From World Wars to Communism

The final disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy came at the end of the First World War, from which Hungary, as a member of the Axis powers, emerged as a defeated nation. The former empire was divided into a large number of successor states, and – under the terms of the peace treaty signed in 1920 – more than two-thirds of the territory formerly belonging to the Kingdom of Hungary, home to nearly one-third of the region’s Hungarian-speaking population, was annexed to adjacent countries.

Even today, the limited parliamentary system by which Hungary was governed between the wars is the subject of lively debate. The interwar period or Horthy era (named for regent Miklós Horthy) came to an end during the years of the Second World War – following the occupation of Hungary by the Germans – with the rise to power of the Germanophile Arrow Cross Party. The years to follow were an unmitigated tragedy for both Hungarian society and its Jewish population. During the Holocaust of 1944, more than half a million people were hauled off to German concentration camps, where most died an agonizing death. In the meantime, Hungary itself became a battlefield, a circumstance that claimed a further half-million lives. The most destructive single battle was the siege of the Hungarian capital of Budapest. Near the end of the war, Hungary was occupied by the Soviet Union.

Hungarian regent Miklós Horthy rides triumphantly into Budapest on November 16, 1919 Photo credit: Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library – Budapest Collection
Hungarian regent Miklós Horthy rides triumphantly into Budapest on November 16, 1919 Photo credit: Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library – Budapest Collection

After just a few years of vigorous reconstruction and multiparty parliamentary democracy, the Communist Party, with the support of the Soviet Union, used election fraud to take power of the country. Within just a few years, Hungary was forced to suffer governance by yet another totalitarian dictatorship.

Wartime ruins in Budapest – The Chain Bridge destroyed by German troops in 1945 Photo credit: Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library – Budapest Collection
Wartime ruins in Budapest – The Chain Bridge destroyed by German troops in 1945 Photo credit: Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library – Budapest Collection

In 1956, Hungarians rose up against the Stalinist system in a revolution and freedom fight that is regarded as one of the most extraordinary in the history of the 20th century. It was the first time in modern history that a population had revolted against a totalitarian dictatorship and world power. Suppressed by the Soviet army, the revolution was followed by a period of bloody retribution, during which the single-party Communist regime was restored. The system was to fall only with the disintegration of the entire Soviet bloc in 1989.

Key Events in Hungary Leading to its Democratic Transition

In 1990, the first democratic, multi-party elections were held, and for the first time in a very long time, Hungary became a free and independent state again, a truly democratic European republic. In 1999, Hungary joined NATO, and in 2004, it acceded to the European Union.

What happened in the world, in Europe, in the countries of the Soviet bloc, and in Hungary in 1989-90? When did the process that led to the collapse of the Soviet bloc and the termination of the bipolar world begin? Here is a list of the key events of the final phase in Hungary:

  • September 27, 1987
    At a meeting of about 180 intellectuals critical of the Kádár regime, including a top-level party leader, Imre Pozsgay, political pluralism is demanded, and the Hungarian Democratic Forum is founded.
  • March 15, 1988
    In Budapest, at a demonstration with about 10,000 participants, free elections, civil liberties, and the resignation of party leader János Kádár are demanded.
  • May 22, 1988
    János Kádár is replaced by Károly Grósz as General Secretary of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party.
  • November 11, 1988
    End of the single party system, reactivation of the Independent Smallholders’ Party ’suspended’ in 1949.
  • November 13, 1988 Foundation of the liberal party: Alliance of Free Democrats (SzDSz).
  • November 24, 1988
    The parliament elects Miklós Németh, a 40-year-old economist, as Prime Minister.
  • January 28, 1989
    Imre Pozsgay, a member of the Politburo, publicly calls the 1956 revolution a popular uprising instead of a counter-revolution, as it was officially termed up to then.
  • June 16, 1989
    Reburial of Imre Nagy, Prime Minister of the 1956 revolution executed on June 16, 1958. One of the speakers, Viktor Orbán, a representative of the League of Young Democrats (FIDESZ), demands free elections and the withdrawal of Soviet troops.
  • September 11, 1989
    The government opens up Hungary’s western borders for East German refugees.
  • October 7, 1989
    The Congress of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party decides to dissolve the party and found a new party, the Hungarian Socialist Party.
  • October 23, 1989
    Mátyás Szűrös, President of the Hungarian Republic, announces the decision to abandon all references to the People’s Republic and instead to refer to the Republic of Hungary, i.e. to a democratic state governed by the rule of law.
Hungarian Prime Minister József Antall at the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) party’s headquarters in 1990 Photo credit: Fortepan / Zoltán Szalay
Hungarian Prime Minister József Antall at the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) party’s headquarters in 1990 Photo credit: Fortepan / Zoltán Szalay

March 25, April 8, 1990
The first free elections after 40 years are held. Results:

Political Group

Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF)
Alliance of Free Democrats (SzDSz)
Independent Smallholders’ Party (FKgP)
Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP)
League of Young Democrats (FIDESZ)
Christian Democratic Peoples’ Party (KDNP)

(http://archive.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/2141_90.htm)

Votes %
1,214,359 24.73
1,050,799 21.39
576,315 11.73
535,064 10.89
439,649 8.95
317,278 6.46

May 23, 1990
A conservative coalition (MDF, FKgP, KDNP) led by the head of the Hungarian Democratic Forum, József Antall, forms a new government.

Among the driving forces and agents of these events were the following factors:

The U.S. winning the Cold War led to the fundamental rearrangement of the international political and economic environment. Yet, the U.S. – and the West in general – did not favor the dismantling of the Soviet Union and the Soviet bloc. However, Gorbachev’s perestroika strengthened national demands for independence. Moreover, the structural economic and political failures and deficiencies of the communist system, combined with the activities of reform-minded party leaders and various political opposition groups, led to the ’implosion’ of the Soviet bloc.

As to the process in Hungary, its description as a ’negotiated revolution’ seems to be appropriate. The bargaining partners included top-level leaders of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party and three groups of dissenters: the populist-nationalist group of literati, the ’democratic opposition’ of essentially Budapest-based urban, liberal academic intellectuals, and the Marxist, later post-Marxist reform-socialist intellectuals.

The questions concerning the consequences remain undecided: to what extent did 1989-90 open up the way for a global victory of democracy, and how did the events of these years cause the accelerated rise of an aggressive and socially irresponsible global capitalism?

Authors

  • From World Wars to Communism
    Hungarian Heritage: Roots to Revival - Balassi Institute; http://folklife.hu/
  • Key Events in Hungary Leading to its Democratic Transition
    Attila Pók

Other Resources

Hungarian American Coalition
Bethlen Gábor Alap