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

Conclusion
The Hungarian national resistance, the self-defense had local results even
after the change of government, the Trianon Peace Decree and the changes to
the country’s borders. For example, in the southeast corner of Szentgotthárd
district of Vas County, the entirely-Hungarian populated village of 200,
Szomoróc, could not become reconciled to being annexed, to the Serb military
occupation. Earlier, on August 12, 1919, a unit of the South Slav kingdom had
arbitrarily crossed the line of demarcation laid down by the Entente and
occupied Szomoróc, while the neighboring village of 353, Kerca, also
Hungarian-speaking, remained under Hungarian authority. The Trianon Decree
of June 4, 1920 sanctified here, too, the fait accompli achieved by the rapacious
Serb acquisition and drew the new border between the two villages. Two
months after the signing of the treaty, at 23:00 on the night of August 1, the
men of Kerca and Szomoróc, with the local Royal Hungarian border guard unit
and its commander, Lt. József Ránkai, got together and attacked the Serb
garrison. While the 17 Hungarian border guards intentionally fired into the air,
the villagers, armed with scythes, pitchforks and fence pickets, attacked the
Serb unit, which retreated from its post in panic.
As a result of the successful offensive, Szomoróc returned to Hungary but
the enemy soon returned to its post in greater numbers. Their first act was to fly
the Serbian flag from the steeple of the Reformed church. The Hungarian high
command replaced Lt. Ránkai for his unauthorized action. Serb authorities
arrested 11 residents of Szomoróc who took part in the event and shipped them
to Muraszombat, where the police brutally beat and tortured them. Afterwards,
they were thrown into the county jail facing the street. Since they were not fed,
after several days, they began to yell from hunger. Some ladies of Muraszombat
raised objections to the brutal measures, saying that in civilized countries even
robbers and murderers are fed. Their answer was: they do not deserve food as
the goal is for them to die of starvation. In the end, the local Hungarians bribed
the jailers and smuggled food to the prisoners. The Hungarian patriots of
Szomoróc spent a year in the Muraszombat jail, when a judge appointed from
Belgrade reviewed their cases. After a new round of beatings, they were
allowed to return home. 511
The brave stand taken by the Szomoróc and Kerca men, and Lt. Ránkai and
his men, was not in vain because the village of Szomoróc was reunited with
Hungary on February 9, 1923 due to an Entente border adjustment mission’s
redrawing the border on the previous day. The people of the village
commissioned a new bell from Sopron to replace one that was ‘requisitioned’
during the war. The bell was ceremoniously installed in 1923, on the first
anniversary of the village being returned to Hungary. Also, a memorial tree was
511 Tiszai, László: Kercaszomor. A legbátrabb falu honvédő harca [Karcaszomor. The
defensive battle of the bravest village]. In: Nagy Magyarország, year I, issue 2, 2009,
August, p. 14.
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