Cultural representations of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956

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Although the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 failed in its efforts to oust the ruling Communist government of Hungary, the uprising provided inspiration for many artists, writers, poets, composers and filmmakers.

Contents

Film

Many movies and documentaries have been made about the revolution. They include:

A number films have also dealt with the famous Hungary-USSR water polo match at the 1956 Olympics, including Freedom's Fury , produced by Quentin Tarantino.

Music

Dmitri Shostakovich's Eleventh Symphony, written in 1957, although subtitled "The Year 1905" and purporting to be a musical description of the ill-fated democratic uprising in Russia in that year, is often considered a commentary on the events in Hungary. Shostakovich makes frequent use of early 20th-century Russian revolutionary songs about the cruelty of the Tsar and the longing for freedom, and vividly depicts the violent crushing of the 1905 revolution. To Soviet audiences of the time, the analogy with the Hungarian revolution was unmistakable. [4] [5]

"Avanti ragazzi di Buda" was published on 1966 by Pier Francesco Pingitore. It is a popular Italian song commemorating the events on the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, being known in Hungary as Előre budai srácok. [6] [7] [8]

Chess, a musical by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, with lyrics by Ulvaeus and Tim Rice, and book by Rice, references the uprising with the song "1956 - Budapest Is Rising". [9]

Literature

James Michener wrote the novel The Bridge at Andau while living in Austria during the period of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. He witnessed the wave of refugees who fled Hungary in November 1956 after the Soviet invasion and the arrests that followed. The book, one of Michener’s earliest works, describes the events before and after the uprising, based upon interviews with eyewitnesses, but characters' names are fictional to protect them and their families left in Hungary. [10]

In opposition to the successful works of those who sided with the Hungarian revolutionists, literature aimed at shifting the agenda of the initial revolution persisted as well. Within Hungarian society, the central Hungarian communist daily, Népszabadság , portrayed the event as a "counterrevolution." The three decades of coverage, from November 11, 1956 to November 11, 1986, worked to transcribe the revolt as violent, internationally pre-planned, and driven by criminals. By reshaping the identity of the Hungarian Revolution, the local governemnt was made to appear legitamate and pure within the intentions of returning to communist political framework in Hungary. [11]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungarian Revolution of 1956</span> Citizen rebellion in Communist Hungary repressed by the Soviet Union

The Hungarian Revolution of 1956, also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was an attempted countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the policies caused by the government's subordination to the Soviet Union (USSR). The uprising lasted 12 days before being crushed by Soviet tanks and troops on 4 November 1956. Thousands were killed and wounded and nearly a quarter of a million Hungarians fled the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Hungary</span> National flag

The national flag of Hungary is a horizontal tricolour of red, white and green. In this exact form, it has been the official flag of Hungary since 23 May 1957. The flag's form originates from national republican movements of the 18th and 19th centuries, while its colours are from the Middle Ages. The current Hungarian tricolour flag is the same as the republican movement flag of the United Kingdom and the colours in that form were already used at least since the coronation of Leopold II in 1790, predating the first use of the Italian Tricolour in 1797.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party</span> Ruling political party in Hungary from 1956 to 1989

The Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party was the ruling Marxist–Leninist party of the Hungarian People's Republic between 1956 and 1989. It was organised from elements of the Hungarian Working People's Party during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, with János Kádár as general secretary. The party also controlled its armed forces, the Hungarian People's Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungarian Working People's Party</span> Political party in Hungary

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The Symphony No. 11 in G minor, Op. 103, by Dmitri Shostakovich was written in 1957 and premiered by the USSR Symphony Orchestra under Natan Rakhlin on 30 October 1957. The subtitle of the symphony refers to the events of the Russian Revolution of 1905, which the symphony depicts. The first performance given outside the Soviet Union took place in London's Royal Festival Hall on 22 January 1958 when Sir Malcolm Sargent conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra. The United States premiere was performed by Leopold Stokowski conducting the Houston Symphony on 7 April 1958. The symphony was conceived as a popular piece and proved an instant success in the Soviet Union, his greatest one since the Leningrad Symphony fifteen years earlier. The work's popular success, as well as its earning him a Lenin Prize in April 1958, marked the composer's formal rehabilitation from the Zhdanov Doctrine of 1948.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of Hungary</span> Pattern of human activity and symbolism associated with Hungary and its people

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brücke von Andau</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gellért Hill</span> Hill in Budapest, Hungary

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<i>The Bridge at Andau</i>

The Bridge at Andau is a 1957 nonfiction book by the American author James Michener chronicling the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Living in Austria in the 1950s, Michener was at the border of Austria and Hungary during the period in which a significant wave of refugees fled Hungary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungarian People's Republic</span> 1949–1989 socialist republic in Central Europe

The Hungarian People's Republic was a one-party socialist state from 20 August 1949 to 23 October 1989. It was governed by the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, which was under the influence of the Soviet Union. Pursuant to the 1944 Moscow Conference, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin had agreed that after the war Hungary was to be included in the Soviet sphere of influence. The HPR remained in existence until 1989, when opposition forces brought the end of communism in Hungary.

The "Blood in the Water" match was a water polo match between Hungary and the USSR at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. The match took place on 6 December 1956 against the background of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, and saw Hungary defeat the USSR 4–0. The name was coined after Hungarian player Ervin Zádor emerged during the last two minutes with blood pouring from above his eye after being punched by Soviet player Valentin Prokopov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gergely Pongrátz</span> Hungarian revolution veteran

Gergely Pongrátz was a Hungarian revolutionary and prominent veteran of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. He was the commander of arguably the largest and perhaps the best-known group of fighters, at the revolution's strongest and most lengthy point of resistance, Budapest's Corvin Passage ; between 1 and 9 November 1956. Under his command, the Corvin Passage fighters destroyed Soviet armored vehicles, and resisted several waves of assault. Following the conflict, Pongrátz escaped capture and by 1957 had moved to the United States where he spent the majority of his exile until returning to Hungary in 1991. During his exile he was elected both Vice-Chairman and then Chairman of the Hungarian Freedom Fighters' Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungary–Soviet Union relations</span> Bilateral relations

Hungarian–Soviet relations were characterized by political, economic, and cultural interventions by the Soviet Union in internal Hungarian politics for 45 years, the length of the Cold War. Hungary became a member of the Warsaw Pact in 1955; since the end of World War II, Soviet troops were stationed in the country, intervening at the time of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Starting in March 1990, the Soviet Army began leaving Hungary, with the last troops being withdrawn on June 19, 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imre Pozsgay</span> Hungarian politician (1933–2016)

Imre András Pozsgay was a Hungarian Communist politician who played a key role in Hungary's transition to democracy after 1988. He served as Minister of Culture (1976–1980), Minister of Education (1980–1982) and Minister of State (1988–1990). He was also a Member of Parliament from 1983 to 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Budapest</span> UNESCO World Heritage Site in Central Hungary, Hungary

The city of Budapest was officially created on 17 November 1873 from a merger of the three neighboring cities of Pest, Buda and Óbuda. Smaller towns on the outskirts of the original city were amalgamated into Greater Budapest in 1950. The origins of Budapest can be traced to Celts who occupied the plains of Hungary in the 4th century BC. The area was later conquered by the Roman Empire, which established the fortress and town of Aquincum on the site of today's Budapest around AD 100. The Romans were expelled in the 5th century by the Huns, who were challenged by various tribes during the next several centuries. The Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin started at the end of the 9th century, and the Kingdom of Hungary was established at the end of the 11th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Béla Biszku</span> Hungarian politician (1921–2016)

Béla Biszku was a Hungarian communist politician, who served as Minister of the Interior from 1957 to 1961. He was charged of suspicion of committing war crimes during the suppression of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, becoming the first and to date only former top-official in Hungary who has been prosecuted because of political role in the communist era.

Children of Glory is a 2006 film directed by Krisztina Goda. It commemorates Hungary's Revolution of 1956 and the "Blood in the Water" match. Taking place in Budapest and at the Melbourne Olympic Games in October and November of that year, the film takes viewers into the passion and sadness of one of the most dramatic popular revolts of the twentieth century. In the same year Soviet tanks were violently suppressing the Revolution within Hungary, the Hungarian water polo team was winning over Russia in the Olympic pool in Melbourne, in what is sometimes described as the bloodiest water polo match in history. While telling the story of 1956 in part through fictional lead characters, the film-makers simultaneously recreated many of the key public events of the Revolution, including the huge demonstrations and the fighting in the streets of Budapest.

Pier Francesco Pingitore is an Italian director, screenwriter, playwright and author, and co-founder of Il Bagaglino theatre company.

"Avanti ragazzi di Buda" is an Italian anti-communist song. Written by Pier Francesco Pingitore and composed by Dimitri Gribanovski, it commemorates the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and is a widespread and well-known song in Italy, having some presence in Hungary as well.

References

  1. ↑ "LOVE (SZERELEM) REVIEW". The Digital Fix. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  2. ↑ Cockrell, Eddie (15 September 1999). "Sunshine". Variety . Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  3. ↑ La Salle, Mick (23 June 2000). "'Sunshine' Shines Through / Fiennes well-supported in beautiful, original epic". SF Gate . Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Wilson, Elizabeth (1994). "Chapter 6: The Thaw". Shostakovich: A Life Remembered. Princeton University Press. p. 550. ISBN   0-691-02971-7.
  5. ↑ NEWS from the American Hungarian Federation - Founded 1906
  6. ↑ Passa, Claudia (1 April 2020). "L'autore di 'Ragazzi di Buda': "Il mio inno contro il conformismo"". L'Occidentale (in Italian).
  7. ↑ ""Avanti ragazzi di Buda", ecco la storia della canzone. E torna virale nel giorno della rivolta (video)". Secolo d'Italia (in Italian). 23 October 2019.
  8. ↑ "Magyar állami kitüntetést kap az Előre budai srácok-dal szerzője". Magyar Hírlap (in Hungarian). 19 October 2020.
  9. ↑ The Guide to Musical Theatre: Chess
  10. ↑ Michener, James A. (1985). The Bridge at Andau (reissue ed.). New York: Fawcett. ISBN   0-449-21050-2.
  11. ↑ Sonnevend, Julia (2013). "COUNTERREVOLUTIONARY ICONS: The representation of the 1956 "counterrevolution" in the Hungarian communist press". Journalism Studies. 14 (3): 336–354. doi:10.1080/1461670X.2012.701913. ISSN   1461-670X.
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