At the same time, the Defense Committee began to recruit recruits and organize the military industry. By the spring of the year, the Hungarian army had reached 170,000 men.
In December 1848, the successful actions of the revolutionary army led by a Polish immigrant
March 15th Hungarian public holiday is celebrated - the day of the beginning of the revolution of 1848-49.
It was on this day that the youth and urban intelligentsia, under the influence of the “Twelve Points” program of J. Irini and the “National Song” of S. Petofi, raised an uprising in Pest.
Power passed into the hands of the Committee of Public Safety formed from representatives of various democratic circles and clubs, which abolished censorship and announced the creation of a national guard.
18th of March The Batthyani government passed a law abolishing corvée and transferring land to peasants.
In August the emperor canceled the laws adopted by the Hungarian parliament and government. A crisis broke out that turned into a war.
In September 1848 at the call of the Committee for the Defense of the Motherland, led by L. Kossuth, a revolutionary national army was formed, which inflicted a number of defeats on the Austrian and Croatian troops.
Spring 1849 The revolutionary army liberated most of Hungary and all of Transylvania.
April 14, 1849 in Debrecen, the Hungarian parliament proclaimed the complete independence of Hungary from the Habsburgs and announced their deposition from the Hungarian throne. Kossuth was elected supreme ruler of Hungary.
However, the conservative elements of the nobility and the aristocracy, seeking an agreement with the Habsburgs, sabotaged the efforts of Kossuth and the radical wing to strengthen the country's defense capability. This enabled the Austrian reaction to gain a respite, to save its own forces from final defeat, and to turn to tsarist Russia for help. The Austrian envoy publicly, on his knees, kissed the hand of Field Marshal Paskevich, begging to save the power of the Habsburgs. Help, at the direction of Nicholas I, was provided, and the 140,000-strong army of Paskevich invaded Hungary.
August 13, 1849 Gergely, the commander of the largest remnants of the Hungarian army, in view of the senselessness of the inevitable bloodshed, capitulated at the Vilagos fortress to the Russian troops. The fate of the participants in the revolution was tragic. The first prime minister, Batthyani, was shot, followed and prevented from committing suicide before his execution.
In total, the Austrians shot and hanged 13 generals and 400 soldiers. 1,500 activists were sentenced to long terms.
Petofi Sandor, who fought in the army of General Bem, died in one of the last battles in a skirmish with the Cossacks. His grave has not been found, although according to one of the legends, it is located on the shore of Lake Baikal.
But the blood of the revolutionaries was not shed in vain, and over the following years, most of the demands of the rebels came true.
BUT in 1867 The dual Austro-Hungarian Empire was formed, where Hungary was equalized in rights with Austria.
In 1941, on the eve of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet government returned to Hungary the revolutionary banners captured by the Russian army of Paskevich in 1849.
