I am just opening this thread in memory of the Hungarian uprising of 1956, one of the most important events of the 20th century, in which more than 2.000 died, thousands were injured or emprisonned, thousands fled abroad ... Imre Nagy, Hungarian Prime Minister, was put on trial and executed by the Russians.

The Hungarian revolution of 1956 began on Oct. 23, when a demonstration of Budapest students in sympathy with Polish reforms erupted into anti-government riots, and ended on Nov. 4, when Soviet troops entered the city in force and crushed the new government. During those 13 days, the inhabitants of the Hungarian capital -- students, workers, intellectuals and others -- stood up for freedom and died for their independence.

For Hungarians, the rebellion proved that their people did not accept Soviet domination without a fight. For European leftist intellectuals, the crushing of the Hungarian revolution under the tread of Soviet tanks indicated that something was deeply wrong with their understanding of communism.

A few links :
How it all began on 23 October:http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/d...00/3140400.stm

THE END on 4 November
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/d...00/2739039.stm

A few pics :

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______________________Own only what you can always carry with you: know languages, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag.”___________________Alexander Solzhenitsyn

And for those loved photographs, Erich Lessing was THE photographer of this event.

Please follow this link:
www.mdf-berlin.de/bilder_brandt_2.html

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______________________Own only what you can always carry with you: know languages, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag.”___________________Alexander Solzhenitsyn

I am sorry that no one responded to this thread. It is very important that we remember this - and thanks to you for posting it. It is a reminder of the courage of those who died. I knew the children of some of the Hungarians who escaped from Budapest and I know their stories.

It is also a reminder of the silence of the Eisenhower adminisatration in 1956. I respect and like him in many ways, but his administration was wrong to sit back and do nothing.

Finally it is a reminder of the Soviet tyranny that is too quickly forgotten today.

Those photos are moving and powerful.

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"Our fears in Banquo
Stick deep; in his royalty of nature
Reigns that which would be fear'd: 'tis much he dares;
And, to that dauntless temper of his mind,
He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour
To act in safety."

Macbeth 3:1

Thank you Tim. I am for my part surprised that nobody reacted to this thread. After all many Hungarians immigrated to the Us after 1956 and there are many Americans of Hungarian descent in the US.

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______________________Own only what you can always carry with you: know languages, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag.”___________________Alexander Solzhenitsyn

Problem is for Americans, 1956 and Hungary, are just too distant.

Tim,

Also take note of RFE (Radio Free Europe)'s actions to stir the Hungarians into movement versus the inaction of Eisenhower once they were in revolt.

Yes, quite true. In the area where I grew up, near NYC, there are quite a few people who came to the US after the revolt. They were very grateful for the opportunity to come to the US but at times they would express bewilderment as to why the Us and the west in general - including the UN - did nothing.

__________________
"Our fears in Banquo
Stick deep; in his royalty of nature
Reigns that which would be fear'd: 'tis much he dares;
And, to that dauntless temper of his mind,
He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour
To act in safety."

Macbeth 3:1

Problem is that we had a tiger mouth when urging the Hungarians to revolt, but a parakeet ass when it came to backing them up with military support.

In essence, we wern't ready to start WWIII for a small country in Central Europe.

I will readily admit knowing only a skeletal amount of this story (really, my knowledge extends only to knowing the year of the revolt & not much else). Thanks for posting this & educating me a bit.

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

Interesting point. This post topic connects with a recent travel experience that I am still thinking about.

I have returned from a few weeks in Germany: it was my first visit there. I was in Berlin for a few days; it is a fascinating city, and I think everyone in the US should see it at least once. Most of the history of the west in the twentieth century can be traced in its streets. Maybe you have been there? For me, it offered an opportunity to connect reality with years of reading, films, photos and maps.

Checkpoint Charlie was an unexpectedly powerful experience. I thought that perhaps it might be separated from the general bustle of the city (I don't know why - that was just how I imagined it) But it is in the middle of the Friedrichstrasse, an avenue that reminded me of the upper west side of Manhattan. The city was simply torn down the middle.

What would have happened if Kennedy had demanded the removal of the wall? Would the Soviets have backed down, as they did during the Cuban missile crisis? Or would they have fought, as Berlin was far more strategic? After seeing the remnants of the old border between the two sides of Germany, I wonder again and again if it would have been worthwhile to take the risk in 1961 - or in Budapest in 1956.

I was startled and impressed to see so many places in Berlin named for JFK or even the Kennedys in general. As Americans are not exactly loved right now in Europe, it was interesting to see that he was quite well respected and admired.

__________________
"Our fears in Banquo
Stick deep; in his royalty of nature
Reigns that which would be fear'd: 'tis much he dares;
And, to that dauntless temper of his mind,
He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour
To act in safety."

Macbeth 3:1

Never been to Germany. Closest I was to ever being in Europe was a 4-hr layover in an Italian airport while in route to Tanzania many years back.

I shudder to think what could have happened if JFK had confronted the Soviets in their own backyard.

The 'backing down' of the Russkies during the Cuban Missle Crisis, for example, was not as cut and dried as the History texts present. From the 'History Channel' I learned that three Soviet Destroyer Commanders disregarding of an order to attack any US submarines (and they had a sonar contact at the time said order was received) encountered was all that saved US from a DEFCON IV near Havana in Oct., 1962.

I knew it was very close, but that piece of data is new to me. I am a History Channel follower, but I missed that one. I think the Cuban missile crisis was one of the most under-rated stories of the twentieth century. I have spoken to various relatives who remember it very well indeed, and it is clear that were much closer to war than is generally understood.

__________________
"Our fears in Banquo
Stick deep; in his royalty of nature
Reigns that which would be fear'd: 'tis much he dares;
And, to that dauntless temper of his mind,
He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour
To act in safety."

Macbeth 3:1

Well, without having to use weapons, tanks and soldiers the cold war achieved victory ... The moral of the story is that it is not always necessary to use violent means in order to prevail ... Just give time to time !

The Berliner put up with the Wall and time played in their favour. The situation was difficult in 1961 but with time relationship between both parts of Germany became easier and finally the Wall fell completely in the night of 9th november 1989.

With Kadar as Secretary General, Hungary in the 1960s developed what was called "Goulash communism", a weakened form of communism, providing more liberties, civil as well as economic. Unlike most of their "socialist brothers and sisters", the Hungarians could travel abroad for example, foreign authors were available in their bookshops, and on the economic side, quite legally, they developed what was called the "second economy", a limited private sector within the State owned sector.

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______________________Own only what you can always carry with you: know languages, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag.”___________________Alexander Solzhenitsyn