The Prelude

The Prelude
1948 - 1953
The post war legacy
Soviet occupation troops remain in Hungary with nominal agreement by the
Hungarian government despite the 1957 Peace Treaty requiring their withdrawal
A Stalinist style communist dictatorship led by Mátyás Rákosi, 1st secretary of the
Hungarian Workers Party (HWP), replaces the fledgling 1946 multi-party government
Any opposition including members of the HWP is rigorously oppressed
Communists such as László Rajk are tried and executed
Emphasis is placed on transforming Hungary into a heavy industrial state with dire
consequences for the population
There are deplorable living conditions, lack of food and goods, inadequate housing
and low wages
Agricultural production was stifled by collectivization
Students were dissatisfied by academic conditions and entrance requirements
March 1953
The Stalin period comes to a close
On Mar 4 1953 Joseph Stalin dies
This Initiates a process of change in Soviet policy
Khrushchev begins a process of “de-Stalinization”
May 1953
Imre Nagy is appointed Prime Minister
This is secretly initiated by Moscow as part of the
de-Stalinization which they believe should extend
to the Soviet sphere of influence
The change is primarily intended to forestall the
incipient crises as a result of the economic chaos
which has brought Hungary to the point of
economic collapse
Although he is required to support the new Prime
Minister by orders from Moscow, Mátyás Rákosi is
strongly opposed to the change
Rákosi, who still has control of the Party, begins
the process of undermining Nagy
Imre Nagy’s new government
1-1
The Prelude
July 1953
Nagy embarks on the “New Course”
Change in economic priorities
Less emphasis on heavy industry
Reversal of forced agricultural collectivisation
Partial amnesty for political prisoners
Reduction of State Security Office (ÁVH) power
End to internment and internal exile processes
Imre Nagy proclaims his
government’s programme in
parliament
December 1954
Nagy programme destined for failure
There is no way to obtain quick results
Rákosi continues his behind the scenes interference with Nagy policies
The Nagy government is viewed with growing disfavour in Moscow
By late 1954 his ouster has been initiated
March 1955
Nagy resigns
On recommendation by Rákosi, András Hegedüs is appointed Prime Minister
Nagy is removed from the Political Committee and Central Committee
May 1955
The Warsaw Pact is created
Signed by Hegedüs
Provides the rationale for Soviet troops stationed in Hungary that were to withdraw
according to the 1947 Peace Treaty
February 1956
20th Congress of the Communist Party of the
Soviet Union
Formalizes the process of de-Stalinization
Pressure on Hungarian Party and Rákosi to investigate
illegalities of the Stalin era
March 1955 to October 1956
Formation of the Petöfi Circles
Founded in March 1953 as an adjunct to the Union of
Working Youth
Enjoys increasing support in its activities in opposition to
the Rákosi system
Holds large press debate on June 27, 1956
Crowds gather in Courtyard to
follow Petöfi Circle Press Debate
1-2
The Prelude
June 28, 1956
Poznan Worker’s uprising in Poland
1000 workers demonstrate for improved working conditions and free elections
Security forces use arms to break up the crowds
Results in >100 deaths, hundreds of injuries and arrests
July 21, 1956
Rákosi steps back
Due to mounting pressure Mátyás Rákosi resigns as first secretary of the Hungarian
Worker’s Party
Ernö Gerö is appointed as his replacement
October 6, 1956
László Rajk reburied
László Rajk, György Pálffy, Tibor Szõnyi and
András Szalai; victims of the Stalinist show trials of
1948, are reburied at Budapest’s Kerepesi út
cemetery
After the funeral, student demonstrations take place
Imre Nagy at the Rajk reburial
1-3
From Demonstration to Armed Uprising
October 20-22, 1956
Poland sets the signals
Gomulka is elected as 1st Secretary of Polish United Worker’s Party
He openly criticizes the mistakes made in the past
Hungarian students initiate demonstrations in solidarity with Poland
October 22, 1956
Students draft list of 16 demands
Students of Budapest University meet on the night of October 22.
They draft a list of 16 demands for the government
October 23rd, 1956
Student Demonstrations
In the afternoon, large crowds of students
demonstrate at Bem Square and Petöfi
Square
The list of 16 demands is read out
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
We demand the immediate evacuation of
all Soviet troops, in conformity with the
provision of the Treaty of Peace.
We demand the election by secret ballot
of all Party members from top to bottom,
and of new officers for the lower, middle
and upper echelons of the Hungarian
Workers Party. These officers shall
convoke a Party Congress as early as
possible in order to elect a Central
Demonstrators on the way to Bem Square
Committee.
A new Government must be constituted
under the direction of Comrade Imre Nagy: all the criminal leaders of the Stalin-Rákosi
era must be immediately relieved of their duties.
We demand a public enquiry into the criminal activities of Mihály Farkas and his
accomplices. Mátyás Rákosi, who is the person most responsible for all crimes of the
recent past as well as for the ruin of our country, must be brought back to Hungary for
trial before a people’s tribunal.
We demand that general elections, by
universal, secret ballot, be held throughout
the country to elect a new National Assembly,
with all political parties participating. We
demand that the right of workers to strike be
recognised.
We demand revision and re-adjustment of
Hungarian-Soviet and Hungarian-Yugoslav
relations in the fields of politics, economics
and cultural affairs, on a basis of complete
political and economic equality , and of noninterference in the internal affairs of one by
the other.
We demand the complete reorganisation of
Hungary’s economic life under the direction
Students gather at Bem Square
of specialists. The entire economic system,
2-1
From Demonstration to Armed Uprising
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
based on a system of planning, must be re-examined in the light of conditions in Hungary
and in the vital interest of the Hungarian people.
Our foreign trade agreements and the exact total of reparations that can never be paid
must be made public. We demand precise and exact information on the uranium deposits
in our country, on their exploitation and on the concessions accorded the Russians in this
area. We demand that Hungary have the right to sell her uranium freely at world market
prices to obtain hard currency.
We demand complete revision of the norms operating in industry and an immediate and
radical adjustment of salaries in accordance with the just requirements of workers and
intellectuals. We demand that a minimum living wage be fixed for workers.
We demand that the system of distribution be organised on a new basis and that
agricultural products be utilised in rational manner. We demand equality of treatment for
individual farms.
We demand reviews by independent tribunals of all political and economic trials as well
as the release and rehabilitation of the innocent. We demand the immediate repatriation
of prisoners of war (WW2) and of civilian deportees to the Soviet Union, including
prisoners sentenced outside Hungary.
We demand complete recognition of freedom of opinion and of expression, of freedom of
the press and of radio, as well as the creation of a daily newspaper for the MEFESZ
Organisation (Hungarian Federation of University and College Students’ Associations).
We demand that the statue of Stalin, symbol of Stalinist tyranny and political oppression,
be removed as quickly as possible and be replaced by a monument in memory of the
martyred fighters for freedom of 1848-49.
We demand the replacement of emblems that are foreign to
the Hungarian people by the old Hungarian arms of Kossuth.
We demand for the Hungarian Army, new uniforms
conforming to our national traditions. We demand that 15th of
March be declared a national holiday and that the 6th of
October be a day of national mourning on which schools will
be closed.
The students of the Technological University of Budapest
declare unanimously their solidarity with the workers and
students of Warsaw and Poland in their movement towards
national independence.
The students of the Technological University of Budapest will
organise as rapidly as possible local branches of MEFESZ,
and they have decided to convoke at Budapest, on Saturday October 27, a Youth
Parliament at which all the nation’s youth will be represented by their delegates.
The symbol of the revolution, the Hungarian flag with the crest of the Rákosi era cut
out, is born
Demonstration in front of Parliament
Many of the demonstrators make their way to Kossuth
Square in front of the Hungarian Parliament
The crowd refuses to disburse despite lights being
turned out
At 9:00 PM Imre Nagy makes a disappointing speech to
the crowd
He is ineffective at convincing the crowd to end their
demonstration
Crowds in Kossuth Square
2-2
From Demonstration to Armed Uprising
Violence erupts at the Magyar Radio building
An increasing number of demonstrators from the afternoon marches and the crowd
from the Parliament gather in front of the Magyar Radio building in an effort to get the
list of 16 demands broadcast
The building is protected by armed ÁVH
and police
Weapons destined for the defenders of
the building find their way into the hands
demonstrators
A speech by party 1st Secretary Ger
broadcast from the building enrages the
crowd
An armed conflict ensues. Who fired the
first shots has never been clarified
The building is besieged and finally
captured by the demonstrators in early
morning
Violence in front of the Radio building
Stalin is toppled
At the same time violence breaks out at the Radio building, other demonstrators
gather at the giant Stalin statue at Dózsa György Street
Consistent with one of the 16 demands, the statue is torn down
It is dragged to a location in front of the National Theatre where it is broken to pieces
2-3
The Struggle Escalates
October 24th, 1956
The morning after
Remnants of the Stalin Statue
The Radio Building after the
overnight siege
The Soviets intervene
The decision to deploy Russian troops to quell the
uprising has been made in Moscow on the previous
night
A curfew is imposed and all assemblies are banned
In the early morning hours Soviet tanks roll into
Budapest
The fighting intensifies as the troops appear
The tanks have been sent in without infantry support in
expectation of little resistance
With no infantry support the Soviets sustain heavy
losses
Despite many deaths on the rebel side, the major accomplishment of the day is
keeping the uprising and the promise of victory alive
Nagy is nominated Prime Minister
In an effort to placate the unrest, Imre Nagy, is nominated as Prime Minister
His new government is not inaugurated for another three days
At noon he makes a speech, announcing the lifting the curfew and radical new
reforms
The fighting escalates
ÁVH fires on demonstrators in Roosevelt Square
Rebels seize large quantities of arms from Bem Square barracks
October 25th, 1956
Tanks fire on crowd in front of the
Parliament
The curfew is lifted and crowds pour into the
streets
It is obvious the Soviets are not assisting the
Hungarian military, instead many of the military
are fighting on the side of the rebels
Revolutionaries on a Hungarian tank
3-4
The Struggle Escalates
A jubilant crowd including a Hungarian tank
draped with the Hungarian flag proceeds to the
Kossuth Square in front of Parliament
Soviet tanks are ordered to fire
In the confusion Hungarian military assigned to
guard Parliament become embroiled in the battle
with the soviets
A massacre results in which more than 100 lives
are lost and more that 300 are injured
Ger is dismissed
Soviet delegates initiate his removal as party 1st
Secretary
János Kádár assumes party leadership
Crowd fleeing from Soviet tank fire in
front of the Parliament
October 26th, 1956
Uprising spreads
Demonstrations begin in Kecskemét claims three lives. MIG fighter planes fire shots
on the Gypsy quarter.
There are demonstrations in Békéscsaba, Eger, Esztergom, Gyöngyös, Gyõr, Gyula,
Kaposvár, Komárom, Komló, Miskolc, Mohács, Nyíregyháza, Oroszlány, Pápa,
Siófok, Sopron, Szeged, Székesfehérvár, Szekszárd, Szentes, Szigetvár, Szolnok,
Tatabánya and Veszprém.
Border guards at Mosonmagyaróvár fire on demonstrators, killing 52 and wounding
86.
Soldiers fire on demonstrators from a tunnel just below the basilica in Esztergom,
causing 15 deaths and at least 50 injuries.
At Zalaegerszeg, police and party functionaries fire on the crowd, 2 died.
There are fatalities and injuries in Nagykanizsa when volleys are fired from the party
headquarters
Miskolc
Demonstrators gather at the police station to demand
the release of students arrested on the previous day
Police and ÁVH open fire on the crowd
Prompted by the blood shed local miners and workers
storm the building massacring those they assumed
were responsible for the deaths
Demonstration in Miskolc
3-5
The Promise of Victory
October 28th, 1956
New Government is sworn in
Imre Nagy and his new cabinet are sworn in
There is still much derision and suspicion as to the
members
At 2:00 PM Nagy makes a radio address, announcing:
Soviet troops are to be withdrawn
The ÁVH is to be dissolved
The flag is to receive the Kossuth coat of arms
There will be an amnesty
He orders a ceasefire
Prime Minister Nagy makes a
radio address
October 29th, 1956
Former Communist leaders flee to Moscow
The former communist leaders including Ern Ger and
András Hegedüs flee overnight to Moscow aboard
Soviet planes
Heavy fighting against Soviet troops continues
Revolutionaries assume ceasefire does not apply to
Soviets
Battles continue in the 8th and 9th districts
Mass uncertainty prevails
In Ózd rumours circulate that disbanded ÁVH are firing at
rebels
In a frenzy, a crowd lynches three people
Fighting near the Kilían Barracks
October 30th, 1956
Mob violence
Fighting breaks out at the
Hungarian Workers Party
Headquarters
Defenders indiscriminately fire
at the rebels including medical
staff
A number of the defenders are
An ÁVH Officer is executed
after the siege on the HWP
Headquarters
lynched after the crowd storms
the building
Flags drape a fallen
revolutionary
HWP Headquarters
1956.10.30
4-1
The Promise of Victory
One Party System ended
Imre Nagy announces the
abolishment of the one party
system
A coalition cabinet is formed
to govern the country
Coalition parties include:
Independent Smallholders,
Social Democrats, and
National Peasants Parties
Funeral for victims
October 31st, 1956
Soviet forces withdraw
The withdrawal of Soviet troops in Budapest is complete by
noon
This is a regrouping since existing efforts to quell the
rebellion have been unsuccessful
Further troops enter Hungary at night
Cardinal Mindszenty is released
The Cardinal is freed from house arrest and accompanied to
Budapest
Kádár flees to Moscow
János Kádár and Ferenc Münnich negotiate with the Soviet
ambassador and agree to leave for Moscow
During a radio broadcast where Kádár affirms his support for
the uprising he is already on the way to Moscow
Cardinal Mindszenty
November 1st, 1956
Hungary withdraws from Warsaw Pact
Nagy announces Hungary’s withdrawal
Hungary declares its neutrality in hope of securing diplomatic protection from the
west
This is seen by some historians as the factor which convinced Khrushchev to support
the subsequent invasion
Where is western support?
The Suez crisis has come to a head on the previous day with Britain and France
launching attacks
The western powers and UN are pre-occupied
The US has concerns regarding Hungarian neutrality and fears an unpredictable
response from Khrushchev if they intervene
4-2
The Promise of Victory
November 2nd, 1956
Soviets plan assault
Ferihegy Airport is surrounded by Soviet troops
Troops begin to surround the capital
Soviet forces establish their headquarters at Szolnok
November 3rd, 1956
Hungarian – Soviet negotiations
Negotiations on Soviet troop withdrawal are
initiated
At 10:00 PM the Soviets arrest the Hungarian
Military Delegation led by Pal Maléter
Counter Government established
In Moscow the counter government headed by
János Kádár and Ferenc Münnich is formed
Hungarian Military Delegation led by
Pal Maléter (right)
4-3
All Hopes are Crushed
November 4th, 1956
The Soviet Assault
Begins
At 4:00 AM the Soviet
attack starts
The puppet government
under Kádár does not
issue it’s “call for help” to
the Soviets until one hour
later
Budapest is attacked by 5
Soviet divisions
Soviet tanks in Budapest
The Soviets occupy the Defence and Interior
ministries
Parliament is surrounded
The Kádár led Hungarian Revolutionary
Worker’s and Peasants Party takes over
Imre Nagy and members of his government
take refuge in the Yugoslav Embassy
János Kádár and Ferenc Münnich return from
Moscow
Parliament surrounded
The Soviets meet fierce resistance
The national guard fights the Soviets at Széna Square, Blaha Lujza Square and
many other locations in the city
A heavy battle ensues with the Corvin köz group on Ülli Street
Both sides suffer sever casualties
November 5th, 6th
The Battle continues but the
resistance is slowly overwhelmed
The Soviets take possession of the
Magyar Radio building
The battle on Ülli Street continues
The National Guards at Széna Square are
defeated
Retreating guards gather in the Mecsek
Hills near Pécs
Hungarian defenders are vastly
outnumbered and have no hope for
victory
Ülli Street after the battle
5-1
All Hopes are Crushed
November 7th – 16th
The Soviet supported government tries to appease
the populace
Kádár takes the oath of office on November 7th
The Hungarian
Revolutionary Worker’s
and Peasant’s Party is
declared the highest
body of state
administration
The Kossuth coat of arms
is legalized
A pay increase of up to
15% is declared
The remains of the National Archive
Grand Boulevard
The Mecsek rebels fight on
Soviet forces continue their attack
The rebels consolidate at Kisújbánya on November 11th but are attacked again on
the 12th
The rebels break through the Soviet encirclement and escape westward on
November 16th
November 17th – 30th
Imre Nagy and his group are betrayed
Kádár secretly agrees with the Soviets to have
Nagy deported to Romania
Kádár calls upon the Yugoslav embassy to hand
Nagy over to the new government
The Yugoslav government insists on maintaining
the guarantee given to Nagy, but agrees to let
The Yugoslav Embassy
them depart for Romania
Against their objections, Nagy and his associates
leave the embassy having received assurances of safe conduct
They are taken to KGB headquarters and flown to Romania the next day
5-2
All Hopes are Crushed
November 7th – December 30th, 1956
Sporadic strikes and demonstrations continue
Worker’s councils formed in
industrial areas during the
revolution continue the political
struggle
Their most effective non-military
weapon is: strike action
Worker’s council wielded
significant influence in local
administration
In late November special forces
are created by the Kádár
government to reassert control on
the street
Hsök Square after women’s’ demonstration on Dec 4th
In early December protests were
organized to protest the actions of
these troops
On December 4th a demonstration of women at Hsök Square is stopped by Soviet
troops and special forces
Armed encounters with special forces continued in many cities including Miskolc,
Békescsaba and Györ
On December 9th all worker’s councils are outlawed
After a 48 strike in protest, on December 11th and 12th, the government announced
drastic new penalties and invoked Summary Justice laws
5-3
The Aftermath
November 1956 - 1958
Reprisals
On November 30th the Soviets call upon Kádár to begin
reprisals immediately. A number of individuals are singled
out
Summary justice with immediate prosecution for certain
previously determined acts such as weapons possession
is imposed
The sentences were extremely severe, often the death
penalty, and were implemented immediately
Interment camps are reopened
The first execution related to the uprising was carried out
on December 15th, 1956
On January 12th, 1957 accelerated trials were initiated
In total, over the subsequent years, more than 230 death
sentences and several thousand imprisonments related to
the events of 1956 were imposed
Reprisals continued until a 1963 amnesty
Ilona Tóth, medical student,
executed June 28th 1957
The fate of Imre Nagy and his associates
On February 27th, 1957 a Foreign Ministry
spokesman tells Western journalists that the
government does not intend to put Imre Nagy
on trial
On April 5th 1957, Kádár requests the
Yugoslav government formally revoke the
‘right of asylum’ accorded to Imre Nagy and
his associates
The Imre Nagy group who have been
The Nagy group at their trial on June 15th
arrested are brought back to Budapest from
Romania on April 15th, 1957
István Bibó and Zoltán Tildy, both members of the Nagy government, are also
arrested
A secret trial of Imre Nagy and his associates begins February 5–6th, 1958
On June 9–15th, 1958 The Council of the People’s Tribunal of the Supreme Court,
chaired by Ferenc Vida, concludes the secret trial of Imre Nagy and associates.
Nagy, Miklós Gimes and Pál Maléter are sentenced to death
On June 16th, Nagy, Gimes and Maléter, along
with the Újpest national-guard member Péter
Gábor, are executed at the Budapest National
Prison
The bodies are unceremoniously buried in an
unknown location
The verdicts are publicized on June 17th
In 1988 an emblematic funeral is held and a
tomb erected for Imre Nagy in cemetery Pere
Judith Gyenes, wife of Pál Maléter at the
Lachaise in Paris
catafalque of her husband at Hsök square
6-1
The Aftermath
On June 16th, 1989, Imre Nagy, Miklós
Gimes, Pál Maléter, Géza Losonczy and
József Szilágy are honoured in a funeral
ceremony in Hsök Square attended by
tens of thousands
On 6 July 1989 the Hungarian Supreme
Court acquits Imre Nagy of the charges of
high treason for which he had been
executed
Janos Kádár dies in hospital on the same
day.
Refugees
The number of Hungarians crossing the border
into Austria during the first days of fighting were
almost negligible
On the November 4th, the day of the Soviet
invasion, more than 5000 refugees had crossed
into Austria by noon
Until the close of the border in early 1957, more
than 180,000 Hungarians would flee their
homeland via this route
This mass influx of refugees severely tested the
limits of Austria’s new found freedom from
Soviet occupation and neutrality
International refugee organizations were hard
pressed to deal with the situation
Canada agreed to accept almost 20% of the
total refugees
More than 37,000 Hungarians fleeing the
events of 1956 made Canada their new home
Refugees crossing into Austria
Hungarian refugees arrive in Canada
A new life
6-2