Magyar News, 2005. szeptember-december (16. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
2005-10-01 / 2. szám
The Pongratz family In 2004 at the reburial of Imre Nagy The 16 points did not demand restoration, but, respecting our past, looked to the future. (There were also 12 and 20- point demands.) During the Revolution, there was no discrimination by race, nationality, religion, party affiliation, or profession. The Christian Ilona Tóth and Attila Gérecz, the Jewish Pista Angyal, the 16-year old Romany (Gypsy) girl called "Kócos" all fought side by side with those who, denying their Party membership, paid with their lives and became martyrs of the Hungarian people. According to Gergely, everyone who fought with a weapon in his hand was a commander. Until now, only long preparation, corruption, lots of money, false propaganda and cruel terror had produced left-wing Communist revolutions. They tried to infiltrate our revolution also with obstructive agents, but they managed to succeed only in high government circles. They did not succeed among the people. In our revolution, the leaders came from the sons of the people. It was a tremendous moral defeat for the Soviet troops stationed in Hungary and the secret police, which served them, that they were defeated by a militarily untrained revolutionary army, 80% of whom were under 20 years of age. When we write about these things, we feel we are using Gergely's thoughts and words. When the invasion by the newly brought in Soviet military forces began on November 4th, the professional army, directed by the government and its highly placed infiltrated agents, soon capitulated. The Killián Barracks fell on the 4th, Uncle Szabó and his group held on at the Szénatér until 6 in the morning, but by then the firing commander of Corvin-Köz, Jancsi Falábú ("Peg-leg") had died of his wounds in Gergely's lap. It's true that 300,000 soldiers and 3,000 tanks attacked the little country, and joining those already in the country, concentrated their forces mainly on the capital. But those at Corvin- Köz and the centers under their command, as well as many independent groups fighting sporadically, fought on with joint determination until the 10th. Then the Russians deployed their heavy artillery, against which those at Corvin- Köz could not defend themselves. They gave up Corvin-Köz, to save the lives of the population and the fighters, but they fought on in scattered areas within the city until the 15th. Béla Király, commander of the national guard, wrote of them in his book published in 1981: "The basis of the fighters' success was tactics and ideology... An extraordinarily interesting phenomenon of military history occurred, namely, that supreme command over a successful revolutionary army was exercised not by a military body, but by the Ideal." It was, as the revolutionaries told Gergely, "Our homeland above everything." The revolution triumphed, and the Pongrátz brothers played a gigantic role in that victory. The fight for freedom, however, failed as a consequence of the enormous Soviet military force and due to betrayal by the West. Many books and studies have been written about the revolution, many valuable ones, but many harmful ones too. The most valuable however is Gergely's book, which he published in 1982. This book should have a place on every family's bookshelf, next to the Bible and Petőfi's poems. Outside of Hungary, where Aldous Huxley's books are required reading, it might be more useful to support the work of such a man of principle as Gergely, who fought in that small country against such an overwhelming force for the freedom of the world as well. To write an evaluation of Gergely, we need to refer to Antal Szerb's works and look up what he wrote of Petőfi for the sake of comparison. (Antal Szerb was a man of letters, well known throughout Europe, who became a martyr of Hitlerism, which is a twin of Communist dictatorship.) He writes thus: "Petőfi's descriptions have an inner, almost biographical, life, they are just as spontaneous as if he spoke of himself ... The extroverted Petőfi always drinks in the outside world with wide-open sensibilities, his consciousness is filled with pictures of the hereafter and his inner experiences inseparably intertwine with his outside impressions." Petőfi was attacked by his contemporaries because, instead of lofty poetry, he created lyric realism. He is certainly of the people, from the people, with the people, for the people. As there can be simple and spontaneous self-expression in poetry, so there can be realism in prose. Gergely, you did good work! Had your book been prevented from being published, or had you not written it, it would have been a loss to our nation. Even more - it would be a mortal sin! Antal Szerb wrote a very interesting theory about the prehistoric age, which Gergely stored up in his soul, and is a continuous and necessary fact, in the service of which he lived his life: "...it is much easier for them to see, to recognize intuitively that mysterious thing which differentiates the spirit of one people from another, that unique quiddity which is a goal at the same time as perhaps God's creating purpose for a nation: the eidetic." For Gergely, God, Country, Family and Comradeship are inseparable. In closing, we must mention that after Gergely returned to Hungary, his enemies caused him much difficulty, and even more heartache. Yet he died with peace in his heart, because he achieved his heart’s desire. In Budapest, the Party puppets spared no expense to hinder him in everything, but with the help, sacrifices and diligence of good Hungarian citizens, he produced something that gilded his name even more. He established a church in commemoration of 1956, a Freedom Fighters' Museum, and a Youth Camp where young people, who were deceived, and who were constantly lied to, might learn true Hungarian history. Gergely's biological life, the saturating power of cosmic forces and his mystical spirituality were in harmony, which could not be disturbed by the absurdities of the modem age. We thank you for your services. We hold your name in reverence, and we nurture your legacy. God be with you, great son of our nation! Károly Mákos and György Tar Translated br Erika Papp Faber Page 5
