User:Captain-tucker/Adoption Center/6 and Hungarian Defence Forces: Difference between pages
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{{Infobox National Military |
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Another interesting part of Wikipedia is the Did You Know (DYK) program. This is a list of a short and interesting facts, called a hook (up to 200 characters) from new or expanded articles. These hooks are displayed on the main Wikipedia page. You job in this task is to read and learn the rules of the DYK program and then verify one DYK hook meets all of the projects rules. It's not hard. Here is what you need to do: |
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|country= Hungary |
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<ol> |
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|image= |
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<li> Read the Did You Know rules found [[Wikipedia:Did_you_know#The_DYK_Rules|here]].</li> |
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|caption=Coat of arms of Honvédség |
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<li> Go to the Did You Know submission [[T:DYK|page]] and locate a DYK entry that has not been verified. Open up the article in a new window. You will need to verify all of the aspects of the rules for the hook provided. To make it easier to check the number of characters in an article you may want to install [[User talk:Dr pda/prosesize.js|User talk:Dr pda/prosesize.js]]'s script in your monobook.js file. Let me know if you have any questions about installing this script. This is a really a lesson in itself.</li> |
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|age=18 |
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<li>If the hook you selected meets all of the rules you need to add your verification on the DYK [[Template talk:Did you know]] page. First open up the DYK [[Template talk:Did you know]] page in a window. Find your hook and open up the edit section for that hooks section in another window. Find your hook in the edit window and enter a : then a * to indent and bullet your verification. Then its common practice to add a check mark image, [[Image:Symbol confirmed.svg|18px]]. you do this by inserting the following wiki code <nowiki> {{subst:DYKtick}}</nowiki>. Then say something like "Date, Size, Reference verified" or some other comment to say that you verified the hook. Don't forget to sign your username and make sure that when you add your Edit Summary you enter in the link to the hook and then say "good" or "verified". For example <nowiki>[[My first DYK]] - Good</nowiki>.</li> |
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|manpower_age=15–49 |
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<li>If the hook you have chosen does not meet the rules you will need to perform a similar process as a good hook but instead use one of these three symbols. Make sure that you specify in detail any issues with the hook after the symbol. By reading the DYK page you should be able to follow the examples of the other editors who have reviewed hooks before you: |
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|manpower_data=2005 est. |
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::[[Image:Symbol question.svg|18px]]<nowiki> {{subst:DYK?}}</nowiki>-Use this to as a question about the hook |
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|available=2,660,000 |
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::[[Image:Symbol possible vote.svg|18px|This article's hook is unsourced or too long or there are other content issues]]<nowiki> {{subst:DYK?no}}</nowiki> - Use this if the hook fails to meet some criteria but can probably be fixed easily |
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|fit=2,000,000 |
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::[[Image:Symbol delete vote.svg|18px]]<nowiki> {{subst:DYKno}}</nowiki> - Use this is the hook does not meet the criteria.</li> |
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|reaching=90,300 |
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<li>If the hook did not meet the DYK rules you will have to make sure that you watch that page as the person who entered the hook will most likely respond by fixing the hook or the article or make some response to your comment. So you want to watch for that hook and respond. If they fix the hook/article you can then add in the [[Image:Symbol confirmed.svg|18px]]<nowiki> {{subst:DYKtick}}</nowiki> with a comment and edit summary as in the step above.</li> |
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|active=29,780 (2008) |
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<li>Please add a new section to your adoption page and add diff's each time you edit the DYK page. Good Luck |
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|amount=[[USD|$]]1,350 billion (2007), but 2010: 1,612 billion USD (future plan) |
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</ol> |
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|percent_GDP=1.2% (2006 est.) |
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}} |
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The '''Military of Hungary''', or "Hungarian Armed Forces" currently has two branches, the "[[Hungarian Ground Forces|Hungarian Ground Force]]" and the "[[Hungarian Air Force]]." |
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The Hungarian Ground Force (or Army) is known as the "Corps of Homeland Defenders" (''Honvédség''). This term was originally used to refer to the revolutionary army established by [[Lajos Kossuth]] and the National Defence Committee of the Revolutionary Hungarian Diet in September 1848 during the [[1848 Hungarian Revolution|Hungarian Revolution]]. In accordance with the [[Ausgleich|Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867]], the [[Magyars|Hungarians]] were allowed to have their own forces for homeland defence integrated within the Imperial Forces. The ''Honvédség'' became a specifically Hungarian Army within the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]]. |
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The term ''Honvédség'' is the name of the [[Hungary|Hungarian]] military since 1848 referring to its purpose (''véd'' in ''Honvéd'') of defending the country. The Hungarian Army is called ''Magyar Honvédség''. The rank equal to a Private is a ''Honvéd''. |
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The Hungarian Air Force is the [[air force]] branch of the Hungarian Army. |
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== History == |
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{{main|Military history of Hungary }} |
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=== Ancient, medieval, and early modern military === |
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{{main|Kingdom of Hungary in the Middle Ages|Ottoman Hungary|Royal Hungary|Transylvania}} |
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[[Image:Hungarian horse archers.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Horse archer presentation in [[Hungary]]]] |
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The Hungarian tribes of ''[[Árpád]] vezér'' who came to settle in the Carpathian Basin were noted for their fearsome [[light cavalry]], who conducted frequent [[raids]] throughout much of [[Western Europe]] (as far as present-day [[Spain]]), maintining their military supremacy with long range and rapid-firing [[reflex bow]]s. Not until the introduction of well-regulated, plate-armored knight heavy cavalry could German monarchs stop the Hungarian armies. |
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During the Árpáds the light cavalry based army was transformed slowly into a western-style one. The light cavalry lost its privileged position, replaced by a feudal army formed mainly from heavy cavalry. |
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The Hungarian field armies were drawn up into an articulated formation (as it happened in [[Battle of Przemysl|Battle of Przemysl- 1099]], [[Battle at Lajta| Battle at Leitha- 1146]], [[Battle of Morvamezo|Battle of Morvamezo- 1278]], 1349), in three main [[battle (formation)]] (1146, 1278, 1349). According to the contemporary sources and later speculations, the first line was formed by light cavalry archers ([[Battle of Oslava|Battle of Oslava- 1116]], 1146, 1260, 1278). Usually they started the battle followed by a planned retreat (1116, 1146, [[Battle of Kroisennbrunn|Battle of Kroisennbrunn- 1260]]). The major decisive battles of the Hungarian army were placed in the second or third lines consisted mainly of the most valuable parts of the army - in general heavy cavalry (1146, 1278, 1349). |
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The commanders of the Hungarian Kingdom's army used different tactics, based on a recognition of their own and the enemies' ([[Holy Roman Empire]], Pechenegs, Uzes, Cumans, Mongols, Byzantine Empire) abilities and deficiencies. |
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The Hungarian knight army had its golden age under King [[Louis I of Hungary|Louis the Great]], who himself was a famed warrior and conducted successful campaigns in [[Italy]] due to family matters (his younger brother married Joan I, Queen of Naples who murdered him later.) King [[Matthias Corvinus]] maintained very modern mercenary-based royal troops, called the ''Black Army''. King Matthias favoured ancient artillery (catapults) as opposed to cannons, which were the favourite of his father, [[Johannes Hunyadi]] the ''ottoman-beater'', victor of the [[Siege of Nándorfehérvár]] in 1456. |
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During the Ottoman invasion of Central Europe (between late 1300s and circa 1700) Hungarian soldiers protected fortresses and launched light cavalry attacks against the Turks (see [[hussar]]s). The northern fortress of [[Eger]] was famously defended in the autumn of 1552 during the 39 day [[Siege of Eger]] against the combined force of two Ottoman armies numbering circa 120,000 men and 16 ultra-heavy siege guns. The victory was very important, because two much stronger forts of [[Szolnok]] and [[Temesvár]] had fallen quickly during the summer. Public opinion attributed Eger's success to the all-Hungarian garrison, as the above two forts have fallen due to treason by the foreign mercenaries manning them. In 1596, Eger fell to the Ottomans for the same reason. |
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In the 1566 [[Battle of Szigetvár]], [[Nikola Šubić Zrinski|Miklós Zrínyi]] defended [[Szigetvár]] for 30 days against the largest Ottoman army ever seen up to that day, and died leading his remaining few soldiers on a final suicide charge to become one of the best known national heroes. His great-grandson, [[Miklós Zrínyi]], poet and general became of the better known stratagems of 1660s. In 1686, the capital city [[Buda]] was freed from the Ottomans by an allied Christian army composed of Hungarian, Austrian and Western European troops, each roughly 1/3rd of the army. The Habsburg then annexed Hungary. |
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===Habsburg Hungarian military=== |
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{{main|History of Hungary 1700-1919}} |
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[[Image:Than tapiobicskei utközet2 1849 aprilis 4.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Hungarian hussars in battle at [[Revolutions of 1848 in Hungary|Hungarian Revolution of 1848.]]]] |
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Under Habsburg rule, Hungarian [[hussars]] rose to international fame and served as a model for light cavalry in many European countries. Hundreds of thousands of forcibly enrolled Hungarian males served 12 years or more as line infantry during the 1700s-1800s in the Austrian Imperial Army. |
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Two independence wars interrupted this era, that of Prince [[Francis II Rákóczi]] between 1703 and 1711 and that of [[Lajos Kossuth]] in 1848–1849. Both times Hungarian armies were crushed by the Habsburgs, but the second time not until the help of mighty Czarist Russian armies was summoned to purge [[Józef Bem]]'s second army from Transylvania, opening the path into the heart of Hungary. [[Sándor Petőfi]], the great Hungarian poet became a [[missing in action|MIA]] in the [[Battle of Segesvár]]. |
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=====World War I===== |
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{{main|Hungary in World War I}} |
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Huge numbers of Hungarians served and fell in [[World War I]], especially on the [[Eastern Front (World War I)|Eastern Front]] and in the battles fought at [[Isonzo]] on the [[Italian Campaign (World War I)|Italian Front]]. |
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After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire in late 1918, the Red Army of the Hungarian commune-state ([[Hungarian Soviet Republic]]) conducted successful campaigns to protect the borders. However, the Hungarians Reds were eventually crushed by the Romanian, French and American Army, in the spring of 1919, during the Battle of Tisza. |
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When Serbian and French troops had broken the [[Thessaloniki]] front-line, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria were finally defeated. This way, Hungary came under occupation of [[Romania]]n, [[Serbia]]n, [[America (country)|America]]n, and [[France|French]] troops. |
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The leaving Romanian army pillaged the country: livestock, machinery and agricultural products were carried to Romania in hundreds of freight cars. [http://epa.niif.hu/00700/00775/00014/109-113.html] |
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After World War I, in accordance with the [[Trianon peace treaty|Trianon Treaty]], the [[Hungarian Ground Forces|Hungarian Army]] was limited to 35,000 men, there was to be no conscription, and the army was forbidden from having any tanks. The Hungarians were also not allowed to have an air force. |
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===Mid-twentieth century=== |
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{{main|Hungary between the two world wars}} |
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During the 1930s and early 1940s, Hungary was totally preoccupied with the idea of regaining the vast territories and huge amount of population lost in the [[Trianon peace treaty]] at [[Versailles]] in 1920. This required strong armed forces to defeat the neighbouring states and this was something Hungary could not afford. Instead, the Hungarian Regent, Admiral [[Miklós Horthy]], made an alliance with German dictator [[Adolf Hitler]]'s [[Third Reich]]. In exchange for this alliance and via the [[Vienna Awards]], Hungary received back parts of its territories (lost due to the Trianon Treaty) from Yugoslavia, Romania, and Czechoslovakia. Hungary was to pay dearly during and after [[World War II]] for these temporary gains. |
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In March 1939, in order to gain territory {{Fact|date=March 2008}}, Hungary launched an invasion of the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] during the brief [[Slovak-Hungarian War]], to reclaim a part of the territory lost in the [[Treaty of Trianon]]. |
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The peacetime strength of the [[Hungarian Ground Forces|Hungarian Army]] was 80,000 men. <ref> Page 207, Mollo, Andrew, ''The Armed Forces of World War II'', Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4 </ref> On [[1 March]] [[1940]], Hungary organized its [[Hungarian Ground Forces|ground forces]] into three field armies. The Hungarian Army fielded the [[First Army (Hungary)|Hungarian First Army]], the [[Hungarian Second Army]], and the [[Hungarian Third Army]]. With the exception of the independent "Fast Moving Army Corps" (''[[Gyorshadtest]]''), all three Hungarian field armies were initially relegated to defensive and occupation duties within the newly enlarged Hungarian state. |
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=====World War II===== |
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{{main|Hungary during the Second World War}} |
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In November 1940, Hungary signed the [[Tripartite Pact]] and became a member of the [[Axis powers|Axis]] with [[Nazi Germany]] and [[Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)|Fascist Italy]]. |
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In April 1941, in order to gain territory, Hungary joined the Germans in the [[invasion of Yugoslavia]]. |
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On [[22 June]] [[1941]], elements of the [[Hungarian Ground Forces|Hungarian Army]] (''[[Hungarian Ground Forces|Honvéd]]'' or ''[[Hungarian Ground Forces|Honvédség]]'') support the German invasion of the [[Soviet Union]], [[Operation Barbarossa]]. In the late summer of 1941, the Hungarian "Fast Moving Army Corps" (''[[Gyorshadtest]]''} scored a huge success against the Soviets at the [[Battle of Uman]]. A little more than a year later and contrasting sharply with the success at Uman, was the near total devastation of the [[Hungarian Second Army]] on banks of the [[Don River]] in December 1942 during the [[Battle for Stalingrad]]. |
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During 1943, the [[Hungarian Second Army]] was re-built. The re-built army even experienced some success of its own. In late 1944, as part of ''Panzerarmee Fretter-Pico'', it participated in the destruction of a Soviet mechanized group at the [[Battle of Debrecen]]. But this success proves too costly in men and materials. Unable to re-build again, the [[Hungarian Second Army]] was disbanded towards the end of 1944. |
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To keep Hungary as an ally, the Germans occupied Hungary in March 1944 ([[Operation Margarethe]]). However, during the [[Warsaw Uprising]], Hungarian troops refused to participate. <ref> Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, ''The Armed Forces of World War II'', Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4 </ref> |
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On [[15 October]] [[1944]], the Germans forced Horthy to abdicate ([[Operation Panzerfaust]]) and pro-Nazi [[Ferenc Szálasi]] was made Prime Minister by the Germans. |
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On [[28 December]] [[1944]], a provisional government was formed with [[Béla Miklós]] as its Prime Minister. Miklós was the commander of the [[Hungarian First Army]]. He immediately ousted Prime Minister [[Ferenc Szálasi]]'s government but most of the First Army sided with the Germans. The Germans, Szálasi, and pro-German Hungarian forces loyal to Szálasi fought on. |
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The Red Army completed the encirclement of Budapest on [[29 December]] [[1944]] and the [[Battle of Budapest]] began and continued into February 1945. Most of what remained of the [[Hungarian First Army]] was destroyed about 200 kilometers north of Budapest between [[1 January]] and [[16 February]] [[1945]]. |
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On [[20 January]] [[1945]], representatives of the provisional government of [[Béla Miklós]] signed an armistice in Moscow. But forces loyal to Szálasi continued to fight on. |
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On [[2 February]] [[1945]], the strength of the Hungarian Army was 214,465 men, but about 50,000 of these had been formed into unarmed labor battalions. <ref> Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, ''The Armed Forces of World War II'', Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4 </ref> The [[Battle of Budapest|siege of Budapest]] ended with the surrender of the city on [[13 February]]. But, while the German forces in Hungary were generally in a state of defeat, the Germans had one more surprise for the Soviets. |
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In early March 1945, the Germans launch [[Operation Frühlingserwachen|the Lake Balaton Offensive]] with support from the Hungarians. This offensive was almost over before it began. By [[19 March]] [[1945]], Soviet troops had recaptured all the territory lost during a 13-day German offensive. <ref>''Page 182, The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan'', Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047</ref> |
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After the failed offensive, the Germans in Hungary were defeated. Most of what remained of the [[Hungarian Third Army]] was destroyed about 50 kilometers west of Budapest between [[16 March]] and [[25 March]] [[1945]]. Officially, Soviet operations in Hungary ended on [[4 April]] [[1945]] when the last German troops were expelled. |
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Some pro-fascist Hungarians like Szálasi retreated with the Germans into Austria and Czechoslovakia. During the very last phase of the war, [[Fascist]] Hungarian forces fought in [[Vienna Offensive|Vienna]], [[Battle of Breslau (1945)|Breslau]], [[Kostrzyn nad Odrą|Küstrin]], and along the [[Oder River]]. <ref> Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, ''The Armed Forces of World War II'', Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4 </ref> |
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On [[7 May]] [[1945]], [[General]] [[Alfred Jodl]], the German [[Chief of Staff]], signed the document of unconditional surrender for all German forces. Jodl signed this document during a ceremony in [[France]]. On [[8 May]], in accordance wit the wishes of the [[Soviet Union]], the ceremony was repeated in Germany by [[General]] [[Wilhelm Keitel]]. On [[11 June]], the Allies agreed to make [[9 May]] [[1945]] the official "Victory in Europe" day. <ref>''Page 298, The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan'', Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047</ref> Szálasi and many other pro-fascist Hungarians were captured and ultimately returned to Hungary's provisional government for trial. |
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===Warsaw Pact=== |
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[[Image:Hungarian military police summer uniform (enlisted, 1965-2005).jpg|thumb|right|80px|Uniform of the Hungarian People's Army (''Magyar Néphadsereg''): Hungarian military police summer uniform (enlisted, private, 1965-2005)]] |
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During the Socialist and the [[Warsaw Pact]] era (1955–1989), the entire 200,000 strong [[Southern Group of Forces]] was garrisoned in Hungary, complete with artillery, tank regiments, air force and missile troops (with nuclear weapons). It was by all means a very capable force that made little contact with the local population. Between 1949 and 1955 there was also a huge effort to build a big Hungarian army. All procedures, disciplines, and equipment were exact copies of the [[Soviet]] [[Red Army]] in methods and material, but the huge costs collapsed the economy by 1956. |
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After the autumn [[1956 Hungarian Revolution|1956 revolution]] was crushed in [[Budapest]], the Soviets took away most of the Hungarian Army's equipment. A few years later, when offered a choice of withdrawal, the new Hungarian leader [[János Kádár]] asked for all the 200,000 Soviet troops to stay, because it allowed the [[socialist]] [[Hungarian People's Republic]] to neglect its own draft-based armed forces, quickly leading to deterioration of the military. Large sums of money were saved that way and spent on feel-good measures for the population, thus Hungary could become "[[the happiest barrack]]" in the [[Soviet Bloc]]. |
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Training for army conscripts was poor and most of those drafted were actually used as a free labour force (esp. railway track construction and agricultural work) after just a few weeks of basic rifle training. Popular opinion grew very negative towards the Hungarian Army and most young men tried to avoid the draft with bogus medical excuses. |
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==Current military== |
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[[Image:Military of Hungary-welcome.jpg|right|thumb|250px|[[Hungarian Ground Forces]] welcome the [[President of the United States]]. Mounted [[hussar]]s can be seen along the top.]] |
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[[Image:JAS 39 pair HuAF Kecskemét 2007.JPG|right|thumb|250px|The [[Hungarian Air Force]] has 14 [[JAS 39 Gripen]]s on lease, including two two-seaters (C/D versions). The final three aircraft were delivered in December 2007.]] |
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<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Hungarian soldiers.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Hungarian soldiers.{{ifdc|Image:Hungarian soldiers.jpg|log=2008 July 17}}]] --> |
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[[Image:Husaren Elsterwerda Oktober 2007 1.jpg|thumb|250px|Hungarian [[Hussar]]s]] |
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[[Image:Eufor222.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Military of [[Eufor]]]] |
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The Hungarian armed forces has severely reduced the number of battle [[tank]]s in service, surplussed all tracked [[IFV]] A large number of [[garrison]]s were shut down, some of them sold to municipal authorities for peaceful uses. |
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In 1997, Hungary spent about 123 billion HUF ($560 million) on defense. Hungary became a member of NATO on [[March 12]], [[1999]]. Hungary provided airbases and support for [[NATO]]'s air campaign against [[Serbia]] and has provided military units to serve in [[Kosovo]] as part of the NATO-led KFOR operation. Hungary has sent a 300 strong logistics unit to [[Iraq]] in order to help the US occupation with armed transport convoys, though public opinion opposed the country's participation in the war. One soldier was [[killed in action]] due to a roadside bomb in Iraq. The parliament refused to extend the one year mandate of the logistics unit and all troops have returned from Iraq as of mid-January 2005. Hungarian troops are still in Afghanistan as of early 2005 to assist in peace-keeping and de-[[taliban]]ization. However Hungary has started replace the old rovers to [[IVECO LMV]] types. Hungarians deployed a really famous anti-material rifle named Gepard M6. |
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In a significant move for modernization, Hungary decided in 2001 to buy 14 [[JAS 39 Gripen]] fighter aircraft (the contract includes 2 dual-seater airplanes and 12 single-seaters as well as ground maintenance facilities, a simulator, and training for pilots and ground crews) for 210 billion HUF (about 800 million EUR). Five Gripens (3 single-seaters and 2 two-seaters) arrived in [[Kecskemét]] on [[March 21]], [[2006]], expected to be transferred to the Hungarian Air Force on [[March 30]]. |
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[[Image:Hungarian Armed Forces.png|thumb|left|600px|Structure of the Armed Forces of Hungary]] |
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== Military branches == |
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*[[Hungarian Ground Forces]] |
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*[[Hungarian Air Force]] |
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==See also== |
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{{Commonscat|Military of Hungary}} |
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* [[Hungary]] |
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* [[History of Hungary]] |
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* [[Military history of Hungary]] |
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* [[Military ranks of Hungary]] |
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[http://www.honvedelem.hu On-line magazin of Hungarian Ministry of Defence] |
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[http://www.hm.gov.hu The homepage of the Hungarian Ministry of Defence] |
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[http://epa.niif.hu/00700/00775/00014/109-113.html Magyar Tudomány 2000. január<!-- Bot generated title -->] |
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{{Military of Europe}} |
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== References == |
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<references/> |
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== Trivia == |
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This term is also used in the name of the Hungarian football club, [[Budapest Honvéd FC]]. This was originally the army football team. |
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{{Militaries of European Union member states}} |
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{{NATO}} |
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{{Hungary articles}} |
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[[Category:Military of Hungary| ]] |
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[[de:Ungarische Streitkräfte]] |
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[[he:צבא הונגריה]] |
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[[hu:Magyar Honvédség]] |
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[[pl:Honwedzi]] |
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[[ru:Вооружённые силы Венгрии]] |
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Revision as of 19:34, 13 October 2008
| Military of Hungary | |
|---|---|
| Personnel | |
| Military age | 18 |
| Available for military service | 2,660,000, age 15–49 (2005 est.) |
| Fit for military service | 2,000,000, age 15–49 (2005 est.) |
| Reaching military age annually | 90,300 (2005 est.) |
| Active personnel | 29,780 (2008) |
| Expenditure | |
| Budget | $1,350 billion (2007), but 2010: 1,612 billion USD (future plan) |
| Percent of GDP | 1.2% (2006 est.) |
The Military of Hungary, or "Hungarian Armed Forces" currently has two branches, the "Hungarian Ground Force" and the "Hungarian Air Force."
The Hungarian Ground Force (or Army) is known as the "Corps of Homeland Defenders" (Honvédség). This term was originally used to refer to the revolutionary army established by Lajos Kossuth and the National Defence Committee of the Revolutionary Hungarian Diet in September 1848 during the Hungarian Revolution. In accordance with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the Hungarians were allowed to have their own forces for homeland defence integrated within the Imperial Forces. The Honvédség became a specifically Hungarian Army within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The term Honvédség is the name of the Hungarian military since 1848 referring to its purpose (véd in Honvéd) of defending the country. The Hungarian Army is called Magyar Honvédség. The rank equal to a Private is a Honvéd.
The Hungarian Air Force is the air force branch of the Hungarian Army.
History
Ancient, medieval, and early modern military
The Hungarian tribes of Árpád vezér who came to settle in the Carpathian Basin were noted for their fearsome light cavalry, who conducted frequent raids throughout much of Western Europe (as far as present-day Spain), maintining their military supremacy with long range and rapid-firing reflex bows. Not until the introduction of well-regulated, plate-armored knight heavy cavalry could German monarchs stop the Hungarian armies.
During the Árpáds the light cavalry based army was transformed slowly into a western-style one. The light cavalry lost its privileged position, replaced by a feudal army formed mainly from heavy cavalry.
The Hungarian field armies were drawn up into an articulated formation (as it happened in Battle of Przemysl- 1099, Battle at Leitha- 1146, Battle of Morvamezo- 1278, 1349), in three main battle (formation) (1146, 1278, 1349). According to the contemporary sources and later speculations, the first line was formed by light cavalry archers (Battle of Oslava- 1116, 1146, 1260, 1278). Usually they started the battle followed by a planned retreat (1116, 1146, Battle of Kroisennbrunn- 1260). The major decisive battles of the Hungarian army were placed in the second or third lines consisted mainly of the most valuable parts of the army - in general heavy cavalry (1146, 1278, 1349).
The commanders of the Hungarian Kingdom's army used different tactics, based on a recognition of their own and the enemies' (Holy Roman Empire, Pechenegs, Uzes, Cumans, Mongols, Byzantine Empire) abilities and deficiencies.
The Hungarian knight army had its golden age under King Louis the Great, who himself was a famed warrior and conducted successful campaigns in Italy due to family matters (his younger brother married Joan I, Queen of Naples who murdered him later.) King Matthias Corvinus maintained very modern mercenary-based royal troops, called the Black Army. King Matthias favoured ancient artillery (catapults) as opposed to cannons, which were the favourite of his father, Johannes Hunyadi the ottoman-beater, victor of the Siege of Nándorfehérvár in 1456.
During the Ottoman invasion of Central Europe (between late 1300s and circa 1700) Hungarian soldiers protected fortresses and launched light cavalry attacks against the Turks (see hussars). The northern fortress of Eger was famously defended in the autumn of 1552 during the 39 day Siege of Eger against the combined force of two Ottoman armies numbering circa 120,000 men and 16 ultra-heavy siege guns. The victory was very important, because two much stronger forts of Szolnok and Temesvár had fallen quickly during the summer. Public opinion attributed Eger's success to the all-Hungarian garrison, as the above two forts have fallen due to treason by the foreign mercenaries manning them. In 1596, Eger fell to the Ottomans for the same reason.
In the 1566 Battle of Szigetvár, Miklós Zrínyi defended Szigetvár for 30 days against the largest Ottoman army ever seen up to that day, and died leading his remaining few soldiers on a final suicide charge to become one of the best known national heroes. His great-grandson, Miklós Zrínyi, poet and general became of the better known stratagems of 1660s. In 1686, the capital city Buda was freed from the Ottomans by an allied Christian army composed of Hungarian, Austrian and Western European troops, each roughly 1/3rd of the army. The Habsburg then annexed Hungary.
Habsburg Hungarian military
Under Habsburg rule, Hungarian hussars rose to international fame and served as a model for light cavalry in many European countries. Hundreds of thousands of forcibly enrolled Hungarian males served 12 years or more as line infantry during the 1700s-1800s in the Austrian Imperial Army.
Two independence wars interrupted this era, that of Prince Francis II Rákóczi between 1703 and 1711 and that of Lajos Kossuth in 1848–1849. Both times Hungarian armies were crushed by the Habsburgs, but the second time not until the help of mighty Czarist Russian armies was summoned to purge Józef Bem's second army from Transylvania, opening the path into the heart of Hungary. Sándor Petőfi, the great Hungarian poet became a MIA in the Battle of Segesvár.
World War I
Huge numbers of Hungarians served and fell in World War I, especially on the Eastern Front and in the battles fought at Isonzo on the Italian Front.
After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire in late 1918, the Red Army of the Hungarian commune-state (Hungarian Soviet Republic) conducted successful campaigns to protect the borders. However, the Hungarians Reds were eventually crushed by the Romanian, French and American Army, in the spring of 1919, during the Battle of Tisza.
When Serbian and French troops had broken the Thessaloniki front-line, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria were finally defeated. This way, Hungary came under occupation of Romanian, Serbian, American, and French troops. The leaving Romanian army pillaged the country: livestock, machinery and agricultural products were carried to Romania in hundreds of freight cars. [1]
After World War I, in accordance with the Trianon Treaty, the Hungarian Army was limited to 35,000 men, there was to be no conscription, and the army was forbidden from having any tanks. The Hungarians were also not allowed to have an air force.
Mid-twentieth century
During the 1930s and early 1940s, Hungary was totally preoccupied with the idea of regaining the vast territories and huge amount of population lost in the Trianon peace treaty at Versailles in 1920. This required strong armed forces to defeat the neighbouring states and this was something Hungary could not afford. Instead, the Hungarian Regent, Admiral Miklós Horthy, made an alliance with German dictator Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. In exchange for this alliance and via the Vienna Awards, Hungary received back parts of its territories (lost due to the Trianon Treaty) from Yugoslavia, Romania, and Czechoslovakia. Hungary was to pay dearly during and after World War II for these temporary gains.
In March 1939, in order to gain territory [citation needed], Hungary launched an invasion of the Slovak Republic during the brief Slovak-Hungarian War, to reclaim a part of the territory lost in the Treaty of Trianon.
The peacetime strength of the Hungarian Army was 80,000 men. [1] On 1 March 1940, Hungary organized its ground forces into three field armies. The Hungarian Army fielded the Hungarian First Army, the Hungarian Second Army, and the Hungarian Third Army. With the exception of the independent "Fast Moving Army Corps" (Gyorshadtest), all three Hungarian field armies were initially relegated to defensive and occupation duties within the newly enlarged Hungarian state.
World War II
In November 1940, Hungary signed the Tripartite Pact and became a member of the Axis with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy.
In April 1941, in order to gain territory, Hungary joined the Germans in the invasion of Yugoslavia.
On 22 June 1941, elements of the Hungarian Army (Honvéd or Honvédség) support the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa. In the late summer of 1941, the Hungarian "Fast Moving Army Corps" (Gyorshadtest} scored a huge success against the Soviets at the Battle of Uman. A little more than a year later and contrasting sharply with the success at Uman, was the near total devastation of the Hungarian Second Army on banks of the Don River in December 1942 during the Battle for Stalingrad.
During 1943, the Hungarian Second Army was re-built. The re-built army even experienced some success of its own. In late 1944, as part of Panzerarmee Fretter-Pico, it participated in the destruction of a Soviet mechanized group at the Battle of Debrecen. But this success proves too costly in men and materials. Unable to re-build again, the Hungarian Second Army was disbanded towards the end of 1944.
To keep Hungary as an ally, the Germans occupied Hungary in March 1944 (Operation Margarethe). However, during the Warsaw Uprising, Hungarian troops refused to participate. [2]
On 15 October 1944, the Germans forced Horthy to abdicate (Operation Panzerfaust) and pro-Nazi Ferenc Szálasi was made Prime Minister by the Germans.
On 28 December 1944, a provisional government was formed with Béla Miklós as its Prime Minister. Miklós was the commander of the Hungarian First Army. He immediately ousted Prime Minister Ferenc Szálasi's government but most of the First Army sided with the Germans. The Germans, Szálasi, and pro-German Hungarian forces loyal to Szálasi fought on.
The Red Army completed the encirclement of Budapest on 29 December 1944 and the Battle of Budapest began and continued into February 1945. Most of what remained of the Hungarian First Army was destroyed about 200 kilometers north of Budapest between 1 January and 16 February 1945.
On 20 January 1945, representatives of the provisional government of Béla Miklós signed an armistice in Moscow. But forces loyal to Szálasi continued to fight on.
On 2 February 1945, the strength of the Hungarian Army was 214,465 men, but about 50,000 of these had been formed into unarmed labor battalions. [3] The siege of Budapest ended with the surrender of the city on 13 February. But, while the German forces in Hungary were generally in a state of defeat, the Germans had one more surprise for the Soviets.
In early March 1945, the Germans launch the Lake Balaton Offensive with support from the Hungarians. This offensive was almost over before it began. By 19 March 1945, Soviet troops had recaptured all the territory lost during a 13-day German offensive. [4]
After the failed offensive, the Germans in Hungary were defeated. Most of what remained of the Hungarian Third Army was destroyed about 50 kilometers west of Budapest between 16 March and 25 March 1945. Officially, Soviet operations in Hungary ended on 4 April 1945 when the last German troops were expelled.
Some pro-fascist Hungarians like Szálasi retreated with the Germans into Austria and Czechoslovakia. During the very last phase of the war, Fascist Hungarian forces fought in Vienna, Breslau, Küstrin, and along the Oder River. [5]
On 7 May 1945, General Alfred Jodl, the German Chief of Staff, signed the document of unconditional surrender for all German forces. Jodl signed this document during a ceremony in France. On 8 May, in accordance wit the wishes of the Soviet Union, the ceremony was repeated in Germany by General Wilhelm Keitel. On 11 June, the Allies agreed to make 9 May 1945 the official "Victory in Europe" day. [6] Szálasi and many other pro-fascist Hungarians were captured and ultimately returned to Hungary's provisional government for trial.
Warsaw Pact
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During the Socialist and the Warsaw Pact era (1955–1989), the entire 200,000 strong Southern Group of Forces was garrisoned in Hungary, complete with artillery, tank regiments, air force and missile troops (with nuclear weapons). It was by all means a very capable force that made little contact with the local population. Between 1949 and 1955 there was also a huge effort to build a big Hungarian army. All procedures, disciplines, and equipment were exact copies of the Soviet Red Army in methods and material, but the huge costs collapsed the economy by 1956.
After the autumn 1956 revolution was crushed in Budapest, the Soviets took away most of the Hungarian Army's equipment. A few years later, when offered a choice of withdrawal, the new Hungarian leader János Kádár asked for all the 200,000 Soviet troops to stay, because it allowed the socialist Hungarian People's Republic to neglect its own draft-based armed forces, quickly leading to deterioration of the military. Large sums of money were saved that way and spent on feel-good measures for the population, thus Hungary could become "the happiest barrack" in the Soviet Bloc.
Training for army conscripts was poor and most of those drafted were actually used as a free labour force (esp. railway track construction and agricultural work) after just a few weeks of basic rifle training. Popular opinion grew very negative towards the Hungarian Army and most young men tried to avoid the draft with bogus medical excuses.
Current military
The Hungarian armed forces has severely reduced the number of battle tanks in service, surplussed all tracked IFV A large number of garrisons were shut down, some of them sold to municipal authorities for peaceful uses.
In 1997, Hungary spent about 123 billion HUF ($560 million) on defense. Hungary became a member of NATO on March 12, 1999. Hungary provided airbases and support for NATO's air campaign against Serbia and has provided military units to serve in Kosovo as part of the NATO-led KFOR operation. Hungary has sent a 300 strong logistics unit to Iraq in order to help the US occupation with armed transport convoys, though public opinion opposed the country's participation in the war. One soldier was killed in action due to a roadside bomb in Iraq. The parliament refused to extend the one year mandate of the logistics unit and all troops have returned from Iraq as of mid-January 2005. Hungarian troops are still in Afghanistan as of early 2005 to assist in peace-keeping and de-talibanization. However Hungary has started replace the old rovers to IVECO LMV types. Hungarians deployed a really famous anti-material rifle named Gepard M6.
In a significant move for modernization, Hungary decided in 2001 to buy 14 JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft (the contract includes 2 dual-seater airplanes and 12 single-seaters as well as ground maintenance facilities, a simulator, and training for pilots and ground crews) for 210 billion HUF (about 800 million EUR). Five Gripens (3 single-seaters and 2 two-seaters) arrived in Kecskemét on March 21, 2006, expected to be transferred to the Hungarian Air Force on March 30.
Military branches
See also
On-line magazin of Hungarian Ministry of Defence
The homepage of the Hungarian Ministry of Defence
References
- ^ Page 207, Mollo, Andrew, The Armed Forces of World War II, Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4
- ^ Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, The Armed Forces of World War II, Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4
- ^ Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, The Armed Forces of World War II, Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4
- ^ Page 182, The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047
- ^ Page 208, Mollo, Andrew, The Armed Forces of World War II, Crown, 1981, New York, ISBN 0-517-54479-4
- ^ Page 298, The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047
Trivia
This term is also used in the name of the Hungarian football club, Budapest Honvéd FC. This was originally the army football team.
