Fazekas Csaba: Palóczy László beszédei és írásai 1848-1849 (Miskolc, 1998)

The Speeches and Writings of László Palóczy (1848-1849) Summary in English

The Speeches and Writings of László Palóczy (1848-1849) — Summary — 'Seeing this old, serious man in the president's seat of the Parliament, one would think that Pestalozzi is sitting among his little ones' - said a voice of praise about one of the main figures of the 1848-49 revolution and war of independence, László Palóczy (1783-1861). Though he was not in the centre of the events, still he is one of those who endured to the end, till the collapse in August 1849, taking an active part in the revolutionary transformation - while the quick series of events made their ways of thinking also transform. László Palóczy was born in Miskolc in a gentry family with several Calvinist pastors among his ancestors. This fact definitely determined his long career. After finishing his law studies, the turn of the century finds him serving Borsod county, where according to the traditions of the time he got up the steps of the office apparatus: first judge of the Court of Appeal, deputy clerk, county recorder and then the chief officer of the county. He became known even beyond the boundaries of his county as an energetic clerk of wide horizon. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in his county in 1826, then he took part in the work of the national committee. That experience, Széchenyi's book 'Hitel' ('Credit') and the consequences of the cholera epidemic in 1831 made him - as many other gentries of the time - realize, that there is a need for a change. Being a leading figure of the reform opposition from the beginning of the 1832-36 session of Parliament, he was a typical example of how to get - as many others also did - from the traditional opposition to the group which demanded civil society even if it meant the abolition of privileges. He became a rather popular speaker in the Parliament, his suggestive speeches made according to the rules of rhetoric, won several supporters for the reforms, arousing the interest not only of his contemporaries, but also that of the secret police. The opposition party made good use of the intelligence and really remarkable memory of this 'walking encyclopedia' because he added supplementary facts of law and history to his speeches, made on the different aspects of civil reforms, (for example the rights of Hungarian language, fee simple, the freedom of religion and conscience). They enjoyed his speeches in the council chambers, as well as in the meetings and socials of the party. Palóczy was also a popular figure of the opposition party as a speaker and recording secretary in the 1839-40 and 1843-44 diets in Pozsony, a representative of the - perhaps historically less known - 'second line' of public life in the reform era. People who can be ranged here, clearly were not in the spotlight in the sense as eg.: Kossuth and Deák were, nevertheless - besides working hard as MP-s - they took a serious part in carrying out the programme of the opposition party on important political forums. László Palóczy all his life believed it was as important to represent the matter of civil reforms in the Hungarian public as in his homeland. Palóczy, who was known as the 'grey haired hero'^ wanted to retire from public life entirely in 1844, but the events of the spring of 1848 awakened his activity and as an experienced man of the oppo-