The Eighth Tribe, 1975 (2. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1975-11-01 / 11. szám
November, 1975 THE EIGHTH TRIBE Page 3 HUNGARIANS IN AMERICA Reprinted from: The Hungarians In America 1583-1974; by Joseph Széplaki. The book can be ordered from: Oceana Publications, Inc., Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. 10522. $6.00. THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AND SUBSEQUENT YEARS (1776-1848) 1777 One hundred forty-one Hungarians fought in the Revolution under the American flag. Since it was extremely difficult to obtain an officer’s commission in the new American army, many additional Hungarians fought under the French flag in the auxiliary forces sent by France to aid the Americans in their struggle for independence. January 13. Michael de Kovats, a Hungarian officer, offered his services to Benjamin Franklin in Paris, but Franklin declined his offer. Kovats then came to America and joined the Pulaski Legion, where he was appointed Colonel Commandant of the Legion on April 8, 1778. He helped in the organization of the cavalry which, even according to English opinion, was “the best cavalry the rebels ever had.” Kovats died on the battlefield on May 11, 1779. His memorials can be seen at Charleston’s Citadel, in Washington, D. C., and in New York. 1780 Lauzun’8 Legion of Foreign Volunteers arrived on July 13, 1780, at Newport. The legion was part of the auxiliary forces sent by France under the treaty of alliance with the United States. One hundred forty hussars (cavalrymen) in Lauzun’s legion were, in all probability, Hungarians. The records explicitly mention at least two Hungarians serving in Lauzun’s legion. One is John Polereczky, a major of Lauzun’s Polish lancers; the other is Francis Benyowsky, a lieutenant of Lauzun’s hussars, who was the brother of the famous traveler and soldier of fortune, Count Mauritius Augustus Benyowsky. Francis Benyowsky died here in 1789. 1782 Count Mauritius Augusztus Benyowsky, traveler and adventurer of legendary fame, presented a plan to General Washington about raising and transporting over three thousand foreign soldiers to serve the United States. Congress declined his offer. He left America but returned in 1784. His second expedition to the island of Madagascar was made possible with the financial help of several merchants in Baltimore. 1798 Several merchants from Hungary chose New Orleans for their new home. The first settler was Benjamin S. Spitzer, a Hungarian ship captain, who opened a large shop in town and sought to establish trade relations between the United States and Hungary. 1807 Maurice Fürst, a Hungarian-born engraver, settled in America and gained recognition. 1815 Alexander Farkas de Bölöni, a Hungarian traveler, met a few Hungarian Americans during his journey in the United States. He mentioned Francis Müller from Pozsony, whose uncle, Stephan Bock, had also come to America in 1815 and set up a fur trade in New Orleans. 1818 The Hungarian Gáspár Printz arrived in America in 1803. In his letter of January 7, 1818, he proudly described his new homeland as “a free country, without kings, ruled by presidents.. Nobody is more noble than the other since all of us are nobles. Here people do not greet each other humbly, the poor is the same as the rich. Our country is a free republic....” 1820 Mr. Schwätzer, born in Szekszard, Hungary, immigrated to the United States. He established the first Hungarian wine cellar in New York, becoming the initiator of Hungarian-American trade. 1829 Dr. Charles Luzenberg from Sopron, Hungary, came to New Orleans in 1829 and joined the medical staff of Charity Hospital. Subsequently, he became the founder and the first president of the New Orleans Medical Society. 1831 Alexander Farkas de Bölöni traveled during this year over most of America. Upon his return to Hungary, he published a book entitled Utazás Északamerikában (Journey in North America). He wrote both perceptively and sympathetically about the political, economic, and cultural conditions in the United States. The book was influential in the Hungarian reform movement during an era of national revival. Bölöni, together with two other Hungarian travelers, paid his respects to President Jackson. As far as we know, they were the first Hungarians to be received in the White House.
