Századok – 1998

Tanulmányok - Dombrády Lóránd: A hadba lépés felelősségéről III/517

A HADBA LÉPÉS FELELŐSSÉGÉRŐL 551 To prove this, the author introduces the closest antecendents of Hungary's entering the war, the views of the government and the high command concerning it, as well as their efforts and disagreement. Then he reconstructs the events following the incident at Kassa and the way how the Regent declared war against the Soviet Union. The role of Prime Minister Bárdossy is analyzed together with his helplessness in the face of Regent Horthy, who had already said the fatal words, and Werth Henrik, general of the infantry', his chief of the general staff, who had considerable influence on him. The reconstruction of the cabinet meeting convoked by Bárdossy for 26 June and held by the Court crucial from the point of view of establishing responsibility brings about fundamental changes in the readers' views about what happened there and proves that the Bárdossy trial was based on preconception. The author points out the conflicting and false statements in the protocol of the meeting prepared on order subsequently by recording secretary Bárczy István, making the accusation based on them groundless. It held, namely, that Bárdossy had falsified the original documents and forced first the cabinet, then the Lower House to vote for entering the war arbitrarily and independently of the Regent. The false protocols were subsequently supplemented by false written statements of Ministers never brought face to face with Bárdossy. The author proves their contradictions and distortions point by point, as well as their uselessness in establishing the truth. However, the People's Court did not find it necessary to prove its case and accepted the trumped up charges without reservation. It neglegted the rights of the accused and the rules of procedure, and found Bárdossy guilty. The prosecutors, who were just as biased against the accused as the whole tribunal, explained that Bárdossy was so obviously responsible for Hungary's entering the war that it did not need to be proved at all. He did not deserve mercy It cannot be denied that Prime Minister Bárdossy shared the responsibility for our entering the war, but he was not responsible for it alone. Still the Regent, who had the decisive say in the matter, and the chief of the general staff influencing him, as well as the members of Bárdossy's cabinet were relieved of the responsibility due to political intentions unknown even today. Realizing these intentions and the hopelessness of his case, Bárdossy did not raise the question of the responsibility of others and accepted his fate.