Századok – 1997

Tanulmányok - Zeidler Miklós: A Magyar Revíziós Liga. Trianontól Rothermere-ig II/303

352 ZEIDLER MIKLÓS publications sharply criticizing the Trianon peace treaty and the weaknesses of the regimes in Central Europe in order to influence competent foreign political circles and the public opinion of other countries, the secretariats of the Leage in foreign countries entertained personal relations with politicians, scientists, and representatives of the press there. The maintainance of the anti-Trianon attitude of the public at home and the support of millions served to back up propaganda abroad. The trends and intensity of the activities of the Leage were determined by the current situation in world politics. Tradition and political affinities made it turn toward the Western world, primarily Great Britain and Italy. In the 1930s German-language propaganda gained major importance, since it became vital to take up the struggle against Czechoslovak, later Slovak and Rumanian campaigns against frontier revision. The methods the League used in its propaganda campaign were, however, not quite adequate. It enumerated all arguments pertaining to history, cultural antropology, national security, economy, law, geography, and defense that seemed suitable to criticize the Trianon peace treaty and to arouse sympathy toward Hungary. The sometimes outdated, irrelevant and even repugnant reasoning of the League—for example the vulgar comparison Jesus Christ and „Hungary on the Cross"—was outright provoking at times and produced just the opposite effect. The division of labour between the government and the Leage during their cooperation of more than a decade and a half inevitable led to conflicts, too. The prudent and more delicate measures of official diplomacy could even be frustrated by the loud and awkward propaganda of these self-made politicians. Despite these problems, the government made use of the preparatory activities of the Leage in the press, and its secretaries abroad played an important role in peace feelings during the Second World War. The German occupation of Hungary in March, 1944 put an end not only to the Hungarian attempts at a separate peace but also to the existance of the Hungarian Frontier Readjustment Leage that had by that time become one the main centers of anti-Nazi activities.