Magyar News, 2005. szeptember-december (16. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
2005-10-01 / 2. szám
On May 18, 2005, Gergely Pongrátz got into his car in the yard of the 1956 Freedom Fighters' Museum in Kiskunmajsa, to drive to the 1956 Youth Camp. He turned the car around, but could not drive through the gate. The housekeeper noticed only a few minutes later that the car was not moving. Gergely was slumped over the wheel, taking his last breath. On May 28, 2005, they bade farewell to one of the giants among the 20th century's freedom fighters, who remained faithful to God, to the family, to his people and to himself to the end. Gergely Pongrátz, the great hero of our nation, left us physically at the age of 73. He was laid out in state in St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest, and eight priests bade him farewell in an Armenian rite Mass. The church, which can accommodate 8,000 people, was filled, and as many people stood outside. The President of the Republic, Ferenc Mádl, the President of Fidesz, Viktor Orbán, the founder of the MDP, Sándor Lezsák, and numerous parliamentary deputies attended the Mass. The crowd of mourners accompanied the coffin from the church to the Corvin-Köz, where the final memorial began with the-12 o'clock ringing of the Angelus and the national anthem. The newspaper Magyar Nemzet published the list of those who gave eulogies. The opening eulogy was given by Ödön Pongrátz, older brother of the deceased; he was followed by Vilmos Vasvári, President of the National Association of Political Prisoners; Miklós Patrubány, President of the World Association of Hungarians; the The funeral service in the St. Stephen Basilica in Budapest writer Zsolt Bayer; and by the Scouts of Gergely's native city. The remains of Gergely Pongrátz, who during the fighting was known as Bajusz (Moustache), were placed to rest on May 29th in the 1956 Chapel he had built at Kiskunmajsa. At the gravesite were four of his siblings from America: Ödön, Bálint, András and Marika. His children Gergely, Miklós and Krisztina, some 15 nieces and nephews and many other relatives attended. His brief biography may be found on the inside cover of his book, Corvin-Köz 1956. He was born in Szamosujvár, Transylvania, on Febru-ary 18,1932. "Our parents instilled in us an awareness of our Hungarian heritage as well as love of our country, and the Rumanian children often beat it into us at the end of the 1930's", we read. After the war, the family moved to Mátészalka. When their father returned from the war, they moved to Soroksár (Hungary), where the father with his nine children received 18.5 acres of land. Here he tilled the soil until his death in the spring of 1956. Gergely became an agronomist. When news of the outbreak of the Revolution reached him at Henyélpuszta on the morning of October 24th, he immediately set out for Budapest, because he felt that his brothers would be involved, and his place was among them. He reached the Corvin-Köz on October 25th, where five of his siblings were already fighting. He received the greatest honor of his life when, on October 30th, he was chosen to be the commander-in-chief of the fighters of Corvin-Köz and of several other centers. He left the country on November 28th, 1956. At the Freedom Fighters' Congress held in Chicago on November 28th, 1957, he was elected vice-president along with president Béla Király. The writers of these lines had the privilege of attending this event where very many Freedom Fighting heroes were also pres-Page 3 Below, a demonstration walk in Budapest. To the right he is in his hometown
