Why are Hungarians mourning today with flags half-mast?

Hungarian flags are flying at half-mast across the country all day today. But what exactly are Hungarians mourning?

With military honours, the national flag was solemnly raised and then lowered to half-mast on this national day of mourning, in the presence of Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, General Gábor Böröndi, Chief of the Hungarian Defence Forces General Staff, Lieutenant Colonel Rihárd Haslinger, and Colonel Tamás Zsolnai, commander of the 32nd Guard Regiment, reports MTI.

4 November: National Day of Mourning in Hungary

Today marks the national day of mourning in Hungary to remember the events of 69 years ago. On 4 November 1956, Soviet troops re-entered Hungary to crush the anti-Soviet revolution and freedom fight.

By the end of October 1956, it became clear to both the Hungarian Communist leadership and Soviet authorities that a wide-reaching popular movement had erupted in Budapest and major regional cities against Soviet military occupation and the country’s Sovietisation. The Soviet and Hungarian troops stationed there could no longer control it.

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Imre Nagy, selected by Moscow as Communist Prime Minister, refused to sign a document requesting Soviet military intervention to suppress what they deemed counter-revolutionary elements.

Instead, Nagy transformed his originally Communist government: he allowed pre-Soviet Hungarian parties to re-form, invited new members from these parties (Smallholders, Petőfi Party, Social Democrats), declared that free elections would be held soon, and announced Hungary’s exit from the Warsaw Pact. The aim was for Hungary to become a neutral state, like Austria or Finland.

Soviet reaction and military invasion

The Soviets, holding military power over Central and Eastern Europe, could not tolerate such embarrassment. Around 30–31 October, Moscow likely decided on a military counterstrike, choosing János Kádár, Nagy’s Interior Minister, as their new leader. Kádár was flown to the Soviet capital and returned on Soviet tanks in early November.

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The Soviet attack struck Budapest, still celebrating earlier victories, early on Sunday, 4 November. Except for some militarily defended areas like Széna Square and Corvin Passage, Soviet forces quickly took control. Soviet losses were around 600–700 soldiers, while Hungarian casualties were higher; however, the greatest loss was over 200,000 people fleeing the country.

The aftermath: repression and terror under Kádár

János Kádár took years to consolidate power, relying on the Soviet army, Communist internal security, and brutal terror tactics — including executions, imprisonments, and torture lasting for years. Most prisoners jailed due to the 1956 events were released only in 1963, while many others remained detained, officially convicted of common crimes, often framed for killing a Soviet soldier.

Today, Hungary remembers the brave souls who stood up against the Soviet army, those who died in battle, those wounded, executed, or imprisoned during the struggle for freedom.

Click and read more articles concerning the 1956 Hungarian revolution and freedom fight.