On Saturday, 1848 Hungarian volunteers marched with a 1,848-meter-long Hungarian national flag in Budapest, Hungary.
Perhaps it was the most unique and touching moment of the long weekend as the Hungarian flag and Hungarian Crest were celebrated in the capital.
The 1848-meter-long Hungarian national flag was stretched on Andrássy Avenue between the Opera and Heroes’ Square.
The organisers paid tribute not only to the national symbols but also to those who gave their lives and blood to Hungary. When the volunteers arrived at Heroes’ Square, they formed a live cockade.
Photos by István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY
Photo: copyright: István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY – Hungarian freelance photographer
Photo: copyright: István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY – Hungarian freelance photographer
Photo: copyright: István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY – Hungarian freelance photographer
Photo: copyright: István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY – Hungarian freelance photographer
Photo: copyright: István Ruzsa / SKYPHOTOGRAPHY – Hungarian freelance photographer
Hungarian state officials addressed events marking the March 15 national holiday organised by ethnic Hungarian communities in the US and Canada over the weekend.
Ministerial commissioner at the prime minister’s office Péter Szilágyi told an event in Los Angeles on Sunday that
“March 15 is a symbol of unity that transcends our differences.”
A statue of King Stephen who is considered to be the founder of the Hungarian state was inaugurated during the event held in a local church named after the king. In his speech, Szilágyi highlighted the participation of Hungarian emigrants who fled after 1849 in the American Civil War.
State secretary in charge of ethnic Hungarian communities abroad Árpád János Potápi addressed events in Edmonton and Calgary in Canada on Saturday and Sunday. He said
Hungarians disliked being told by others how to live their lives and described March 15 as “the birthday of Hungarian freedom.”
Referring to the upcoming European parliamentary election, he said that Hungarians can decide in May whether “we can protect our sovereignty from oppressive European powers or have to implement a central plan”.
Potápi told MTI that he had met local ethnic Hungarian leaders in Edmonton and Calgary, and visited churches and weekend schools. He said it was uplifting to meet young children who sometimes spoke better Hungarian than their parents and this was “partly thanks to the weekend schools operated with support o the Hungarian government”.
The Day of Hungarian Culture is celebrated on the 22nd of January each day, marking the daywhen the lyrics to the Hungarian anthem were finished by Ferenc Kölcsey. For Iain Lindsay, Hungarian culture means Lake Balaton, lángos and Attila József.
Heti Világgazdaság writes that Iain Lindsay, the British ambassador to Hungary, celebrated the Day of Hungarian Culture with scrabble on social media.
The photo features a toy betyár figure and a scrabble layout, spelling several Hungarian words, with concepts that represent Hungarian culture for Lindsay. Then, the diplomat asked his followers to share what Hungarian culture means for them.
For Lindsay, it means Attila József (one of the most celebrated Hungarian poets), Hármashatárhegy, lángos, rétes (strudel), Sziget Festival, Lake Balaton, Gyula Juhász (another beloved Hungarian poet) and wine.
Guest nights at commercial accommodations in Hungary rose by 5.4 percent year-on-year to 2,385,000 in October as a four-day weekend boosted stays by domestic guests, data released by the Central Statistical Office (KSH) on Thursday show.
Guest nights spent by domestic travellers jumped by 9.4 percent to 1,170,000 as Hungarians used a four-day weekend for the October 23 national holiday for recreation.
Guest nights spent by foreign visitors rose by 1.8 percent to 1,215,000 during the period.
Revenue of commercial accommodations increased by 12.3 percent to 43 billion forints (EUR 133.2m).
At hotels, the average occupancy rate stood at 63.2 percent, up 3.0 percentage points from the same month a year earlier.
Total revenue per available room (TREVPAR) at hotels climbed 11.7 percent to 23,920 forints (74 euros).
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Budapest cemeteries expect to have hundreds of thousands of visitors on All Hallows’ Day, similarly to earlier years, the Budapest Funeral Institute said on Thursday.
The Rákoskeresztúr Cemetery in eastern Pest has had nearly 120,000 visitors by 4.30 pm, and the Farkasréti Cemetery in Buda some 70,000, the institute said.
The city’s cemeteries are open longer, from 7am to 8pm, during the holiday weekend, and will return to the normal opening hours of 7.30am to 5pm on Monday, the statement said.
Karancslapujtõ, , Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIMihálygerge, Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIBudapest, , Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIKarancslapujtõ, , Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIKarancslapujtõ, , Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIBudapest, , Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIBudapest, Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTIBudapest, Hungary – All Hallows’ Day in Hungary, photo: MTI
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 is an event of crucial importance for Hungarians, as, during its thirteen days, the nation united as one force against the Soviet Communist regime. However, the neglected nation’s uprising has had its impact on the whole world.
Elvis Presley
There is an Elvis Presley square and park in Budapest (near the Buda-end of Margaret bridge) in honour of the late singer’s efforts to help Hungarians who suffered heavy losses during the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. Presley appeared on Ed Sullivan’s talk show on 28 October 1956, where the host and the singer both drew attention to the bloody revolution that was taking place in Budapest.
The ‘King of Rock and Roll’ asked American citizens to aid Hungarians in their hardship, eventually raising over 52 million dollars by the end of 1957.
Time Magazine named the Hungarian Freedom Fighter the Man of the Year for 1956, featuring not a photo, but an artist’s depiction of three Hungarian freedom fighters. The article accompanying the photo tells the story of the three men.
Photo: time.com
Camus & Sartre
A strong reaction was invoked in the great French philosophers too – Albert Camus criticised the West’s lack of action when it came to intervening in the Hungarian-Soviet conflict in an essay entitled The Blood of the Hungarians. Jean-Paul Sartre expressed his disappointment and outrage regarding the Soviet measures in the article Le Fantôme de Staline.
Worldwide sports events
As to show their support of the Hungarian revolution and their dismay of the Soviet side,
Spain, the Netherlands and Switzerland all boycotted the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.
A year later, Norway declined the invitation to the Bandy World Championship over the presence of a Soviet team.
The United Nations
The United Nations even created a board dedicated to investigating the circumstances of the revolution in January 1957. The Special Committee on the Problem of Hungary interviewed 111 Hungarian refugees, reviewed documents, newspapers, radio transcripts, photos, films that were created during the revolution, along with the written testimony of 200 other Hungarians.
Music – Italy and Finland
Two famous songs were written on the occasion and dedicated to the bravery of the oppressed Hungarians: one of them is from Italy, bearing the title Avanti ragazzi di Budapest (Onwards, boys of Budapest) and the other is from Finland, entitled Unkarin Vapaus (Hungarian Freedom).
The Hungarian girl who fought for freedom
On November 13, 1956, the Danish Billed Bladet featured the photo of Erika Szeles on its cover. The red-haired 15-year-old Hungarian girl was holding a Russian cartridge-disc rifle in her hands, with a look of determination and proud defiance in her eyes.
Her story, however, is quite tragic: by the time her photo spread around the world, she was already dead, shot on the 7th of November.
Italy, Alberto Moravia
A famous Italian writer, Alberto Moravia, suggested to the whole world that those streets where there were Soviet embassies, should be renamed ‘the streets of butchered Hungarians’.
Featured image: www.facebook.com/pg/magyarforradalom1956
The impressive video captures the view of the magnificent Budapest on 20 August, reported by Magyarországom.hu.
Have you always wondered what your favourite city looks like from the air or wanted to see the view that unfolds when the plane takes off? Then this is a must-see video made just for you.
Pilots of the National Defence Force took the video during the annual Water and Air Parade on 20 August. The pilots were flying a JAS-39 Gripen, but there were helicopters, too.
Take a look at the video here:
As 20 August is one of the most important national holidays in Hungary, we have written numerous articles about the festivities this year. If you want to know what Hungarians celebrate on this day, check out our article first about the details.
Hungary’s holiday celebrating the founding of the nation was marked in Washington, DC, late on Monday.
The event jointly held by the Hungarian embassy and the Hungarian House in Washington began with a “Pilgrimage” walk from the Marymount University of Arlington and finished with Mass held in the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception of Washington.
In the basilica, Hungarian Ambassador László Szabó greeted the congregants and Father Thomas Yehl asked for a special blessing for Hungary and its leaders.
The embassy then hosted a reception. Szabó noted the role of King St. Stephen and the struggles of Hungarians over the centuries for survival, emphasising that Hungary is a Christian state.
As we wrote today morning, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed his greetings to the Hungarian people on the occasion of Hungary’s August 20 national holiday, in a statement posted on the US embassy’s Facebook page, read more HERE.
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President János Áder decorated demographer Paul Demeny (Pál György Demény) with the most prestigious state award, the Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, on Monday, Hungary’s August 20 national holiday.
At the ceremony in the presidential palace, Hungarian president said that only those European nations that “do not rely on external resources but have enough strength of their own to renew” will have a future. He added that
the Order of St. Stephen is given to “excellent Hungarians who find truths through their talent and work, walking their own path”.
In his address, the president said that Demeny has worked to reveal how building families affected larger groups of society, as well as nations or even periods in history. Demeny’s career “holds a mirror to an aged Europe,” Áder said, and insisted that “if Europe wants a different future for its descendants, action cannot be put off much longer”.
According to the official laudation, Demeny, one of the most famous experts of modern demography, was recognised for his promotion of Hungarian science and his life achievement aimed at reversing negative demographic tendencies.
Hungary should apply a Scandinavian model based on personal freedoms in the development of its society, the head of conservative Jobbik said at a celebration of August 20, on Monday. Hungary’s future “must be laid on new foundations”, the opposition LMP party said in a statement.
Jobbik: Hungary should follow Scandinavian model
Tamás Sneider said that his party’s mission was to “show a golden middle way between individualism and collectivism” and advocated the Scandinavian model in terms of social security, pensions and education.
Sneider said that
Hungary’s “Orbán regime” has “reached its zenith” and voiced hope that Hungarians could “again attain their freedoms against (ruling) Fidesz.
He added that nearly half of the opposition’s voters had supported Jobbik at the April general election, and insisted that no party other than Jobbik could “lend Hungarian society faith and strength” in a fight against the current government.
Speaking about another subject, Sneider did not exclude the possibility of cooperation “at some level” with the opposition LMP party, but noted that the two parties had conflicting views on some issues such as the integration of the Roma minority.
August 20 – LMP calls for ‘new foundations for future’
“Hungarian families and local communities must be assisted with real solutions,” the statement said and suggested that 20 percent of the country’s tax revenues should be spent on education. Authors of the statement also suggested that the Hungarian government should drop its “campaign against Europe” and work towards “strong nation states building a strong Europe, which can face the challenges of the 21st century”.
Hungary will be a successful country if families and local communities have “an opportunity to determine their future and have a say in decisions affecting their lives”, the statement said.
“Citizens must be treated as partners rather than tools; building mutual trust rather than reckless centralisation is the right way,” the statement added.
August 20 – Socialist Party points to St. Stephen’s legacy
King St. Stephen chose western Europe and the Socialist Party believes this is the path Hungary should follow, Bertalan Tóth, the party’s leader, said in a video posted on the Socialists’ Facebook page, marking the August 20 national holiday on Monday.
Tóth said August 20 was about celebrating St. Stephen’s founding of the Hungarian state over a thousand years ago and his decision to integrate Hungary into the West.
He said St. Stephen’s admonitions made it clear that a king’s strongest virtue should be humility, not arrogance or hate.
“Today in Hungary … we see a government that preaches Christian democracy and the defence of Christian values and in defence of these it sticks stigmatising stickers on the doors of rights organisations, sends police officers after homeless people, uses police to evict Hungarian families and attacks the independent Hungarian judiciary,” the party leader said.
“These policies have driven away 600,000 of our Hungarian compatriots and forced tens and hundreds of thousands of families into debt bondage.”
He said the Socialist Party favours the path to western Europe laid out by St. Stephen.
“We will fight for the rights of foreign currency loan holders,” Tóth said. “We will fight to make sure families don’t lose their homes and we will fight for the return of young Hungarians who have left the country.”
August 20, 2018 – Budapest’s festive fireworks were at the Danube banks on both Buda and Pest side between Margareth Bridge and Elizabeth Bridge where tens of thousands of people participated in these events.
People who come to Hungary from abroad might see that August 20 is a national holiday here. No one works on this day: instead, there is a huge celebration with the hoisting of the national flag on Kossuth Square in Budapest, as well as fascinating fireworks in the night. Catholic believers also attend special masses hosted exclusively for this event. But why exactly is this day special? Read more HERE.
Photo: MTIPhoto: MTIBudapest, 2018. augusztus 20. Tûzijáték a Duna felett Budapesten a nemzeti ünnepen, 2018. augusztus 20-án. MTI Fotó: Kovács TamásPhoto: MTIPhoto: MTIPhoto: MTI
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed his greetings to the Hungarian people on the occasion of Hungary’s August 20 national holiday, in a statement posted on the US embassy’s Facebook page on Monday.
Speaking on behalf of the US government, Pompeo called Hungary “a close friend and ally of the United States”.
Pompeo said the US valued its cooperation with Hungary on a variety of important issues such as defence, regional European security and energy diversification.
“We deeply respect Hungary’s rich history, culture, and traditions, and we are grateful for the many contributions that Hungarian immigrants have made to American society in an array of fields, from the arts to business to technology,” the secretary said.
Pompeo added that bilateral exchanges and a growing trade relationship between the US and Hungary “help strengthen the robust people-to-people ties that bind our two countries together today”.
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“We look forward to continued partnership with Hungary to advance our shared interests and commitment to freedom and prosperity in Europe,” the statement concluded.
Hungary must insist on “the Western culture King Saint Stephen tied our future to”, President János Áder said in his address marking Hungary’s August 20 national holiday on Monday.
Speaking at the oath taking ceremony of young military officers, President of Hungary quoted author Sándor Márai and said that “Hungary could only survive in a new Europe with quality in the focus; we are not in a position to be mediocre”.
Addressing the young officers, Áder said that
“St. Stephen gave us a Hungarian heart and European conscience” and added that the 11th century king had been “aware that peace is conditional on preserving Western civilisation”.
Hungary has been strong and could “withstand the storms of history” while other, greater nations have disappeared, Áder said. Saint Stephen was confident that history could be shaped, and he “collected friends and strived for peace while other rulers gathered enemies”, the president added.
St. Stephen’s legacy has helped build an “independent, free and European country, which many have attempted to capture but it has been saved through the faith, work and insistence of those that did not bend in the storm of times,” Áder said.
“This land has been ours for a thousand years and will stay our shared homeland as long as there are people in the heart of Europe that feel and understand the slogan: Homeland before all else,” the president concluded his speech.
The 20th of August might as well be the most significant national holiday of Hungary with festivals, celebrations and fireworks everywhere. But what is it really about? Read a quick recap of the must-know facts about the background of and traditions connected to St. Stephen’s day. Read more HERE.
The worldview represented by King St. Stephen “that we must seek a connection with the universe and a wholesome existence beyond it and organise our loves on the basis of this” is still relevant to this day, Cardinal Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, told cultural television channel M5 on Monday.
St. Stephen felt responsible for his people and country and his actions were driven by his personal Christian faith,
Erdő said. His life was not about the weakening or disappearance of faith, but rather its strengthening and purification, the cardinal added.
St. Stephen found a way to preserve the culture and identity of his people under the changing circumstances of the time “and this harmony remains a point of reference to this day”,
Erdő said.
“When we think of St. Stephen, he holds a mirror to us [so that we can see] the responsibility we feel for our community today, the extent to which we seek out the will of God and the personal sacrifices we make to carry out His will,” the cardinal said.
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The Catholic Church head also said Bechara Boutros Rai, the Maronite Patriarch of Antioch, has also taken part in the August 20 celebrations. Erdő said the patriarch could relate to the current situation in Lebanon, knowing that there are many refugees in that country. Erdő noted that
local church leaders always advise Christians living there to remain loyal to the land and faith of their ancestors.
House Speaker László Kövér marked Hungary’s August 20 national holiday on its eve on Sunday, and said in an interview to commercial radio Karc FM that “Hungary is a nation-state because its national culture is based on Christian values”.
“Defending Hungarian national culture, in a broader sense, means protecting the civilisation and culture of the whole of Europe,” Kövér said in his interview, adding that
“we are the security and future of Europe”.
Concerning Europe, House Speaker said that Christian ethics was the continent’s spiritual basis, supported by “Greek philosophy, Roman law, and the Ten Commandments”. He insisted that the values built on those foundations are now being jeopardised by “massive immigration of people coming from different cultures, who won’t even respect Europe’s written law let alone non-written rules of ethics”, as well as by those that “manage, help, and propagate organised migration in order to loosen up and eliminate that spiritual basis”.
Defending Europe means “protecting the sanctity of the family and of marriage and women’s equal dignity”,
Kövér said. He added that “women and men could never be equal because of their biological characteristics, but it does not mean that they should not be equal in terms of their human dignity”.
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On another subject, Kövér said that parliament in the current cycle would be working to adopt laws “aimed at regulating the government’s room for maneouvre”. He argued that in the past 28 years parliament “has not been able to appropriately control executive power”. Increasing parliamentary control will be a top priority for the next four years, the house speaker added.
In an interview with commercial Echo TV, Kövér said that the migration crisis in Europe had made everyone realise that Europe is facing an unprecedented challenge.
“There are powers outside Europe that make formal or informal attempts to intervene,”
he added.
Asked to comment on his earlier remarks on “cultural autonomy”, he said it meant that a community decides “what values should be followed by future generations and this affects mass communications, as well as public education and higher education”.
Commenting on literature, he said “we have not banned any works or writers” and added that equal chances cannot be guaranteed without political efforts and external influence.
Answering a question about the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, he said “there are some academicians who are in their current position only as a result of political decisions made before 1990” and there are those who are not members “only because the communists robbed them from their title”.
“We should decide what the academy is” and if it is purely a scientific body “we must tidy it up”, he added.
Commenting on a recent government decision to stop state funding on university courses for gender studies, he said autonomy does not mean that academicians or teachers stand outside of society and when it comes to such an “extremity” as including gender studies in the official curriculim, “it is necessary to take action.”
According to Hirado.hu, in Cleveland and Chicago, there are masses, festivals and great events where Hungarians living abroad can celebrate the 20th of August, that is, St. Stephen’s Day.
“It has been sixty years since we last had such a big gathering – more than two thousand people attended to celebrate together”
stated Father András Mezei to MTI on the phone. He is the pastor of the St. Emeric (Szent Imre) Church in Cleveland.
Gastronomy and spirituality
The spiritual pastor of Hungarians living in and around Cleveland emphasised that the holiday celebrating the foundation of the Hungarian state is not only about gastronomy but also about spirituality. “On Saturday and Sunday we hold masses in the St. Emeric and St. Elizabeth Churches, furthermore, we are going to bless the new bread” Father András Mezei explained.
The tower of the St. Emeric church in Cleveland was decorated with a 10-metre-long Hungarian flag. The local scouts performed a show, as well as Attila László, a singer from Transylvania.
According to the pastor, many have been deeply moved by listening to the Hungarian and Szekler anthems.
The Cleveland celebration was supported by the Hungarian state and the Bethlen Foundation, just like in Chicago, Illinois.
Chicago and D.C.
In Chicago the celebrations start on Sunday, in the morning.
Zita Bencsik, consul general of Chicago, shared with MTI that the mass in the St. Stephen King of Hungary Church starts with the scouts and pupils marching in. After the celebratory mass on Sunday they hold a festive lunch and have programmes for those interested.
As far as the Hungarians living near Washington are concerned, they plan to celebrate with a pilgrimage on Monday, 20th of August.
They walk from Arlington, Virginia to the Hungarian chapel in the Basilica of Washington, where they commemorate the foundation of Hungary with a mass.
As the annual State Founding (August 20, Monday) celebrations commence, Index warns that the Hungarian capital city’s public transportation will undergo considerable changes: several roads and bridges will be closed. In this handy guide, we will present some of the major programs happening in Budapest and some tips on how to avoid a chaotic journey over the city.
Programs and the firework
Several concerts, fairs and other programs will be organised over the weekend in Budapest.
Between August 17th-20th
The Street of Hungarian Flavours at the Castle Garden Bazaar (18th-19th: 10:00-00:00, 20th: 10:00-22:00), where you can try this year’s Cake of Hungary, the Little Girl from Komárom.
The Festival of Folk Arts will take place at the Buda Castle at 10:00-23:00 on August 17th-19th, while on August 20 from 10:00 until 21:00.
Sunday
On Sunday evening, famous Hungarian bands (including Anna and the Barbies, the singer of which was attacked recently) will give concerts at the Castle Garden Bazaar and at the Buda end of Elizabeth bridge, near the Szent Gellért statue.
Monday
The annual passing-out parade will take place at the Kossuth Lajos square on Monday morning between 8:30 and 9:30.
The Holy Crown will be on display at the Parliament between 12:00 and 19:00.
A Holy Mass will be held at the Saint Stephen Basilica from 17:00, which will be followed by the Procession of the Holy Right Hand of Saint Stephen at 18:00
The fireworks start at 21:00, lasting for about 30 minutes. It can be best enjoyed from Buda, from between the Chain Bridge and Margaret Bridge.
You can donate blood on Alkotmány street between 11:30 and 17:30.
Transportation and traffic
It is advised to use trams and especially the metro lines over the weekend and on Monday. Metro line M3 will operate between the Lehel tér and Kőbánya-Kispest stops from Friday until Sunday. Another change in the metro schedule is that the lines M2, M3 and M4 will all follow an extended schedule: the last metro leaves at 1:30 on lines M2 and M4 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, line M3 will take up this change only on Sunday.
Out of safety reasons, some stations of metro lines M1 (Vörösmarty tér, Deák Ferenc tér), M2 (Deák Ferenc tér, Batthány tér), M3 (Ferenciek tere, Deák Ferenc tér) and stations of the suburban railway line H5 (Batthyány tér) might be closed after the fireworks.
All metro lines, HÉV lines, trams, buses and trolleys will follow a more frequent schedule right before and after the August 20 fireworks.
Trams 4 and 6 will operate again between Széll Kálmán tér M and Oktogon M stations from August 19th. However, the other frequently used tram line 2 will see some changes: over the weekend, the tram will only operate between Közvágóhíd H and Kossuth Lajos tér (Széchenyi rakpart) stations. On Monday, the tram will follow the same route until 9:00, from when it will only serve stations between Közvágóhíd H and Boráros tér H.
Over the weekend, the buses serving the Buda Castle will only commute on Buda, between the stations Széll Kálmán tér M and Dísz tér, but on Monday between 14:30 and 16:00 they will serve stations between Széll Kálmán tér M and Szentháromság tér.
On Monday boat D12 will start operating from 11:30. After 18:00 the boats will follow a shortened route, between Jászai Mari tér and Rómaifürdő stations.
Since several bus and tram lines will follow a shortened or modified route, it is advised to use the BKK FUTÁR mobile application when planning your journey.
The Chain Bridge will be closed from Friday (17th) dawn until Tuesday (21st) dawn to cars, and from Monday 17:00 until 22:30 to pedestrians too. Elizabeth bridge will be closed between August 19th 14:00 and August 20th dawn to car traffic, and to pedestrians from Monday 19:00. Margaret bridge will be closed from August 20th 19:00 to both cars and pedestrians. The Castle Garden pier will be closed from Saturday until Monday dawn because of the programmes. The piers on the Pest side will be closed on Monday.
The first celebration — or, rather, commemoration — of 1 May was in 1890. The holiday lasted merely two decades before it was prohibited during World War I. But why is this day so important for the workers of the world and how did this phenomenon reach Hungary? Here is a glimpse into the history of the Labour Day – or International Workers’ Day.
1 May was the day of solidarity with the workers in the USA who were struggling for the introduction of 8-hour-long workdays.
It was on 1 May 1886 when the first strike began to reach this goal. Two days later, workers and the police engaged in a fight during which the policemen opened fire, killing four people. Retaliation has not defaulted: some anarchists infiltrated among the demonstrators and threw bombs to the policemen, provoking another shooting. The event resulted in more than a dozen dead. Eight anarchist leaders were brought to court, and half of them were executed soon.
Photo: Fortepan
The news of these events spread through the globe, awaking indignation among the people. 1 May became the day of protests commemorating the USA victims. The Second Internationale in 1889 decided about the common protest of trade unions and other workers’ associations on 1 May 1890 to show their solidarity and keep on fighting for 8-hour workdays. Two years later, they have announced 1 May as the celebration of the “international alliance of the worker class.”
Hungary also took part in this movement by commemorating the date the first time in 1890.
According to Ma.hu, the contemporary press described the event as the following:
The groups arrived marching in order. They were unfolding their flags and raising their signs high at the border of the park. On those flags, there were the “three 8s” of the Congress of Paris: 8 hours of work, 8 hours of entertainment, 8 hours of rest. Though the symbols were similar, the groups carrying them were quite variable. (…) There came a group of serious, well-built people in simple Sunday bests. Great beards, thin face, red cockade, German words.
Certainly, workers from a factory. Then came another group. Tricolour in the front, behind it some men in traditional Hungarian garment and fur cap. Obviously shoemakers. Traditional Hungarian and socialist — a unique phenomenon in the country. Entered a new flock. A couple of thousands of great cockades in national colours… Honest carpenter assistants. Then came the tailors with a huge white silk flag. (…) All of them in black coats… Behind them came the workers of the peripheral factories in rumpled mushroom hats and worn out boots; they are the ones who “may not understand what’s happening, but they hope that a miracle comes and helps their situation.”
In Hungary, 1 May became a holiday after 1945. It slowly became a national celebration by the end of the 20th century.
The socialist Eastern Block used to call it the Labour Day, but it was gradually renamed in many countries as the Labour Day.
It has become one of the greatest international holidays of the working class, especially in the Soviet Union and the territories of the Warsaw Pact. The official state holiday was celebrated with marching parades and spectacular festivals, but its importance faded during the decades. After the fall of the European communist systems, 1 May rather became the day of solidarity with all employees instead of concentrating on blue-collar and manual workers. There are still recurring demonstrations organised by trade unions in some countries, calling attention to employee rights, reasonable wages and pensions, and the protection of workplaces.
Photo: Fortepan
Though the communist dictatorship fell in Hungary in 1989, this holiday remained as a pleasurable heritage of the era. However, as in the other parts of Europe, its former traditions went extinct. Instead of illustrious parades, 1 May is celebrated nowadays as a quiet, family holiday.
