Today is a national holiday in Hungary, a day to remember the Revolution of 1956, the huge loss of life and the subsequent arrests and executions of many of the leaders of this popular uprising against Soviet domination after World War II. So, it seems appropriate to begin the story of our journey to Hungary this morning, on this special day. By now it's 4:30 in the afternoon in that country, the late afternoon light over the city of Budapest beginning to gather what must surely be one of the most beautiful cities in the world into its embrace. I wonder how Hungarians celebrate this day of both terror and promise, and I wish we could have stayed a few days longer to find out. Instead we will raise a glass of wine, though not of the Hungarian variety, alas, to the people of Hungary, to their spirit, their culture, their history, and yes, their cuisine, which we enjoyed for two weeks. And I blow them a kiss across the Atlantic. Despite their worsening economic woes, thanks to the global financial meltdown, may they have a glorious celebration of freedom today!
Below is a 500 Forint bill, with its commemoration of the events that began on October 23, 1956. As cobwebby as my memory has become, I remember the 1956 uprising on the news when I was in the 6th grade, our horror at what was happening, expressed around the dinner table.
According to wikipedia, the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (Hungarian: 1956-os forradalom) was a spontaneous nationwide revolt against the Stalinist government of Hungary and its Soviet-imposed policies, lasting from 23 October until 10 November 1956. It began as a student demonstration which attracted thousands as it marched through central Budapest to the Parliament building and the revolt spread quickly across Hungary, and the government fell. Thousands organized into militias, battling the State Security Police (ÁVH) and Soviet troops. As wikipedia points our, " Pro-Soviet communists and ÁVH members were often executed or imprisoned, as former prisoners were released and armed. Impromptu councils wrested municipal control from the Communist Party, and demanded political changes. The new government formally disbanded the ÁVH, declared its intention to withdraw from the Warsaw Pact and pledged to re-establish free elections. By the end of October, fighting had almost stopped and a sense of normality began to return."
That normality was fleeting. On 4 November, a large Soviet force invaded Budapest and other regions of the country. Hungarian resistance continued until 10 November. An estimated 2,500 Hungarians died, and 200,000 more fled as refugees. Mass arrests and denunciations continued for months thereafter.
Although public discussion about this revolution was suppressed in Hungary for over 30 years, since the thaw of the 1980s it has been intensely discussed. At the inauguration of the Third Hungarian Republic in 1989, 23 October was declared a national holiday.
On our walk to the house where Franz Lizst lived out his last years, we passed what is known as the Terror House. Photographs of some of the executed line the walls, all with the same death date--1959. Ironically, the windows of the Lizst House face this building, and as I stood looking out, I could hear piano music coming from the recordings being played for visitors and from the practice room next door.
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(Statue of Franz Liszt in the square named for him. Notice the long fingers! Small children enjoy playing on his lap and hanging from his arms.)
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