Századok – 2013
TANULMÁNYOK - Urbán Aladár: Vasvári Pál kritikai életrajzához. Források és tanulmányok Vasvári Pálról V/1159
VASVÁRI PÁL KRITIKAI ÉLETRAJZÁHOZ 1219 TOWARDS A CRITICAL BIOGRAPHY OF PÁL VASVÁRI Sources and Studies on Pál Vasvári by Aladár Urbán Summary The study presents the activities of Pál Vasvári (1826-1849), one of the major protagonists of the revolution at Pest on 15 March 1848, then university student, from March to September 1848 on the basis of his surviving papers. In the stormy days of March Vasvári came to considerable fame through his orations. At the popular assemblies he had to mobilize against Vienna, since the court hesitated to sanction the act on the establishment of a responsible Hungarian government. On 14 April it was Vasvári who, in the name of the revolutionary youth, saluted the government arriving to Pest after the closing of the diet at Pressburg. The students of the university at Pest wanted Vasvári, a popular, good lecturer of great historical erudition, to become their teacher instead of the obscure and boring professors. Vasvári himself applied for a (private) university lecturership, but his application was turned down by József Eötvös, minister of religion and public education. Vasvári was one of the organisers of the mass protest against general Lederer, captain-in-chief of Buda, which was dispersed by the military without previous warning. In the middle of June he was appointed by Kossuth as secretary in the ministry of finances. In late August and early September ha played a leading role at the sessions of the Egalitarian Association. On 28 September he was the courier of prime minister Batthyány with the army opposing the Croatians, from where he brought reports to the parliament and the capital.
