The Fate of Western Hungary 1918-1921 - Corvinus Library ...

etained lawyer József Östör to ask that the memory of the greatest Hungarian
not be tarnished by having “the death sentence of western Hungary” signed in
one of his favorite residence. The Entente generals relented and the site of the
signing was relocated to the military academy’s building on Rákóczi Street. 268
The turbulent parliamentary session of August 23, which was followed by a
long recess due to the “grave times” – a move objected by many – opened with
one question and three motions regarding the approaching date for the handing
over of Western Hungary before opening the day’s agenda. Among other
things, Count Kunó Klebelsberg 269 said: “I was forced to ask for time before the
agenda, as representative for the free royal city of Sopron, to raise my
objections against placing the city under the Austrian yoke. (…) I protest with
my entire being, in front of the Entente, Europe and the entire world, because
what is happening in Western Hungary and the city of Sopron is the trampling
underfoot of the self-determination of people. (…) Western Hungary, and
especially the city of Sopron, has repeatedly expressed its wish, in official
events, public assemblies and legal committee decisions, not to be separated
from the country. (…) But we especially protest against Austria because we
deny that Austria has any moral justification to take Western Hungary from us.
The Hungarian nation fully shouldered its share in this world war and ample
Hungarian blood was spilt in the sands of Galicia and the limestone rocks of the
Karst Mountains 270 for Austria’s territorial integrity. And when Austria and
Hungary collapsed after fighting together, the defeated slinks among the victors
and asks for his share of the body of the Hungarian nation. (Loud noise. Shouts
of ‘Shame’ from the right side.) (…) It is my duty, as one who also has Austrian
blood in his veins, to say – and Austria should well note – that there will not be
one man among us who will not look upon it as a sacred duty to nurture in our
souls despair against Austria if it snatches Western Hungary away from us.
(Vigorous agreement and applause.) As representative of the royal free city of
268 Träger, 1925, op. cit., p. 81.
269 Kunó (Konrad) Klebelsberg (1875-1932). He was Minister of State for Education
(January 1914-March 1917) in the second government of Count Tisza. With Count
István Bethlen, he was a founder in February of 1919 of the counter-revolutionary
Right-wing National Unity Party (Nemzeti Egyesülés Párt). During the months of the
Hungarian Soviet Republic, he hid in the countryside. He was a parliamentary
representative from 1920 to 1931, and from June 1921 to August 1931, he was minister
responsible for the religious and educational portfolio in the Bethlen government. He
instituted wide-ranging school reforms, building 5,784 modern public educational
schoolrooms, 2,278 teacher accomodations, created 1,555 public and 1,500 school
libraries, and 500 kindergartens. He built the science and technology universities of
Szeged and Pécs, and completed that of Debrecen, suspended due to the outbreak of
WWI, and laid the foundations for three academies and 21 public health clinics.
270 The Karst Mountains lie North of Trieste. During WWI, particularly bitter fighting
took place between the forces of Italy and the Monarchy along the Isonzo River and on
the Doberdo plateau. Between 1915 and 1917, there were a total of 12 battles.
111