Speaking of Hungary's socialist road, the Hungarian Soviet Republic was established as early as 1919 after the Hungarian Autumn Rose Revolution, but half a year later the regime ended and Hungary entered the period of fascist dictatorship. It was not until the liberation of Hungary by the Red Army in 1945 that Hungary once again returned to the new road of socialism, and this was the period of the Hungarian People's Republic!
Hungary under soviet influence
When it comes to Hungary's socialist road, people often have preconceived notions, just as hungary was "dragged down" by the Soviet Union at that time, in fact, the Hungarian state recovered its vitality and developed during the period of its socialist road, and it can be said that the Hungarian People's Republic is also an important part of Hungary's history
So how was the Hungarian People's Republic created? What did the Hungarian state develop during this period? In the end, how could Hungary oppose the Soviet Union and eventually become independent?
With these questions in mind, let's take a look at the trajectory of the Hungarian People's Republic and talk about Hungary from 1944 to 1989
Out of World War II
In the last issue we talked about the fascist dictatorship of Horthy in Hungary (see Iron-fisted politician or traitor for details?). The two-faced life of the dictator Horti – A Brief History of Hungary 29), during which time Hungary was tied to the chariot of Nazi Germany and became a member of the Fascist Axis
Horty
Later, for the sake of the country, Horti sought an armistice with the Allies and the Soviet Union, and tried to get rid of the control of Nazi Germany, but was eventually discovered by Hitler and imprisoned by Horti
Horti and Hitler
After hearing the victory of the Soviet Union on the eastern front, it continued to march westward, liberating most of the countries and regions in Central Europe, so that the Soviet army entered and controlled a large area of Central Europe
Hungary was no exception: Nazi Germany imprisoned Horthy and occupied Hungary in 1944, and by April 1945 the Red Army had liberated all of Hungary with the cooperation of the Hungarian people
The Provisional Hungarian National Government was established at the end of 1944, and after the Soviets liberated Hungary, they together announced the abolition of the imperial system in February 1946 and officially established the Hungarian Republic (i.e. the Second Hungarian Republic).
Thus between December 1944 and February 1946, Hungary was in what was known as the "Period of Soviet Occupation". From 1946 to August 1949, Hungary was the period of the Second Hungarian Republic
From the establishment of the Second Hungarian Republic, hungary's feudal monarchy came to an end, and neither the Hungarian People's Republic nor the Hungarian Third Republic (today's Hungary) returned to the monarchy
At the same time, the establishment of the Second Hungarian Republic also marked the complete end of the two world wars and the Hungarian nation and entered a period of post-war recovery (of course, the post-war Cold War, that has to be counted as another [treacherous laugh])
cold war
But Hungary's ups and downs did not end with the establishment of the Second Hungarian Republic, because the Hungarian people would have to have a love-hate relationship with the Soviet Union in the future...
Hungarian People's Republic
During the Second Hungarian Republic (1946-1949), Hungary's broken state apparatus was "re-consolidated", and Hungary, after the completion of the reorganization, also put a new state and a new order on the agenda:
In June 1948, the Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party of the Republic of Hungary were formally merged into the Hungarian Working People's Party, which had more than 1 million members at that time, which can be described as the largest party in Hungary
And the chairman of the merged Hungarian Workers' Party also took over as president, and the party also has 2 deputy prime ministers and 7 ministers in the cabinet, which can be described as powerful
Thus the Hungarian Working People's Party strengthened its leading position in the political life and organs of power of the country, and the Government implemented the programme proposed by the party and endorsed by other parties. Of course, the Soviet Union's political influence on Hungary was still very large
In January 1949, when the world situation changed drastically, the Republic of Hungary announced its membership in the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (i.e., the Economic Mutual Council); by May 1955, Hungary had joined the Warsaw Pact (i.e., the Warsaw Pact), by which time Hungary had completely completed its "letter of surrender" for joining the Soviet bloc.
NATO vs Warsaw Pact
Finally, on August 20, 1949, the Hungarian National Assembly adopted the Constitution, officially declaring Hungary a country of workers and working people, and all power belongs to the working people, thus officially establishing the Hungarian People's Republic!
(Note in particular: the Hungarian People's Republic and the Second Hungarian Republic, although different in name, have a direct inheritance relationship, and the former is reorganized on the basis of the latter.
The newly established Hungarian People's Republic established a new flag and coat of arms, as well as the National Day (August 20, 1949), and a new national anthem, "God Bless the Hungarians", as if everything in the Hungarian state was full of new life
Coat of arms of Hungary, 1949-1956
A more direct manifestation of this vitality and dynamism is economic: as early as 1947 Hungary began the first "Three-Year Plan" (i.e. 1947-1949) to restore the national economy.
Coat of arms of Hungary 1957-1990
By the time Hungary's "Three-Year Plan" was completed seven months ahead of schedule in 1949, industrial production in the newly formed Hungarian People's Republic had increased by 28% compared to before the war! Agricultural production has returned to pre-war levels, and the people's lives have improved for a long time.
At the same time, the new Hungarian state also carried out agrarian reform, nationalization campaigns, parliamentary elections, the promulgation of the first constitution, and the gradual consolidation of the entire socialist state.
After 1949, that is, during the administration of Rákosi Matthisz from 1949 to 1956, the development of Hungary's political and economic system slowly entered the wrong path, and finally had a serious impact on the political and economic life of the entire country.
Rákosi Matthias
From the socialist transformation of the ownership of the means of production in Hungary in 1949 to the Hungarian-Hungarian incident in 1956, Hungary politically deviated from Lenin's "socialist democratic principles, engaged in "power" politics, and expanded the class struggle, undermining socialist democracy and the legal system.
Hungarian flag 1949-1956
Moreover, Hungary is also economically divorced from its own specific conditions, blindly copying the experience of the Soviet Union, adopting the wrong policy of high accumulation, high targets, high investment, prioritizing the development of heavy industry, and a highly centralized economic management method. In the end, there was a huge loss
Finally, in 1956, the famous "Hungarian Incident" broke out in Hungary, the Hungarian October Incident. The end result was the appointment of Najib Imre as the new Prime Minister.
Events in Hungary
But when Najib Imre became the new prime minister, he declared the incident a counter-revolutionary and announced that the Soviets would withdraw from Budapest, disband the National Security Service, and form a new government.
Najib Imre
Najib Imre then announced the abolition of one-party rule and formed a so-called four-party coalition government. And a month later announced Hungary's withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact, a policy of neutrality and called for the United Nations to intervene (obviously Najib Imre was lame by the European and American countries)
Subsequently, the six-member Presidium of the Central Committee of the Hungarian Working People's Party, chaired by Kadar Janosz, announced on 31 October 1956 the dissolution of the Hungarian Working People's Party and the re-establishment of the new Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party.
Kadar Janosh
On 4 November 1956, the Hungarian Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Government, with Kadar Janosh as Prime Minister, was proclaimed. The government announced a request to the Soviet Union for the help of Red Army forces in restoring internal order. The Soviets re-entered Budapest.
The new Hungarian Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Government, with Kadar Janosz as Prime Minister, began the period of Kádár's administration and hungary's reforms of 1956-1967
In 1968-1987 Hungary once again entered a new round of reform, and in general both periods of reform developed well, for example, in 1985, Hungary's industry and construction industry accounted for 58% of national income, and agriculture accounted for only 18% of national income (you should know that pre-war Hungary was still an absolute agricultural country).
Hungarian flag 1957-1990
Between 1950 and 1985, the national income of Hungary as a whole increased by 4 times! Industrial output value has increased by 8.3 times! Even agricultural output increased by 1.2 times.
At the same time, Hungary's per capita real income increased by 2.6 times, and the increase in per capita real consumption also increased by 2.4 times. By 1985, Hungary's per capita grain production and meat production were ranked 2nd in Europe and 1st among the countries of the ESR.
All this shows the good momentum of Development in Hungary at that time, but just when Hungary was developing in the middle of the day, sudden events changed the fate of Hungarians
In october 1989, the Hungarian People's Republic also adopted a constitutional amendment in October 1989, which made major principled changes to the Constitution, decided to abolish the Presidium of the Republic as the collective head of state, and to introduce a presidential system, establishing a multi-party parliamentary democracy and a market economy
Upheavals in Eastern Europe
The principle of separation of powers was embodied in state institutions, and the previous provisions on the leading role of Marxist-Leninist parties in state institutions were abolished. So on October 23, 1989, the Hungarian People's Republic was finally transformed into the Hungarian (Third) Republic, which is today's Hungarian state, and a new chapter in the history of Hungary was opened...
So how was the Hungarian state created and developed today? How did the Hungarians get rid of the Soviets? What happened in Hungary in October?
Stay tuned for this series, and stay tuned for the next issue!