Hungary, 96 years after the Treaty of Trianon

The treaty by which two-thirds of Hungary’s territory was taken away and millions of Hungarians were separated from the motherland was signed on the 4^th June, 1920, in the Grand Trianon palace of Versailles. This is what we commemorate on every 4^th June, as the treaty forced on Hungary almost 100 years ago still determines Hungary’s global opportunities.

The 4^th June means something entirely different for Hungarians than for any other nation, because, since the founding of the Hungarian Kingdom on the 25^th December in 1000, the Carpathian Basin was home to the whole Hungarian population. The Kingdom lived through dozens of wars, through stormy centuries (as our anthem also speaks – tr.) until the Treaty, while being more or less undivided.

Our country got involved in WWI as part of the Astro-Hungarian monarchy, and finally lost, so got into the hands of the winners thereafter. Well, there was no benevolence at the table when they showed the Treaty to the Hungarian delegation; they wanted to make an example of Hungary.

They took the two-thirds of the Hungarian lands. Romania, for example, received a larger part (102.813 km2) than the whole Hungarian country was left with (92.952 km2).

The “rights of the minorities” were the reference points that made France, Great Britain, the USA and other winning countries decide to cut Hungary into pieces. The only ethnic map not given any attention to, while drawing the final borders, was the ethnic map of the Hungarians. Many, still arguing for the Treaty, try to explain this still unprecedented Treaty through the ethnic map. Meanwhile, many in Hungary, and also outside of Hungary think that the Treaty was dictated. While it is obviously true that there were parts in the separated territory where the minorities were in majority, people rarely discover how the final borders were not drawn according to this map. Hundreds of thousands of Hungarians, living homogeneous groups, were torn from their country by the winners of WWI, and the countries receiving the parts could do with the Hungarians whatever they wanted to.

It was much more important to finish off the industry of Hungary than any map of ethnicity, so they made sure that the big centers of transportation, like Oradea (Nagyvárad), Satu Mare(Szatmárnémeti), Subotica (Szabadka), Berehove (Beregszász), or Uzhhorod (Ungvár) get to the other side of the border. The demographic data on the dramatic changes going on in the population of the cities are frightening. Bratislava (Pozsony), for example, never was a Slovakian city before; it was the traditional Hungarian crowning city for centuries, instead. According to the demographical data of the year 1910 the population consisted of 42% Germans, 41% Hungarians (83% all together), while Slovakians were present by only 15% in the city. After only one decade 50% of the population was Czechoslovakian, and only 15% Hungarian. Today Hungarians of only 3,4% live in the crowning city of the formal Hungarian kingdom. Another example would be Cluj-Napoca (Kolozsvár), where Hungarians were present by a percentage of 82%, which became 16% in 2011. These trends are quite characteristic of the torn cities.

The Treaty of Trianon served global interests well, but had little to do with reality. It wasn’t hard to guess how the made-up countries of Czechoslovakia and the monarchic State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (becoming the Kingdom of Yugoslavia later) will be short-lived historical entities, and will fall into pieces, because these ethnic groups never could stand each other. The main idea of the global powers was to destroy the thousand year old Hungarian empire for once and for all, and, in addition to the territorial mutilation, they also created countries that became quite threatening for Hungary.

It is another question why the winners chanting the “rights of minorities” forgot the rights of the Hungarian minority entirely. Also, one could ask why they left the politics of forced assimilation still going on without a word, for 96 years.

There are 1.5 million Hungarians living in Romania, where the country still uses double standards, for example, in the topics of the Szekler flag or the restitution of church properties. Of course, there are also many show trials going on as well, like the banning of Members of the Hungarian Parliament without any evidences, or the detention of Hungarians claimed to be executives for an alleged Hungarian terrorist group, also without evidences. The situation is not much better in Serbia, Ukraine and Slovakia, in fact, Slovakian authority is basically hunting down dual citizens and try to deprive them from their Slovakian citizenship. These are also ways to resolve demographical issues.

Many ask why Hungarians are not able to get over the question of Trianon. The reason is that still millions of Hungarians are vulnerable in their homes, living as secondary citizens in the Carpathian Basin, and the only reason for the atrocities they face is that they would like to speak Hungarian, cherish their culture, and keep their Symbols of nationality. And why should we give up? Why should we disown our thousand year old Hungarian culture? Why should we forget the history and the message of Hungary’s thousand year old history? The Hungarian nation will never give up its rights.

Written by a Hungarian living abroad

Photo: erdely.ma

Source: Daily News Hungary