Hungarian Heritage Review, 1987 (16. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1987-02-01 / 2. szám
'Hungarian ^Heritage (Ealrnimr- by -DR. ANDRAS BOROS-KAZAI 1 • 997: Prince GEZA died in Esztergom. His rule was made memorable by strengthening central authority over the rebellious Hungarian tribes, making peace with his European neighbors, and compelling his people to accept Christianity. In 974, he and his family became Christians, though he continued to live according to the old beliefs. His son Vajk took on the Christian name István and was crowned the first king of Hungary. 1849: Russian troops entered Transylvania to support the Habsburgs in their effort to subjugate Hungary. 1878: The architect ALFRED HAJOS (nee: Arnold Guttman), the first among Hungary’s numerous Olympic champions, was born in Budapest. At the 1896 Olympic Games held in Athens he took first place in the 100 and (!) 1,200 meter free-style swimming events. His design for a stadium was awarded the silver medal in the 1924 intellectual Olympics. His best known architectural work is the indoor swimming facility on Budapest’s Margit Island. 2 • 1871: The reform politician and novelist Baron JÓZSEF EÖTVÖS died in Pest. 1960: JENO HUSZKA, the composer of popular operettas (Prince Bob [1902], Gul Baba [1905], Baroness Lilly [1919]), died in Budapest. 3 • 1116: King KALMAN, the conqueror of Croatia and Dalmatia, who earned his popular name (“the Bookish”) with his intellect and moderation, died. 1842: SÁNDOR BOLONI FARKAS, the traveller and economic writer who authored the first Hungarian book about America (Utazas Eszak- Amerikaban [1834]) died in Kolozsvár (today Cluj, Romania). 1881: The engineer-designer JÓZSEF GALAMB was born in Mako (Csongrad county). After working for various automobile manufacturers in Hungary and Germany, in 1903 he emigrated to the United States. By 1905 he was working for the Detroit Ford works; in 1908 they began manufacturing his design, the MODEL T Ford, characterized by ingenious details and reliable operation. His other important FEBRUARY design was the Fordson tractor (1918) which served as model for tractor manufacturing in America. He was a pioneer of the assembly-line, and his transmission- and ignition-designs contributed to the improvement of the automobile. 4 • 1573: The Jesuit theologian GYÖRGY KALDY was born in Nagyszombat (today: Trnava, Czechoslovakia). His best known work, the first Catholic translation of the Holy Scripture into Hungarian, was published in 1626 with the support of Cardinal Peter Pázmány and the Transylvanian Prince Gabor Bethlen. 5 • 1788: The Romantic poet SÁNDOR KISFALUDY was born in Tet (Gyor-Sopron county). 6 • 1711: The legendary kuruc brigadier ADAM BALOGH was executed in Buda by his Habsburg captors. 7 • 1933: One of the most eloquent spokesmen of modem Hungary, the politician Count ALBERT APPONYI died in Geneva, Switzerland. 8 • 1954: The engineer-inventor GYÖRGY JENDRASSIK, who perfected the Diesel-engine and the gasturbine, died in London. 9 • 1880: LIPOT FEJER, one of this century’s greatest mathematicians, was born in Pecs. 1957: MIKLÓS HORTHY, Hungary’s Regent between 1920 and 1944, died in exile at Estoril, Portugal. 10 • 1810: The Lutheran clergyman MATYAS RAT, editor of the first Hungarian-language newspaper, the Magyar Hirmondo (1783-1786) died in Gyor. 1947: The Paris Peace Treaty was signed between the Allied Powers and Hungary. Some of the Treaty’s salient points were: The territory of Hungary was reduced to less that what it was in 1938; the size of the Hungarian armed forces was limited to 65,000 persons; all allied forces were to leave Hungarian territory, except for the Soviets, who were granted the right to maintain an armed presence in Hungary in order to assure communication with their troops in Austria. 11 • 1811: Count LÁSZLÓ TELEKI, Kossuth’s ambassador to Paris and one of the most consistent spokesmen for national independence, was born in Pest. 1898: The physicist LEO SZILARD was bom in Budapest. 12 • 1854: The restaurateur EMIL GERBEAUD, whose fine Budapest pastryshop was recently re-named in his honor, was born in Geneva, Switzerland. 13 • 1888: The writer GEZA CSATH was born in Szabadka (today: Subotica, Yugoslavia). 14 • 1806: Count LAJOS BATTHIANY, the prime minister of the 1848 independent Hungarian government, was born in Pozsony (today: Bratislava, Czechoslovakia). 15 • 1833: Imre Madach’s historical drama, the “Bank Ban” premiered in Kassa (today: Kosice, Czechoslovakia). 1846: The Rákóczi March of Hector Berlioz premiered in the National Theatre in Budapest. 18 • 1703:Countess ILONA ZRÍNYI, wife of Prince Imre Thököly and one of the organizers of the early kuruc movement, died while exiled in Turkey. 1825: MÓR JÓKAI, one of the most popular of Hungary’s writers, was born in Komarom (today: Komarno, Czechoslovakia). 20 • 1790: Emperor Joseph II died in Vienna. 1844: The painter MIHÁLY MUNKÁCSI (nee: Lieb) was born in Munkács (today: Mukachevo, USSR). 21 • 1812: The first permanent Hungarian-language theater opened in the Buda Rondella. 23 • 1443: KING MATYAS was born in Kolozsvár. 1828: The poet MIHÁLY FAZEKAS, the creator of Matthew the Goose-Herd (Ludas Matyi) died in Debrecen. 27 • 1960: The engineer OSZKÁR ASBOTH, one of the pioneers in the development of helicopter, died in Budapest. 28 • 1956: The mathematician FRIGYES RIESZ died in Budapest. In addition to being instrumental in making the University of Szeged one of the centers of mathematical research, his achievements include the so-called Fischer-Riesz theorem of real functions, his work on the development of abstract space theory and functional analysis. FEBRUARY 1987 HUNGARIAN HERITAGE REVIEW 15
