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

authorities on Hungarian territory. The Hungarian government then released or
turned over to Austrian authorities these captured soldiers and gendarmes,
without harm. In fact, I know that the Ostenburg detachment immediately
released the captured and disarmed Austrian gendarmes and returned them
unharmed to Austria.” Rakovszky finally posed the following questions to PM
Bethlen: “One, does the Prime Minister know that the Austrians are holding
Imre Egan captive in the Viennese provincial jail and are charging him with
inciting rebellion? Two, is he willing, on legal and humanitarian grounds, to
raise the matter with the Austrian government and, citing Egan’s patriotic
reasons, ask for his direct release and freedom to return home?” 409
In his response, the prime minister first clarified the legal standing of the
Hungarian government in zone ‘A’ of Western Hungary. “We have, naturally,
evacuated the territory but, until the handover document is signed by me, the
territory is not deemed to have been handed over to Austria. Thus, it is still
Hungarian territory today. In light of the fact that we have withdrawn from the
territory all our police, gendarme and military power, we are not in a position to
take a governmental stand against anyone, not the Austrians, not free-forces,
not against the local population. Hence (…) I want to make it absolutely clear,
we cannot, and will not, take any responsibility for the events there. (…) we
have knowledge of the capture by Austrian gendarmes of Imre Egan, former
High Constable of Békés County, and that presently he is being held in Vienna,
in the Lower Austria Landesgericht [provincial court jail]. We have already
taken diplomatic steps with the Austrian government; the Hungarian Foreign
Minister has protested violently with the Austrian government in this regard,
and not only in the case of Imre Egan but in many others, too, since the
Austrian gendarmes have taken hostages in zone ‘A’, captured Hungarian
citizens and began proceedings against them. Therefore, the Hungarian
government has taken diplomatic steps in this matter and wastes no time to
raise the matter again.”. 410 The answer to the question from the floor was
acknowledged by Rakovszky and parliament.
In the meanwhile, the Hungarian-Austrian negotiations continued.
Hungarian chargé d’affaires in Paris, Iván Praznovszky, forwarded to Foreign
Minister Miklós Bánffy on September 23 the latest text of the memorandum
from the Council of Ambassadors, which instructed the Hungarian government
to vacate within 10 days the Western Hungary territory awarded to Austria.
Otherwise, the Entente Powers will be forced to use extreme measures against
Hungary without notification. The Hungarian government was unable to fulfill
the terms of the ultimatum completely because it had power of arms only in the
eastern zones ‘B’ and ‘C’, not in zone ‘A’, which was under the control of the
rebels.
Primarily, it was the danger of another attempted return to the throne by
Charles IV – which soon took place – that prompted PM Bethlen to oppose the
409 Nemzetgyűlési Napló, XIII. köt. Budapest, 1921. Athenaeum nyomda, p. 71.
410 Ibid, pp. 71–72.
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