A Tale of Two Revolutions: Hungary’s 1956 and the Un-doing of 1989

Abstract

This article is part of the special section titled The Genealogies of Memory, guest edited by Ferenc Laczó and Joanna Wawrzyniak

This article investigates the evolution of Hungary’s memory of 1956, from the counterrevolution to the dissident struggle for rehabilitation in the eighties, its relation to the change of regimes in 1989, and its subsequent appropriation for nationalist purposes in defiance of a European memory regime. Mnemonic warriors like Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and historian Mária Schmidt have championed 1956 as a struggle for freedom and independence and symbols of Hungarian martyrdom and bravery. Only recently a new-found Central European unity in adversity has been observed: the “counterrevolution” against the European Union. Perusing interviews, samizdat articles, public appeals and speeches, and other documentary evidence, including historical analyses, this article identifies mnemonic actors and strategies to assess the intricate relationship between 1956 and 1989. The analysis of museum exhibitions, statues, monuments, and national symbols helps reveal the varying significance ascribed to 1956 before and after 1989. The study relies on the conceptual groundwork of Michael Bernhard and Jan Kubik. It contributes to arguments put forth by historians James Mark, Anna Seleny, Nora Borodziej, and Árpád von Klimó.