Hungary

• After Stalin's death in 1953, there was a reaction against his dictatorship
• De-Stalinisation


  Reforms initiated by Krushchev after Stalin's death to denounce his influence and make Soviet society less repressive
• Eastern bloc


  Countries in Eastern Europe that were controlled by the Soviet Union, for example Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia
• Sphere of influence


  In international politics, an area in which one nation holds, or claims to hold, dominant power over a country or several countries
• Warsaw Pact


  A collection of 12 communist countries that agreed to defend each other if one of them was attacked
• Communism


  A system of running a country in which all means of production such as tools, factories and raw materials, are owned by the community as a whole. Private property does not exist and each individual contributes according to their ability and receives according to their needs. This means there is no hierarchy of social class
• This led to riots and demonstrations in Poland and Czechoslovakia and a full blown rebellion in Hungary in 1956
• Causes of the uprising in Hungary in 1956


  • Nationalism
  • Religion
  • Poverty
  • Oppression
  • Western promises
  • Death of Stalin
• Events of the Hungarian uprising in 1956

  1. 23 October 1956 - students took to the streets demanding reforms and were supported by the workers and the Hungarian army

  2. 24 October 1956 - Soviets agreed to the formation of a new government under the leadership of the more liberal Imre Nagy

  3. 28 October 1956 - Soviet tanks withdraw from Hungary

  4. 1 November 1956 - Nagy introduces reforms including leaving the Warsaw Pact and holding free democratic elections

  5. 4 November 1956 - 6,000 Soviet tanks crossed the Hungarian border. Bitter street fighting occurred and 30,000 were killed
• Nagy sought refuge in the Yugoslav Embassy but was captured and executed in 1958. After the Hungarian uprising was crushed, Janos Kadar replaced Nagy and communist control was reasserted. However, some reforms were then introduced at this stage
• Buffer zone


  An area giving someone protection against a threat, eg the USSR wanted a buffer zone around them after being invaded by Germany in both World Wars
• The Soviets could not allow Hungary to leave the Warsaw Pact as such an action would leave a gap in the USSR's buffer zone with Western Europe. Soviet security was Khrushchev's priority and so he decided to crack down on the new Hungarian government
• Although the West expressed sympathy for the Hungarian people, there was no attempt at intervention by the USA or Western Europe. This was due to a number of reasons: Their attention was fixed on the Anglo-French invasion of Suez, President Eisenhower was campaigning for re-election and was not interested in events in Hungary, the problem of getting access to Hungary, as Austria was neutral and NATO forces could not advance through it, Khrushchev threatened Britain and France with rockets if they attempted to intervene and it risked the possibility of war with the USSR
• It was clear that the West was not prepared to attempt rollback of communism within the Soviet sphere of influence in Eastern Europe
• Hungary was placed under strict communist control. In Eastern Europe, there was the realisation that the USSR would not tolerate anyone attempting to break free from the Warsaw Pact. They also accepted that even if they remained loyal to communism, it had to be on the USSR's terms. Events in Hungary were a clear warning to the other countries within the Soviet sphere of influence not to attempt any move towards independence