Kaján Imre (szerk.): Zalai Múzeum 20. (Zalaegerszeg, 2012)
Tanulmányok Asbóth Sándorról - Vida István Kornél: „Az Unió védelmében”. Asbóth Sándor az amerikai polgárháborúban
90 Vida István Kornél Historical Quarterly (1951/április). 225-242. 35 Dale COX: The Battle of Marianna, Florida. A szerző kiadása, Fort Smith, AR, 2007. 58-59. 36 Feltehetően a balul elsült lovasrohamra utalva írta - némileg igazságtalanul - a The Oregonian a külföldi katonai tehetséggel foglalkozó cikkében, hogy „Zágonyi és Asbóth merész lovasok voltak, alkalmasak arra, hogy vakmerő rohamot vezessenek, ám másra sem. ” (The Oregonian, 1897. márc. 6.) 37 Idézi: BESZEDITS 2007. 38 Medical and Surgical History of the Civil War. 8. kötet Broadfoot Publishing Co., Wilmington, N.C., 1991. 389. 39 A levelet idézi: The New York Times, 1864. nov. 26. 40 Uo. 41 A témáról a diplomáciai szolgálatot teljesítő magyarok (nem teljes) listájával lásd: Susan Kovalik Tully et al. The United States & Hungary: Paths of Diplomacy, 1848-2006. Washington, D.C. United States Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, Office of the Historian : U.S. Embassy at Budapest, 2007. 42 Medical History. 8. kötet. 389. 43 Jurg MEISTER: Francisco Solano Lopez: Nationalheld oder Kriegsverbrecher? Osnabrück: Biblio Vertrag, 345- 355. 44 Asbóth közvetítési kísérleteiről lásd. Harold F. PETERSON: Argentina and the United States, 1810-1960. State University of New York, New York, 1964, 196-198. 45 Senate Journal, 1870. máj. 23. 689. és Senate Journal, 1871. febr. 14. 280. 46 “Patriot Finally Comes Home: Hungarian Hero of Civil War is Buried in Arlington” In: Washington Post, 1990. okt. 24. ”In Defense of the Union”: Sándor Asbóth in the American Civil War The anniversary celebrations of the birthday of Sándor Asbóth almost co-incide with the 150th anniversary of the outbreak of the American Civil War. As he was probably the most prominent Hungarian participant of the war, and the last book-length study of the Hungarians’ involvement in the conflict was published nearly fifty years ago, no further excuse is needed to analyze his service in the Union Army and reevaluate its details wherever it seems to be necessary. In my paper, I argue that the available literature on the subject is not only out of date, but all the three books discussing it show myth-making tendencies — so typical of ethnic history writing. Both the numbers and contributions of the Hungarian Civil War participants were exaggerated, thus a distorted evaluation of the Hungarian contribution to the Union war effort has been presented. Asbóth was one of the first Hungarians to offer his service to the federal government, and he did his best to convince other Kossuth emigres to follow his example. He organized a brigade in New York City in which he attempted to gather Hungarian and foreign soldiers. His Civil War career, however, took a new course when he accepted the invitation of Gen. John Charles Frémont to serve under him as his Chief-of-Staff at the Department of West, to be followed by several other Hungarians including János Fiala and Károly Zágonyi. They all played a pre-eminent role in organizing the newly- formed units and training inexperienced volunteers. Fremont’s unconventional methods of appointing his officers, running his department, and particularly his premature emancipation proclamation, gained many enemies for him and soon resulted in his removal. Asbóth continued to serve under his successor. He got wounded in the battle of Pea Ridge (March 6-8, 1862) which forced him to go on sick leave for a while. After he returned, he was appointed to command the District of West Florida. In this position he made use of the services of several fellow Hungarian officers, and played a major role in organizing the liberated slaves and volunteering African Americans into effective fighting units. On an expedition to Marianna, FL, he was seriously wounded while personally leading a charge against the Confederate defensive barricade: one of the bullets caused a double-fracture of his arm, while another hit him in the face and, despite the best efforts of surgeons, proved to be irremovable, causing him considerable pain for the rest of his life. He was able to return to active service somewhat later, but his health remained frail. His services were recognized by his superiors: he was promoted to Brigadier-General in 1862, and then brevetted Major-General towards the end of the war. It was due to his distinguished service that President Andrew Johnson appointed him to U.S. minister to Argentina and Urugay. It was in Buenos Aires that he died on January 21,1868. Asbóth was undoubtedly one of the most prominent Hungarian officers serving in the American Civil War, and he played a major role in keeping together the Hungarian community in the United States as well as contributing to the Union war effort. His services, therefore, are deservedly recognized not only in Hungary, but in his adopted country, as well.
