The Eighth Tribe, 1981 (8. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1981-01-01 / 1. szám

January, 1981

THE EIGHTH TRIBE

Page 3

Zoltán Kőrössy:

HUNGARIAN ROYAL GENDARMERIE

February 14 of 1981 will mark the 100th anniversary of an organization of men little known outside the Hungarian sphere. I’m referring to the Hungarian Royal Gendarmerie, better known to all Hungarians as the Magyar Királyi Csendőrség. I feel it is fitting that we now take a few moments to become better acquainted with this small but decisive group of men.

Until the latter part of the 19th century, an effective police force outside the boundaries of the larger Hungarian cities was non-existent. Attempts were made at law enforcement by various groups such as the “betyárs,” Robin Hood type rogues, or “pandurs,” government armed local residents, usually betyárs but, in general, the residents of the rural areas were left at the mercy of the lawbreakers. With the apparent need for a national police force, legislation was enacted which brought about the formation in 1881 of the Hungarian Royal Gendarmerie. It became their responsibility to maintain law and order in all areas outside the jurisdiction of the city police and enforcement of all federal laws. Since Hungary is predominantly agricultural, the vast majority of the territory fell under the responsibility of the newly formed force. This task required a breed of hardy, tenacious, independent men being able to work under harsh conditions, using their own good judgment to administer the law. Men were found equal to the challenge and thus began the proud service of the Hungarian Csendőrség.

The men picked to serve in the Csendőrség were all volunteers from the Hungarian army, better known as the Honvédség. This system permitted beforehand knowledge of the quality of each man; therefore, only those candidates meeting the highest standards were accepted. It also eliminated the need for additional training in military tactics, which was very important, since in time of war, as in World War I and World War II, the Csendőrs were called upon to deal with partisans and to supplement units of the depleted Honvéd forces. Each man was put on probation while undergoing didactic and field training. At the end of the training, final exams were given and on the basis of the results, plus competence and personal evaluation, a final decision was made as to his acceptance.

Initially, officers serving in the Csendőrség were recruited from the Honvédség much the same as the enlisted men. Eventually, a Csendőr officer academy was established in Budapest. Acceptance into officer training was very competitive, for being a Csendőr officer was a coveted title. Just to give an example of the competition, in 1936 1,500 applicants applied for 21 positions. As a means of simplifying the selection, qualification standards were upgraded which resulted in a relatively high proportion of candidates holding doctorate degrees. All candidates were required to first attend the Ludovika Military Academy in Budapest for one year of accelerated training and then to undergo an additional U/2 years training at the Csendőr Academy. With the completion of the 2% years, qualified cadets were commissioned as second lieu-