*** Hungarian schools: independent Hungary 1918-45

Hungarian Schools Chronology--Independent Hungary (1918-45)

Figure 1.-- This is a class at a Budapest secondary school in 1924. Secondary schools as far as we know were mostly single gender schools. Notice the wide range of outfits. The boys look to be about 13-14 years of age. The portrait is labeled 'Botfan boys pageant'. We are not sure what that means. The boys wear a variety of suits with ties and open collars. We notice, short pants, knickers, and long pants. Most boys are wearing long stockings.

Hungary achieved its independence in the aftermath of World War I and the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (1918). As Hungary had a degree of autonomy within the Hapsburg empire, the transition was not as significant as might have been expected. There were complications in building a new school system. There were language issues. And we are not sure about staff issues. We do not know to what extent non-Hungarian (Germans and Jews) teachers retained their jobs. Primary schools might be coeducational, at least in rural ares. Secondary schools as far as we know were mostly single gender schools. Our information is limited on school wear at independent Hungary after the War. Unlike some countries, we have been able to find relatively few photographs for our archive, probably because Hungary was a relatively small country. We do not think children wore uniforms to school. We see boys mostly wearing short pants in primary school. There was some variation seasonally and regionally. City schools were more formal than rural schools. Clothing in secondary schools were more varied. Boys commonly wore suits. Attendance was limited with few working-class children or ethnic minorities (except Germans and Jews) attending. The principal minority was Slovakian, although shifts in the border with Romania brought in substantial numbers of Romanians and the loss of Transylvania fave rise to a irredentist movement. Ethnic diversity affected school wear as the Slovak population was more rural and still wore traditional clothes to an extent. We see a range of suits. Younger boys might wear short pants or knicker suits with long stockings and knee socks. Older boys wore long pants.

The 1910s

One author points out, "The Hungarian history of education followed the pathway of the German-speaking countries regarding the approach and the function until 1948." 【Szabó, Garai, and Németh 】 This meant a high standard of education and a relatively early adoption of free public education, albeit with ethic complications. Public education was already well established (18th century). Major reforms in education were instituted by József Eötvös, Minister of religion and public education in the Act of 1868 on elementary education. This of course was at the time of Prussia's victory in the Austro-Prussian War and the creation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. All children, both boys and girls aged 6 to 15 were required to attend school and the curriculum was modernized, The result was a rapid increase in literacy which was only about 35 percent (1870). By the time of World War I, literacy was a respectable 70 percent (1910s). World War I (1914-18) was a disaster for Hungary. The liberal The Civic Democratic Revolution resulted in an independent Hungary (1918). The new government was, however, forced to sign the the Trianon Treaty (1920), one of the World War I peace treaties. Hungary lost something like 70 percent of its historical lands--a much greater loss of territory than was the case of Germany. Thus Hungary was reduced from an empire to what most Hungarian saw as a 'dismembered' state. Of course nationalists ignore the fact that most of the population in the lost territories were not ethnic Hungarians. The Civic Democratic Government since it precided over this loss of territory plummeted in popularity and there was rising right-wing sentiment. 【Nagy】 Territorial issues were one of the primary genesis of Fasism in Europe. And this political shift would be reflected in the education system.

The 1920s

Hungary achieved its independence in the aftermath of World War I and the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (1918). As Hungary had a degree of autonomy within the Hapsburg Empire, the transition to independence was not as significant as might have been expected. The loss of territory, however, was a shock to the Hungarian people. Laying the foundation for Admiral Horthy's seizure of power as regent. Horthy is often seen as a Fascist. That may be mischaracterization, but he certainly was a conservative nationalist, pursuing irredentist goals and anti-Semetic, although not genocidal. The confluence with Fascism is obvious. Horthy's rule was aided by foreign intervention (Czech, Romanian, and Hungarian) and recognized by the Allies. This was reflected in Hungarian policies during the inter-War period, including educational policies. This affected both primary and secondary education and was overseen by Count Kunó Klebelsberg an Hungarian nationalist and ardent anti-Semite who became the Minister of Culture (responsible fo education). He promoted both Hungarian culture over minority groups and anti-Semitism. (Hungary was not unique in this regard. Austro-Hungarian authorities protected Jews and other minorities. The new national governments after the War reflected the majority ethnic groups, commonly began taking actions against Jews and other minorities. The same was the case in the Ottoman Empire which protected Jews from Arab excesses.) Liberal and left wing teachers were dismissed. Catholic religious practice was adopted in the schools. The primary step was the Education Act of 1924 designed by Count Klebelsberg. In primary education, the Government promoted Bürgerschule. This was a school type appearing in the 19th century for children 10-14, the highest level of primary school. It was intended to met the needs of the lower middle classes who did not want to send their sons and daughters on to the secondary level Gymnasium, but wanted more than the 4 years of basic primary education for their children. As primary education was the responsibility of municipalities, this additional burden fell upon local government. The result was more than a thousand new primary schools, many in the central country-side where basic literacy and absenteeism was a major problem. 【Nagy】 The 1924 Act focused primarily on secondary education. Entrance exams were adopted for the secondary schools. The first 20th century act in Europe was adopted restricting Jewish students entry into universities--the numerus clausus. The Act introduced a new type of secondary school designed to operate on a level somewhere between the Realschool and the Gymnasium -- the approximately named Realgymnasium. 【Nagy】 This was a major departure from Hungarian educational policy. The Act of 1890 Act maintained the focus of the secondary schools on academic studies. The 1924 Act dealt with: 1) the various types of secondary schools, 2) guarantee of equal access to university entrance. and 3) national values. Hungarian language and literature lessons were more important following the nationalist impetus of the new regime. The Horthy Government did not go much further in right-wing measures in education. Horthy stopped further political purges of teachers as well as anti-Semitic movements in the universities. It is not really obvious why. Some historians believe it was the need tio secure international loans and to be seen as a responsible post-war government. There were complications in building a new school system. There were language issues. We do not know to what extent non-Hungarian (Germans and Jews) teachers retained their jobs. Primary schools might be coeducational, at least in rural ares. Secondary schools as far as we know were mostly single gender schools. The quality of Hungarian education can be seen in the important scientists it produced. Scientists like Ede (Edward) Teller, Albert Szent-Györgyi, János Harsányi and György Oláh. The rise of Fascistic sentiment ad university admission restrictions is why a young Teller and others left Hungary for Germany (1926). (It is one of the great ironies of history that a military-obsessed Adolf Hitler would drive key atomic scientists including the father if the Hydrogen Fusion bomb out of Germany and to Britain and America.)

The 1930s

The 1930s would be dominated by the world-wide Depression set off by the stick market crash in America (1929). Hungary would not be as affected by industrial Germany which was dependent on foreign trade, but few countries were left unaffected by the Depression, including Hungary. The conservative government resigned and right wing conservatives took office and this included the Ministry of Education. The new minister of education Bálint Hóman wanted to promote the unification of Hungarian education, including the 'national school subjects' as well as the education system in general. There was a desire to eliminate alternatives. A new procedure was initiated to require authorization for schools not operated by the Hungarian national government, meaning municipal and denominational schools. Hóman also promoted a standard curriculum including Latin for student aspiring for a secondary or university education. It was also seen as unnecessary for students to learn foreign languages other than German. Hóman also sought to keep the liberal spirit of English and French culture out of the curriculum. To finalize all of this, a new Secondary Education Act was enacted (1934). The teaching of Latin was important in Hungary because the national ethos was steeped in Western Catholic culture in an areas where Easter Orthodoxy is important. It symbolized a 1000 year-old tradition of Hungary as an outpost of the Catholic West in an area where Pan-Slavist Greek-Catholicism is important. The Hungarian nobility used Latin as the common language of law and official documents. It was not a rigidly racist system. Individuals from non-Magyar families be accepted into the Hungarian ruling class through language. It was Latin Hungarian society from Austrian/German culture. Latin was also the language of the the Catholic church. Latin symbolized the old, traditional values they were seen as being threatened by modern developments. This an issue many European countries faced, but in Hungary there were political connotations. The NAZIs had taken power in Germany (1933). NAZI ideology vied with Italian influences. The Latin lobby became the main opposition to German/NAZI influence. Liberal forces including Jewish business and financial interests gradually joined the the Latin group seeing it as a bulwark against NAZIism. The NAZIs in Germany antiquity was used for pro-NAZI propaganda. Liberal and anti-NAZI groups supported the government's move to declare Latin a 'national subject' The 1934 Act reduced the independence of Protestant schools. Secondary school teachers became public officials. Beginning in 1883, student who passed a final 'maturity' examination of their secondary school could enter a university. The 1934 Act introduced a requirement for students to have a kind of endorsement on their school certificate from a maturity committee. The endorsement was not academic, but was based on ideological and political matters. The educational reforms of the 1930s involved increasing central control, more controls on teachers, and less local community involvement with schools. This was all designed to ensure the continued traditional structure of Hungarian society. 【Nagy】 We notice an undated school class portrait which looks like it was taken about 1930. It is an all boys class. The boys are probably the older boys at a primary school, probably about 12 years old. . All we know for sure was the portrait was taken in Budapest. Most of the boys wear suits with open collar shirts. A few boys wear simple 't' shirts. The boys wear shirt pants with ankle socks, knee socks, and long stockings. A few boys have close-cropped hair, a style popular in schools earlier Most boys have combable cuts.

The 1940s

Hungary was gradually brought within the NAZI sphere through economic and irredentist support. The country joined the Axis (1940), but tried to stay out of the War. It participated in the invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia. Hungary managed not to participate in Operation Barbarossa, in part because Hitler was convinced the Soviet Union would collapse without much of a fight (1941). This changed the next year when the NAZIs attempted another offensive in the Soviet Union. Hitler demanded Hungarian participation. Huge losses in the Stalingrad campaign brought the War home to Hungary (1942-43). Conservative officials continued to control the schools. conservative society. It was a tool for the forces who wanted the stabilize their power and legitimacy through education. The structure, the system of control and the habits were adapted from the previous regime. The Red Army reached the Hungarian border (1944). The Soviets gradually put Communists in control through NKVD intimidation and electoral fraud. They soon controlled the Government and began major educational reforms (1948).

Sources

Nagy, Péter Tibor. "The social and political history of Hungarian education," Magyar Ekektronikus Könyvtár--mek.oszk.hu (undated).

Szabó, Zoltán András, Imre Garai, and András Németh. "The history of education in Hungary from the mid-nineteenth century to present day," Paedagogica Historica Vol. 58, No. 6 (2022), pp. 901–19.

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Created: 6:14 AM 3/9/2013
Last updated: 4:30 AM 5/6/2024