Hermann Róbert: Kecskemétiek a szabadságharcban IV. Gáspár András honvédtábornok (Kecskemét, 2005)

Résumé András Gáspár General of the Hungarian Army 1848-49 Hungarian historic remembrance often treats figures of the 1848-49 events rather unfairly. Names of politicians such as Kossuth, Deák, Széchenyi, Petőfi, Vasvári have been retained, while Lajos Batthyány, Bertalan Szemere, Gábor Klauzál, László Csány, Kázmér Batthyány, Sebő Vukovics and other members of the government and parliament, government commissioners as well as men of public life have scarcely been mentioned. From among the generals Görgei, Bem, Klapka, or perhaps Mészáros, Perczel, Guyon and - more than his merits would allow - Dembinski are remembered by most. There were, of course, the martyrs of Arad of whom few are remembered apart from Damjanich. There were generals also who have been known only in professional circles since they were no martyrs or lead no armies. One of them is András Gáspár from Kecskemét. András Gáspár was bora in Kecskemét on 23

rd November in 1804. He joined the Imperial Royal army as a common soldier, by the end of 1847 he was promoted captain in the 9

th (Miklós) cavalry regiment. From September 1848 he took part in the fights against the Croatian invasion army, and had his share in the victory at Ozora. On 8

l October he was promoted major, and from the middle of the month he was brigade commander and then division commander in Mór Perczel's corps at Muraköz. On 26

th November he was appointed commander of the 9

th (Miklós) cavalry regiment, but he took over commandership only from the beginning of January 1848. From 5

th January he was brigade commander, and from 18

th February he was division commander of the Upper-Danube corps and later the 7

th corps evolving from the former. On 2

nd April, in honour of his victory at Hatvan, he was promoted major general and was appointed commander of the corps. Due to his deteriorating health condition he requested being reposted to peace services. Since this coincided in time with the declaration of independence, following the war for freedom the Imperial Royal Military Tribunal did not sentence him to death but 10-year-imprisonment in a fortress. In 1851 he was pardoned and released. Later he became postmaster in Bihar. From 1868 to 1875 he was a Member of Parliament, and then president of the central association of Hungarian soldiers. He died in Bihar on 5

th August 1884. 179