World War I (1914-1918)
While the Hungarian prime minister; István Tisza; opposed the expansion of the monarchy to the Balkans (since it already had a large number of Slav population) and proposed a peaceful resolution, the decision was already taken. Tisza understood that a war would make Hungary a victim and that France and Russia would not attack the kingdom until the Balkan states did not group themselves against Austria-Hungary. Albeit substantial diplomatic efforts of the Hungarian prime minister to avoid war in Europe, the First World War began on the 28th of July 1914 with the declaration of war on Serbia, just one month after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The Central Powers; which included Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire; won over Serbia, and later; after Romania declared war; they also conquered Southern Romania together with the Romanian capital, Bukarest. Even though there were over 4 million soldiers recruited from the Kingdom of Hungary (which was nearly half of the Austrian-Hungarian army), they did not pay much attention to defending the territory of Hungary except on two occasions, at Brusilov in 1916 and the attack of Transylvania. Nevertheless, the loss ratio of Hungarian soldiers was substantially more than that of any other nation in the Austro-Hungarian army.
While at the east the attacks of the Russian Empire were successfully stopped, at the western front Germany suffered a great defeat. After January 1918, the Austro-Hungarian army couldn´t progress in Italy. In the following, the Allied (or Entente) collapsed, and Austria-Hungary withdrew its forces from the earlier defeated countries. This event, in turn, gave rise to the political breakdown of the monarchy.
While the goal of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was to stop the breakup of the ethnic unity in the Empire, the war was dominated by Germany, who was promising “large slices of Austria” for Italy if they would join the Allies. The Empire not only had a higher GDP than Italy at the time but also was more urbanized than its opponents. Nonetheless, during WWI food shortage increased, and GDP declined. Hence, after the war, uprisings in the army and strikes in factories by leftists and pacifist movements were commonplace as a cause of the declining economy. As a consequence, the demand for independent national states rose. In the capital cities of Austro-Hungary, the aspiration for the independence of ethnic minorities found support in the maverick parties (leftist liberals) and the Austro-Hungarian union dissolved in October 1918. In the same period, the prime minister; István Tisza; had been killed and thus became succeeded by Count Mihály Károlyi, a leftist liberal and a devoted supporter of the Entente powers. The pacifist sympathizer Charles IV (IV. Károly) ceded his powers on the 13th of November 1918, and while he was overthrown in 1919, which meant the end of the monarchy, he did not abdicate.
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The Interwar period (1918-1939)
The first Hungarian Democratic / People´s republic (1918-1920)
The first Hungarian / People´s republic was proclaimed on the 16th of November 1918 with Mihály Károlyi (the leader of the Aster Revolution- Őszirózsás forradalom[1]) in the forefront as prime minister. While Károlyi aimed to persuade the minorities to stay loyal to Hungary by offering them autonomy and giving order for the disarmament of the Hungarian national defense under the direction of Béla Linder (minister of war in the Károlyi government), the French Entente (in assistance from the Czech, Romanian and Serbian governments); ignoring the general armistice agreement; started new campaigns against Hungary. This event resulted in the occupation of large parts of the defenseless Hungary by the emerging neighboring states. First out was the “states” of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs, followed by the “Czechoslovak Republic”.
The ´Treaty of Bucharest´[2] from May was also torn up by the Romanian government. Additionally, even the unification of Transylvania with Romania was proclaimed by a separatist movement, which in turn was followed by a notification for the Hungarian government that the Romanian National Council would take control over the twenty-three counties of Transylvania. However, the Hungarian government did not accept this since Romania did not assure the rights of German and Hungarian minorities on the territory. As a response, Romania began its attacks on the eastern part of the Hungarian Kingdom, at Transylvania, on the 2nd of December. Nonetheless, the Károlyi government refused the re-establishment of the Hungarian army. Subsequently, the historically Hungarian territories were given by the Little Entente powers (an alliance between Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Czechoslovakia, and Romania); based on ethnolinguistic criteria; to the newly formed adjacent states; to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Romania. Hence, Hungary was invaded from three directions simultaneously and became under foreign occupation.
Hungary lost 325 411 km2 of land (about 75% of its pre-WWI territory) and by the beginning of 1919, all the support of the Hungarian government disappeared. The Entente claimed more and more Hungarian territories, and Károlyi resigned after he signed all the concessions from the Entente. The Károlyi government was overthrown in March 1919 by the communists under the leadership of Béla Kun, who was newly released from prison and formed a communist coalition government. This marked the birth of the Hungarian Soviet Republic (Tanácsköztársaság), which was followed by the so-called “Red Terror” campaign (i.e. the killing of hundreds of people, mainly intellectuals).
Hungarian Soviet Republic / “Republic of the Councils”
(Magyarországi Szocialista Szövetséges Tanácsköztársaság)
When the Communist Party (“The Reds”), with Béla Kun at the forefront, and the Hungarian Social Democratic Party as an ally came to power, they proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic and promised that they will protect the territory of Hungary. However, this communist-led state formation was neither recognized by the US nor the UK, nor by France.
Although the official head of government at the time was Sándor Garbai, Kun had charge of the foreign affairs of the country. Nonetheless, while in alliance with the Social Democrats, the Reds also considered the Democrats as their main rival in the light of supporters. Hence, Red supporters started violent demonstrations both against the Democrats but also against the media. On one occasion, the Reds attacked the Social Democratic office, which was reciprocated by police beating up communists and arresting their leaders. The Communists, on the other hand, never had much support in the countryside, and even their patronage in Budapest gradually vanished.
In addition, although Kun´s regime had some success on the Czechoslovak front and the Red Army, under the decree of Colonel Aurél Stromfeld, ousted the Czechoslovak troops from the north, they failed in their aspiration of defending Hungary. At last, the Reds had to retreat because of the threat of French intervention. Then, the army turned against Romania; however, even this operation was equally unsuccessful. Kun´s forces couldn´t stop the Romanian invasion, and Romanian troops successfully occupied Budapest. Subsequently, Hungary had to return even recaptured regions. In addition, when Hungarian nationalists and patriots realized that the only aim of the communist government was to spread their ideology through Europe at the expense of national interests, the Hungarian Red army (which consisted of 53 000 voluntary factory workers) was dissolved. In the following, Kun and his comrades fled the country (first to Vienna and then to Russia) and took gold stocks and many art treasures with themselves. This event caused distrust in and a dislike of the Soviet Union and Hungarian Jews (since many in the government were Jewish). The people of Hungary felt that the Soviet Union let them down ´cause they were not given military support.
During their short-lived governance, the Bolsheviks (“The Reds”) socialized many areas of life such as housing, transport, landholdings, cultural institution, etc., and also put under their own leadership many industrial and commercial businesses. They also guaranteed minority rights, free education, and the freedom of assembly and speech. On the other hand, they also practiced arbitrary violence to keep their position and ordered the execution of opponents of the revolution. These operations were executed by terror groups established by the communist party, the Red Guard, under the leadership of Mátyás Rákosi, and the so-called Lenin Boys (200 armed men). They also used “Red Terror” against peasants. Ironically, Kun became a victim of Stalin´s purge of foreign communists during the 1830s.
Counterrevolution and the Horthy era
Organized in Vienna, the new fighting force was the “Whites”; Conservative Royalists. Two of the most prominent personalities of the “Whites” were Miklós Horthy (former Austro-Hungarian admiral) and István Bethlen (an aristocrat from Transylvania). In November 1919; with Romanian consent; Miklós Horthy and his rightist forces marched into Budapest, and another era, the so-called Horthy era, began. The Hungarian Monarchy was restored; however, the election of a new king was postponed. Thus, the following year, in January 1920, Horthy had been declared a regent with wide-ranging powers (comprising amongst many, veto in legislation and the dissolution of the parliament) for the “new” Hungarian Kingdom. Nevertheless, the first years of the Horthy era were burdened by the putsch attempts of Charles IV.
In the same year, in July, Count Pál Teleki was appointed as prime minister. After proclaiming power, the supporters of the “Whites” accused the communists as traitors and began their “White terror” in the western part of Hungary by capturing, torturing, and executing communists and other leftists. Teleki´s government restored order by suppressing radical movements and imprisoning sympathizers of the Károlyi and Kun regimes. In addition, the government passed anti-semitic laws, limited the university admission of “politically insecure elements” by which they mainly meant Jews, and enforced land reforms (through which sizeable estates were divided into smaller units) to calm the dissatisfied rural populace. Furthermore, they claimed that the territorial losses were a liability of the Jews. While the government was devoted to the reinstallation of good international relations, the “White terror” (i.e. the killings of Jews and suspected communists) that spread outside of the capital could go on unnoticed. At the same time, the Romanian army began to leave the country. On their way, they plundered the areas they left behind and took agricultural products, machinery, and livestock with themselves.
The conservative politicians of the time were split into two groups; those who favored the election of a native Hungarian king; i.e. nationalist right-wing radicals; and those who supported the restoration of the Habsburgs to the throne. Taking advantage of this split, Count István Bethlen formed a Party of Unity and became appointed as a new prime minister. While excluding peasants from the Party of Unity, the Bethlen government rewarded radical counter-revolutionaries by offering them government jobs in exchange for ending the terror of leftists. Moreover, the government offered jobs to supporters, manipulated rural elections, and modified the electoral law. In “the Bethlen-Peyer Pact” which had been an agreement between the Bethlen government, Social Democrats, and trade unions, the government offered a release of political prisoners as long as they stopped the spread of anti-Hungarian propaganda, the organization of the peasantry, and strikes.
In the meantime, the development of the industry and the expanding bureaucracy ate up all money squeezed out of agriculture, and Hungary stayed undeveloped. In addition, the export opportunities of the country were worsened by trade barriers and hostile neighboring states. As a result, the living standard of workers diminished, while they also met harsh competition from peasants coming to the capital city for work. Consequently, the Bethlen government aimed to strengthen the economy of the country by building close relations with stronger nations. Hence, in 1922, Bethlen brought the country out of its isolation and into the League of Nations. In 1927, he also signed the treaty of friendship with Italy. Nonetheless, while Bethlen´s foreign policies improved the country´s economy, it was built on foreign credits and loans. High unemployment, low wages, and poverty; followed by the worldwide Great Depression (1929), led the country’s politics once again further to the right, and the popularity of fascist politicians rose.
In 1932, Gyula Gömbös became appointed as prime minister. Gömbös and his government began a magyarization of the remaining minorities in the country, and by signing a trade agreement, started closer cooperation with Germany. While this later helped to improve the Hungarian economy, it also led to an increased dependence on the German economy, not least for raw materials and markets. Later, the Gömbös government also was backed up by Italy on the revision of the Treaty of Trianon. Correspondingly, in 1938, the Gömbös government passed the First Jewish Law which established a quota system and thus limited the rights of Jews in the Hungarian economy. Later, in the same year, Béla Imrédy became the new prime minister. In his aspiration to strengthen the power of the Hungarian right-wing, Imrédy proposed the re-organization of the government along more totalitarian lines and began to suppress political rivals. In line with this, he drafted a Second Jewish Law which the Parliament approved in 1939. This law defined Jews by race (instead of religion) and restricted all Jewish involvement in the Hungarian economy, culture, and society. This new definition also significantly deteriorated even the status of those who had previously converted to Christianity. Although Imrédy sought the improvement of diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom, he could not afford to alienate Germany and Italy, and thus, his foreign policy was considerably pro-German and pro-Italian. In February 1939, Imrédy´s opponents proved by documents that his grandfather was a Jew and thus forced Imrédy from his duty. In the following Teleki returned as prime minister of Hungary.
The Treaty of Trianon (Trianoni békeszerződés) and its consequences
After WWI, the population of Hungary became ethnically homogenous, and when the ´Treaty of Trianon´ was signed, in June 1920, the borders were redrawn. Nonetheless, although fierce protests, the Horthy government refused to take military intervention and managed to maintain free elections. Through the Treaty of Trianon, Hungary lost five of its ten biggest cities and its seaports to Croatia. Additionally, the territorial losses also led, among other things, to the loss of credit and banking institutions as well as to the loss of a large part of the country´s infrastructure and raw material resources, thereby damaging the industrial base of Hungary. Furthermore, the Treaty also cost Hungary a big part of the country´s market for agricultural and industrial products. Altogether Hungary lost ~72% of its territory and about 65% of its population. Besides these losses, Hungary also had to pay for war reparation to the beneficiary states. However, since the treaty was not negotiated but instead was dictated by the Allies, the claim for amendment began, and henceforth the national politics of the country revolved around the restoration of Hungarian territories (Irredentism). While the 3.3 million Hungarian minority who was residing in the newly formed neighboring states, with hostile political units, were offended, the “Representatives of small nations living in the former Austria-Hungary and active in the Congress of Oppressed Nations regarded the treaty of Trianon for being an act of historical righteousness… they believed the treaty would help toward a new era of dependence on international law, the fraternity of nations, equal rights, and human liberty…” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Trianon) Nonetheless, the US did not ratify the treaty which resulted in a separate peace treaty between Hungary and the US which was signed on 29 August 1921.
The Horthy government was a rightist government with a “nationalist Christian” policy and values which praised faith, heroism, and unity. They turned against liberal and socialist ideologies and disapproved the French Revolution. Likewise, the Horthy government was against cosmopolitanism and Freemasonry. Charles IV (/ IV Károly) had started many putsch attempts against the Horthy government, and he was also the reason behind the reassignment of the Teleki government in 1921. Nonetheless, while the republican government in Austria already in 1919 banished by law the Habsburgs from Austrian territory until they accepted their status as private citizens, the Hungarian government did not make a similar decision until 1921. Nonetheless, after the deposition of the last king (Charles IV in 1919), the Habsburg Monarchy ended, and Hungary became a republic. Charles died soon after his second attempt to reclaim the throne in October 1921, and the Hungarian Kingdom remained without a king. His death made possible the revision of the Treaty, and hence, this aim dominated the foreign politics of Hungary (not least during the Bethlen government) in the upcoming period. However, the Habsburgs did not give up hope until 31 May 1961, when Otto von Habsburg officially abandoned all claims.
During the Horthy era, the Teleki government took steps to build closer relations with both Italy and Germany. However, it is a misconception that Count Teleki would also be responsible for the Holocaust since the conference at which it was decided to exterminate Jews was held after the prime minister’s death. Moreover, the deportations did not begin before April 1944. Instead, a closer relationship with Germany and Italy was further strengthened during the Gömbös government. Hence, during the Second World War, this government got awarded, and Hungary regained some of its earlier lost territories. Nevertheless, the trade treaty on selling wheat to Germany bound Hungary to spend this income on German industrial goods and also to take a side with the Axis powers in the Second World War; which in turn, resulted in a communist takeover of the country. Moreover, Hitler´s assistance in regaining some territories had a high price, making the Jewish population scapegoats for economic troubles.
While Adolf Hitler represented a clear opposition to Habsburg rules on maintaining ethnic, religious, and language practices of local communities in the interwar period, the Habsburgs were a vigorous opponent of Communism and National Socialism. Hitler hated the Habsburg family and thus, elevated with the help of Nazi movements and the Gestapo the already strong resistance in Central Europe against the Habsburgs. Otto von Habsburg, on the other hand, openly campaigned against the Nazis. Moreover, the fall of the Communist Eastern block and the fall of the Iron Curtain were also strongly influenced by the Habsburg family.
[1] The Aster Revolution was about protests against Austria and for the independence of Hungary
[2] The Romanian government signed in May 1918 the Treaty of Bucharest, but it was denounced already in October.
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Written by Gertrúd Windberg 2023, Sundbyberg
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