What Provoked the Hungarian Uprising of 1956

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What provoked the Hungarian Uprising of 1956? The Hungarian Uprising began on 23rd October 1956 when tens of thousands of protesters gathered at the statue of General Bem, who was a national hero of Poland and Hungary. By the end of the day, the numbers had multiplied to approximately 200,000 though the demonstrations were peaceful. Despite the peaceful start, the demonstrators were fired at by the State Security Police and violence erupted across Budapest. The following three weeks constituted one of the most tumultuous periods in Hungarian history. Yet in Hungary, all trace of the Revolution was eradicated for more than thirty years. What caused this uprising and how did it come about? There is no single answer to this question but a number of factors played a part. First of all, it is necessary to explore, in brief, the history of the nation of Hungary and the nature and character of its people. In Rift and Revolt in Hungary, Vali writes that ‘the national consciousness of Hungarians- their sense of history, ethnic and religious individuality- is highly developed’. This is due to the fact that, throughout history, Hungary has fought for her independence. Furthermore, he points out that ‘Hungarians are not Slavs, and they have entertained a particular bias against Pan- Slavism and against Russian imperialism’. Already, then, it is clear that the national character of Hungary contains at least some degree of stubbornness as well as a rebellious streak. This was surface decisively in October 1956. Vali also explains that Hungarian nationalism was greatly bolstered by the French Revolution of 1789 although this applied to nationalism elsewhere. Furthermore, the February Revolt in Paris in 1848 sent shockwaves which were ‘violently felt’ in Hungary. A series of events were set in train which resulted in 1848 in the adoption of a ‘declaration dethroning the House

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