Other historical articles
– 6 October 1849, The 13 Martyrs of Arad and the clinking of beer mugs
– 23 October 1956, The Hungarian Revolution
History of Hungary
In the days of the Roman Empire the area on the west side of the Danube was known as Pannonia. There are ruins in Budapest today from this time, for example an old camp for the military. As the Roman Empire grew weaker, and the Germanic tribes started their migration, Hungary also got influenced by this. Attila the Hun, a famous and feared man, spent much time in Hungary, and his grave is also said to be found somewhere in Hungary, though none really knows.
Entering the Carpathian Basin
The Magyars (Hungarians), led by Árpád, came to the Carpathian Basin around 896. The tribes were later led by Geza, who intended to integrate the Christian faith in Hungary. It was only his son Vajk, better known as Stephen, who managed to do this. 24th of December year 1000 he is said to have received the crown from the Pope. After this he introduced the Christian faith to the nation, and though there were some resistance, he succeeded.
The Mongol invasion
The next big step in the history of Hungary was the Mongol invasion. In 1241 they came and plundered, killed and destroyed big parts of Hungary. As an answer to this, King Bela IV, built up stone castles, that would protect them, in case the Mongols would return. At this time the capital of Hungary was moved to Buda.
The Turks
The next threat would not be the Mongols, but the Turks (Muslims). They came from the south, and several battles where fought against them. A very famous victory was won in 1456, in the Siege of Nándorfehérvár. But, nothing could last forever. In 1526 the Turks defeated the Hungarian forces at Mohács, and in 1541 they marched into Buda and occupied the city. During this period one part of Hungary belonged to the Turks, one part to Transylvania and one part to the Hungarian/Habsburg part. In 1686 the Holy League reconquered Buda, and the Turks had to leave the nation.
Habsburgs in Hungary
Following this the Habsburgs controlled and ruled over the Hungarians, and several revolts took place during this time. In 1848 it seemed like the Hungarians would succeed receiving their independence, but in 1849 the Austrians hit back, and once again freedom just remained a dream. In the time that followed the Austrians still gave more freedom to the Hungarians, and when the Austrian forces collapsed during the first World War in 1918, the Hungarians declared themselves independent. Taking advantage of the circumstances the communist part managed to grab power, and for three months in 1919 they controlled the Hungarian Soviet Republic.
Trianon, nazism and communism
The communist rule came to an end, and was followed by another tragedy (in the eyes of many Hungarians), the Treaty of Trianon. 2/3 of the nation was lost, and 1/3 remained Hungary (what we know as Hungary today). During Second World War Hungary fought together with the Germans, but in 1944 they made an attempt to withdraw from the war. The Germans heard about it, and immediately occupied the nation. The freedom was later brought to the nation by the communist forces in 1945.
Communism ruled the nation from 1945 until 1989 (except from a short period during the 56 revolution). Since 1989 Hungary has been its own masters, and though politics might seem a little unstable, freedom has been won, and the nation is taking steps in the right direction. Hungary is a member of the European Union since 2004.
